Thought #26                                                              May 2009
Author: Bill Thurston

The Future United States Space Program

Many of us have seem the Space Shuttle take off and land over the years. NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) plans to wrap up assembly of the International Space Station and retire the space shuttle fleet in 2010. Between 2010 and the start of the new programs space flights in 2015, the US will rely on the Russian space program to get astronauts and projects to the International Space Station.

What is the next generation after the space shuttle?

Well, it's called The Constellation Program. By the way, the pictures, if you follow the links, are the best part of this thought. http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/163092main_constellation_program_overview.pdf

Here are The Constellation Program missions:

1. Develop and fly the Crew Exploration Vehicle (Orion) no later than 2014.

2. Return to the Moon no later than 2020.

3. Extend human presence across the solar system and beyond.

4. Implement a sustained and affordable human and robotic program.

5. Develop supporting innovative technologies, knowledge, and infrastructures.

6. Promote international and commercial participation in exploration.

Here are The Constellation Program strategies:

1. Use the Moon to prepare for future human and robotic missions to Mars and other destinations.

2. Pursue scientific activities to address fundamental questions about the solar system, the   universe, and our place in them.

3. Extend sustained human presence to the moon to enable eventual settlement.

4. Expand Earth’s economic sphere to encompass the Moon and pursue lunar activities with direct benefits to life on Earth.

5. Strengthen existing and create new global partnerships.

6. Engage, inspire, and educate the public.

Components of Program Constellation

The Ares V- Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/aresV/index.html

It can carry nearly 414,000 pounds (188 metric tons) to low-Earth orbit. When working together with the Ares I Crew Launch Vehicle to launch payloads into earth orbit, Ares V can send nearly 157,000 pounds (71 metric tons) to the moon.

Ares I- Crew Launch Vehicle http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/aresl/index.html

Ares I is an in-line, two-stage rocket configuration topped by the Orion crew Exploration  vehicle and its launch abort system. In addition to the vehicle's primary mission -- carrying crews of four to six astronauts to Earth orbit -- Ares I may also use its 25-ton payload capacity to deliver resources and supplies to the International Space Station, or to "park" payloads in orbit for retrieval by other spacecraft bound for the moon or other destinations.

Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/orion/index.html

America will send a new generation of explorers to the moon aboard NASA’s Orion crew exploration vehicle. Making its first flights to the International Space Station early in the next decade, Orion is part of the Constellation Program to send human explorers back to the moon, and then onward to Mars and other destinations in the solar system.

Altair Lunar Lander

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/altair/index.html

Altair will be capable of landing four astronauts on the moon, providing life support and a base for week long initial surface exploration missions, and returning the crew to the Orion spacecraft that will bring them home to Earth.

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