Second Generation Reusable Launch Vehicles
or what will replace the space shuttle?
The Space Launch Initiative
The Space
Launch Initiative (SLI) is part of NASA's future space travel plan,
which also includes Space Shuttle Safety
Upgrades and long-term research. It can also be called the 2nd Generation
Reusable Launch Vehicle Program. SLI is the plan to open the space frontier.
The mission of the second generation reusable
launch vehicles include:
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travel to the International Space Station,
-
putting satellites into orbit,
-
-
staging interplanetary missions
NASA and its partners: US aerospace companies;
the military; and scientists at universities will investigate new space
transportation ideas, while advancing the technologies to profitably implement
them. It may cost $4.8 billion between 2001 and 2006.
NASA's specific goals for a 2nd Generation
RLV are to:
-
Make space travel 100 times
safer.
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Lower the cost of delivering
payloads to low-Earth orbit to less than $1,000 per pound or ten
times cheaper than it is now.
By reducing technical, cost and business risks to
better levels, SLI will enable full-scale development of a 2nd Generation
RLV by 2006. A new system could be operational early 2010.
The space shuttle was designed in the 1970's
There are many new technologies and materials available
now. NASA is leading the effort to develop new vehicle ideas. In the future
the operations of space transportation will be handled by the private
companies instead of the government. By working together NASA can make
sure that it's special research requirements will be met.
NASA's X-33, X-34,
X-37 and
X-38 vehicles
will provide a lot of information about what works well and what needs
to be improved.
Working as a Team
Grants have been awarded to seventeen companies to begin
research on this program. Meanwhile NASA is doing research that will be
used to decide which proposals are the best. Some people are writing computer
programs that will look at each design and decide which is the safest
and cheapest and the best one to fly to space.
NASA has already built some computer programs for studying
spacecraft designs. One of these projects is the Rapid
Integration Technology Environment process or the RITE process. This
is being used in Fanny Zuniga's
test with Ken Ham flying new concepts for a reentry space vehicle and
testing out our rapid design process.
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