Forbes: the rejection of RD-180 engines threatens space projects USA
After the explosion of the rocket Antares USA must pay Close attention to commercial launches and compare them with those provided by the Company United Launch Alliance (ULA), the journalist writes log Lauren Thompson.
The explosion of the Antares rocket motors AJ-26 is not the First failure in the history of American commercial launches, resembles the Creator. So, in may, during tests in the Space center John Stennis NASA blew up the engine of the same type as used by the firm, Orbital Sciences in the Antares rocket. Another Company, SpaceX, to which the U.S. government entered into a contract, lost a prototype reusable launch vehicle Falcon 9 in the last month of summer.
" Such events were to occur with alarming frequency, the most given how rarely run space devices, " emphasizes Lauren Thompson.
The U.S. government seeks to reduce the cost of the space industry, but the government must realize that such savings leads to serious risks, says the Creator of the article. So, runs the organization ULA, which is no more than a day After the explosion Antares into orbit launch vehicle Atlas V with the Russian RD-180 engines are much more expensive than the launches of commercial organizations, but ULA rockets don't explode, don't miss deadlines, and they are no less perfect in technical terms.
in addition, Congress should think about how the right is his plan to abandon the RD-180 engines that are used in the first stage of the rocket Atlas V if the US will stop buying motors that uses fulfill orders for U.S. government military agencies ULA, they must as soon as possible to certify the company SpaceX and in a hurry to develop an alternative to Russian engines.
Either way, the budget for building engines that could replace the Russian RD-180, now extremely small, and the desire of the U.S. government to rely on organizations engaged in commercial launches, puts in danger the further development of the space industry, concludes Lauren Thompson.
Launch to the ISS private truck Cygnus using the Antares rocket from NASA spaceport at the base wallops flight facility, Virginia, USA) in the night of Wednesday failed, the rocket exploded on the eighth seconds After the start.
Cygnus cargo module was developed and built in cooperation with the European Thales Alenia Space. Ukrainian SDO Yuzhnoye and Yuzhmash (both Dnepropetrovsk) ensure the development and manufacture of the first stage of the launch vehicle Antares, which can output to a low orbit loads up to 7 tons.
The first stage of the launch vehicle is equipped with 2 oxygen-kerosene engines AJ-26, which are modified NK-33. The second stage solid propellant motor installation Castor 30, developed by an American company Alliant Techsystems.
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