For a brief period in the 1990’s, Solar Thermal Propulsion appeared to be on the cusp of becoming the next big thing in space technology. While that obviously has not happened yet, a recent NASA Future in Space Operations (FISO) presentation from Marshall Space Flight Center suggests it may still be an approach whose time […]
Cygnus Approach Orion Image Credit: OSC One of the most common arguments put forward in support of NASA’s current program of exploration using the Space Launch System and Orion spacecraft is that alternative modular missions launched by smaller boosters are inherently too complicated. The ISS, which required dozens of Shuttle and Russian launches to complete, […]
One of the most intriguing aspects of the International Space Station is that after a seemingly endless period of construction, now that the orbiting outpost is fully operational, various institutions are beginning to approach both NASA and CASIS, the Center for Advancement of Science in Space, with an ever broadening range of proposals for using […]
90 Days to Mars? With NASA being shut down, it seems like a particularly appropriate time to visit a recent FISO (Future in Space Operations) presentation covering an interesting proposal which will likely never be funded. The presentation, (PDF) and audio file are archived here, a University of Texas site, which is not shut down. […]
A Future in Space Operations presentation earlier this week by Dan Adamo, which can be found here, highlights a potential serious problem with NASA’s proposed asteroid capture mission. The presentation focuses on a “V” plot which shows a range of Near Earth Asteroids grouped into three different classes by their orbital characteristics. Some NEAs falling within […]
Keith Cowing reported on March 28th, that the Inspiration Mars Foundation is being heavily pressured by elements at JSC and MSFC to base its plans for a 2018 circumnavigation of Mars on a single launch of the agency’s yet to be flown Space Launch System. Although Cowing did not reveal the source of his information, given NASAWatch’s role in bringing other […]
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