Dr. Alan Stern
Some notes from today’s Next-generation Suborbital Researchers Conference concerning upcoming flights and vehicle development. In this report: Southwest Research Institute, XCOR, Armadillo Aerospace, Masten Space Systems, Blue Origin and Teachers in Space.
Southwest Research Institute – Alan Stern
- Eight flights on XCOR and Virgin Galactic vehicles, with options for up to 17 missions
- SwRI scientists will fly after XCOR and Virgin Galactic have FAA licenses
- XCOR flights will be on Lynx Mark I (maximum altitude of 61 kilometers)
- Expect that flights will have occurred by the 2013 Next-generation Suborbital Researchers Conference
- Previously spent nearly a decade to fly seven microgravity experiments; will be able to do eight flights within a year
- Three experiments already prepared for suborbital flights
- Flights will involve a “significant number of experiments”
- Putting scientists back in the loop on experiments — less remote control
- Scientists on board reduce the cost of automation, they can react to data on a real-time basis and make changes
Continue reading ‘Commercial Suborbital Flights and Vehicle Development’
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