Tag: RD-180

With Successful Antares Launch, Russian Engines Are Riding High

With Successful Antares Launch, Russian Engines Are Riding High

After a near two year stand down while the launch pad was repaired and the rocket was retooled, Orbital ATK’s Antares rocket made a triumphant return to flight Monday evening. Liftoff from Pad OA at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport took place at 7:45 PM EDT, as the booster lofted a Cygnus cargo vehicle loaded with […]

The Ties That Bind: Russian / Chinese Engine Cooperation

The Ties That Bind: Russian / Chinese Engine Cooperation

From Tass: “Russia and China are actively discussing the prospects of cooperation in space rocket engine-making, creating a heavy rocket, space stations and making long-distance space flights, Russia’s Ambassador to China Andrey Denisov told TASS on Tuesday. “Our country has substantial potential accumulated in the sphere of engine-making. This is a well-known fact,” the ambassador […]

Posted in: Chinese space, Congress
Atlas, Delta, Falcon and Whole Bunch of Smoke

Atlas, Delta, Falcon and Whole Bunch of Smoke

Opinionated Analysis The ping pong match between the House and the Senate over ULA’s request for more RD-180 engines for the Atlas V was in the hands of the latter yesterday, where the Senate Armed Services Committee once again insisted that the number be limited to 9 engines beyond tbose already ordered as part of […]

Congress Prepares to Push the AR-1 on ULA

Congress Prepares to Push the AR-1 on ULA

The long and increasingly sordid saga of America’s dependence, and indeed bizarre fascination with the Russian RD-180 engine for the Atlas V booster is set to take another turn this week. And if certain scenarios play out, observers could be forgiven for wondering is there any limit to how much damage elected representatives from the […]

Atlas V’s RD-180 Shut Down Early on NASA Cargo Launch

Atlas V’s RD-180 Shut Down Early on NASA Cargo Launch

For anyone who was paying extraordinarily close attention to the ULA/Orbital ATK launch of an Atlas V rocket to the International Space Station on Tuesday night, a slight discrepancy in the timing of first stage main engine cutoff might have been noticeable. And if you caught that, then a burn of the Centaur upper stage’s […]

Russian Rocket Engine Replacement : Air Force Makes Two More Awards

Russian Rocket Engine Replacement : Air Force Makes Two More Awards

The Air Force has made two more awards in an effort to extricate itself from a controversial, and at times baffling American dependence on Russian rocket engines used to boost some of the nation’s most valuable and sensitive payloads into space. Yesterday’s awards, announced by the Space and Missile Systems PAO, went to Aerojet Rocketdyne […]

Blue Origin, SpaceX and Embracing the RLV Revolution

Blue Origin, SpaceX and Embracing the RLV Revolution

Opinion “On the Plains of Hesitation bleach the bones of countless millions, who, at the Dawn of Victory, sat down to wait, and waiting–died.”  -George W. Cecil On November 23rd, Blue Origin joined SpaceX as the second American company to demonstrate vertical landing capability for a human scaled launch vehicle.  Flying out of its West Texas […]

Posted in: Blue Origin
Seeking a Different Sort of Waiver for ULA

Seeking a Different Sort of Waiver for ULA

Editorial The long running drama regarding United Launch Alliance and the use of Russian RD-180 engines for the Atlas V rocket entered a new phase late Friday with the announcement that the Pentagon will not issue a waiver requested by the company allowing it to acquire more engines which it says are needed for competitive […]

Aerojet-Rocketdyne Offers $2 Billion for ULA

Aerojet-Rocketdyne Offers $2 Billion for ULA

According to Reuters, Aerojet-Rocketdyne Holdings Inc. has made an offer to purchase United Launch Alliance from parent companies Boeing and Lockheed Martin for approximately $2 billion in a deal which could achieve preliminary agreement as early as next week. The deal would mark a major shakeup and yet another consolidation in the traditional, or “OldSpace” […]

SpaceX V. ULA Battle Moves to the Senate

SpaceX V. ULA Battle Moves to the Senate

At Issue: The RD-180 According to a Reuters story the running battle between SpaceX and United Launch Alliance over military launches and Russian hardware took a new turn yesterday when Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain (R, Arizona) flatly rejected a request by defense officials to allow a broader interpretation of restrictions on the […]

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