Posted on May 16, 2012, at 10:08 am .
SpaceX's proposed commercial spaceport lies near Brownsville, Texas not far from the Mexican border. (Credit: Google Maps)
There was a big turnout last night at a hearing in Texas on SpaceX’s proposed commercial spaceport:
Hundreds of people turned out Tuesday for a public hearing on SpaceX’s proposal to build a satellite launch site in Cameron County, and virtually all comments from the public showed support for the project.
Dozens of people took the microphone and all supported the venture, according to Gilberto Salinas, spokesman for the Brownsville Economic Development Council. A few people voiced concerns for wildlife in the area.
The Federal Aviation Administration hosted Tuesday hearing to help assess the proposal by Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, for a launch pad in Cameron County. The gathering, held at the ITEC Center, attracted an estimated 500 people, all seeking information or wanting to offer comments.
The FAA heard from local, county and state officials as well as educators and students — all showing support for space technology making its way to one of the poorest areas in the nation.
Read the full story.
Posted on May 16, 2012, at 9:35 am .
Jennifer Brisco, winner of XCOR's suborbital flight giveaway poses in the full size Lynx cockpit model at the Spacecraft Technology Expo in Los Angeles. (Credit: XCOR)
Mojave CA, May 16, 2012 (XCOR PR): XCOR Aerospace today announced the grand prize winner of a trip aboard the Lynx Mark I suborbital launch vehicle. XCOR Chief Operating Officer Andrew Nelson made the announcement at the Spacecraft Technology Expo (STE) in Los Angeles, CA.
“About two months ago, we were at an event called the Next-Generation Suborbital Researchers Conference, where together with the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) we gave away a suborbital flight,” said XCOR Chief Operating Officer Andrew Nelson. “We had a winner, and we had a backup. Unfortunately our main winner was unable to accept the prize. Our backup winner, Jennifer Brisco, is now the official recipient of the suborbital flight.”
Continue reading ‘XCOR Announces Lynx Trip Winner’
Posted on May 16, 2012, at 8:55 am .
To boldly go.... (Credit: Douglas Messier)
By Douglas Messier
Parabolic Arc Managing Editor
The East Kern Airport District (EKAD) has hired a former state senator to lobby Sacramento on behalf of legislation that would limit the liability of spacecraft operators if they injure passengers during flights.
On Tuesday, the EKAD Board of Directors voted to hire former Sen. Roy Ashburn at a rate of $5,000 per month over six months for consulting services. Ashburn’s main responsibility is to promote an informed consent bill introduced in February by Assemblyman Steve Knight of California’s 36th district.
Continue reading ‘Mojave Spaceport Hires Lobbyist as Prospects for Limited Liability Bill Brighten’
Posted on May 16, 2012, at 8:25 am .
HOUSTON (ISPS PR) – Innovative Space Propulsion Systems (ISPS) has passed another critical milestone in their progress toward the launch of their NOFBX™ green propulsion demonstration to the International Space Station (ISS). ISPS is working toward demonstrating their high-performance, non-toxic and environmentally-benign propulsion technology on the ISS under an award from the NASA ISS National Laboratory program. In April, ISPS passed NASA’s ISS Payload Safety Review Panel phase 1 review.
Continue reading ‘Green Propellant Passes ISS Safety Review’
Posted on May 16, 2012, at 5:06 am .
Todd May, SLS program manager, details the program's status during a session of the National Space Club's Florida Committee. (Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett)
By Steven Siceloff
NASA Kennedy Space Center
The Space Launch System is on track to give America the launch vehicle it will need to send humans deeper into space than ever before, the program’s manager said May 8.
Speaking to the National Space Club during a luncheon near NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Todd May, SLS program manager, said an uncrewed test flight of the Orion spacecraft in 2014, SLS mission in 2017 and a 10- to 14-day mission with astronauts going to the moon and back in 2021 will leave the nation in a position to explore as far as it wishes.
“By that point, you’ll have the capability to go anywhere in the solar system people want to go,” May said. May leads a team of engineers and designers at NASA’s Marshall Spaceflight Center in Huntsville, Ala. “The ultimate goal is to put human boots on Mars.”
Continue reading ‘NASA: SLS to Return Americans to Deep Space’
Posted on May 15, 2012, at 5:48 pm .
By Douglas Messier
Parabolic Arc Managing Editor
An additional 50 jobs will be added at the Mojave Air & Space Port under a plan to locate three solar power facilities at the desert facility.
On Tuesday, the East Kern Airport District Board of Directors approved an agreement with Elecnor, Inc., of Delaware to locate solar power facilities on approximately 12 acres of land at the spaceport. The sites are located beyond the end of one of the runways and in several open areas between Mojave’s 15 rocket test sites, officials said.
Continue reading ‘Solar Power to Bring 50 New Jobs to Mojave Spaceport’
Posted on May 15, 2012, at 4:14 pm .
By Douglas Messier
Parabolic Arc Managing Editor
Space Expedition Curacao has hired Mojave Air & Space Port CEO and General Manager Stu Witt to advise the Dutch company on spaceport operations and procedures.
During a meeting on Tuesday, the East Kern Airport District Board of Directors approved moving ahead with an agreement under which Witt would advise the company, which plans to begin operating XCOR’s Lynx suborbital vehicle out of the Caribbean island of Curacao in 2014.
Witt said his duties would be to serve on an advisory board and to attended a couple of meetings per year. Witt would be paid for his time and reimbursed for expenses, with money flowing to EKAD and not to him.
Witt revealed that in addition to Curacao, SXC is looking to fly Lynx vehicles from the Netherlands and possibly from Mojave as well. The company also is in negotiations with other possible locations, he added.
Posted on May 15, 2012, at 3:49 pm .
Katrina Drees
MOJAVE, California (May 15, 2012) – Mojave Air & Space Port, the world’s premiere civilian flight test center, announced the appointment of Karina Drees to Director of Business Development. In the newly formed role, Drees will provide strategic direction for economic development and marketing initiatives, while working on tenant expansion and retention.
Drees brings more than 12 years of experience in strategy and business development. She has held management positions for growing technology companies ranging in size from startups to large public companies. Most recently, she was a member of the strategy and positioning team for SRA International, a large defense contractor in Fairfax, VA.
Continue reading ‘Mojave Air & Space Port Hires Director of Business Development’
Posted on May 15, 2012, at 12:02 pm .
WASHINGTON D.C.(CSF PR) – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation will hold a press conference call on Thursday May 17th, at 2:00 PM EDT with CSF President Michael Lopez-Alegria, NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver, and XCOR Aerospace CEO Jeff Greason to discuss the state of the emerging commercial spaceflight industry. With the next COTS cargo demonstration flight coming up this weekend, this is a great moment to take stock of the commercial spaceflight industry, and the ways NASA and the industry are cooperating to expand our presence in space and bring space closer to all Americans.
Posted on May 15, 2012, at 10:50 am .
Dream Chaser cockpit simulator. (Credit: Sierra Nevada Corporation)
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (NASA PR) – NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., successfully completed wind tunnel testing for Sierra Nevada Corp. (SNC) Space Systems of Louisville, Colo. The test will provide aerodynamic data that will aid in the design of the new Dream Chaser® Space System.
During tests at Marshall’s wind tunnel facility, a scale model of SNC’s Dream Chaser orbital crew vehicle was mounted on a scale model of the United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V launch vehicle. Over 400 data runs were performed at subsonic, transonic and supersonic speeds to study the effects of how air moves past the model. Nine full-stack configurations were tested over a Mach range of .4, or 304 miles per hour at sea level, to Mach 5, or 3,800 miles per hour at sea level, at various launch vehicle roll angles.
Continue reading ‘NASA Marshall Completes Wind Tunnel Tests on SNC’s Dream Chaser’
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