Europe in space:Project "ARIES" and "MOONLIGHT".

[carmelo]

First step:Project "ARIES":                                            
(See images below on post by Braddock).

[marcozambi]

Dear friends,
I join Carmelo in this thread just to add few infos about this Italian project, translating some slide (well, I think that too many people do not read Italian fluently  . Well, my english is really doggish ).

The first slide in the first post says:
"Thanks to a modular project criteria, the vehicle Aries A could be mated with a winged rear part and to a new nose (forming Aries B).
The goal is obtaining a winged spacecraft with optimal performances in both reentry and landing phases, and thanks to the better crossrange and to the elimination of drag chute this spacecraft could land on a normal aristrip, like airliners actually do."

The whole project has been presented yesterday to NASA representatives in response to the RFI NNJ06LSAM05. Deadline is 23rd june 2006.
The "Exploration Working Group" (created by joint agreemebt between AAS-I/CIRA) is composed by:

Alcatel Alenia Space Italia:
BU (Business Unit) Roma - Ing. Luciano Micciché
BU (Business Unit) Torino - Ing. Roberto Provera

CIRA (Centro Italiano Ricerche Aerospaziali) [Italian Space Resarch Center]
Ing. Gennaro Russo PMAS

MARS (Microgravity Advanced Research and Support Center)
Arch. Giuseppe De Chiara (supporto al CdC dell'A/Q AAS-I/CIRA)

[braddock]

This might be too much, but here are the graphics.

http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/3722/presentazioneariesab10cb.jpg">

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http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/7731/evoluzionearies5sw.jpg">

[braddock]

Second step: Project "Moonlight":                                          

http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/5039/slide148wt.jpg">
                                       http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/3899/slide156yg.jpg">
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                                                http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/6091/slide366nw.jpg">
                                   http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/6583/slide377ny.jpg">
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 http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/6448/slide429ln.jpg">
  http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/1584/slide288ix.jpg">

[braddock]

EAGLE lander remains  in lunar orbit and is reusable Three times.A new mission:            
http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/5690/slide139eo.jpg">
 http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/3189/slide342fd.jpg">
 http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/6091/slide366nw.jpg">
 http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/7358/slide379lc.jpg">
 http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/9357/slide398eo.jpg">
 http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/991/slide401578sq.jpg">

[braddock]

Third step, LOOP (Lunar Orbital Operations Platform)ISS derived platform:                          
http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/4673/slide149kx.jpg">
                                                http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/746/slide155jz.jpg">
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                                            http://img288.imageshack.us/img288/1909/slide175ti.jpg">
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                                                http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/6445/slide221jg.jpg">

[braddock]

Next:Lunar outpost:

               http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/3450/slide231il.jpg                                                       ">
 http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/2889/slide248qu.jpg                                              ">
 http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/9629/slide254tu.jpg">

[braddock]

Now that's cool.  

Any chance we could slap "NASA VSE" on the title?  Because that would at least be a moon project with some class...

[marcozambi]

braddock - 19/6/2006  9:11 PM

Now that's cool.  

Any chance we could slap "NASA VSE" on the title?  Because that would at least be a moon project with some class...

Hey, thanks for your nice words.
Here in Italy we space enthusiasts do not hope so much. But indeed there are some interesting ideas that could be useful for your VSE program.
Behind this project there are a lot of brillant engineers and a space architect (the author of all the slides posted here), working for subsidiaries of Alcatel Alenia Space (do you remember Cupola and MPLMs? They built them).

If you have any question, or the need for a translation, just say that and we'll be here.

[nacnud]

Interesting stuff, Lets just see if I get this right. The Aries A is a lifting body similar to the original concept Klipper. The Eagle Lander takes this, removes the TPS etc adds a couple of UDMH/N2O4 engines and you have a Lander.

The LOOP is basically way of reusing the Landers more efficiently, if a high enough flight rate is achievable and is based of ISS tech. Is the LOOP in polar or equatorial orbit?

Add a solar/electric tug for propellant delivery and that’s all the elements you need for a Mars mission.

Any idea how many launches a non-LOOP sortie mission would need, how does the cost compare to the CLV/CEV/CaLV?

[braddock]

marcozambi - 19/6/2006  2:46 PM
The whole project has been presented yesterday to NASA representatives in response to the RFI NNJ06LSAM05. Deadline is 23rd june 2006.

Could you give some context of exactly what this project is, who is funding it, and where it might be going going?  Is this just a rough proposal?  What is NASA RFI NNJ06LSAM05?

On this site, more technical detail is always welcome.

Thanks!

[Zachstar]

This sounds like a great mission to simulate in orbiter!

Have yall heard of Orbiter www.orbitersim.com.

Maybe an add-on based on this concept can be planned out do you have detailed but lower poly models of the craft?

[nacnud]

I noticed that the Aries A was also to carry ISPRs, does that mean it uses the CBM? Is the CBM used throughout the designs, if so how can the components be joined without an arm?

[marcozambi]

nacnud - 19/6/2006  9:25 PM

Interesting stuff, Lets just see if I get this right. The Aries A is a lifting body similar to the original concept Klipper. The Eagle Lander takes this, removes the TPS etc adds a couple of UDMH/N2O4 engines and you have a Lander.

While as you said Aries A is quite similar to Kliper, the Eagle lander is quite different.
Eagle is bigger, to be able to offer a quite comfortable  accomodation for astronauts, and be fully prepared for long duration missions on moon surface.
The "skin" of Aries is thinked to be easily removeable, in order to grant full accessibility to the structural airframe and the various apparatus. The pressurized section is fully self contained.

The LOOP is basically way of reusing the Landers more efficiently, if a high enough flight rate is achievable and is based of ISS tech. Is the LOOP in polar or equatorial orbit?

Add a solar/electric tug for propellant delivery and that’s all the elements you need for a Mars mission.

Any idea how many launches a non-LOOP sortie mission would need, how does the cost compare to the CLV/CEV/CaLV?

LOOP is a way to maximize the operative life of Eagle landing modules, reusing (or cheaply rebuilding) a certain number of ISS components (a little hab realized by use an MPLM, a node, a solar panel truss) and placing a little, mostrly unmanned space and refuelling station in L1 or Low Lunar Orbit.
Eagles returning from lunar surface will dock to node and wait for refurbisment, fresh crew and refuelling.

As far this is only a "concept" study, a real account of costs has not been performed yet.

[Chris Bergin]

marcozambi - 19/6/2006  8:43 PM

Marco Zambianchi
www.forumastronautico.it Creator & Admin
BIS Member

Nice forum. Welcome to this site