Orion Hardware Processing

[pathfinder_01]

The Space Show did an interview with Laurence Price, Deputy Orion Program Manager, in which he talks about the Orion program; decoupling of Orion from the architecture outcome, expedited test schedule, and use of Delta 4 Heavy for the 2013 test flight, etc.

http://www.thespaceshow.com/detail.asp?q=1418

It's a three person interview show, the Larry Price portion starts at around 58-59 minutes in.

Talking about being able to launch on a Delta IV Heavy for testing:

"...we'll try to decouple our constraints to get to LEO on the way to that deep space mission."

Absolutely! Yes, yes, and Amen!
"We want to be as independent as possible of the delivery system."

Yes! Sounds like Larry learned the hard lessons of Ares I. No matter what launch system is built, being able to have the spacecraft decoupled from the launch vehicle means the spacecraft, and thus the manned BEO capability, can survive a budgetary environment that may kill one launch vehicle or another.

Awesome. I like this. I like that Orion is being designed to be flexible and capable. This is why I like Orion.

I know the best space news I have hear today. This way Orion stands a chance to survive. Now if only they could work on depots and earth departure stages.

[marsavian]

The other important thing is that once Orion flies on Delta IV Heavy there will be a de facto unofficial emergency backup to Soyuz, Commercial and SLS in terms of getting crew to and back from the ISS. I also hope NASA embraces this LV whenever they just need to launch Orion by itself as it is clearly the best fit for that payload.

[pathfinder_01]

The other important thing is that once Orion flies on Delta IV Heavy there will be a de facto unofficial emergency backup to Soyuz, Commercial and SLS in terms of getting crew to and back from the ISS. I also hope NASA embraces this LV whenever they just need to launch Orion by itself as it is clearly the best fit for that payload.

Commercial crew seeks to human rate the delta IV, Atlas and Falcon 9. If that can be done then the money used to human rate the delta IV heavy wont go totally to waste since it can launch Orion as back up or if perhaps even for BOE exploration manned.

[Space Pete]

Aerojet Successfully Conducts Third Jettison Motor Nozzle Risk Reduction Test for NASA's Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle.

Aerojet, a GenCorp company, announced today that it successfully conducted a static firing of the third nozzle risk reduction motor in support of the Orion jettison motor, a critical component of the launch abort system (LAS) for NASA’s Orion crew exploration vehicle. This successful test firing validates several nozzle design changes implemented to enhance the safety and reliability of the jettison motor.

Today’s test was conducted under contract to Lockheed Martin and represents a collaborative effort between design teams at Aerojet, Lockheed and NASA. The third nozzle risk reduction test successfully met all test plan objectives, providing data to validate analytical models and demonstrate the increased robustness of the new nozzle design modifications. “Congratulations to the entire Orion launch abort team,” said Aerojet Vice President of Space and Launch Systems, Julie Van Kleeck. “Today’s test demonstrates increased margin in an already proven system.”

Orion’s jettison motor reliability was proven during the successful fully-integrated launch abort system flight test, Pad Abort 1, conducted at the U.S. Army’s White Sands Missile Range on May 6, 2010.

Orion’s LAS is designed to pull the crew module away from the rocket to safety in the event of an emergency on the pad and during the initial ascent phase. Aerojet designed and manufactured the jettison motor, which is required on every mission to jettison the LAS away from the crew module for both nominal and abort scenarios.

Lockheed Martin is the prime contractor to NASA for the Orion spacecraft, which is being developed as the nation’s next generation spacecraft for future human exploration throughout the solar system. Aerojet is part of the nationwide Orion industry team led by Lockheed Martin, which includes five major subcontractors and an expansive network of minor subcontractors and small businesses working at 88 facilities in 28 states across the country. The Orion team is preparing for the spacecraft’s first orbital flight test as early as 2013.

Aerojet is a world-recognized aerospace and defense leader principally serving the missile and space propulsion, defense and armaments markets. GenCorp is a leading technology-based manufacturer of aerospace and defense products and systems with a real estate segment that includes activities related to the entitlement, sale, and leasing of the company’s excess real estate assets. Additional information about Aerojet and GenCorp can be obtained by visiting the companies’ Web sites at www.Aerojet.com and www.GenCorp.com.


www.aerojet.com/news2.php?action=fullnews&id=248

[renclod]

http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_09162010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_09102010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_09032010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_08272010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_08202010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_08132010.pdf

[robertross]

http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_09162010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_09102010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_09032010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_08272010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_08202010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_08132010.pdf

It's always so nice to see the Orion hardware pics & its advancement. More of a calming feeling than the political goings-on.

Thanks for the links.

[Space Pete]

Aerojet's Successful Main Engine Injector Tests Provide Milestone for NASAs Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle, Testing confirms combustion stability and provides initial performance data.

Aerojet, a GenCorp company, under contract to Lockheed Martin, successfully completed development injector testing for the 7500-pound thrust Orion main engine (OME) for NASA’s Orion crew exploration vehicle. The OME is a pressure-fed, regeneratively cooled, storable bi-propellant engine that is a technically advanced, increased performance version of Aerojet’s flight-proven 6000-pound thrust space shuttle Orbital Maneuvering System Engine (OMS-E).

The test series verified the engine’s combustion stability and additionally provided chamber wall heat flux and injector performance data to anchor mathematical models. All testing was performed in heavy-weight combustion chambers specifically designed for these tasks. This early demonstration of the engine’s combustion stability at expected Orion operating conditions was conducted to retire risk to the Orion vehicle.

“The successful qualification combustion stability testing of the OME injector was the result of a structured approach used to design, analyze, build and test the first development injector,” said Aerojet’s Orion Program Manager, Cheryl Rehm. “The team’s meticulous attention to detail resulted in a product that met and exceeded our expectations.”

The OME injector combines the reliability and combustion stability of the OMS-E injector with current Aerojet best practices in design and manufacturing to reduce process variability affecting injector performance and cost for the Orion program. The OME injector is a diffusion-bonded platelet device with the same injector element type, face pattern layout, and element quantity as the OMS-E, but with improvements in the injector body design and platelets to provide more uniform flow to the injector elements.

The current Aerojet platelet manufacturing capability results in significantly less dimensional variability than was possible for the OMS-E, enabling improved uniformity of propellants injected into the combustion chamber. The improvements in injection uniformity are also expected to result in improved nominal and minimum vacuum specific impulse for the OME.

The OME will provide thrust for events requiring large velocity changes such as Earth orbital insertion, translunar/trans Earth injection, Earth de-orbit, and emergency thrust for high-altitude abort scenarios. Orion’s engine complement also includes 16 25-pound thrust engines and eight 100-pound-thrust bipropellant engines for the Orion service module. Additionally, Aerojet supplies 12 160-pound-thrust monopropellant thrusters for the Orion crew module. Aerojet is providing all of the engines for the Orion spacecraft which is comprised of a crew module for crew and cargo transport, and a service module for propulsion, electrical power and fluids storage. Risk reduction testing of critical subsystems has been ongoing throughout Orion’s development phase to maximize mission success and crew safety.

Lockheed Martin is the prime contractor to NASA for the Orion spacecraft, which is being developed as the nation’s next generation spacecraft for future human exploration throughout our solar system. Aerojet is part of the nationwide Orion industry team led by Lockheed Martin, which includes five major subcontractors and an expansive network of minor subcontractors and small businesses working at 88 facilities in 28 states across the country.

Aerojet is a world-recognized aerospace and defense leader principally serving the missile and space propulsion, defense and armaments markets. GenCorp is a leading technology-based manufacturer of aerospace and defense products and systems with a real estate segment that includes activities related to the entitlement, sale, and leasing of the company’s excess real estate assets. Additional information about Aerojet and GenCorp can be obtained by visiting the companies’ Web sites at www.Aerojet.com and www.GenCorp.com.


www.aerojet.com/news2.php?action=fullnews&id=250

[Ronsmytheiii]

ok, who let Michael Bay near the Orion mockup?

[Ronsmytheiii]

[renclod]

NESC report : "CEV Parachute Assembly System Independent Reliability Analysis"
09/24/2010

The tedious reliability analysis itself is hard to digest, but I would recommend chapter 6.3 Architectural Evolution (from page 21 to 55).
It covers CPAS hardware and con-ops evolution, 2008-2010.
Segmented FBC, "flowerpot", "crow's foot", "keeper", "mouse hole" etc.

4MB, great graphics.

http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/485682main_NESC-RP-08-00487%20CEV%20Parachute%20Assembly%20System%20(CPAS)%20Independent%20Reliability%20Analysis%20-%20Volume%20I%20(8-26-10%20NRB)%20REPORT%20FINAL.pdf


 

[alexw]

NESC report : "CEV Parachute Assembly System Independent Reliability Analysis"
09/24/2010

     Thanks for that; great graphics indeed.

     How do they come up with things like: drogue riser probability of failure = 1 in 1,428,571? On the face of it, that looks ridiculous -- 7 significant figures??   I'm completely ignorant of the PRA process.     
        -Alex

[Jorge]

NESC report : "CEV Parachute Assembly System Independent Reliability Analysis"
09/24/2010

     Thanks for that; great graphics indeed.

     How do they come up with things like: drogue riser probability of failure = 1 in 1,428,571? On the face of it, that looks ridiculous -- 7 significant figures??   I'm completely ignorant of the PRA process.     
        -Alex

Looks to me like it was converted from a probability of 7x10^-7, likely only 1 significant figure.

[TheFallen]

In the Multi-Payload Processing Facility at KSC, astronauts participate in an exercise known as crew egress evaluation from an Orion mock-up.

http://mediaarchive.ksc.nasa.gov/search.cfm?cat=4 (Don't know the exact link to the Orion page on the KSC Media Gallery)

[Space Pete]

In the Multi-Payload Processing Facility at KSC, astronauts participate in an exercise known as crew egress evaluation from an Orion mock-up.

http://mediaarchive.ksc.nasa.gov/search.cfm?cat=4 (Don't know the exact link to the Orion page on the KSC Media Gallery)

You can see some live views of this on the KSC Webcams.

http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/countdown/video/chan9large.jpg

http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/countdown/video/chan10large.jpg

http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/countdown/video/chan13large.jpg

[Lars_J]

Aha, so Orion has a 'side' hatch. (from the crew's reclined position). Apollo had a 'top' hatch, right?

I suppose it makes entry/exit easier with the two 'levels' of seats.

Does anyone know the side hatch measurements?

[Ronsmytheiii]

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, testing of the Tilt-Up Umbilical Arm (TUUA) prototype's Environmental Control System Quick Disconnect takes place in the Launch Equipment Test Facility's 6,000-square-foot high bay. The prototype is used to demonstrate the safe disconnect and retraction of ground umbilical plates and associated hardware of a launch vehicle's upper stage and service module.

http://mediaarchive.ksc.nasa.gov/search.cfm?cat=4

[renclod]

http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_10292010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_10222010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_10152010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_10082010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_10012010.pdf
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Orion/documents/ORION_WEEKLY_09232010.pdf

[renclod]

"SACRAMENTO, Calif., Nov. 1, 2010 – Aerojet, a GenCorp (NYSE: GY) company, in conjunction with Lockheed Martin and NASA, successfully completed acceptance testing on the second R-4D development engine. The R-4D is the Aerojet engine that will be used on NASA’s Orion crew exploration vehicle for the service module auxiliary propulsion. Eight R-4D engines, arranged in four pods of two each, will provide thrust for critical Orion maneuvers.

..."

http://www.aerojet.com/news2.php?action=fullnews&id=254

[nickyp]

The GTA is taking shape.

[stefan1138]

When would the begin of construction of the first spaceworthy Orion be expected at this time?