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#20
by
AncientU
on 19 Mar, 2016 14:08
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Couple interesting clips from the VP of Engineering (now former VP) at ULA concerning flying crew:
we’re flying Boeing’s CST-100, it's called the Starliner, we’re going to put six astronauts on top of an Atlas rocket, so 2017, we’ll fly it unmanned, in 2018, we’ll fly it as a manned flight.
Isn't this flight advertised as 2017?
We’re working on getting it certified, and so right now, with Boeing, per the contract, we’re going through the human spaceflight organisation and looking at all the single point failures, all the redundancy, how things work, modifying the launch rockets primarily to meet their needs. It’s also interesting because the Boeing design doesn’t have an escape tower, it basically has four thrusters on the bottom of their capsule or the service module that will eject them off if there’s a bad day. And so there’s different things that the backpressure will tear apart, the backpressure of those thrusters if you have the wrong structural load will cause it to impinge on the capsule at very high altitudes, damages the heat shield, that will cause it to have a problem on reentry,
Look, an achilles heel of the Atlas system right now is the Centaur upper stage.
Assume that this is the Centaur stage failing and damaging the heat shield...
Is this public knowledge? (Is now.)
Maybe they should do that in-flight abort demo (that analysis supposedly eliminated).
For transcript:
http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=39180.msg1504420#msg1504420
Note: Moved comment from another thread.
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#21
by
arachnitect
on 19 Mar, 2016 15:29
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If you're at an altitude where upperstage debris impingement is an issue... why would you need the full abort motors? Wouldn't OMAC thrusters + thrust termination be sufficient?
edit: If I understand correctly, this is a high altitude issue that wouldn't be visible in a max-Q abort test. Would need to do a high altitude abort test.
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#22
by
catdlr
on 28 Mar, 2016 18:42
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Crew Access Arm Water Deluge Test for Boeing/ULA
Published on Mar 28, 2016
Engineers and technicians gathered at dusk recently at a construction site near Kennedy Space Center in Florida to test systems that will support Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft.
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#23
by
yg1968
on 31 Mar, 2016 15:44
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Jeff Foust has tweeted a new Commercial Crew milestone chart presented by Bill Gerstenmaier, current as of March 2016. (Previous chart was from November 30, 2015.)
https://twitter.com/jeff_foust/status/715552131323994115
Gerst: commercial crew program doing pretty good overall, lots of challenges. Upcoming milestones:
Updated dates for the uncrewed and crewed Starliner test flights: which are now in June and October 2017 respectively.
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#24
by
rayleighscatter
on 31 Mar, 2016 21:10
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Jan 2017 shows the Boeing launch abort test. Where is that being held?
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#25
by
yg1968
on 31 Mar, 2016 21:22
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#26
by
catdlr
on 19 Apr, 2016 01:08
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ULA's Role in the Commercial Crew Program
Published on Apr 18, 2016
ULA is pleased to have been selected by The Boeing Company
to provide the launch service for the Crew Space Transportation
(CST)-100 Starliner spacecraft to the International Space Station in 2017. The flight-proven Atlas V offers the most reliable
and safest launch service capability for crewed missions.
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#27
by
yg1968
on 20 Apr, 2016 03:16
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This isn't news but they mentioned that the CST-100 would be using the Atlas V 422. Initially, it was supposed to be the 412. So this is another confirmation that it will indeed be the 422 variation.
Edit: 422 (not 522) see post below.
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#28
by
Lars-J
on 20 Apr, 2016 06:58
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This isn't news but they mentioned that the CST-100 would be using the Atlas V 522. Initially, it was supposed to be the 512. So this is another confirmation that it will indeed be the 522 variation.
At 1:27 they say an it is a 400 series without a fairing, and call it specifically a *422*. (not 522)
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#29
by
yg1968
on 20 Apr, 2016 18:31
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This isn't news but they mentioned that the CST-100 would be using the Atlas V 522. Initially, it was supposed to be the 512. So this is another confirmation that it will indeed be the 522 variation.
At 1:27 they say an it is a 400 series without a fairing, and call it specifically a *422*. (not 522)
Yes, I actually knew that. But I wrote the wrong number for some reason. Edited my post above accordingly.
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#30
by
catdlr
on 27 Apr, 2016 00:09
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Simulators Offer Astronauts Glimpse of Future FlightNASAKennedy
Published on Apr 26, 2016
NASA Commercial Crew astronauts Eric Boe and Suni Williams practiced mission operations for Boeing's CST-100 Starliner using a part-task trainer designed to mimic the controls and behavior of the spacecraft. They are part of a suite of cloud-based and hands-on trainers that Boeing has built to prepare astronauts and mission controllers. The trainers will be shipped to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston this year so astronauts can use them daily to practice numerous situations from normal operations to unlikely emergencies. The Starliner is one of two spacecraft in development in partnership with NASA's Commercial Crew Program that will enable astronauts to fly to the International Space Station on a new generation of spacecraft made in America and launching from Florida's Space Coast. Working at Boeing's St. Louis facility, Boe and astronaut Suni Williams ran through numerous mission phases to assess the simulators.
YoueTube Video Location:
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=uIsn-EGs1p4
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#31
by
collectSPACE
on 27 Apr, 2016 12:09
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Starliner simulators: Astronauts 'fly' Boeing spacecraft trainershttp://www.collectspace.com/news/news-042716a-boeing-cst100-starliner-simulators.htmlWith the flick of a few virtual switches and the use of a control stick, two NASA astronauts undocked Boeing's new commercial spacecraft from the International Space Station on Tuesday (April 26) – until thunderstorms over St. Louis cut the simulation short.
The (real-life) weather aside, astronauts Eric Boe and Suni Williams said their simulated spaceflight experience was a success as they concluded the acceptance evaluations for the two CST-100 Starliner Crew Part Task Trainers (CPTT) at Boeing's St. Louis facilities.
"Although [the thunderstorm] was making a lot of noise, we completed what we expected to do," stated Boe, who with Williams and astronauts Doug Hurley and Robert Behnken comprise NASA's first 'cadre' of commercial crew trainees. "It was a good day."
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#32
by
catdlr
on 27 Apr, 2016 23:35
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another video:
NASA Astronauts Get a Close Look at Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner TrainersBoeing
Published on Apr 27, 2016
NASA Commercial Crew program astronauts worked with the CST-100 Starliner Crew Part-Task Trainers in St. Louis to get a feel for the trainers before delivery to the Johnson Space Center in Houston.
YouTube Video Location:
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dMFrU6XefI0
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#33
by
arachnitect
on 11 May, 2016 22:09
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#34
by
docmordrid
on 12 May, 2016 04:56
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First crewed Starliner flight delayed to 2018;
problems with vehicle weight and Atlas V acoustics.
Ars link....
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#35
by
Robotbeat
on 12 May, 2016 14:11
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First crewed Starliner flight delayed to 2018;
problems with vehicle weight and Atlas V acoustics.
Ars link....
Maybe they should just launch on Falcon 9.
I put a smiley on there, but it should solve the weight problems without needing all those extra solids.
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#36
by
Ike17055
on 12 May, 2016 15:41
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It is built to be able to fly on Falcon, but actually doing that defeats one of the major goals of the program: having better assurance of having a flying vehicle at all times by diversifying assets, not being vulnerable to a grounding on one launcher for instance.
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#37
by
baldusi
on 12 May, 2016 16:05
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I wonder if Vulcan, since it will lack solids, will present a more benign environment. It would be funny if NASA would want to change to the newer launch vehicle (after the necessary trial period).
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#38
by
whitelancer64
on 12 May, 2016 16:19
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It is built to be able to fly on Falcon, but actually doing that defeats one of the major goals of the program: having better assurance of having a flying vehicle at all times by diversifying assets, not being vulnerable to a grounding on one launcher for instance.
Actually, it isn't. CST-100 was originally "launcher agnostic" but that is no longer the case. Boeing selected the Atlas V to launch the CST-100 back in 2011, and has designed it for that rocket since then.
http://www.ulalaunch.com/human-spaceflight-announcement--united.aspx It would need, at the very least, an adapter section to fit on the Falcon 9 and be connected to its electronics.
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#39
by
rcoppola
on 12 May, 2016 16:19
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From the original report on Geek Wire:
http://www.geekwire.com/2016/boeing-starliner-schedule-astronauts-slips-2018/They listed another item, "In addition, NASA software updates have added more work for developers."
Software updated to what, for what? Human rating Atlas and the integration of the two vehicles WRT abort? Human Interface designs/control? Is this specific to Boeing or a Program wide request?
Mass and Acoustics? Isn't it a bit late to be hitting against these requirements? So it seems the un-crewed test flight will be pushed to the end of the year where the crewed test flight was supposed to be.
