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Cape Canaveral FL (SPX) Feb 11, 2010 SpaceX reportsthat all the flight hardware for the first launch of the Falcon 9 vehicle is now at the SpaceX launch site, Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40), in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Final delivery included the Falcon 9 second stage, which recently completed testing at the SpaceX test facility in McGregor, Texas. SpaceX has now initiated full vehicle integration of the 47 meter (154 feet) tall, 3.6 meter (12 feet) diameter rocket, which will include a Dragon spacecraft qualification unit. "We expect to launch in one to three months after completing full vehicle integration," said Brian Mosdell, Director of Florida Launch Operations for SpaceX. "Our primary objective is a successful first launch and we are taking whatever time necessary to work through the data to our satisfaction before moving forward." Following full vehicle integration, SpaceX will conduct a static firing to demonstrate flight readiness and confirm operation of ground control systems in preparation for actual launch. Though designed from the beginning to transport crew, SpaceX's Falcon 9 launch vehicle and Dragon spacecraft will initially be used to transport cargo. Falcon 9 and Dragon were selected by NASA to resupply the International Space Station (ISS) once the US Space Shuttle system is mothballed later this year with just four more launches left. The $1.6B contract represents 12 flights for a minimum of 20 tons to and from the ISS with the first demonstration flights beginning in 2010.
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Space Access Capability Boosted By Wind Tunnel Test SuccessWright-Patterson AFB OH (AFNS) Feb 10, 2010 With help from Air Force Research Laboratory, the Air Force is pursuing a Reusable Booster System concept as the potential next step towards a low-cost space access capability. Whereas current booster systems are entirely expendable and require long lead times prior to launch, an RBS equipped with boostback capability--such as the one recently tested in Arnold Engineering Development Cente ... read more |
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