Author Topic: Bigelow Aerospace Update Thread (2) (Read 353527 times)

QuantumG · « **Reply #360 on:** 01/03/2012 12:12 am »

Has anything ever been flown to EML-1? Be nice to have it demonstrated.

manboy · « **Reply #361 on:** 01/03/2012 12:37 am »

Apparently THEMIS has.

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/artemis/news/lunar-orbit.html

QuantumG · « **Reply #362 on:** 01/03/2012 12:47 am »

Thanks. Some details: http://www.igpp.ucla.edu/public/THEMIS/SCI/Pubs/artemis/2011_non-refereed/ASC11-ArtemisLunarOrbits_final.pdf

RocketmanUS · « **Reply #363 on:** 01/03/2012 01:04 am »

More L1 missions at
under: Past and presesnt mission
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagrange_point

Orbital Debris · « **Reply #364 on:** 01/15/2012 03:20 am »

Charles Bolden visited last Thursday. This was his first time on site at BA. I'm sure he got the full tour.

simonbp · « **Reply #365 on:** 01/17/2012 04:45 am »

And hopefully NASA will post some pictures of the visit, much like Lori Garver's visit was the way we first saw the DreamChaser STA...

ChefPat · « **Reply #366 on:** 01/17/2012 01:19 pm »

Quote from: simonbp on 01/17/2012 04:45 am

And hopefully NASA will post some pictures of the visit, much like Lori Garver's visit was the way we first saw the DreamChaser STA...

More than pix, I'd like to know just what he was doing there. Is NASA again considering a Bigelow module on the ISS?

Prober · « **Reply #367 on:** 01/18/2012 02:49 pm »

Quote from: Orbital Debris on 01/15/2012 03:20 am

Charles Bolden visited last Thursday. This was his first time on site at BA. I'm sure he got the full tour.

Checked google and didn't see any news (TV, LVRJ) on this, have you seen anything?

Ronsmytheiii · « **Reply #368 on:** 01/23/2012 12:21 am »

IF Bigelow wants to follow an example of a successful commercial orbital research facility, perhaps cooperation with Astrotech (SpaceHab) would be a good move?

docmordrid · « **Reply #369 on:** 01/23/2012 02:17 am »

Astrotech closed at $0.60, has a market cap of just $11.5 million, and have been on a long slide, so are they in a financial position to offer Bigelow anything more than a contact list?

tigerade · « **Reply #370 on:** 01/23/2012 02:27 am »

I have a question for O.D. or anyone else that wants to take a crack at this. I know that BA330 development is frozen at the moment, but is construction work still ongoing on the production facility they have been making?

http://bigelowaerospace.com/prosper.php

Orbital Debris · « **Reply #371 on:** 01/23/2012 02:41 am »

Quote from: tigerade on 01/23/2012 02:27 am

I have a question for O.D. or anyone else that wants to take a crack at this. I know that BA330 development is frozen at the moment, but is construction work still ongoing on the production facility they have been making?

http://bigelowaerospace.com/prosper.php

The last word I had from anyone that worked there was that there was no activity around the new building. I would suspect that the lack of updates on the website accurately reflects the progress (or lack of progress) on the new building. In the last updates, it looked like they were installing a few windows to keep the weather out.

Prior to the layoffs work on the building had slowed to a crawl, and I hadn't seen much progress. After the layoffs, all the personnel were moved into the main office and the auxiliary office trailers were closed up. None of the interior finishing was done. I would not expect any further progress.

tigerade · « **Reply #372 on:** 01/23/2012 02:51 am »

That doesn't sound good. That would give me that impression that progress for the whole company is frozen. I wonder how difficult it would be for them to wake up from this dormancy when the time comes. I would imagine their biggest problem right now is the lack of a customer, as well as the uncertaintly over when commercial crew would be ready. But when they are ready, how soon do you think Big could come back to life?

Ronsmytheiii · « **Reply #373 on:** 01/23/2012 02:58 am »

Quote from: docmordrid on 01/23/2012 02:17 am

Astrotech closed at $0.60, has a market cap of just $11.5 million, and have been on a long slide, so are they in a financial position to offer Bigelow anything more than a contact list?

They have the experience of actually getting an orbiting laboratory in space along with a knowledge of how to network with customers for commercial research. Spacehab had extensive experience and knowledge of orbital logistics/experiments, their demise at least in respect to Spacehab had to do with the reverberations of STS-107 and the limited use of the Spacehab modules with the beginning of the end of the shuttle program and the availability of cargo space/mass for MPLM. If I were Bigelow, I would be trying to scoop up old managers from Spacehab.

dcporter · « **Reply #374 on:** 01/23/2012 03:06 am »

Quote from: tigerade on 01/23/2012 02:51 am

I would imagine their biggest problem right now is the lack of a customer, as well as the uncertaintly over when commercial crew would be ready.

Yup.

Quote from: tigerade on 01/23/2012 02:51 am

But when they are ready, how soon do you think Big could come back to life?

That's the five hundred million dollar question.

MP99 · « **Reply #375 on:** 01/23/2012 06:28 pm »

There seem to be quite a few people left working there. What would they be doing?

cheers, Martin

Lurker Steve · « **Reply #376 on:** 01/23/2012 06:36 pm »

Quote from: MP99 on 01/23/2012 06:28 pm

There seem to be quite a few people left working there. What would they be doing?

cheers, Martin

I thought I saw the company had shrunk from about 150 employees down to around 50. Hopefully some of them are watching their existing Genesis modules, making sure they don't collide with anything else.

Robotbeat · « **Reply #377 on:** 01/23/2012 06:42 pm »

Quote from: MP99 on 01/23/2012 06:28 pm

There seem to be quite a few people left working there. What would they be doing?

cheers, Martin

Good question. While I sure appreciate the insight of Orbital Debris, his very cynical view of Bigelow Aerospace doesn't explain why the company exists at all right now. 50 people can't be sitting around doing absolutely nothing.

Comga · « **Reply #378 on:** 01/24/2012 12:38 am »

Quote from: Lurker Steve on 01/23/2012 06:36 pm

Quote from: MP99 on 01/23/2012 06:28 pm
There seem to be quite a few people left working there. What would they be doing?

cheers, Martin

I thought I saw the company had shrunk from about 150 employees down to around 50. Hopefully some of them are watching their existing Genesis modules, making sure they don't collide with anything else.

They can't observe their positions or watch for collisions. They don't have the high precision data base of other satellites or debris, and I don't think they have any ability to maneuver. The US Government does that tracking and hopefully any live satellites approaching will do their own Avoidance Maneuvers.

Bigelow should be able to monitor the internal pressures and verify that the containment has not been compromised.

Jim · « **Reply #379 on:** 01/24/2012 12:56 am »

Quote from: Ronsmytheiii on 01/23/2012 02:58 am

Quote from: docmordrid on 01/23/2012 02:17 am
Astrotech closed at $0.60, has a market cap of just $11.5 million, and have been on a long slide, so are they in a financial position to offer Bigelow anything more than a contact list?

They have the experience of actually getting an orbiting laboratory in space along with a knowledge of how to network with customers for commercial research. Spacehab had extensive experience and knowledge of orbital logistics/experiments, their demise at least in respect to Spacehab had to do with the reverberations of STS-107 and the limited use of the Spacehab modules with the beginning of the end of the shuttle program and the availability of cargo space/mass for MPLM. If I were Bigelow, I would be trying to scoop up old managers from Spacehab.

The experience is long gone, even before STS-116 & 118 flew. The last two missions were handled by a skeleton crew. It has been almost 5 years since then. Only processing facilities group remains, with another group dabbling in ISS medical experiments.