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Editor’s note: This blog was updated Oct. 8 to reflect that the team is working toward launch opportunities in the first half of 2022 for Orbital Flight Test-2. The NASA, Boeing team continues to make progress on the investigation of the oxidizer isolation valve issue on the Starliner service module propulsion system that was discovered ahead of the planned uncrewed Orbital Flight Test-2 (OFT-2) mission to the International Space Station in August. “I am proud of the work our integrated teams are doing,” said Steve Stich, manager of the Commercial Crew Program at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. “This is a complex issue involving hazardous commodities and intricate areas of the spacecraft that are not easily accessed. It has taken a methodical approach and sound engineering to effectively examine.” Boeing has demonstrated success in valve functionality using localized heating and electrical charging techniques. Troubleshooting on the pad, at the launch complex, and inside the Starliner production factory at Kennedy Space Center has resulted in movement of all but one of the original stuck valves. That valve has not been moved intentionally to preserve forensics for direct root cause analysis. Most items on the fault tree have been dispositioned by the team including causes related to avionics, flight software and wiring. Boeing has identified a most probable cause related to oxidizer and moisture interactions, and although some verification work remains underway, our confidence is high enough that we are commencing corrective and preventive actions. Additional spacecraft and component testing will be conducted in the coming weeks to further explore contributing factors and necessary system remediation before flight. Boeing completed a partial disassembly of three of the affected Orbital Maneuvering and Attitude Control (OMAC) thruster valves last month and plans to remove three valves from the OFT-2 spacecraft in the coming weeks for further inspection. The team also is evaluating additional testing to repeat the initial valve failures. Boeing has identified several paths forward depending on the outcome of the testing to ultimately resolve the issue and prevent it from happening on future flights. These options could range from minor refurbishment of the current service module components to using another service module already in production. Each option is dependent on data points the team expects to collect in the coming weeks including a timeline for safely proceeding back to the launch pad. “Safety of the Starliner spacecraft, our employees, and our crew members is this team’s number one priority,” said John Vollmer, vice president and program manager, Boeing’s Starliner program. “We are taking the appropriate amount of time to work through the process now to set this system up for success on OFT-2 and all future Starliner missions.” Potential launch windows for OFT-2 continue to be assessed by NASA, Boeing, United Launch Alliance, and the Eastern Range. The team currently is working toward opportunities in the first half of 2022 pending hardware readiness, the rocket manifest, and space station availability.

SpaceX's SN15 stuck the landing. The private spaceflight company's latest Starship prototype aced a high-altitude test flight today (May 5), checking every box from takeoff to touchdown for the first time. "We are down! The Starship has landed," John Insprucker, SpaceX's principal integration engineer, said during live commentary. by TaboolaSponsored LinksYou May Like If You Need To Kill Time On Your Computer, This Vintage Game Is A Must-Have. No Install. Forge Of Empires Congress Gives Homeowners $3,708 (Claim It Now) harpreplacement Today's uncrewed test came on the 60th anniversary of the United States' first-ever crewed spaceflight, the suborbital jaunt of NASA astronaut Alan Shepard. The historical parallel is coincidental but appropriate, for SN15's success marks a big step forward in SpaceX's plans to help extend humanity's footprint out into the final frontier. The stainless-steel SN15 ("Serial No. 15") lifted off from SpaceX's Starbase test site, near the South Texas village of Boca Chica, today at 6:24 p.m. EST (2224 GMT). The vehicle soared about 6.2 miles (10 kilometers) into the sky, performed a number of maneuvers and came back down for a safe touchdown at its designated concrete landing pad six minutes after takeoff.This last bit broke new ground. SN15's four immediate predecessors all ended up in pieces after attempting similar flights over the past five months, in each case notching pretty much every milestone except "soft landing." One of those vehicles, SN10, seemed to touch down safely to wrap up its March flight, but a fire broke out at its base shortly thereafter and the craft exploded. A fire also licked SN15's base right after today's landing, but it was extinguished in relatively short order. SpaceX learned some lessons from those other rough landings. And SN15 is a bit different than those previous prototypes, too. "SN15 has vehicle improvements across structures, avionics and software, and the engines that will allow more speed and efficiency throughout production and flight: specifically, a new enhanced avionics suite, updated propellant architecture in the aft skirt, and a new Raptor engine design and configuration," SpaceX representatives wrote in a description of today's flight.Space is supported by its audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more Home News Spaceflight SpaceX launches Starship SN15 rocket and sticks the landing in high-altitude test flight By Mike Wall May 05, 2021 "Landing nominal," Elon Musk says. SpaceX's SN15 stuck the landing. The private spaceflight company's latest Starship prototype aced a high-altitude test flight today (May 5), checking every box from takeoff to touchdown for the first time. "We are down! The Starship has landed," John Insprucker, SpaceX's principal integration engineer, said during live commentary. by TaboolaSponsored LinksYou May Like If You Need To Kill Time On Your Computer, This Vintage Game Is A Must-Have. No Install. Forge Of Empires Congress Gives Homeowners $3,708 (Claim It Now) harpreplacement Today's uncrewed test came on the 60th anniversary of the United States' first-ever crewed spaceflight, the suborbital jaunt of NASA astronaut Alan Shepard. The historical parallel is coincidental but appropriate, for SN15's success marks a big step forward in SpaceX's plans to help extend humanity's footprint out into the final frontier. The stainless-steel SN15 ("Serial No. 15") lifted off from SpaceX's Starbase test site, near the South Texas village of Boca Chica, today at 6:24 p.m. EST (2224 GMT). The vehicle soared about 6.2 miles (10 kilometers) into the sky, performed a number of maneuvers and came back down for a safe touchdown at its designated concrete landing pad six minutes after takeoff. Related: SpaceX's Starship and Super Heavy rocket in pictures Image 1 of 6 SpaceX's Starship SN15 rocket prototype launches on a 10-kilometer test flight from SpaceX's Starbase test site near Boca Chica Village in South Texas on May 5, 2021. SpaceX's Starship SN15 rocket prototype launches on a 10-kilometer test flight from SpaceX's Starbase test site near Boca Chica Village in South Texas on May 5, 2021. (Image credit: SpaceX) SpaceX's Starship SN15 rocket prototype launches on a 10-kilometer test flight from SpaceX's Starbase test site near Boca Chica Village in South Texas on May 5, 2021. Starship SN15 punches a hole through the cloud layer over South Texas during its May 5 launch. (Image credit: SpaceX) SpaceX's Starship SN15 rocket prototype launches on a 10-kilometer test flight from SpaceX's Starbase test site near Boca Chica Village in South Texas on May 5, 2021. A view of Starship SN15's three Raptor engines during its successful test flight. (Image credit: SpaceX) SpaceX's Starship SN15 rocket prototype launches on a 10-kilometer test flight from SpaceX's Starbase test site near Boca Chica Village in South Texas on May 5, 2021. A view of Starship Sn15 as it descends back to Earth in a May 5, 2021 test launch and landing. (Image credit: SpaceX) SpaceX's Starship SN15 rocket prototype launches on a 10-kilometer test flight from SpaceX's Starbase test site near Boca Chica Village in South Texas on May 5, 2021. SpaceX's Starship SN15 nears its landing site at the Starbase test site near Boca Chica Village in South Texas during landing on May 5, 2021. (Image credit: SpaceX) SpaceX's Starship SN15 rocket prototype launches on a 10-kilometer test flight from SpaceX's Starbase test site near Boca Chica Village in South Texas on May 5, 2021. SpaceX's Starship Sn15 is seen after a successful landing, with a small fire visible, during a May 5, 2021 test flight in South Texas. (Image credit: SpaceX) This last bit broke new ground. SN15's four immediate predecessors all ended up in pieces after attempting similar flights over the past five months, in each case notching pretty much every milestone except "soft landing." One of those vehicles, SN10, seemed to touch down safely to wrap up its March flight, but a fire broke out at its base shortly thereafter and the craft exploded. A fire also licked SN15's base right after today's landing, but it was extinguished in relatively short order. SpaceX learned some lessons from those other rough landings. And SN15 is a bit different than those previous prototypes, too. "SN15 has vehicle improvements across structures, avionics and software, and the engines that will allow more speed and efficiency throughout production and flight: specifically, a new enhanced avionics suite, updated propellant architecture in the aft skirt, and a new Raptor engine design and configuration," SpaceX representatives wrote in a description of today's flight. Click here for more Space.com videos... SpaceX is developing Starship to take people and cargo to the moon, Mars and other distant destinations. The system consists of two elements, both of which are designed to be fully and rapidly reusable: a spacecraft called Starship and a giant first-stage booster named Super Heavy. Both of these vehicles will be powered by SpaceX's next-generation Raptor engine. Starship will have six Raptors, and Super Heavy will sport about 30, SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk has said. Though SN15 is a full-scale Starship prototype in terms of height and width, it features just three Raptors. Future test variants will be more powerful, and we should see these brawnier vehicles fly relatively soon; Musk has said that SpaceX aims to launch a Starship into Earth orbit before the end of the year. If the test program progresses well, Starship could be up and running not long after that. Musk said recently that he expects the system to be fully operational sometime in 2023, though he did acknowledge that his timelines tend to be ambitious.SpaceX already has a Starship mission on the books with a 2023 target launch date — "dearMoon," which will send Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa and a handful of other people on a weeklong flight around Earth's nearest neighbor. Starship will also fly NASA astronauts to the moon, if all goes according to plan. The space agency's Artemis program of lunar exploration recently picked Starship as its crewed moon lander. Artemis aims to establish a sustainable, long-term human presence on and around the moon by the end of the 2020s. The knowledge and skills gained during this effort will help humanity get to Mars in the 2030s, NASA officials have said. Advertisement For the past few years, NASA has been working to achieve the first crewed Artemis moon landing by the end of 2024, as directed by the administration of former president Donald Trump. But that timeline is expected to be relaxed under President Joe Biden.

As a trusted partner for space testing, NTS worked with NASA to accelerate testing on the Space Launch System (SLS). According to NASA, the SLS is expected to be “the largest rocket” in history. To keep the program on schedule, NTS engineers worked seven days a week for several months, providing expert test services in the following areas: LO2 and LH2 12” Prevalves Vibration and pyrotechnic shock tests at -320 F Functional tests with liquid nitrogen and liquid hydrogen Water flow testing at approximately 10,000 GPM LO2 and LH2 Vent and Relief Valves Vibration and pyrotechnic shock tests at -320 F Functional tests with liquid nitrogen and liquid hydrogen Functional tests of the LH2 VRV with gaseous hydrogen and flow rates > 10 PPS LH2 Fill and Drain Valve Vibration and pyrotechnic shock tests at -320 F Functional tests with liquid nitrogen and liquid hydrogen Disconnect Assemblies Vibration and pyrotechnic shock tests at -320 F Functional tests with liquid nitrogen and liquid hydrogen Fuel and Oxidizer Manifolds Vibration and shock with combined full flow requirements using GN2 and GHe Full functional tests with gaseous nitrogen and gaseous hydrogen Oxygen compatibility tests with hot gaseous hydrogen at high temperatures LH2 LO2 Feed line Assemblies Dual shaker vibration tests at -320F with gaseous and liquid nitrogen utilizing specialized bearing and fixture techniques not previously used in the industry Thermal shock testing where the UUT was heated to +160F and then flushed with liquid hydrogen (-423F) at a flow rate of 7 PPS During the qualification effort, NTS working with directly with Boeing Company—and established one leadership team to work with all NTS laboratories. As a result of this effort, NTS was nominated by both Boeing Company and Lockheed Martin for the prestigious space award. According to Lockheed Martin, “The qualification and testing of hardware for human-rated space flight systems is unique and extensive; and is a critical step in delivering to NASA the safest and most reliable systems for human space exploration. At the at the Washington IAF conference in Washington D.C, NTS was awarded the NASA FSA award. It was the first time that this award has ever been given to an independent test laboratory.
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