Orion Multi Purpose Crew Vessel (MPCV), Part 1

Photo and Illustration Credit: NASA, unless noted otherwise.

Orion, Part 1

08 December 2015

Previous posts have presented some introductory information about NASA’s Voyage to Mars.  Now, it is time to begin looking into details about the hardware required for the Journey, starting with the Orion MPCV.

First, an import bit of history - - about  year ago, 05 December 2014, Orion passed it’s first test, called the Exploration Flight Test -1 (EFT-1) with flying colors and a blazing reentry into earth’s atmosphere.

 Although most of the multitude of parts that make up the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket had been tested individually, the rocket had not been tested as a complete unit at the time of the Orion's EFT-1 test, so the launch vehicle used for the Orion's test was a Delta IV, Heavy, which did a fine job of taking Orion to the 3,683 mile altitude required.

In any event, the test was considered to be a complete success by the engineers who had been working so long and hard to make Orion ready for it’s initial "live" test.

The photo, below, shows the Delta IV rocket with Orion on top waiting for the launch count-down to reach zero.


Below is a photo of "lift-off" 05 December 2014.



When Orion returned to the top of Earth’s atmosphere it was traveling about 20,000 mph and the Heat Shield reached a temperature of about 4,000 degree F before Orion slowed down enough to deploy the parachutes  which took it to splashdown at about 20 mph.



Both U.S. Navy and NASA divers rushed from the navy recovery ship USS Anchorage to place a retrieval  harness under Orion in preparation for being pulled to the recovery ship.



The photo, below, shows the retrieval harness is in place below the heat shield, ready to be pulled to the recovery ship USS Anchorage.



Some evidence of heat charing is visible on the ablative material covering the heat shield, but there is little heat damage to the black ceramic tiles that make up the Back Shell covering the body of the vehicle.

After it was established that everything was OK, Orion was pulled to the recovery ship and secured in the "Well  Deck" for a trip to Dan Diego harbor.





For this test flight there was NO crew in Orion, and the multitude of sensors placed inside the vehicle indicated that a crew would have been just fine throughout the test.

Speaking of crew, this is a good place to show the following illustrations . . .



The illustration above shows the layout inside Orion for a crew of 4, which will be the number of astronauts landing on Mars in the mid 2030s.

Orion can also carry up to six crew members for flights to the ISS and missions into the Proving Grounds beyond the Moon.  The six-crew layout is similar that for four, as illustrated below . . .



While we are looking at the interior, the cutaways illustration, below, shows a bit more detail . . .



Notice that there is quite a bit of storage area around the circumference above the Heat Shield.

The photo, below, shows the heat shield being inspected BEFORE it was attached to Orion during assembly.

The titanium framework visible in the photo provides strength and rigidity.  The good news is that the data collected during flight and reentry will allow the framework to be "tweaked" so that it will weigh less and cost less.  Notice the smooth orange color on the body of the shield - that is the Avcoat ablative material that carries heat away from Orion during reentry into the atmosphere.  While the ablative material did meet the objectives for EFT-1, there were concerns that the monolithic coating of ablative material might not suffice for future, more demanding flight and reentry conditions.

In any event, the engineering team decided to change the physical characteristics by using individual Avcoat filled honeycombed tiles instead of the monolithic coating used for EFT-1.

In the year since the test in December 2014 the engineers have been building a new version of the Heat Shield, making changes suggested by the data from EFT-1.  The partially completed new shield will look a bit different from the version tested, as shown below.

The heat shield is 16 ½ feet in diameter.

So, what did the Heat Shield that was tested look like after the EFT-1 test? (You might want to know.)

It looks rather sad . . .


. . . be that as it may, remember that this charred Heat Shield from EFT-1 did it’s job, it met or exceeded all the objectives for the test, and the new shield will perform even better.

That’s the way things are done at NASA:  Design/Build/Test, then do it all over again in order to come as close to perfect as humanly possible.  This is, after all, the equipment that will insure the safety and health of the astronauts traveling to Mars, and back.

The photo below shows a group of NASA employees checking out the Orion after the Ceramic Back Shield was removed.



Notice the pristine condition of all the parts that were protected by the Heat Shield and the Back Shell.  The green colored Pressure Vessel where the crew will ride is partially visible beyond all the things that were stowed between the Pressure Vessel and the Back Vessel for the test.

I think that’s enough Orion history to prepare us (YOU and me) for information about how Orion is built.  More about that, next time.

   - - - End of Orion, Part 1 - - -

Terminology, Definitions, and Acronyms

Photos and Illustrations Credit: NASA, unless noted otherwise.

The Journey to Mars, Part 3

03 December 2015


In the preceding post I promised a list of NASA Terminology, Definitions, and Acronyms;  The list is shown below.  This list is growing as I learn more about NASA, and I will update the list periodically as time and energy permit.

Journey to Mars ( JTM )

Terminology, Definitions, and Acronyms

Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM): This mission (or missions) will place an asteroid into cislunar space as well as return samples to the ISS and/or Earth for further study.

Asteroid Redirect Robotic Vehicle (ARRV):  a spacecraft would rendezvous with a large near-Earth asteroid and use robotic arms with anchoring grippers to retrieve a boulder from the asteroid.

 Cislunar Space:  The space between the earth and the moon, plus other near earth space a bit beyond the moon, but nowhere near Mars.  This area is also called the Proving Ground.

CST-100 Starliner:   A Boeing spacecraft  for transporting astronauts to low earth orbit (LEO).

Deep Space Climate ObserVatory at LagRange Point 1 (DSCOVR):  "The primary objective of DSCOVR, a partnership between NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the U.S. Air Force, is to maintain the nation’s real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities, which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of space weather alerts and forecasts from NOAA."  ( Quote from NASA website)

Deep Space Network (DSN):  A ground based network on Earth with 34 - meter diameter dish antennas spaced about 120 degrees apart around the circumference of the Earth used for radio communication and data collection from spacecraft anywhere in deep space, 24-7.  These "radio stations" are located in Canberra Australia, Madrid, Spain, and Goldstone, California.



European Space Agency (ESA): The European version of NASA.

Exploration Upper Stage (EUS): A rocket stage that sits atop the Core (main) stage of the SLS rocket, Block 1B and Block 2 assemblies.  See SLS, farther down this list for info about the 4 versions of the Space Launch System (SLS) rockets.

An  illustration of the various parts of Core section of a Block 1 SLS Rocket is shown below:


As you can see in the illustration above, most of the rocket structure is devoted to fuel and rocket engines.  Also, take a look at that little pointy thing that is mounted on top of the Orion Crew module - that is the rocket that powers the Launch Abort System, and that "little pointy thing" is larger and more powerful than the rocket that took John Glenn into orbit 20 February 1962.  Nasa has come a long way since those early days of space flight.

The Core stage of the SLS rocket is 212 feet tall ( 64.6 meters) and 27.6 feet diameter (8.4 meters) includes (bottom to top):

[] The four RS-25 main engines.
[] Liquid Hydrogen fuel tank.
[] Intertank Connector.
[] Liquid Oxygen fuel tank
[] Forward Skirt

To illustrate and emphasize the size of the Core section, a photo of a technician inspecting welds on the top of the Hydrogen fuel tank is shown below:



The liquid Oxygen tank will ride above the hydrogen tank, and both fit snugly inside the Core Section.

Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap):  A program in progress to use COTS to carry supplies to the ISS with vehicles supplied by Boeing, Space X, etc.

Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS):  A  NASA sponsored program to encourage companies to develop systems to provide supply services to cislunar space.  Companies such as Boeing and Orbital ATK have already begun to deliver cargo to the ISS.

Commercial Resupply Services (CRS):  Part of COTS

Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL): Stages of taking things from orbit and placing them on the surface of a planet, moon, asteroid, or comet.

Extra Vehicular Activity (EVA):  Activity in space outside of a spacecraft or ISS.

Halo Orbit:  An orbit around a Lagrange Point.  The illustration below shows a satellite in a halo orbit around L1.  Halo orbits are different from "normal" orbits because the orbiting object is orbiting a point in space that is the confluence of two gravitational forces - there is literally nothing there except the coming together of gravity forces.



 Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO): The Indian version of NASA.

International Space Station (ISS): An American  National Laboratory where LEO research and training is done.  As of December 2015 astronauts from 17 countries have lived and worked on the ISS for various periods of times during the past 15 years.  Currently (December 2015) two astronauts (one Russian and one American)  are about half way through a 1-year assignment aboard the ISS.  The "normal" assignment for each of the 6-person crew is six months, or less.



The flags were added to the photo to show countries who participate in ISS missions.

Interior Exploration Using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy, and Heat Transport (InSight):  A robotic MARS lander scheduled for launch in 2016 that will investigate the interior (geophysical) processes that formed Mars’s core, mantle, and crust, comparing these processes to the Earth.  In addition, InSight will also investigate seismic and meteorite impact rates  on Mars.

In Situ Resource Utilization : (ISRU): - - a type of device that will produce essential resources, such as Oxygen on the ISS and eventually on Mars.  Also, see MOXIE, below.

Lagrange Point:    Points in an orbital configuration of two large bodies where a small object affected only by gravity, such as an artificial satellite, can maintain a stable position relative to the two large bodies.  The illustration below shows Lagrange Points 1 through 5 for the Earth-Sun system (not to scale).  The L1 point is 1.5 miles from Earth.  The yellow lines represent gravitational forces, which are actually "warps" in space that create "gravity wells", but that’s a story for another day.



Low Earth Orbit (LEO): An orbit around Earth with an altitude between 160 kilometers (99 mi) (orbital period of about 88 minutes), and 2,000 kilometers (1,200 mi) (with an orbital period of about 127 minutes).

Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO):  A Moon orbiter currently in operation at Earth’s Moon.

Mars Transit Habitat (MTH):  Relatively large habitats that provide living quarters for astronauts in transit trough deep space - such as an asteroid or Voyage to Mars.

MOXIE: A small experimental ISRU device that  extracts Oxygen from carbon dioxide (CO2 in a process  called "solid oxide electrolysis".  MOXIE will be tested on the ISS and will be a part of the 2020 rover.  Full size versions (about 10X the size of MOXIE) will be sent to Mars ahead of manned flights to produce and store oxygen to be used by the astronauts when they arrive, and during their stay on the surface of Mars.



National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA): The U.S. government agency that oversees and manages research and development projects in aeronautics and space travel.

Solar Electric Propulsion (SEP): A type of rocket engine that uses solar power from solar panels to accelerate ionized propellant (plasma) for thrust.  These engines do not produce as much thrust as chemical engines, but they are much more efficient, allowing much more mass to be transported with far less fuel.   This type of engine was used for NASA’s Dawn Mission which sent an orbiting robot to  asteroids Vesta and Seres (This was the first ever mission that visited and orbited two different asteroids).

The illustration below, depicts an unmanned cargo carrying SEP vehicle on its way to Mars.



Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO):  A cooperative effort between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) to study the Sun.  SOHO has also discovered over 3,000 Comets during it’s 20 years in space.

Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41):  Launch Pad facility used by commercial transportation to ISS.

Space Launch System (SLS):  Arguably, the most interesting and exciting item for the Journey to Mars is the SLS rocket, which will be the largest and most powerful rocket ever built.

NASA defines the SLS as "Orion’s ride to deep space".   The four versions of the SLS rocket are shown in the illustration below:



SLS is four different versions of the rocket that will do the heavy lifting that will eventually allow 4 astronauts to be landed on Mars. The fourth and final version of SLS will be capable of launching about 150 metric tons into orbit.  Nasa has it’s own way of naming things, so these four versions of the SLS are called Block 1, Block 1B Crew, Block 1B Cargo, and Block 2 Cargo.  The boosters on the Block 2 cargo rocket will be more powerful than the boosters on the other three rockets in order launch more massive payloads.

[] SLS Block 1 will support the first exploration mission into circumlunar space.  This unmanned test flight, planned for 2018, will be the first integrated test of SLS and the Orion spacecraft.  This mission is called Exploration Mission 1 ( EM-1 )

[] SLS Block 1B Crew will add an expanded upper stage.  Exploration Mission 2  (EM-2) will be manned and will test and validate key operational capabilities that are required to become Earth Independent.

[] SLS Bock 1B Cargo is for launching heavy loads of cargo into LEO and cislunar space.

[] SLS Block 2 will add advanced boosters (the largest and most powerful solid fuel rockets ever built) to replace the original boosters used versions 1 and 1B.

Shown below is a photo of SLS Block 1 on its way to the launch pad for initial integration testing.  This test will NOT actually launch the rocket.  Reading the documentation I have seen so far I get the impression that this "integration test" is intended to make sure everything fits together as it should, and to verify that all the wiring is hooked up correctly.




And, a closer view of the Orion spacecraft looking down from the top . . .



United Launch Alliance (ULA):  One of NASA’s commercial suppliers that provides cargo shipments to the ISS using three families of launch vehicles: Atlas V, Delta II, and Delta IV rockets.


And, that’s all I have ready for prime time right now.

Not sure what will be next, but I have a couple of things in the works.

Take care, and visit the NASA website often - - they have TONS of wonderful stuff there, including live TV from the ISS.

Journey to Mars / Let's Get Started

 Photo and Illustration Credit: NASA, unless noted otherwise.

The Journey to Mars, Part 2

01 December 2015

The Space Launch System (SLS) will be the prime mover that launches astronauts and cargo into orbit for the work that must be done in cislunar space during the next two decades, or so, in preparation for the Voyage to Mars.

"And what, exactly, is this work that must be done?"   (you might ask).

"Good question !"  I reply.

NASA has developed an excellent plan which we (YOU & I) can read online, or print for reference.  Check it out at . . .

 http://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/journey-to-mars-next-steps-20151008_508.pdf

I have printed the plan for my own reference (all 35 pages of it) and it has turned out to be one of my major sources of information about The Journey to Mars.

I hasten to point out that 35 pages is not enough to include all the multitude of details about specific task that must be completed before blasting off for Mars.  The "multitude of details" will be the subject(s) of future posts on this blog ( with a detour now and then to present supporting material).

The plan  for The Journey to Mars is divided into three broad PHASES:

Phase 1: EARTH RELIANT

The Earth reliant Phase focuses on research aboard the International Space Station (ISS) by testing technologies and advancing human health and performance, including:
[] Human health and behavioral research
[] Advanced Communications systems
[] Material flammability tests
[] Extravehicular operations
[] Mars mission environmental control and life support systems
[] 3-D printing
[] Material handling tests for in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) demonstrations

Phase 2: PROVING GROUND

Primarily operating in cislunar space, NASA will advance and validate capabilities required for human exploration of Mars:
[] A series of Exploration Missions (EMs), starting with EM-1, the first integrated test of the Space Launch System (SLS) and the Orion Multi Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV). Test is planned for 2018.
[] Robotic Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM) in 2020 that will collect a large boulder from a near-Earth asteroid, then ferry it to the Proving Ground and the Asteroid Redirect Crew Mission that will allow astronauts to investigate and sample the boulder
[] Concepts to minimize resupply needs through reduction, reuse, and cycling of consumables, packaging, and materials
[] Other key operational capabilities required to become Earth Independent

Phase 3: EARTH INDEPENDENT

Earth independent activities build on what we learn on ISS and in cislunar space to enable human missions to the Mars vicinity, including the Martian Moons, and eventually the Martian surface.  Future Mars missions will represent a collaborative effort among NASA and its partners - - a global achievement that marks a transition in humanity’s expansions we go to Mars not just to visit, but to stay.

The photo of the ISS with flags of NASA’s "partner" nations added is shown below . . .



Worth special notice: for political reasons the Chinese flag is not included because China is not allowed to use the ISS.

By the way, you may have noticed that NASA has their own way of giving names to things and activities, and also uses lots of acronyms.  I found this to be a bit daunting when I first began doing research.  The good news is that I have collected an ever growing list of Terminology, Definitions and Acronyms that I refer to often.  I think this list may be useful to YOU, so I’ll check it twice for errors and omissions, correct the errors I find, and post it here for you to use however you see fit.

A short list of Terminology, Definitions, and Acronyms (TD and A) that may be helpful as you read the first few blog posts following the one you are reading right now . . .

Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM): This mission (or missions) will place an asteroid into cislunar space as well as return samples to the ISS and/or Earth for further study.

Asteroid Redirect Robotic Vehicle (ARRV): The Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM), also known as the Asteroid Retrieval and Utilization (ARU) mission and the Asteroid Initiative, is a potential future space mission proposed by NASA. Still in the early stages of planning and development, the spacecraft would rendezvous with a large near-Earth asteroid and use robotic arms with anchoring grippers to retrieve a 6-meter boulder from the asteroid.  [[ Info from Wikipedia. ]]

Cislunar Space:  The space between the earth and the moon, plus other near earth space a bit beyond the moon, but nowhere near Mars.  This area is also called the Proving Ground.

Low Earth Orbit (LEO): An orbit around Earth with an altitude between 160 kilometers (99 mi) (orbital period of about 88 minutes), and 2,000 kilometers (1,200 mi) (with an orbital period of about 127 minutes).

MOXIE: A small experimental ISRU device that  extracts Oxygen from carbon dioxide (CO2 in a process  called "solid oxide electrolysis".  MOXIE will be tested on the ISS and will be a part of the 2020 rover.

[] SLS Block 1B Crew will add an expanded upper stage.  Exploration Mission 2  (EM-2) will be manned and will test and validate key operational capabilities that are required to become Earth Independent.

Shown, below, is a part of the SLS where the four RS-25 main engines attach to the rocket on the adapter to the left (in white)
and the bottom section of the Core Stage on the right (yellowish).  This structure has passed all preliminary tests and is ready to be assembled to the rest of the rocket.



I think that is enough to give you a "taste" of what’s coming next.

'Till then, keep looking up.

The Journey to Mars, Part 1


Photo and illustration Credit: NASA, unless noted otherwise.

[[  Most recent Update 28 November 2015: corrected spelling and grammatical errors. ]]

Hello.  It has been quite a while since I have posted anything here on Blogspot, and I hope to be more attentive in the future.

My life has changes a great deal during my absence, and that’s a story for another day. (if ever).

During the past four years, or so, I have been very interested in "space travel" in general and NASA’s activity in particular.  The end of the Space Shuttle era was a bit disturbing, but after downloading and studying NASA’s plan for The Voyage to Mars I think it was a wise decision.

Be that as it may, over the next several weeks (months?) I plan to post information here that is of particular interest to me, and I hope it will be of interest to readers.  So, let us  (YOU & I) begin . . .

At the heart of The Voyage to Mars is the new Space Launch System (SLS) which includes 4 versions of the Space Launch System (SLS) Rocket.



The photo shows a Block 1 SLS Rocket on its way to the launch pad for its first integrated test.

"Block 1" ??

Yes, NASA has its own way of naming things.  The Bock 1 version is simply the first of the 4 SLS Rockets to be built.  More about that, later.  Meanwhile, the illustration, below, shows the CORE Stage (in blue) and an illustration of the sections that make up the "Core".



The fuel tanks (shown in yellow) occupy most of the Core Stage - the large tank holds Liquid Hydrogen, the smaller tank holds Liquid Oxygen.

More details are shown in the chart, below . . .

 


Each of the four versions will be larger and more powerful that any rocket that has ever been built, including the mighty Saturn 5 rockets that launched astronauts to the moon.

All 4 versions of the SLS Rockets are shown below for comparison.



SLS Block 1, on the left is for unmanned testing missions in near earth and cislunar space.

Next, SLS Block 1B Crew is for manned missions in near earth and cislunar space.

Next, SLS 1B Cargo  is for delivering cargo to the International Space Station (ISS) and cislunar destinations.

Next (on the far right) SLS Block 2 Cargo is for delivering massive cargo to cislunar space and to Mars. 

This new fleet of rockets will provide launch capability for missions into cislunar space and deep space far beyond the moon, including missions to asteroids and eventually missions that will carry humans to Mars.  The manned missions to Mars are currently scheduled for the mid 2030s.

Notice the "strap-on" boosters on each version of the SLS Rocket.  These boosters add considerable Thrust to get off the launch pad and into orbit.  More about that, later.

Meanwhile, here is a photo of one of the boosters on a unique ground transport vehicle . . .

That’s probably more than enough for an introductory post.

More details coming up in future posts as I get them ready for "prime time".

Meanwhile, keep looking up - -  there are wonderful and amazing things to be seen up there in the night sky.