Topic: NASA awards seed money to two rocket companies  (Read 904 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Online Nemesis

  • Captain Kayn
  • Global Moderator
  • Commodore
  • *
  • Posts: 12907
NASA awards seed money to two rocket companies
« on: August 19, 2006, 03:11:11 pm »
Link to full article

Quote
NASA has chosen two rocket companies to develop spaceships capable of sending cargo – and possibly crew – to the International Space Station (ISS). The first test flights could come in just two years.

The agency's goal is to find alternative ways of reaching the station, as the space shuttle is set to retire in 2010. After that, the US will not have a domestic spaceship that can transport astronauts and gear to the station until its own Crew Exploration Vehicle flies in about 2014. It expects to need six ISS flights per year after the shuttle's retirement.

So it will give seed money to Space Exploration Technologies (Space-X), based in El Segundo, California, and Rocketplane-Kistler (RpK), based in Oklahoma City, both in the US, to develop their launchers.

"These companies have shown us they have the potential to be competitive, even globally," says Alan Lindenmoyer, manager of the Commercial Crew and Cargo Program Office at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, US.
Do unto others as Frey has done unto you.
Seti Team    Free Software
I believe truth and principle do matter. If you have to sacrifice them to get the results you want, then the results aren't worth it.
 FoaS_XC : "Take great pains to distinguish a criticism vs. an attack. A person reading a post should never be able to confuse the two."

Offline Sirgod

  • Whooot Master Cattle Baron
  • Global Moderator
  • Vice Admiral
  • *
  • Posts: 27831
  • Gender: Male
Re: NASA awards seed money to two rocket companies
« Reply #1 on: August 19, 2006, 04:00:11 pm »
Cool OKC rocks, and needs the jobs since GM has closed.

Stephen
"You cannot exaggerate about the Marines. They are convinced to the point of arrogance, that they are the most ferocious fighters on earth - and the amusing thing about it is that they are."- Father Kevin Keaney, Chaplain, Korean War