Thanks to our partners for a great visit at @SierraNevCorp’s facility in Colorado to see the Dream Chaser Spaceplane that will transport @ISS_Research and cargo to and from low-Earth orbit and the @Space_Station [email protected] and our commercial partners explore together!
It was an honor hosting @NASA’s @KathyLueders, Ken Boweresox & Joel Montalbano at our facilities in Louisville, CO. They had the opportunity to visit our production floor where we’re building the Dream Chaser® spaceplane & Shooting Star™ transport vehicle!
We've installed the first flight hardware onto our Shooting Star™ transport vehicle! The Star Tracker brackets hold our Star Tracker units, a navigation tool used on the Dream Chaser® spaceplane. They use mathematics to calculate the orientation of Dream Chaser based on stars.
DREAM CHASER® SPACEPLANE TEAM PERFORMS SUCCESSFUL WIND TUNNEL TESTING October 08, 2020SNC recently completed a successful series of wind tunnel tests performed at NASA’s Ames Research Center over the course of three weeks, requiring both on-site and additional remote support, for more than 16 hours a day. It was a test our Dream Chaser® spaceplane team worked on for more than a year with preparation and planning.Aerospace engineer, Mike J., was one of those on-site supporting the testing. He says, the testing isn’t a common one in the industry because of the specialized instrumentation used, but crucial to preparing for Dream Chaser missions.“Unsteady forces, like vibrations, could produce a critical amount of force on the Dream Chaser airframe. That excessive force could result in failure of the structure. It’s important our engineers know all the forces acting on the airframe with as much accuracy as possible to design the structures with sufficient strength for safe flight operations.”The Dream Chaser model used in the testing looks a little different from what we’re used to seeing in renderings. First up, it’s small; 1/10 the size of the actual vehicle. Mike says the size was determined based on what would allow for safe operations inside the wind tunnel space. It’s also silver! Of course, there’s a reason for that too!“Typically, wind tunnel models are made of stainless steel or aluminum. Dream Chaser gets its color from the black and white Thermal Protection System (TPS) tiles,” Mike said. “While the test model incorporates the presence of TPS tiles, color isn’t relevant to wind tunnel testing.”There are a few other details that also stand out on the model that are different from the actual Dream Chaser, like the text. The words written on the model identify a sensor and help the engineers associate it with the proper data channels. As for the white spots on the bottom of the model, it’s simply paste! It was used to cover items like the external fasteners and recessed bolt heads. That hardware doesn’t exist on the flight vehicle and the paste helps smooth the outer surface, much like the actual Dream Chaser.After returning to SNC’s Louisville, Colorado production facility, we asked Mike what the best part of the trip was, and his answer was simple. “Having spent most of my career in wind tunnel testing, my favorite part is always successfully conducting the test. Our team performed seamlessly and the credit goes to everyone for making the test a success.”
Jump on a ride to space! SNC has a brand new interactive video to showcasing the Dream Chaser® spaceplane, along with highlighting its capabilities in low-Earth orbit. It lets users to click through the various steps of the mission, from launch to landing, https://www.sncorp.com/interactive
Take a journey to the @Space_Station using SNC’s new interactive video. It brings to life the ways our Dream Chaser® spaceplane & Shooting Star™ transport vehicle increase routine access to low-Earth orbit!https://www.sncorp.com/interactive
Bruno: first Vulcan certification flight is Astrobotic, Sierra Nevada’s Dream Chaser is second. Have sold more than 30 Vulcan missions already. Asked what happens if Astrobotic not ready next yr, Bruno said they can slot in one of the others and maintain certification schedule.
While 2020 was a year unlike any other, SNC remained innovative in the face of new challenges. Our Dream Chaser® spaceplane team stayed busy on the production floor meeting milestones. As 2020 comes to a close we’re celebrating 20 of their accomplishments! bit.ly/37syPrr
Item specificsCondition: Used: An item that has been used previously.Brand: Sierra Nevada CorporationFeatures: Carbon Fiber Honeycomb Structure Scale: Full ScaleType: Spacecraft[Has the Type: Spacecraft tag ever been used on ebay before? I doubt it]The Dream Chaser is a reusable lifting-body spaceplane being developed by Sierra Nevada Corporation. Originally intended as a crewed vehicle, the Dream Chaser Space System, to be produced after the cargo variant, Dream Chaser Cargo System, is operational. The crewed variant is capable of carrying up to seven people and cargo to and from low Earth orbit.The cargo Dream Chaser is designed to resupply the International Space Station with both pressurized and unpressurized cargo. It is intended to launch vertically on the Vulcan Centaur rocket and autonomously land horizontally on conventional runways. A proposed version operated by ESA would launch on Ariane 5.This engineering model made of carbon fiber honeycomb was manufactured by Lockheed Martin in the same facility that produces the F35 Lightning II. It was used for early structural testing of the spaceplane body and later used by technicians to rehearse cutting and drilling operations that were necessary on the flight unit.This piece of space history measures approximately 15 feet long and 6 feet in diameter. The structure walls are over an inch thick in places but because of the carbon fiber construction the unit is still light. It can be lifted by four people. A resting fixture is included that features heavy duty casters to easily move the unit.This would make an incredible flight simulator of placehouse for kids.
Hi! I’m Hannah, a propulsion manufacturing engineer at SNC. As part of the operations team I work directly with technicians & engineers on our production floor, so how about a tour? I’ll be taking over SNC’s social media today to show you all the activity!
The Taylor floor is currently home to the Dream Chaser® spaceplane & Shooting Star™ transport vehicle. Teams of engineers, technicians, inspectors & work control are working day & night to juggle multiple tasks & ensure the builds go smoothly.
Aside from flight hardware, there is a LOT of ground support equipment & tooling on the floor. The Dream Chaser® spaceplane is held up by a platform allowing access from nearly all angles. The Shooting Star™ transport vehicle is held in a rotating tool for total exterior access.
Our team has been working to install the aeroshells on the Dream Chaser® spaceplane. They’ll eventually enclose the open areas you see in the pictures. Soon the bays will be filled with components like batteries, brackets, plumbing, and tanks.
The FAA today issued Space Florida with a "Reentry Site Operator License" (RSOL) to operate from Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF). This is key to supporting @SierraNevCorp's future Dream Chaser spaceplane missions.SLF will now be known simply as Space Florida's "Launch and Landing Facility."Sierra Nevada EVP Janet Kavandi: "The runway landing capability is what makes Dream Chaser the best solution for space travel right now ... We congratulate Space Florida on this licensing that will accelerate space travel and make it more accessible.”
In the same webinar, Janet Kavandi of SNC says the first Dream Chaser cargo mission to the ISS is now scheduled for the second half of 2022.
Lindsay confirms SNC has 7, not 6, cargo missions under contract with NASA.
