Jules Verne returns: Will space guns provide low-cost access to space?

Launching people into space using guns was popularized nearly 150 years ago by Jules Verne, but has to date remained in the realm of science fiction. Bart Leahy reports on one venture’s effort to develop a gun launch system that could put payloads into orbit for a fraction of the cost of conventional rockets.
Written on July 30, 2007 | Posted in New Space | No comment

A Tribute to Glenn May

I received permission to post this from Greg Allison of our local NSS chapter about Glenn May. Glenn died in the explosion at Mojave yesterday. We lost one of our own yesterday. Glenn May was a member of HAL5, was a key player in our HALO program, and he worked for me at HARC on our BLRV and CATS Prize rockets. (more...)
Written on July 27, 2007 | Posted in Space Advocacy | No comment

Doubts about COTS

Tommy Holloway, chair of the International Space Station (ISS) Safety Task Force and former ISS manager for NASA, doubts that COTS will work for the ISS supply gap between 2010 and 2014.
Of course he doesn’t. Cause in NASA’s world commercial development is a risk and government development is always successful (note the sarcasm). Hopefully that [...]

Written on July 25, 2007 | Posted in COTS | No comment

Eyewitness: A View From Space

At the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, a panel spoke on the new space race. In their view this includes NASA, China, India, Russia, and private space firms.
Greg Olsen, the third tourist on the International Space Station said, “The Russians and the Americans were first, but it doesn’t belong to us. It belongs to [...]

Written on July 23, 2007 | Posted in Foreign Space | No comment

ISS as National

The International Space Station (ISS) should be used as a national laboratory to support scientific research and commercial business development. Congress supports this idea and NASA is now moving in the direction of helping to make the national lab concept a reality. This is good news for taxpayers wanting to ensure that America maximizes the [...]

Written on July 22, 2007 | Posted in NASA | No comment

NASA Awards Ares Engine Contract

NASA has awarded the contract for the J-2x engine for the upper stage of the Ares to Pratt and Whitney. The contract is valued at $1.2 billion.

Written on July 17, 2007 | Posted in NASA | No comment