X37C

Phil Deans

I Posted This Earlier on My Facebook Page…Re-Posting Here for the Group on Your Original Post Plus A Few Others!!!!

This Was One of The Many Derivative Paths studied By Some Advanced Design Groups @ NASA As A Logical Scaleable Path Building On Space Shuttle Orbiter Demonstrated Capabilities, Technology & Advanced Development Upgrades & Modernization Over 30 Yrs of Operation Which Also Had Continuous Improvements & Life Extensions To CY 2020 & Beyond!!!! The Space Shuttle Orbiter Also Was Much More Capable Of Delivering Greater Up Mass (65K), Rotational Crew Exchanges 7-10 Personel & Return Masses (32K)/Volume (15ft x 60ft) Which None of the Replacement Proposed Vehicles Can or Will Be As Competitive or Capable!!!! Given the Un-Timely & Unnecessary Cancellation of The Space Shuttle Orbiter; The Three Commercial Concepts Which Have Evolved & Their Development Times Extended Out To No Earlier Than 2017; This Boeing Proposal of X-37C Would Have Been The Better, More Capable & Faster Access To Human Crewed Flights To/From ISS In Low Earth Orbit!!!! 

Also Could Have Served As An ISS Alternate Crew Return Vehicle (ala X-38 vs Soyuz Only), Space Exploration Return Vehicle with ISS As A Way Point, Rendezvous & Docking, Refueling Station or Direct Launch To Hubble/Webb Servicing/Repair Vehicle & Other Satellite Servicing Missions With A Little Innovative & Out of The Box Critical Thinking!!!! In the Absense of A NASA Integrated Missions Strategic & Evolutionary Long Range Planning; There Are Indications DARPA & DOD Are Giving This Approach Serious Consideration For Their "Unknown" Future Missions Planning Concepts For Unmanned & Manned Vehicles Since They Were Allowed To "Divorce" NASA/Space Shuttle Earlier "Shot-Gun Wedding" After Challenger Mission Failure & Stand-Down Coupled With The Eventutual & Unnecessary Cancellation of Space Shuttle with No NASA Replacements; Now Only Relying on Russian Antiquated Soyuz Technology & Commercial Start Up Companies For the Most Critical Tasks of Human Access To Space!!!!

The x37-b is a fine spacecraft.  However it is MUCH smaller than space Shuttle.  It was deliberately designed to not have the extra weight, life support, and astronaut flying capabilites.  So to add humans would take 5-7 years and significantly modify the design and add a lot of weight meaning much less cargo.  Having said that, It could with enough NASA money be modified to carry about 3, maybe four humans into Low Earth Orbit (LEO).  Right now NASA is spending $500 Million per year to entice 3 companies to provide commercial crew service to ISS.  So contrast that with the NASA budget of $2.8 Billion in 2014 to build the new rocket (Space Launch System SLS and Orion crew capsule) and capsule to go to an asteroid.  That is nearly SIX times more to build a new NASA rocket and capsule that does not go to ISS!!  Does that balance make sense.  Is LEO commercial transportation to ISS an important objective of NASA compared to what they are spending to a maybe futurestunt to return an asteroid rock by humans?

 

Frank Thomas Buzzard

 

 

http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2013/03/x-37b-expanded-capabilities-iss-missions/