posted 11-01-2016 08:29 AM               

Aerojet Rocketdyne Successfully Completes Launch Abort Engine Hot Fire Tests to Support Next Era of Human Spaceflight Launches from the United States

Aerojet Rocketdyne, a subsidiary of Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:AJRD), has successfully completed a series of hot-fire tests on two Launch Abort Engines (LAE) featuring innovative new propellant valves for Boeing's Crew Space Transportation (CST)-100 Starliner service module propulsion system. The tests were conducted in the Mojave Desert in California, and confirmed the ability for the new valves to modulate propellant flow and control peak LAE thrust in the event of a launch abort.

The LAEs, designed by Aerojet Rocketdyne, include a fuel valve and oxidizer valve, which were developed and tested under the company's Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap) subcontract to Boeing. The Starliner will open a new era of spaceflight, carrying humans to the International Space Station once again from United States soil.

The LAEs, designed by Aerojet Rocketdyne, include a fuel valve and oxidizer valve, which were developed and tested under the company's Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap) subcontract to Boeing. The Starliner will open a new era of spaceflight, carrying humans to the International Space Station once again from United States soil.

"These innovative valves successfully enabled the engine to demonstrate precise timing, peak thrust control and steady-state thrust necessary during a mission abort. This testing culminates a year of dedicated hard work by the LAE Integrated Product Team at Aerojet Rocketdyne," said Aerojet Rocketdyne CEO and President Eileen Drake. "This is another important step forward as our nation prepares to safely and reliably send humans back to the space station from American soil."

Under the CCtCap subcontract to Boeing, Aerojet Rocketdyne will provide propulsion system hardware, which includes LAEs, Orbital Maneuvering and Attitude Control (OMAC) thrusters, Reaction Control System (RCS) thrusters, and more. Boeing will assemble propulsion hardware kits into the service module section of the Starliner spacecraft at its Commercial Crew and Cargo Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Aerojet Rocketdyne also provides hardware supporting service module hot-fire testing, which will take place at NASA's White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico; the pad abort and system qualification testing, which will occur at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico; and the orbital flight test, which will be launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

The Starliner service module propulsion system provides launch abort capability on the pad and during ascent, along with propulsion needs during flight - from launch vehicle separation, docking to and undocking from the space station, to separation of the crew and service modules when the spacecraft begins to re-enter the Earth's atmosphere. At separation, crew module monopropellant thrusters, also provided by Aerojet Rocketdyne, support re-entry control.

The Starliner service module and launch abort propulsion system is designed to rapidly "push" a crew capsule to safety if an abort is necessary. If unused for an abort, the propellant is used to complete the spacecraft's mission operations. The Starliner service module propulsion system includes four 40,000-pound thrust launch abort engines used only in an abort; 1,500-pound thrust class OMAC thrusters that provide low-altitude launch abort attitude control; maneuvering and stage-separation functions along with high-altitude direct abort capability and large orbital maneuvers; and 100-pound thrust class RCS engines that provide high-altitude abort attitude control, on-orbit low delta-v maneuvering and space station re-boost capability.

posted 01-20-2017 04:02 PM               

Boeing's CST-100 Starliner Structural Test Article has arrived at the company's Huntington Beach, California, facilities for evaluations.

Built to the specifications of an operational spacecraft, the STA is intended to be put through a series of thorough testing conditions.

posted 03-10-2017 04:07 PM               

Campaign Tests Parachutes Designed to Provide Astronauts a Soft Landing

A flight-sized boilerplate of Boeing's CST-100 Starliner touched down gently under parachutes against the backdrop of the San Andres Mountains in late February, providing a preview of how the spacecraft will return to Earth in upcoming NASA missions. Boeing is developing the Starliner to take astronauts to and from the International Space Station in partnership with NASA's Commercial Crew Program.

Above: A high-altitude balloon lifts off in White Sands, New Mexico, carrying a boilerplate of Boeing's CST-100 Starliner to perform a drop test of the spacecraft's parachute system. Credit: Boeing

The parachute test is one in a series that will allow the vehicle to pick up the same velocity as the actual spacecraft when returning to Earth in the southwest region of the United States from the International Space Station. The goal of the test series is to prove the design of the Starliner's parachutes.

"Completion of this test campaign will bring Boeing and NASA one step closer to launching astronauts on an American vehicle and bringing them home safely," said Mark Biesack, spacecraft systems lead for the agency's Commercial Crew Program.

The test began at the Spaceport America facility near the Army's White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. During the test, the Starliner was lifted about 40,000 feet in the air, the flying altitude of a typical commercial airline flight, by a Near Space Corp. helium balloon and then released over the White Sands Missile Range.

Above: Seen from the top hatch of the Starliner boilerplate, parachutes deploy as planned to land the boilerplate safely during a test of the parachute system. Credit: Boeing

Given the flight-like characteristics and the large size of the capsule, Boeing was not able to fit the Starliner test article into the hold of a C-130 or C-17 aircraft. Their solution, a 1.3-million-cubic-foot balloon, which is able to lift the capsule to its intended altitude.

"This parachute test, as well as the subsequent tests in Boeing's qualification test campaign, provides valuable data, because the test article has the same mass, outer mold line, and center of gravity as the flight vehicle," said Biesack. "The high-fidelity data they receive from these tests will anchor predicted models of realistic parachute deployment."

Attached underneath the Starliner boilerplate was a large, yellow stabilization weight used to orient the test vehicle's angle of attack and speed of descent. As the Starliner descended to the desert at speeds of 300 miles per hour, a series of dynamic events slowed the spacecraft. Shortly after the Starliner was released from the balloon, the spacecraft deployed two drogue parachutes at 28,000 feet to stabilize the spacecraft, then its pilot parachutes at 12,000 feet. The main parachutes followed at 8,000 feet above the ground prior to the jettison of the spacecraft's base heat shield at 4,500 feet. Finally, the spacecraft touched the ground lightly, kicking up the desert sand.

During missions to the station, the Starliner will be equipped with large air bags that will cushion the impact during landing. The Boeing design calls for the spacecraft to be reused up to ten times, and a land-landing will aid with reusability. In the event of an emergency, the spacecraft also can splash down in the ocean.

posted 04-05-2017 02:32 PM               

All Systems Are Go! Boeing's CST-100 Starliner Spacecraft Powers On for the First Time

Earlier this month, test engineers hit the power-on switch on Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft. For the first time this activated the spacecraft's complete flight avionics system as it would be used by astronauts for all functions like maneuvering the spacecraft, rendezvous, docking, undocking and communicating with the International Space Station and mission control back here on Earth.

Throughout this power-on phase, engineers in the Commercial Crew and Cargo Processing Facility (C3PF) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center will be testing the Starliner's complicated cable routing, which must remain secure in harsh environments including launch, landing and zero-gravity flight. Engineers will ensure that computers can communicate with each other between the upper and lower sections of the spacecraft before they are mated together later this year. While this spacecraft isn't lined up to fly to space, it will be used for ground testing in the C3PF before going on to White Sands, New Mexico, for a Pad Abort Test early next year.

Stay tuned for more milestones leading up to the spacecraft's first crew flight test to the International Space Station in 2018.

posted 05-25-2017 06:53 PM               

Sticking the Landing: Starliner Seat Drop Test Success

Recent CST-100 Starliner testing proved the spacecraft will come to a safe stop when it lands on land.

Testing to the extreme using test dummies, seat drop tests proved the systems will effectively cushion the passenger’s head, neck and spine upon landing. Engineers performed 30 drop tests from various heights and seat orientations. Parachutes and an airbag system will initially slow Starliner when it re-enters Earth’s atmosphere. Starliner is being developed in partnership with NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. It will take astronauts and cargo to and from the International Space Station. The first launch is slated for next year.

posted 08-03-2017 01:25 PM               

Ground control to major console: Mesa completes space dashboard

When two test pilot astronauts head into space aboard Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft, they won't just be looking out the windows to catch an array of breathtaking views.

It will be all business as they focus on the data coming off a console originally imagined and designed by a team in Houston, and later refined and built by a small team in Mesa, Ariz. The dashboard of displays, instruments and controls will be within arm's reach of the spacecraft's commander and pilot, much like the flight deck of a 747 aircraft or the cockpit in an Apache helicopter.

Operating on a rigorous timeline and working through challenges unique to human spaceflight, members of Mesa's Metals Center of Excellence, Electrical Center of Excellence and engineering organization came together to complete the design and manufacture in just less than a year. This innovation shows the power of pulling ingenuity from across the Boeing network.

The Mesa team also built a console that is hooked up to the Florida Systems Integration Lab, where engineers are running through mission simulations and testing flight software. Building will begin soon on the third and final console for the spacecraft that is slated to fly the uncrewed orbital demonstration mission before it turns around for multiple NASA missions to the space station.

Starliner's first crew flight test to the International Space Station in 2018 will be Boeing's first commercial flight transporting humans to space.

posted 01-04-2018 09:59 AM               

United Launch Alliance Completes Key Milestone for Launch of Boeing's Starliner and Return of U.S.-based Human Spaceflight

United Launch Alliance (ULA) successfully completed an Atlas V Launch Segment Design Certification Review (DCR) recently in preparation for the launch of astronauts to the International Space Station from U.S. soil in The Boeing Company's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft. ULA's Atlas V DCR supported the Boeing International Space Station (ISS) DCR that was held with NASA at Kennedy Space Center in early December.

"Design Certification Review is a significant milestone that completes the design phase of the program, paving the way to operations," said Barb Egan, ULA Commercial Crew program manager. "Hardware and software final qualification tests are underway, as well as a major integrated test series, including structural loads. Future tests will involve launch vehicle hardware, such as jettison tests, acoustic tests, and, finally, a pad abort test in White Sands, New Mexico."

Launch vehicle production is currently on track for an uncrewed August 2018 Orbital Flight Test (OFT). The OFT booster for the uncrewed flight is in final assembly at the factory in Decatur, Ala., and the OFT Centaur upper stage has completed pressure testing. Other hardware such as the launch vehicle adapter and aeroskirt production are on schedule to support test articles and flight.

"ULA is progressing into the operational phase to launch the OFT and Crew Flight Test in 2018, and we are pleased with the progress we're making toward a successful launch of Boeing's CST-100 Starliner on the Atlas V," said Gary Wentz, ULA Human and Commercial Systems vice president. "We cannot overstate the importance of all the steps that go into this process as there is more than just a mission or hardware at stake, but the lives of our brave astronauts."

The Boeing Company selected ULA's Atlas V rocket for human-rated spaceflight to the ISS. ULA's Atlas V has launched more than 70 times with a 100 percent mission success rate.

posted 04-05-2018 08:34 PM               

NASA, Boeing May Evolve Flight Test Strategy

NASA has updated its Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap) contract with Boeing, which provides flexibility in its commercial flight tests. Boeing, one of the agency's two commercial crew partners, approached NASA last year and proposed adding a third crew member on its Crew Flight Test (CFT) to the International Space Station.

The change includes the ability to extend Boeing's CFT from roughly two weeks to up to six months as well as the training and mission support for a third crew member. Cargo capabilities for the uncrewed and crewed flight tests were also identified.

Exact details of how to best take advantage of the contract modification are under evaluation, but the changes could allow for additional microgravity research, maintenance, and other activities while Starliner is docked to station. Adding a third crew member on Boeing's flight test could offer NASA an additional opportunity to ensure continued U.S. access to the orbital laboratory.

"This contract modification provides NASA with additional schedule margin if needed," said William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator, Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "We appreciate Boeing's willingness to evolve its flight to ensure we have continued access to space for our astronauts. Commercial space transportation to low-Earth orbit from U.S. soil is critical for the agency and the nation."

The current commercial crew flight schedules provide about six months of margin to begin regular, post-certification crew rotation missions to the International Space Station before NASA's contracted flights on Soyuz flights end in fall 2019.

"Turning a test flight into more of an operational mission needs careful review by the technical community," said Gerstenmaier. "For example, the spacecraft capability to support the additional time still needs to be reviewed. Modifying the contract now allows NASA and Boeing an opportunity to tailor the duration to balance the mission needs with vehicle and crew capabilities."

This would not be the first time NASA has expanded the scope of test flights. NASA had SpaceX carry cargo on its commercial cargo demonstration flight to the International Space Station under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) initiative in 2012, which was not part of the original agreement. As part of its normal operations planning, NASA has assessed multiple scenarios to ensure continued U.S. access to the space station. The agency is working closely with its commercial partners and is preparing for potential schedule adjustments normally experienced during spacecraft development.

"Our partners have made significant progress on the development of their spacecraft, launch vehicle, and ground systems," said Kathy Lueders, NASA's Commercial Crew Program manager at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. "Their rigorous testing and analysis are verifying each system performs and reacts as planned as they prepare to safely carry our astronauts to and from the station."

Boeing and SpaceX plan to fly test missions without crew to the space station this year prior to test flights with a crew onboard. After each company's test flights, NASA will evaluate the in-flight performance in order to certify the systems and begin regular post-certification crew rotation missions.

posted 05-24-2019 08:56 AM               

Boeing's Starliner completes service module hot fire testing

Critical test of Starliner propulsion system clears milestone ahead of flying crew

Boeing's CST-100 Starliner propulsion system was put to the test at NASA's White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico. Teams ran multiple tests proving both the vehicle's in-space maneuvering system as well as the critical launch abort system.

Above: Starliner's test service module ignites its launch abort engines and orbital maneuvering and attitude control thrusters in a low altitude abort mode test.

The test used a flight-like Starliner service module with a full propulsion system comprising of fuel and helium tanks, reaction control system (RCS) and orbital maneuvering and attitude control (OMAC) thrusters, launch abort engines (LAE) and all necessary fuel lines and avionics.

During the test:

• 19 thrusters fired to simulate in-space maneuvers.

• 12 thrusters fired to simulate a high-altitude abort.

• 22 propulsion elements, including the launch abort engines, fired to simulate a low-altitude abort.

"With the safety of our astronauts at the forefront of all we do, this successful testing proves this system will work correctly and keep Starliner and the crew safe through all phases of flight," said John Mulholland, the Vice President and Program Manager of Boeing's Commercial Crew Program. "The milestone paves the way for the upcoming Pad Abort Test and flights to and from the International Space Station later this year."

posted 06-25-2019 05:44 PM               

Starliner Space Capsule Completes Parachute Testing

Fifth successful test validates system safety, robustness ahead of launches later this year

Boeing cleared another milestone toward launching its Starliner space capsule with the fifth, and final, qualification test of the vehicle's parachute system.

The final test was the most difficult. Two parachutes were disabled on a Starliner test article that was dropped from a balloon at an altitude of 40,000 feet. During a four-minute descent, the other parachutes deployed and the capsule touched down as planned at the U.S. Army's White Sands Missile Range. That installation will be a primary landing site for missions, as Starliner will be the first orbital American capsule to land on land rather than water.

"Safety for our astronauts remains our singular focus and this successful landing in a difficult situation affirms the deep commitment of everyone on the team," said Boeing Starliner Vice President John Mulholland. "I want to thank our Starliner teammates, including NASA and the U.S. Army at White Sands, for their part in ensuring mission safety and success. With their contributions Starliner will venture to the International Space Station later this year and safely return home."

Each Starliner will carry more than half a dozen parachutes, which are manufactured by Airborne Systems of Santa Ana, Calif. Airbags made by Delaware's ILC Dover will cushion Starliner at landing. Those airbags and other landing systems have already been qualified for crews through rigorous test programs. During the latest test, one out of the two drogue parachutes and one out of the three main parachutes were intentionally disabled.

The first Starliner launch, from Florida's Kennedy Space Center, is expected this summer. A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket will send an uncrewed Starliner to the space station for a week-long stay. After that, Boeing astronaut Chris Ferguson, and NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Nicole Mann, could make the first crewed Starliner flight by year's end.

Ferguson, Fincke, and Mann may be the first Americans launched from American soil since the space shuttle retired in 2011. Ferguson commanded that final shuttle mission. Also, Mann will be the first female astronaut on the first flight of a new space vehicle.

posted 12-07-2020 04:12 PM               

NASA, Boeing Complete Series of Starliner Parachute Tests Ahead of Future Flights with Astronauts

NASA and Boeing have completed Starliner's last parachute balloon drop test ending a reliability campaign that will help strengthen the spacecraft's landing system ahead of crewed flights to and from the International Space Station.

The campaign, developed by both Boeing and NASA, used six balloon drop tests of a Starliner test article to gather supplemental performance data on the spacecraft's parachutes and landing system. Each drop test focused on a different set of adverse conditions and used pre-flown parachutes to evaluate reusability margins for future missions.

Starliner is the first American-made orbital crew capsule to land on land. The spacecraft uses a series of parachutes and airbags that deploy at specific altitudes allowing Starliner to touch down gently in the desert of the western United States. NASA also will use the data gathered from the parachute testing to model Starliner parachute performance in different mission scenarios.

During nominal landings, Starliner uses two small parachutes to carry off the spacecraft's forward heat shield and expose critical hardware needed for the rest of the landing system sequence. Starliner then deploys two drogue parachutes to slow and stabilize the capsule before three small pilot parachutes pull out the spacecraft's three mains. The three main parachutes continue slowing Starliner's descent for a safe and soft touchdown supported by the vehicle's landing airbags.

"Our philosophy has always been testing the system hardware together to see how all the elements interact," said Starliner landing system lead at Boeing Mike McCarley. "Our vehicle can't fit in an airplane, so the only way we can lift a test article high enough to simulate an entire landing system sequence is with very a large balloon."

For the final test, a high-altitude balloon provided by Near Space Corporation lifted the Starliner test article 35,000 feet above the New Mexico desert. Equipped with reused parachutes, Starliner's landing system successfully executed an unlikely re-entry scenario simulating two separate faults.

Above: A Starliner test article prepares to mate with a high altitude balloon ahead of its final parachute reliability drop test at White Sands, NM on Sept. 19. (Boeing)

Test teams first prevented one of the vehicle's forward heat shield parachutes from deploying, but as intended, the heat shield separated successfully without impacting the rest of the landing sequence events.

The test team then prevented one of Starliner's drogue parachutes from deploying requiring the Starliner test article to ride roughly 10,000 feet under a single drogue parachute that had already been flown twice. Starliner's three main parachutes performed within the needed limits based on the scenario, despite the higher loads and having been flown four previous times. These additional data points will be used to further validate parachute performance models.

"Parachute systems are inherently complex," McCarley said. "These are chaotic events by nature. You could do the same test over and over again and see slightly different results. That's why consistency in data collection is so important."

Boeing will further improve its main parachute margins by reinforcing and increasing the strength of certain suspension lines within each canopy. These lines are held taut during early stages of deployment and perform a reefing function that allows Starliner's mains to inflate in stages to manage loading on the spacecraft and the parachutes.

"By increasing the strength of their material and attachment points, we are improving system reliability with only minor adjustments," said Dan Niedermaier, Starliner's flight test manager. "As our landing system continues to execute successfully, Boeing is committed to developing the safest orbital crew capsule possible and this supplemental testing is helping us achieve that goal."

Above: Starliner's three main parachutes slow the test article to a safe and soft landing during the program's final balloon drop parachute test Sept. 19 at White Sands, NM. (Boeing)

Boeing and NASA will continue collecting data on Starliner's parachutes through the spacecraft's second Orbital Flight Test ahead of crewed flights beginning in 2021, but the test phase utilizing high-altitude balloons is now complete.

"This last balloon drop is bittersweet for many of us," Niedermaier said. "It marks the end of a valuable test series that took hundreds of people working very hard to execute. We couldn't be more pleased with the results and grateful to our NASA customer for partnering with us on this campaign."

NASA's Commercial Crew Program is working with the American aerospace industry as companies develop and operate a new generation of spacecraft and launch systems capable of carrying crews to low-Earth orbit and to the space station. Commercial transportation to and from the station will provide expanded utility, additional research time and broader opportunities for discovery on the orbital outpost.

Above: Recovery teams gather at the landing site of the Starliner test article used in the spacecraft's final parachute reliability test at White Sands Space Harbor, NM on Sept. 19. (Boeing)