Lifeboat Foundation

NASA has selected the first batch of U.S. companies to join the agency on its journey to its next destination, the moon, which NASA wants to explore in order to prepare to go on to Mars.

During a public event held today (Nov. 29), the agency unveiled nine new partners that will be designing and building lunar landers aimed at facilitating scientific exploration of the moon. In addition to the specific companies chosen, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine also announced that the program running those contracts — the Commercial Lunar Payload Services program — is now part of the science section of NASA’s bureaucracy, not the human exploration section.

The general idea is that these companies will be able to compete for contracts to deliver NASA science experiments to the surface of the moon by flying lunar landers on rocket launches purchased from other commercial space companies. Those individual contracts would substitute for NASA needing to build those capacities itself. [Building Apollo: Photos from Moonshot History].

Continue reading “9 US Companies Are Going to the Moon! Here Are NASA’s New Partners” »

The technology we used to first explore the Moon was groundbreaking for its time. Just imagine what we will accomplish this time around! Join us live as NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine announces new Moon partnerships with American companies at 2 p.m. EST from our Headquarters in Washington, DC. http://go.nasa.gov/2raigLb&h=AT2-8jJD2ombVAS-0YRBs3zHITf…_ADxNsNZ9g

Elon Musk has Tweeted some of the details of the breakthrough changes to the SpaceX Super Heavy Starship.

The overall shape of the SpaceX Super Heavy Starship are about the same. However, there are fundamental materials change to airframe, tanks and heatshield.

Continue reading “SpaceX Super Heavy Starship has Breakthrough Design Improvements” »

The success of SpaceX Falcon Heavy on its first launch was not just luck. Although this will be confirmed in 2019 and 2020 based upon what happens with about five planned Falcon Heavy launches.

Before the Falcon Heavy flight Musk predicted a 50 percent to 70 percent chance of success because of concerns over the difficulty predicting how the vehicle would respond to extreme aerodynamic stresses and vibrations from the clustered engines.

Continue reading “The Next Fifteen Years With SpaceX, Mars and Space” »

Blue Origin has provided additional details relating to its New Glenn rocket this week via the release of its Payload User Guide that is designed to aid customers interested in launching their payloads on their launch vehicle with requirements and capabilities. Meanwhile, work is continuing on the company’s Cape Canaveral launch site and the refit of its booster landing ship.

Blue Origin is quietly preparing to head into the orbital launch market with its New Glenn rocket, named after the first American to orbit the Earth, John Glenn.

Continue reading “Blue Origin publishes New Glenn overview as pad and landing ship continue development” »

Robotic refueling. 3D Forest imagery. And two student experiments inspired by Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy.” These are just a few of the studies that will be added to the hundreds onboard the International Space Station with the SpaceX cargo launch on Dec. 4! Watch more:

Now that our NASA InSight spacecraft had a successful #MarsLanding, scientists will be able to compare our home planet to its rusty sibling like never before. Find out how: https://go.nasa.gov/2FK9f5G

It’s the largest drill NASA has ever sent to space.

NASA sent an $850 million lander to Mars. Insight will dig deep into the planet as the first of its kind to study the planet’s interior.

Elon Musk wants humans to make it to Mars. With his company SpaceX at his back, he’s pushed forward with some incredibly bold claims about what is possible for mankind on the Red Planet. He’s shown off concepts for Mars settlements and even called out scientists who say climate engineering on the planet is impossible.

Now, in an interview with HBO’s Axios, Musk doubles down on one of the more off-the-wall claims he’s made during his years in the spotlight. Mars, he says, will be his eventual home, and he estimates his odds of moving to the planet at a generous 70%.