NASA Space Launch System (SLS)

[publiusr]

Collides, rockets and carriers are rather similar.

Collides?

Blasted autocorrect..colliders
At least when you flip a toggle it doesn’t argue with you…

 

[Grey Havoc]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1Q05kJocSc

 

[Grey Havoc]

Artemis 1 moon rocket, NASA's most powerful ever, aced its debut launch, agency says

"The first launch of the Space Launch System rocket was simply eye-watering."

www.space.com

 

[publiusr]

A question--insane as it may sound.

Let's imagine a Block II SLS for a moment---but instead of having an upper stage stage and hefty payload---it was just SLS tankage....more hydrogen and oxygen---leveraging its Stage-and-a-Half construction.

-burn this to depletion.

Could that get to the Moon as a wet Workshop there---maybe have a slide-out/roll-out

Lithobraking – The Unwanted Blog

Four SRBs enough for a run-and-go?

 

[TomcatViP]

Well, it's here. It works. And it doesn't need to be rebranded with any fancy name. Although the cat stunt was irresistible.

View: https://youtu.be/kfUFfCP5bEg

 

[NMaude]

TheSpaceBucket has just put out this video concerning NASA's plans for the Orion spacecraft, Artemis-II and so on:

 

[publiusr]

Homer Hickam’s novel BACK TO THE MOON had a bare bones inflatable Moon Lander…an inflatable cabin with four balloon legs that were cast off.
I don’t like inflatables for long term stations..but single use I could see.

In light of the LOFTID tests, maybe the whole spacecraft can an inflate…with the SLS upper stage just being a big Agena.

 

[NMaude]

Here's an interesting video from Scott Manley about why Artemis-1 and other related missions have been using these weird convoluted trajectories instead of a direct TLI:

 

[NMaude]

Here's a new video from TheSpaceBucket about NASA's preparations for Artemis 2 and upgrades to LC39B:

 

[publiusr]

Is it me, or does the hostility level towards SLS feel muted now that it has proven itself and with Musk’s project still on the dirt pile?

 

[NMaude]

Now that the SLS is flight proven, yes I think you are correct also there's nothing like 8.8 million pounds of thrust at liftoff to excite a critic; I wish I'd been able to witness the launch in person.

 

[Orionblamblam]

Is it me, or does the hostility level towards SLS feel muted now that it has proven itself and with Musk’s project still on the dirt pile?

Musk has been flying rockets since before SLS was officially a thing. SLS remains a bloated unnecessary monstrosity.

 

[Moose]

Is it me, or does the hostility level towards SLS feel muted now that it has proven itself and with Musk’s project still on the dirt pile?

Musk has been flying rockets since before SLS was officially a thing. SLS remains a bloated unnecessary monstrosity.

It's bloated, far from optimized, and will eventually be unnecessary. But Superheavy hasn't flown yet and the last Starship flight was over a year and a half ago. We haven't seen the newest Raptor design fly and we haven't seen the arms catch a stage on its way down. At the current rate of schedule slip Artemis II might be back on the ground before Dear Moon has been stacked. And the CEO seems to be spending a lot less time in Boca Chica lately. Calls to end SLS will remain pretty quiet until Starship makes some big steps.

 

[Orionblamblam]

Is it me, or does the hostility level towards SLS feel muted now that it has proven itself and with Musk’s project still on the dirt pile?

Musk has been flying rockets since before SLS was officially a thing. SLS remains a bloated unnecessary monstrosity.

It's bloated, far from optimized, and will eventually be unnecessary. But Superheavy hasn't flown yet and the last Starship flight was over a year and a half ago. We haven't seen the newest Raptor design fly and we haven't seen the arms catch a stage on its way down. At the current rate of schedule slip Artemis II might be back on the ground before Dear Moon has been stacked. And the CEO seems to be spending a lot less time in Boca Chica lately. Calls to end SLS will remain pretty quiet until Starship makes some big steps.

Admittedly it would be preferable if Musk would stop screwing around with Twitter, but I'm honestly not certain if he is a driving force behind progress on Starship at this point. Perhaps it would be best if Musk would go ahead and buy Canada from the WEF. I'm unconvinced that it would make one minutes difference one way or the other for the Starship schedule.

 

[_Del_]

It's bloated, far from optimized, and will eventually be unnecessary. But Superheavy hasn't flown yet and the last Starship flight was over a year and a half ago.

Keeping Our Sights on Mars Part 3: A Status Update and Review of NASA’s Artemis Initiative | House Committee on Science, Space and Technology

The House Committee on Science, Space and Technology

science.house.gov

With the NASA IG telling Congress the cost is about $4.1 Billion per launch and unlikely to drop to a "sustainable" price point, what do we absolutely need to lift that can't be lifted in multiple launches (be it refueling, docking, or actual EVA construction)?

Ignoring Superheavy altogether, the tax payer could buy 11+ launches of Falcon Heavy for the cost of one SLS launch. You could launch a Mars lander, command module, and a big transfer stage, in three seperate FHeavy launches, mate them in LEO for less than a third of the cost of a single SLS launch.

 

[NMaude]

And the CEO seems to be spending a lot less time in Boca Chica lately.

He's currently obsessed with Twitter completely fucking it up while publicly making a complete fool of himself.

but I'm honestly not certain if he is a driving force behind progress on Starship at this point.

I'd say that his deputy, Gwyn Shotwell, is running the show at SpaceX while he's going through his Twitter obsession.

 

[NMaude]

Some news concerning the production of the Artemis-III first-stage LH2 tank:Liquid hydrogen tank for Artemis III prepares for next production phase

​

Liquid hydrogen tank for Artemis III prepares for next production phase​

January 11, 2023 0 By JULIE CAMPBELL

NASA technicians at Michoud Assembly Facility have moved on to complete the next stage.
In New Orleans, the technicians at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility have taken the next step forward in the production of the liquid hydrogen tank for the Artemis III mission.

It has entered a phase to prepare it to be part of a number of activities in the manufacturing process.​

The technicians have moved the liquid hydrogen tank of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket to Cell A. There, the tank’s dimensions will undergo white light scans to prepare it for a number of activities that it must undergo throughout the manufacturing process.

This flight hardware will be critical to the Artemis III mission, which will be one of the first Artemis missions to feature a human crew.
The tank in question has a capacity of 537,000 gallons of liquified H2, which is cooled to a temperature of about -258 Celsius degrees. It is the largest of the five components comprising the 64.6-meter-tall core stage of the rocket.

The liquid hydrogen tank is located between the intertank and engine portions of the rocket’s core stage.​

The liquified H2 tank is found between the rocket core stage’s intertank and engine components. Both the H2 hardware and the liquified oxygen tank will be necessary as the propellent used for the four RS-25 engines at the base of the core stage. This fuel is used for the production of the over two million pounds of thrust that are necessary to successfully and safely launch the NASA Artemis missions that are headed to the Moon.



This is far from the first time that NASA has used H2 as a fuel for its missions to space. As was reported at the end of last year by Hydrogen Fuel News, it has already been using liquified H2 to propel its equipment into and beyond the Earth’s atmosphere.
Artemis III Landing Region Candidates
Liquid hydrogen offers many advantages as a rocket fuel, as the element with the lightest molecular weight, but that will also burn at a super-intense 3038 Celsius degrees. When that fuel is combined with liquefied oxygen, it provides the maximum specific efficiency when compared with any other known rocket propellant.

 

[Forest Green]

Some news concerning the production of the Artemis-III first-stage LH2 tank:Liquid hydrogen tank for Artemis III prepares for next production phase

​

Liquid hydrogen tank for Artemis III prepares for next production phase​

January 11, 2023 0 By JULIE CAMPBELL

NASA technicians at Michoud Assembly Facility have moved on to complete the next stage.
In New Orleans, the technicians at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility have taken the next step forward in the production of the liquid hydrogen tank for the Artemis III mission.

It has entered a phase to prepare it to be part of a number of activities in the manufacturing process.​

The technicians have moved the liquid hydrogen tank of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket to Cell A. There, the tank’s dimensions will undergo white light scans to prepare it for a number of activities that it must undergo throughout the manufacturing process.

This flight hardware will be critical to the Artemis III mission, which will be one of the first Artemis missions to feature a human crew.
The tank in question has a capacity of 537,000 gallons of liquified H2, which is cooled to a temperature of about -258 Celsius degrees. It is the largest of the five components comprising the 64.6-meter-tall core stage of the rocket.

The liquid hydrogen tank is located between the intertank and engine portions of the rocket’s core stage.​

The liquified H2 tank is found between the rocket core stage’s intertank and engine components. Both the H2 hardware and the liquified oxygen tank will be necessary as the propellent used for the four RS-25 engines at the base of the core stage. This fuel is used for the production of the over two million pounds of thrust that are necessary to successfully and safely launch the NASA Artemis missions that are headed to the Moon.



This is far from the first time that NASA has used H2 as a fuel for its missions to space. As was reported at the end of last year by Hydrogen Fuel News, it has already been using liquified H2 to propel its equipment into and beyond the Earth’s atmosphere.
Artemis III Landing Region Candidates
Liquid hydrogen offers many advantages as a rocket fuel, as the element with the lightest molecular weight, but that will also burn at a super-intense 3038 Celsius degrees. When that fuel is combined with liquefied oxygen, it provides the maximum specific efficiency when compared with any other known rocket propellant.

Metallic Hydrogen?

 

[NMaude]

Metallic Hydrogen?

That would be the ultimate chemical liquid-fuel if it could be manufactured.

 

[NMaude]

Some more news concerning the construction status of major first-stage components for the Artemis-III launcher:

NASA_SLS
@NASA_SLS


SLS for #Artemis III is in the works at #NASAMichoud! The liquid hydrogen tank, liquid oxygen tank, engine section, forward skirt, and intertank sections of the core stage have all hit major milestones recently. Learn more about
@NASAArtemis
III: https://go.nasa.gov/3H3Qg3t






7:00 AM · Jan 15, 2023·
152.9K
Views

https://twitter.com/x/status/1614321465263886337

View: https://twitter.com/NASA_SLS/status/1614321465263886337

The inter-tank and thrust structures are complete, the LH2 tank is complete (Just needs its' insulation to be sprayed on) and it would appear the LOX tank will soon be entering final-assembly.

I'd say we're going to see the final assembly of it later on this year.

 

[FighterJock]

Some more news concerning the construction status of major first-stage components for the Artemis-III launcher:

NASA_SLS
@NASA_SLS


SLS for #Artemis III is in the works at #NASAMichoud! The liquid hydrogen tank, liquid oxygen tank, engine section, forward skirt, and intertank sections of the core stage have all hit major milestones recently. Learn more about
@NASAArtemis
III: https://go.nasa.gov/3H3Qg3t






7:00 AM · Jan 15, 2023·
152.9K
Views

https://twitter.com/x/status/1614321465263886337

View: https://twitter.com/NASA_SLS/status/1614321465263886337

The inter-tank and thrust structures are complete, the LH2 tank is complete (Just needs its' insulation to be sprayed on) and it would appear the LOX tank will soon be entering final-assembly.

I'd say we're going to see the final assembly of it later on this year.

Good news for Artemis 3.

 

[NMaude]

Good news for Artemis 3.

Yup! However I strongly suspect that the pacing item for Artemis-III isn't the launcher but the Moon-lander and the astronauts spacesuits.

 

[NMaude]

Some more updates concerning the status of Artemis-II:

Before humans step foot on the Moon once again, a few key missions need to take place apart of the Artemis program. Only months ago the Artemis I mission took place and was a major success. Now in early 2023, a bunch of different preparation and work is being completed for Artemis II. A mission NASA is still scheduling not long from now in 2024.

These recent updates include work on Orion’s Service Module, propulsion test projects for the agency, core stage progress, and more. While Artemis II will not land humans on the surface, it will be the first crewed mission on SLS and Orion and travel deep into space before returning to Earth. If successful, this will be the final mission before the long-awaited Artemis III when humans make history once again.

All this being said, there are some schedule concerns the agency is facing. Based on current progress and what’s still left to complete, it’s very possible that Artemis II gets pushed back into 2025 which would have a domino effect on other important missions. Here I will go more in-depth into recent Artemis II progress, what delays and other concerns the agency is facing, what to expect in the coming months, and more.

 

[Forest Green]

This never happens on Star Trek.

 

[FighterJock]

Some more updates concerning the status of Artemis-II:

Before humans step foot on the Moon once again, a few key missions need to take place apart of the Artemis program. Only months ago the Artemis I mission took place and was a major success. Now in early 2023, a bunch of different preparation and work is being completed for Artemis II. A mission NASA is still scheduling not long from now in 2024.

These recent updates include work on Orion’s Service Module, propulsion test projects for the agency, core stage progress, and more. While Artemis II will not land humans on the surface, it will be the first crewed mission on SLS and Orion and travel deep into space before returning to Earth. If successful, this will be the final mission before the long-awaited Artemis III when humans make history once again.

All this being said, there are some schedule concerns the agency is facing. Based on current progress and what’s still left to complete, it’s very possible that Artemis II gets pushed back into 2025 which would have a domino effect on other important missions. Here I will go more in-depth into recent Artemis II progress, what delays and other concerns the agency is facing, what to expect in the coming months, and more.

2025 for Artemis 2? That is a pity.

 

[publiusr]

That's Congress and lack of support. Everybody hated on Shelby---but he's the only reason we have this capability. Barbra Mikulski probably would have loved to BRAC MSFC and its funs go to climate-sats used to blackmail and Greenbait industry back into the ground. Jim (Byeman) can talk about Marshall resting on its "laurels"---as you can see---we that several SLS cores in the waiting. And we did this with flat NASA budgets---not the Apollo build up.

To steal a quote from J.J.s Pike---I dare Elon to do better.

 

[FighterJock]

That's Congress and lack of support. Everybody hated on Shelby---but he's the only reason we have this capability. Barbra Mikulski probably would have loved to BRAC MSFC and its funs go to climate-sats used to blackmail and Greenbait industry back into the ground. Jim (Byeman) can talk about Marshall resting on its "laurels"---as you can see---we that several SLS cores in the waiting. And we did this with flat NASA budgets---not the Apollo build up.

To steal a quote from J.J.s Pike---I dare Elon to do better.

Good to hear that NASA has several cores in the waiting, now all we need to do is to increase the budget (that is IF Congress is willing to increase it) and get Artemis 2 launched in 2025. Then role on Artemis 3.

 

[NMaude]

Here's a new SciNews video about the latest RS-25 test:

An Aerojet Rocketdyne RS-25 rocket engine was tested on the Fred Haise Test Stand (formerly A-1 Test Stand) at the John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, on 8 February 2023, at 19:50 UTC (13:50 CST, 14:50 EST). The test had a scheduled duration of about eight-and-a-half minutes (500 seconds) the length of time engines must fire during an actual flight. The engine operated at up to 111% power level, the same level needed to help power NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS).

Now I wonder if the rocket-motor is a rebuilt RS-25D or a new build RS-25E?

 

[publiusr]

The RS-68 was simpler. If SuperHeavy works well-could an entire SLS core with a modified RS-68 fit atop it in place of Starship for the ultimate in high-energy upper stages? I know what Byeman will say so I'm asking others.

 

[FighterJock]

The RS-68 was simpler. If SuperHeavy works well-could an entire SLS core with a modified RS-68 fit atop it in place of Starship for the ultimate in high-energy upper stages? I know what Byeman will say so I'm asking others.

That I would like to see happen.

 

[publiusr]

The core test impressed me more than SuperHeavy’s. They gimbaled the SLS’ engines like mad and for a long duration. That’s tough.

 

[NMaude]

Another update from NASA concerning the final-assembly of the Artemis II's first-stage:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1628852321399578624

View: https://twitter.com/NASA_SLS/status/1628852321399578624?cxt=HHwWgIC9ic2j7JotAAAA

NASA_SLS
@NASA_SLS


Line it up! Teams at #NASAMichoud have moved the engine section for #Artemis II into place to join it with the rest of the core stage. This section will help power the first crewed
@NASAArtemis
mission. Learn more about the SLS core stage: https://go.nasa.gov/3Y1PlG2

Artemis II engine section.jpg (1747.6 kB, 4096x2731 - viewed 12 times.)

Artemis II engine section2.jpg (2022.39 kB, 4096x2730 - viewed 11 times.)

Artemis II engine section3.jpg (1654.33 kB, 4096x2725 - viewed 12 times.)


I suppose that next month they'll start installing the RS-25D's once the thrust structure has been fully mated with all electrical, gas and fluid connections made.

 

[publiusr]

Now, a caption at the site here says the apogee was 1,800 km:

NASA flight software for SLS navigates through clean first launch - NASASpaceFlight.com

The NASA-developed flight software for the agency’s Space Launch System (SLS) vehicle successfully flew the…

www.nasaspaceflight.com

That’s begging to be used as a wet workshop with a lighter payload.

The Shuttle ET was going to be used similarly:

Space Shuttle External Tank (ET) Applications: ET as Space Facility (1982)

The story of spaceflight told through missions and programs that did not happen - that is, the great majority of them.

spaceflighthistory.blogspot.com

View: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0w4B0C_nBPg


SLS mods:

View: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=OJ0UJ3Xavhg

View: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=P8KQcnpLZRU

 

[Flyaway]

SLS RS-25 Engine Test, 21 March 2023 (600 seconds test)

View: https://youtu.be/gorVPLmTn6Q

 

[publiusr]

Astonishing.

 

[FighterJock]

Absolutely amazing.

 

[publiusr]

That's a TEN MINUTE burn.

 

[publiusr]

As you know, I have long been interested in wet stage stations first talked about for External Tanks.

Boeing just seems to be getting worse and worse.

I noticed our own Byeman (Jim at NSF) chiding some folks talking about a Starship precursor, and explaining the relative size of tankage….LOX compared to fuel tanks.

But instead of a Precursor Starship…what might an SLS-free SLS look like…were you to design a rocket for the express purpose of being a stage-and-a-half to orbit wet workshop?

I was thinking about exaggerating the difference between propellants farther.

Here, you have not a big LH2 tank…but a big LOX tank. Heavy simple…eats into whatever payload…but easy to knock out…like G&G Steel’s SLS pathfinder that was more like Starship in how it was constructed:

DOD & Aerospace Industry

www.ggsteel.com

Here, I was thinking engines and a relatively small fuel tank of something good and dense would detach from the LOX tank…built from the start to lend itself as a module. Once the payload (if any) is gone….a docking port is exposed…maybe one at either end.

Only the fuel-tank/engine block returns from orbit…so you don’t need Starship fins, or a TPS along the length of the thing.

So the propulsion unit is a bit bigger than the pod of the Zubrin Ares, but nowhere near as unwieldy as trying to wrangle tankage for Earth Return.

If not SRBs or other strap-ons, maybe it could be placed atop SuperHeavy in place of Starship for some missions.

 

[Michel Van]

next issue with Starliner has Boeing another problem with SLS
Wilson Aerospace, is suing Boeing for what it claims to be "theft" of its intellectual property.
of the "Fluid Fitting Torque Device-3" used to connect the RS-25 to SLS core

Boeing hit with a lawsuit over alleged “theft” of SLS rocket tools

"Without the engines installed and fitted perfectly, the rocket could not launch."

arstechnica.com

 

[FighterJock]

And now Boeing now has a lawsuit on its hands. Things are not looking good at all.