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The next International Space Development Conference (ISDC) will be held in Dallas over the Memorial Day weekend this year. Of particular interest to all of our Space Venturers is the symposium to be held on the front of it.
Here is the press release:
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National Space Society to Host Second Annual Space Venture Finance Symposium at 2007 International Space Development Conference
Commercial space investment symposium scheduled for May 24, 2007 at the Hotel InterContinental in Dallas, Texas
WASHINGTON, March 23, 2007 – The National Space Society today announced the second annual Symposium on Space Venture Finance, to be held on Thursday, May 24, in conjunction with the 2007 International Space Development Conference (ISDC) in Dallas, Texas. Bringing together leaders in the investment and space communities, the symposium will focus on recent innovations and deals in early- and mid-stage finance within the commercial space, spaceport, satellite and space-related information technology industries. → Continue reading: Space Venture Forum at NSS Conference in May
The webcast has not yet started but will be here when it does.
2218 GMT: T minus 0 seems to have been pushed back to 2330 GMT. I will report as I get news.
2225 GMT: T minus 0 is now set for 0005 GMT; webcast is to begin at approximately 2305 GMT.
2300 GMT: There will be two burns of the second stage, separated by about an hour. The second burn is strictly a test. In operation it would be a correction or plane change or circularization burn. Most importantly, this will prove they have an engine that is restartable in microgravity. This is not as easy to do as you might think…
2307 GMT: Web cast is now live.
2317 GMT: Fuel and oxidizer loads of the first and second stage are in progress. The video signal is having some problems however, as I am sure any watchers will have noticed!
2328 GMT: First stage LOX fill completed.
2331 GMT: First stage fuel load completed.
2336 GMT: This just in: “Media call note that the webcam problems are unknown and this is what you all may be stuck with.”
2339 GMT: Both stages fully loaded with Kerosene (RP1), LOX and Helium tank pressurization .
2348 GMT: T-218 now, Helium top off. The are having some telemetry probs with the stage 1 recovery ship… which has just now been solved.
2350 GMT: All operator stations report ready status for terminal countdown. Cleared for launch!
2356 GMT: Entering terminal count! T-10.
0006 GMT: Terminal count abort after engine ignition. Impressive that they could stop it here, sad that they had to. Will report as I here more.
0016 GMT: This is amazing. They are recyling to T-10!!! I have *never* in my life seen such a thing! Ignition has always been the point of no return or at least a full scrub. I stand in awe.
0021 GMT: Shutdown was due to chamber pressure being 1% low. There was apparently a fair amount of swearing going on… they may still try for a launch. Range is okay with a recycle.
0044 GMT: They are well into the recycle for a second try. Count is still in a hold at T-16 while they recycle.
0056 GMT: The clock is running again. T-14:30!
0057 GMT: Cleared for launch again.
0101 GMT: Into terminal count again at T-10.
0112 GMT: Launch successful! Passing through Max Q. Now the big one coming up is Stage sep…
0114 GMT: THEY DID IT!!!! SECOND STAGE SEP AND FIRE: FARING SEP CONFIRMED!!!!! 117km altitude!!!!
0126 GMT: There is some discussion as to whether the first stage sep bumped the second stage engine bell. There were some signs of oscillation of the engine before it got out of range and the webcast terminated. So they made it into space but we will have to wait to find out if this test flight made orbit.
The Kwajalein launch abort of the SpaceX Falcon 1 rocket yesterday was caused by a minor timing problem that would not have affected the launch. According to Elon Musk:
The abort that occurred a few minutes before T-0 was triggered by our ground control software. It commanded a switchover of range telemetry from landline to radio, which took place correctly, however, because of the hardware involved, this transition takes a few hundred milliseconds. Before it had time to complete, our system verification software examined state and aborted.
I remember the first Space Shuttle launch attempt (STS-1) being scrubbed on first try due to… a software timing glitch between the redundant onboard computers. Certain classes of problems (like LOX valve freeze ups) are just in the nature of the beast, part of the learning curve of a new vehicle and launch control system.
The software fix has been uploaded and a launch attempt is scheduled for 1600 Pacific time today. As I type it is 17:37:32 UTC (GMT) and 10:37:32 AM PDT putting the launch about 5 hours from now. I will return about an hour before launch and give commentary as I did last night.
See you all later!
The SpaceX flight readiness review has cleared Falcon 1 for launch from Kwajalein at 1600 Pacific Time (US West Coast). As I post it is 19:40:40 UTC here and 12:40:40 PM PDT there. Those who are interested can watch the launch here in about three hours.
They have stated they will scrub today’s launch if there is the tiniest doubt or problem.
2220GMT: Launch is about 40 minutes away and the bird is sitting on the pad with some boil off showing around the interstage. Wish I were there instead of the freezing cold here in Belfast tonight!
2225GMT: I have just read a report that there are some telemetry problems between Kwaj and El Segundo.
2227GMT. They are in a planned hold. Wind is 13 knots at 050.
2239GMT. Still telemetry problems. Most of the engineering eyeballs are at the office in El Segundo rather than onsite, so it could cause a scrub if not solved soon.
2256GMT. Telemetry problem sorted. At the moment we are go for launch today.
2300GMT. T-0 is now set for 2345 GMT.
2305GMT: They have recommenced fueling and you can see the boil off at the interstage and up on the second stage.
2317GMT: Audio on webcast has begun, fueling is reported complete. I see quite heavy venting at the interstage.
2320GMT. Venting at engines visible now. This bird is raring to go!
2330GMT: 15 minutes to go, Everything is green!
2332GMT: Cleared for launch, no more holds in count.
2342GMT: T-4. There are 5600 people watching the live stream.
2345GMT: Terminal count abort. I will let you know when I get some info on why.
2358GMT: Abort due to a range issue. There will be a decision on recycling and continuing within the next 10 minutes or so.
0011GMT: It’s a scrub for today. I will let you know when. It will be at least 24-48 hrs.
0033GMT: Recycle is for 24 hours. See you all tomorrow, same time GMT. Goodnight all!
Elon Musk’s SpaceX has announced its pre-flight engine test was successful. A Kwajalein launch attempt is now planned for this week and may happen as early as tomorrow.
The first flight, last year, was terminated by flight control systems on board when a problem was detected. The majority of the rocket’s systems had performed flawlessly but as it turns out a corroded nut caused a small leak and an engine fire. SpaceX engineers have spent the last year making their systems more robust.
Good luck and hot jets, Elon!
Every lover of fine aeroplanes will want to be present for the first public flight of an Avro Vulcan in fifteen years. XH558 is due to lead the Falklands Anniversary flypast over London on June 17. Test flights are to begin in April.
The Vulcan is the largest and heaviest (204,000 lbs MTOW) delta winged aircraft ever flown. Designed in the late forties and operational in the fifties it could carry a 10,000 pound nuclear weapon or 20,000 pounds of conventional bombs from the UK to targets over 1500 miles away and bomb from 60,000 feet. The aircraft only saw battle once in their long career. Between April 30th and June 2nd, 1982, four successful bombing missions were performed at a range which at the time was the longest in history: 3900 miles to the target! Needless to say, this required in-flight refuelling. Even the in-flight refuelling aircraft required refuelling!
This magnificent beast has been brought back to life by the Vulcan to the Sky Trust. The group has laboured to do what most thought impossible. They have brought what is arguably the most complex British military aircraft ever built back to flight status. They fought many battles to get to this point and I hope that worthy crew take some time off after first flight to bathe in the glory of their accomplishment.
It is notable that XH558 was retired from display flight status by the RAF due to a required strengthening of the rear lower wing spar. The MoD estimated the cost of this at 1.2M pounds sterling. The Trust did it for 80,000 pounds!
Private enterprise wins even with complex bombers it seems.
Most people have no idea how much damn maintenance and tender loving care a ballistic missile needs to remain operational. The frigging things are like a temperamental girlfriend (more likely to go off in your face than take you to the heavens). If I was forced to chose between standing 500 yards from the launch site of a Russian ICBM or within 500 yards of the intended target, I’d chose the target.
– A pseudonymous commenter
Yet again, the Leviathan crushes dreams.
Next question: is there anyone out there for whom this does not make the point of why libertarians hold the state and its defenders in deep contempt?
How cool is this? A MIG-21 available on eBay!
Although it is not all that expensive, sadly I really do not have anywhere to put it.
At long last the secretive space venture of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has gone public. The video of the test hop is very informative to the rocket afficionado. Note what you do not see: rocket ‘bells’ and flames. The lack of expander nozzles and the large number of small engine ports in the bottom are strongly indicative of an aerospike engine; the lack of flame means they are probably running a high efficiency cryogenic engine using LOX/LH.
These features, plus the shape of the vessel have a long commercial space history. The prototype of this design was Gary Hudsen’s ‘Phoenix’ of the 1980’s. In the early 1990’s, Bill Gaubatz of McDonell Douglas actually built something much like it, but without the aerospike. Bill used the easily available RL-10 LOX/LH engine for his ‘boilerplate’ test ship. (Some months ago I posted a picture of the remains of this test vehicle).
I have been waiting a long time for someone to actually try this configuration. Some say it cannot be made to fly single stage to orbit; others swear vehemently that it can. Noone, however, disagrees that it can do a fine suborbital job or that it is a much more effective general purpose space vehicle than anything with wings.
I have just run across a story which I will not have time to research: the only information I have (other than the industry grapevine) is this fragment from WSJ (it requires a sign up so I will not bother linking):
British tycoon Richard Branson may have a large ego. But is he a threat to American national security? The Department of Transportation seems to think so, and this week it tentatively rejected a bid to put his famous brand name on a U.S. based airline that would be known as Virgin America.
What do these bureaucrats hope to accomplish? Are they trying to stop the biggest investor in the only currently real commercial space line? Do they want to block SpaceShipTwo from being built? Would they prefer space tourism happen in another country with spaceships designed and built and funded elsewhere?
Where do you find people of such beleaguered mental capacity?
I could go on. The US government has caused so much trouble for Branson in his dealings at both the Federal and the State level I can hardly understand why he bothers… but I am glad that he does.
I must unfortunately run now, with much unsaid, or face an empty pantry for New Years!
Audio downloads of the Libertarian Alliance Conference from November 25th are available and if anyone is interested, you can download and listen to my talk on the current state of the ‘New Space’ industry.
 Dale Amon expounds on a 21st century industry at a Victorian venue in Whitehall, London. Photo: DMA (with a little help from Tom), all rights reserved.
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