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January 29, 2018

Airborne 01.29.18: Falcon Heavy Ready!, Pilot Aided, Serial Stowaway

Also: 60 Years Of America In Space, Metroplex Litigation, Frasca's New Heli Trainer, F-35 Sale To Belgium

SpaceX conducted a successful test-fire of all 27 Merlin rocket engines on the Falcon Heavy last Wednesday at the Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A. After the test, SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted that the hold-down firing was "good" and that the first flight would be "Launching in a week or so." When it does launch, the Falcon Heavy will become the most powerful in operation, generating a liftoff thrust of 5.1 million pounds. Musk is working to manage expectations, because a lot has to go right, all at the same time. Flyers are family... or so we’ve always believed. An effort established on GoFundMe helped save the home of a pilot, his wife

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Open Government Group Opposes Secrecy At Spaceport America

Governor, Legislator Support Bill To Keep Some Records Private

A bill under consideration in the New Mexico Legislature would keep some information about Spaceport America out of the public eye, and it has the backing of the Republican Governor and one of the state Senate's top Democratic leaders.

ESA Chooses Companies For Development Contracts

Imagine sending a spacecraft the size of an airline carry-on bag to the Moon – what would you have it do? ESA issued that challenge to European teams last year, and two winners have now been chosen.

Will Study Planets Orbiting Red Dwarf Stars

A new national facility at ESO’s La Silla Observatory has successfully made its first observations. The ExTrA telescopes will search for and study Earth-sized planets orbiting nearby red dwarf stars. ExTrA’s novel design allows for much improved sensitivity compared to previous searches. Astronomers now have a powerful new tool to help in the search for potentially habitable worlds.

Vulcain 2.1 Will Power The Ariane 6 Into Space In 2020

The new Vulcain 2.1 engine, which is set to carry the new European launcher Ariane 6 into space in 2020, is intended to achieve greater efficiency at lower costs. However, before such a launch can be successfully carried out, the development engines must prove that they can cope with the enormous 130-ton thrust, temperatures of approximately 3000 degrees Celsius in the combustion chamber, the high rotational speeds of the turbo pumps and the pressure in the propellant lines.

Explorer Satellite Launched On January 31, 1958

Late in the evening of Jan. 31, 1958, the United States took its first step into space with the launch of the Explorer 1 satellite from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The slender, 30-pound satellite would yield a major scientific discovery -- the Van Allen radiation belts circling our planet -- and ushered in six decades of groundbreaking U.S. space science and human exploration.