August 2018
America’s ‘dream machine’
... atmosphere, not in space. For those familiar with the Space Shuttle programme, this is our ‘Enterprise’ - we needed to test controllability of the vehicle, see how it flew in the atmosphere and how it landed. An artist’s impression of Dream Chaser...
April 2019
LISA Pathfinder – paving the way for future studies of the gravitational universe
... from 10-4 to 10-1 Hz a space-based detector, undisturbed by ground motion, is required. The principle of such an observatory is that free-falling test masses, which are isolated from all external forces, will move along geodesics of the curved space...
October 2019
Skyrora – building on British space heritage
... the XL’s second stage and achieves a higher vacuum performance at 85 kN thrust. This engine will be tested at the company’s own test facility in Scotland. Engine test in July 2019. The third stage of the XL carries the payload into orbit, following...
January 2018
SLS ushers transformation of deep space exploration
... rather than welded and major structural assembly is also complete. Modifications to Stennis Test Stand A-1 to support RS-25 testing were completed in 2014, and testing has been underway since the beginning of 2015 to certify that the engines will...
March 2021
Building SLS - a contractual odyssey
...of human exploration beyond Earth orbit. Equipped to launch crews of up to four in NASA’s Orion spacecraft, its first significant test is Artemis, the much-publicised mission to land American astronauts “including the first woman” on the Moon by 2024...
February 2016
A Self-Deployable Habitat for Extreme Environments (SHEE)
...selected mainly because of the availability of tried-and-tested, off-the-shelf components. The drives are compact ...mission, the SHEE habitat is being tested in a laboratory environment. Tests include: exterior operations including repeated deployment ...
