NASA's priorities continue to shift as it tries to secure funding for development of the Orbital Space Plane (OSP), intended to provide a crew rescue capability for the International Space Station as early as 2008. The agency has instructed Boeing to scale back work on the orbital version of its X-37 reusable spaceplane demonstrator, once seen as a precursor to the OSP, because of cost and schedule overruns.
Boeing is to continue assembly of the atmospheric version of the X-37, with drop tests from NASA's Boeing B-52 planned to begin in November, but because of development difficulties with the initial approach and landing test vehicle, plans to launch the orbital test vehicle in 2006 on a Boeing Delta IV or Lockheed Martin Atlas V are on hold. NASA is seeking additional funding in the fiscal year 2005 budget and is looking at the possibility of an orbital flight in 2007, but that would limit its applicability to the OSP programme. Both OSP teams, meanwhile, have moved away from an X-37-like winged vehicle towards a simple capsule design in recent months.
NASA continues to make preparations for the OSP programme despite a request for proposals, expected in November last year, being delayed by Congressional opposition. The agency has tested rocket motors and recovery parachutes to be used in launch pad abort demonstration test flights planned for 2005-6. Four 50,000lb-thrust (220kN) Boeing Rocketdyne RS-88 engines will be used to separate a crew escape module from a test platform, while four 156ft (48m) main parachutes will carry the vehicle to a soft landing.
Source: Flight International
