November 14, 2019

NASA Report Finds Boeing Seat Prices are 60% Higher Than SpaceX (Source: Ars Technica)
On Thursday, NASA's inspector general released a report on the space agency's commercial crew program, which seeks to pay Boeing and SpaceX to develop vehicles to transport astronauts to the International Space Station.

Although the report cites the usual technical issues that the companies are having with the development of their respective Starliner and Dragon spacecraft, far more illuminating is its discussion of costs. Notably, the report publishes estimated seat prices for the first time, and it also delves into the extent that Boeing has gone to extract more money from NASA above and beyond its fixed-price award.

Boeing's per-seat price already seemed like it would cost more than SpaceX. The company has received a total of $4.82 billion from NASA over the lifetime of the commercial crew program, compared to $3.14 billion for SpaceX. However, for the first time the government has published a per-seat price: $90 million for Starliner and $55 million for Dragon. Each capsule is expected to carry four astronauts to the space station during a nominal mission. (11/14)

Could Kennedy Space Center Launch Pads Be At Risk As Climate Changes? Experts Say Yes (Source: Florida Today)
Created to propel humankind beyond the limits of Earth, Kennedy Space Center is now facing a terrestrial threat — the warming of our home planet, leading to sea level rise, erosion and catastrophic flooding — that could hinder our push to deep space. To protect the nation’s most historic launch pads and the only place in the United States capable of launching humans to orbit, NASA is building a massive dune along the coast but experts say that isn’t enough, leaving some to consider the unthinkable:

What if Kennedy Space Center had to move to higher ground? “It’s almost the same type of thing as saying ‘We’re going to move the White House two blocks to the left.’ You wouldn’t, right? Because you’ve invested in the infrastructure. It’s the hand we’ve been dealt since the ‘60s when the pads were first built,” NASA’s Public Affairs Officer Gregory Harland said.

By conservative estimates, NASA projects Kennedy Space Center will experience 5 to 8 inches of sea level rise by the 2050s. But if pollution continues to warm the planet causing polar ice to melt more rapidly, then NASA predicts 17 to 24 inches by the 2050s. What that means is that launch sites at Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station could find themselves at major risk from coastal flooding, according to a new analysis by scientists with the non-profit Climate Central. (11/14)

Construction of Starship 39A Launch and Landing Facility Picking Up the Pace at KSC (Source: NasaSpaceFlight.com)
The construction of the new Starship launch and landing facility at Pad 39A is in full swing as heavy equipment lays the foundations at the iconic Kennedy Space Center pad complex. Built alongside the 39A ramp, a new launch mount will be installed for what will be the maiden launch of SpaceX’s Starship Mk2 prototype rocket. The facility also includes a landing pad that will be eventually used for returning vehicles. (10/7)

Explorers Rediscover Florida (Source: Site Selection Magazine)
Florida Secretary of Commerce Jamal A. Sowell, who also serves as president & CEO of Enterprise Florida, recently retraced his family’s many trips to the coast for launches when he attended celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission. “As we talk with other companies, Frank DiBello’s great work is now being highlighted on a national level,” he says, noting that aerospace expertise extends to every corner of the state. “Florida has a brand that others just can’t replicate.”

Building on a schedule that has included visits to Morocco, Vietnam, Ghana and Israel, Secretary Sowell led a delegation to the 2019 Paris Air Show involving some 25 companies that resulted in around $2 million in sales during the event and $40 million in total projected sales, as well as some simmering company expansions. He says talent and workforce are priority No. 1 for the company leaders he met.

“Not only do we have a top university system, but we have the talent,” he says. Florida Gov. Rick DeSantis recently helped launch an apprenticeship program for the aerospace industry, and there is about $2 million in funding available through Pathway to Career Opportunities grants. The state’s university system, he says, “is not only delivering high-demand workforce, but valuable research, fueling the innovation economy. And this year the legislature founded the Florida Talent Development Council, “which puts education leaders, workforce stakeholders and business leaders around the table to focus squarely on developing workforce pools for the future.” (11/13)

Months After An Explosion, SpaceX Successfully Test Fires its Astronaut Capsule Engines (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
Seven months after a SpaceX astronaut capsule exploded during testing at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Elon Musk’s rocket company has tried the test again — this time successfully. On Wednesday, SpaceX completed a series of static fire engine tests to its spacecraft, called Crew Dragon, the same test that ended in flames on April 20 when a leaking component set off a domino effect that ended with plumes of smoke wafting over the Space Coast.

This time, the engines performed as expected. SpaceX ignited a set of the capsule’s thrusters that are used largely to maneuver the spacecraft in space with no problem. That was followed by a nine-second, full-duration firing of another set of engines that move the vehicle away from the rocket in case of an emergency after liftoff. It was during this particular test that the explosion occurred in April.

On Wednesday, the engines fired successfully, helping to clear the way for SpaceX to meet its next milestone for NASA: An in-flight abort test to prove the spacecraft is capable of moving away from a Falcon 9 rocket in the case a problem occurs mid-flight. There is not yet a date for the test, but SpaceX and NASA have said their ultimate goal, a mission with crew, will come next year. (11/14)

Rocket Lab Introduces Robotic Manufacturing sSystem to Increase Electron Production (Source: Space News)
In its ongoing quest to increase launch vehicle production, Rocket Lab has unveiled a new industrial robotic system designed to speed up manufacturing of its Electron rocket. Rocket Lab announced Nov. 13 it has started to use “Rosie,” a custom-designed robotic manufacturing system that can produce the carbon composite components of the Electron rocket in just 12 hours, a process that used to take more than 400 hours.

Rosie — named after the robotic housekeeper from The Jetsons cartoon series — takes up 140 square meters, large enough to encompass an entire first stage of the Electron rocket as well as its smaller second and kick stages and payload fairings. “It takes every carbon composite component from Electron and effectively processes all of those components so they’re ready for final assembly,” Peter Beck, chief executive of Rocket Lab, said in an interview. “We can process a complete Electron now in 12 hours.” (11/14)

Legislation to Create a Space Force in 2020 ‘Still Possible But By No Means Guaranteed’ (Source: Space News)
House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith (D-WA) said Nov. 13 that negotiations on the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act are “proceeding reasonably well” but he expressed doubt that the NDAA will include language to authorize a Space Force as a separate military branch. “It’s still possible but by no means guaranteed,” Smith told reporters on Capitol Hill.

When asked for specifics, Smith said, “I don’t think it would be helpful for me to make predictions.” The biggest sticking point in the NDAA negotiations is language in the House version of the bill that restricts the use of military funds to pay for the wall that President Trump wants to build along the U.S.-Mexico border. There are other dealbreaker issues. The authorization of a Space Force as the sixth branch of the armed forces is one of them, Smith said. Other contentious matters include extending the “war powers” legislation that authorizes the president to use military force, and allowing transgender people to serve in the military. (11/13)