NASA Puts Its Money on Commercial Launch

[realtime]

No more pussyfooting around.  NASA's getting ready to put their money where their mouth is.

http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2005/nov/HQ_05356_commercial_crew.html

[Avron]

"The office will manage orbital transportation capability demonstration projects that may lead to the procurement of commercial cargo and crew transportation services to resupply the space station."


Good news.. it opens up a lot more inputs from a much larger group of engineers etc..

or
another office to spend money looking at how to manage procurement of commercial space transportation to resupply the space station... it 'May' or 'May not'..

Just wonder if there where any limitations on this office, like geographic?

[Colby]

NASA said it would look at offers from foreign countries, but the purchase of the services will have to comply with U.S. law.

[CuddlyRocket]

Griffin's talk to the American Astronautical Society on 'Nasa and the Business of Space' - the transcript is here.

As well as the proposal to let commercial companies bid for ISS cargo and crew resupply etc, I was interested in his proposal for a commercial refuelling depot in orbit, to allow the SDLV to launch more equipment because it need not carry as much fuel to orbit.  This seems to be about a $2 billion per annum market.

[Avron]

CuddlyRocket - 17/11/2005  12:26 PM

Griffin's talk to the American Astronautical Society on 'Nasa and the Business of Space' - the transcript is here.

As well as the proposal to let commercial companies bid for ISS cargo and crew resupply etc, I was interested in his proposal for a commercial refuelling depot in orbit, to allow the SDLV to launch more equipment because it need not carry as much fuel to orbit.  This seems to be about a $2 billion per annum market.

gas station for SDLV..
Sounds like a good buisness... Charge what you like when a customer comes along ... just make sure one does come along to your gas station in orbit... also it would help if you pick the right orbit.

[gladiator1332]

Hmm...this makes me wonder. Remember T/Space's plan to get to the Moon? Send off two CEV's that are then refueled by a tanker? If this gas station in orbit gets built, then I don't see why T/Space might offer trips to the Moon. T/Space had plans for their CXV, the perfect ISS transport. Their CEV was much bigger and had a ton of room. It wouldn't be such a bad spacecraft for a paying customer to take a Moon trip in. Much better than paying $100 million and being crammed into a tiny Soyuz.

[realtime]

CuddlyRocket - 17/11/2005  12:26 PM

Griffin's talk to the American Astronautical Society on 'Nasa and the Business of Space' - the transcript is here.

As well as the proposal to let commercial companies bid for ISS cargo and crew resupply etc, I was interested in his proposal for a commercial refuelling depot in orbit, to allow the SDLV to launch more equipment because it need not carry as much fuel to orbit.  This seems to be about a $2 billion per annum market.

That's good thinking.  Imagine you're taking a road trip from New York to California.  Now imagine that you have to carry all the fuel you will need for the trip there AND for the trip back.  You'd need to tow a huge tanker trailer.  That's essentially how we approach spaceflight today.

This depot could also provide fuel for a lunar tug when we begin to build a permanent presence on the Moon.  That means yet more cargo (not propulsion systems) can be boosted from Earth and placed on the lunar surface.