According to the broadcast, this method can reduce the number of mission-critical events such as launching and docking to only 5 items.
Editor’s note: This article comes from the WeChat public account “Hang Xiaoyu” (ID: MEMSensor), author hangxiaoyucasc, the original title “Boeing Submit a landing plan for landing on the moon, intended to be launched by SLS, with a slight deletion.
Boeing claims that its lander can be launched as a whole by the SLS-1B rocket, which reduces the number of launches and docking required for the mission to land.
[Aerospace News, November 5th] Boeing announced on November 5 that it has submitted a tender proposal to NASA to be developed as a whole to be launched by the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. The manned landing on the moon uses a lander. Boeing said its “smallest step to land” program for NASA’s Manned Landing Service program minimizes the number of launches and other “mission critical events” required to send astronauts to the moon.
Chilton, senior vice president of aerospace and launch at Boeing Defense, Aerospace and Security, said: “Using the carrying capacity of the NASA SLS-1B rocket, we have developed the ‘least monthly landing’ approach. Minimize task complexity while bringing the safest and most direct path to landings.”
The two-stage lander will be sent to the lunar orbit by the enhanced model of the SLS-1B SLS rocket. The SLS-1B uses a more powerful “Probe Upper Level” (EUS). The lander can meet with the Moon “gateway” or directly with the “Orion” spacecraft. There, the astronauts will change to the lander and proceed to the moon. The lander is designed to be launched as a whole, rather than being split into separate sections and then brought together at the “portal”. Unlike some other designs, the lander does not require an additional transfer stage to maneuver from a quasi-linear halo orbit to a low lunar orbit.
Boeing said that this approach can reduce the number of mission-critical events such as launch and docking to only five. The company claims that other options will require 11 or more such incidents. Former NASA executive deputy director, currently a consultant for several companies such as Boeing, said in a House hearing in September that the fewer launches and critical operations required for each mission, the probability of successful missions. The higher. He said that according to NASA’s baseline approach, a successful mission requires “17 levels ofKey task operation”.
However, according to NASA’s current plan, the SLS-1B rocket will not be able to catch up with the 2024 moon landing schedule. NASA announced on October 16 that it is negotiating with Boeing to issue a long-term production contract for the SLS rocket, but the Type 1B rocket will not be operational until 2025 when the Artemis 4 mission is completed.
In addition to Boeing, a “national team” led by Blue Origins is also seeking a NASA landing lunar development contract. The team includes Draper, Loma and Nogg. The news of the formation of the “national team” was announced on October 22 by the founder of Blue Source Bezos. Lanyuan confirmed that its team had submitted a bidding proposal to NASA before the deadline of November 5. Boeing spokesperson Seslov said that Boeing did not adopt a similar team arrangement, and did not pull other big companies as partners on the project.
The Space Exploration Company is also expected to participate in the bidding process, and the program is likely to be based on the “Starship” reusable rockets it is researching. A company spokesperson said on November 5 that the company could not disclose details of any plans it might submit. However, the spokesperson mentioned what President of the company, Shortwell, said at a media roundtable at the International Astronautical Congress last month. Shortwell said at the time that the company “of course wants to be part of the ‘Artemis’ program.”
NASA intends to issue preliminary demonstration contracts to several companies as soon as the end of the year, and intends to eventually select two to be fully developed. One of the landers will be used for the first landing in 2024, and the other will be It will be used for a mission in 2025. However, those plans will depend on the funding for the 2020 fiscal year. Congress has not yet passed the 2020 fiscal year appropriation bill.