New US Spacecraft: First US Space Lifeboat in 40 Years

The next generation of American spacecraft designed to carry people into low-Earth orbit will be required to function as a lifeboat for the International Space Station for up to seven months.

This service has not been provided by an American spacecraft since an Apollo command module remained docked to Skylab for about three months from 1973 to '74.

Like a lifeboat on a cruise ship, the spacecraft is not expected to be called into service to quickly evacuate people but it has to be ready for that job just in case.

Right now, the lifeboat function on the space station is served by requiring a pair of Russian Soyuz Zvezda spacecraft to be docked at all times.

Sierra Nevada Dream Chaser

Each Soyuz Zvezda module holds three people. So with two docked, there can be six people working on the station at any one time.

The crew drops to three when one Soyuz spacecraft leaves and before another arrives during a procedure called an indirect handover.

The situations when the craft will be needed are not only hypothetical.

There have been occasions on the International Space Station when the crew members took refuge in the Soyuz Zvezda module because space debris was passing near the station.

Space Station with Shuttle and ATV Docked

CCP gave aerospace companies a list of requirements their spacecraft need to meet during NASA's certification process for use as in-orbit lifeboats, Scott Thurston, deputy manager of CCP's Spacecraft Office said.

Boeing, Sierra Nevada Corporation and SpaceX are working in partnership with NASA on spacecraft designs that meet these criteria under their Commercial Crew Integrated Capability agreements.

Thurston said each company is coming up with its own novel solutions for the best way to meet the needs of a spacecraft that docks with the station and then stays in orbit for seven months.

"There's no rock left unturned," Thurston said. "Some have started out with very extravagant environmental control and life support systems and as they're doing their studies, they're slowly figuring out exactly what they need and what they don't need."

With a new American spacecraft also offering another four to seven seats, the station can host more astronauts than its current complement of six. That means more science on the station since more people would be available for research duties.

SNC Dream Chaser: European Space Agency contributes Hardware

Dream Chaser, a commercial space plane built by Sierra Nevada Corp.'s Space Systems, is seen at NASA's Dryden Flight research Center located inside Edwards Air Force Base in California.

Credit: NASA

The European Space Agency (ESA), following in the footsteps of the German space agency (DLR), on Jan. 8 said it had signed an agreement with Sierra Nevada Corp. to investigate a European collaboration on SNC’s Dream Chaser crew-transport vehicle.

The 20-nation ESA said the one-year study with Sparks, Nev.-based SNC will focus on ESA-developed hardware that could be integrated into the Dream Chaser, reducing SNC’s development costs.

One specific focus, the agency said, will be ESA’s International Berthing Docking Mechanism, being developed in Belgium, Italy and Switzerland for use at the International Space Station and in future international space exploration missions.

The German Aerospace Center (DLR), in November concluded an agreement with OHB AG’s Kayser-Threde division in Munich to use German national funding for a similar study, this one focusing on Dream Chaser’s adaptability as a satellite-launch and satellite-recovery platform in orbits higher than the international space station.

Bremen, Germany-based OHB, a major space hardware contractor, said a Europeanised Dream Chaser, called DC4EU — Dream Chaser for European Utilization — could be used to ferry astronauts and gear to the space station.

ESA, Germany and the other partners in the international space station — the United States, Russia, Japan and Canada — have agreed to continue operating the orbital complex until 2020 and are discussing whether to extend the station’s life to 2028.

OHB said the Dream Chaser vehicle, being developed by SNC as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, could assure Europe a role in manned space activities after the station is decommissioned.

NASA Dryden: SNC Dream Chaser Performs Free-Flight Test

Sierra Nevada Corporation has performed its first free-flight approach-and-landing test of the Dream Chaser spacecraft.

The vehicle successfully released from its carrier aircraft, an Erickson Air-Crane helicopter, as planned at approximately 11:10 a.m. Pacific Standard Time.

Following release, the Dream Chaser spacecraft automated flight control system gently steered the vehicle to its intended glide slope.

The vehicle adhered to the design flight trajectory throughout the flight profile. Less than a minute later, Dream Chaser smoothly flared and touched down on Edwards Air Force Base's Runway 22L right on centerline.

While there was an anomaly with the left landing gear deployment, the high-quality flight and telemetry data throughout all phases of the approach-and-landing test will allow SNC teams to continue to refine their spacecraft design.

SNC and NASA Dryden are currently reviewing the data.

A spokesman said; "As with any space flight test program, there will be anomalies that we can learn from, allowing us to improve our vehicle and accelerate our rate of progress."