Cygnus docks with ISS

DULLES, Va. – Orbital Science's Cygnus cargo spacecraft successfully completed its rendezvous and approach maneuvers with the International Space Station and was grappled and berthed with the station by the Expedition 37 astronaut crew earlier this morning. Cygnus was launched by Orbital's Antares rocket Sept. 18 from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility. Final approach to the station began at about 3:00 a.m. EDT, culminating with the station’s robotic arm grappling the spacecraft at 7:00 a.m. when it was about 10 meters away. Cygnus was then guided to its berthing port on the nadir side of the ISS’ Harmony module where its installation was completed just before 8:45 a.m. (Source: Orbital Sciences via Business Wire, 09/29/13) Cygnus is the second commercial spacecraft to dock with ISS. The SpaceX Dragon capsule was the first. The Antares engines were tested at Stennis Space Center, Miss. Previous

Contract: Lockheed Martin, $96.3M

Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co., Sunnyvale, Calif., was awarded a $96,287,882 modification on a previously existing contract (FA8810-13-C-0002) for Space Based Infrared Systems contractor logistics support. The contract provides for operations crew support and organizational and depot maintenance. Work will be performed at Boulder, Colo. and Buckley Air Force Base Colo., and is expected to be completed on Sept. 30, 2014. Infrared Space Systems Contracts Division, Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles AFB, Calif., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 09/27/13) Note: Portions of the work on the A2100-based SBIRS satellites is done at Stennis Space Center, Miss.

Lufthansa picks XWB engines

Lufthansa selected Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines worth $1.5 billion, including service support, to power 25 Airbus A350-900 aircraft. The airline also has options for a further 30 of the aircraft. The Trent XWB is the fastest-selling member of the Rolls-Royce Trent engine family, with more than1,400 ordered prior to its entry into service next year. Lufthansa has 60 Trent-powered Airbus A380s, A330s and A340s either in service or on order. (Source: Rolls-Royce, 09/19/13) Note: Trent engines, including the XWB, are tested at an outdoor test stand at Stennis Space Center, Miss.

Third AEHF takes off

CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- The third in a series of secure U.S. military communications satellites successfully launched today aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. The Advanced Extremely High Frequency-3 satellite faces 110 days of orbit-raising operations and 60 days of testing, according to a U.S. Air Force press release. Lockheed Martin Space Systems of Sunnyvale, Calif., is building six AEHF satellites under a contract worth some $9 billion. When fully deployed, the AEHF constellation will consist of four satellites in geostationary orbit and secure communications payloads hosted aboard classified satellites in polar orbit. (Source: Spacenews, 09/18/13) Note: Core propulsion system work on the AEHF satellite is done at Stennis Space Center, Miss. Previous

Cygnus heads toward ISS

WALLOPS ISLAND, Va. – After a one-day delay, Orbital Science's Cygnus spacecraft took off today atop an Antares rocket from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility. The commercial spacecraft is heading for the International Space Station with about 1,500 pounds of clothes, food, water and other items. The spacecraft is due to arrive early Sunday, when it will be captured by astronauts using the outpost's robotic arm. If everything goes as planned, Cygnus will be the second commercial spacecraft to dock with ISS. SpaceX's Dragon capsule was the first. (Sources: multiple, including Space.com, Washington Post, 09/18/13) Note: The Antares engines were tested at Stennis Space Center, Miss. Previous

Contract: 3PSC, $34.1M

3PSC LLC, Norfolk, Va., is being awarded a $34,171,340 modification under a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract to exercise a one-year option for the operation and maintenance of six oceanographic/survey U.S. Naval ships. The ships are operated for the Naval Oceanographic Office to conduct military surveys. Work will be performed worldwide, and is expected to be completed by October 2014. The U.S. Navy's Military Sealift Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 09/13/13) The Naval Oceanographic Office is located at Stennis Space Center, Miss.

AEHF encapsulated for launch

CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, Fla. -- The third Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellite built by Lockheed Martin has been encapsulated into its payload fairing in preparation for a Sept. 18 liftoff aboard an Atlas V from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. The system is the nation's only protected strategic and tactical satellite communications program. It works in concert with its predecessor, Milstar, for global coverage. Lockheed Martin is under contract to deliver six AEHF satellites and the Mission Control Segment. AEHF-1 and AEHF-2 are both in orbit and AEHF-4 is progressing on schedule. (Source: Lockheed Martin, 09/11/13) Note: Work on the AEHF core propulsion system is done at Stennis Space Center, Miss. Previous

NASA to televise Orbital launch

NASA will provide live coverage of the Sept. 17 launch of Orbital Science Corp.'s cargo resupply demonstration mission to the International Space Station. Orbital is the second commercial company to send a mission to the ISS. SpaceX was the first. The company's Cygnus cargo carrier will be launched aboard Orbital's Antares rocket from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility. Cygnus will deliver about 1,300 pounds of cargo to the Expedition 37 crew aboard the space station. Rendezvous with the space station is scheduled for Sept. 22. (Source: NASA, 09/10/13) Note: The Antares first-stage is powered by twin AJ26 engines tested at Stennis Space Center, Miss. Previous

SSC does what's needed for stand

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- Need a massive rocket engine tested without disturbing the neighbors? Yeah, they can do that at NASA's Stennis Space Center. Need to fabricate a 7,000-pound part, or how about miles of piping? Well, sure, they can do that, too. Call it a can-do attitude at SSC, NASA’s premier rocket engine test facility since the 1960s. Work is well under way to prepare for the next big project, testing the RS-25 engines that will power the core stage of NASA's next generation Space Launch System. (Source: Gulf Coast Aerospace Corridor Quarterly, 09/10/13) Full quarterly

Workshop scheduled

BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. -- Companies that want to learn how to do business at Stennis Space Center can attend a workshop Thursday from 8:30-9:30 a.m. at the Hancock Chamber of Commerce office. The free program will be presented by Laurie Jugan, program coordinator for the Mississippi Enterprise for Technology, and Michelle Stracener, NASA's Small Business specialist. (Source: Sun Herald, 09/06/13)

J-2X tests on A-1 end

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. – A series of hotfire tests on the next generation J-2X rocket engine came to an end Thursday. The gimbal test of the Rocketdyne J-2X No. 10002 was a 330-second test fire on the A-1 test stand. Now NASA has its sights on testing the Rocketdyne RS-25. Both engines will be used with NASA's Space Launch System. The J-2X will be used on the upper stage and the RS-25 on the core stage. (Source: NASA/SSC, 09/05/13) Previous

A2100 satellite reaches milestone

The Lockheed Martin A2100 communications satellite series has reached a milestone by chalking up over 400 cumulative years of successful, in-orbit operations. The orbiting fleet consists of 45 commercial and U.S. government communication satellites equipped with over 1,500 transponders transmitting data, video and audio for operators worldwide. In addition to commercial applications, the A2100 satellite is the platform for communications programs for the U.S. government, including the Advanced Extremely High Frequency and Mobile User Objective System. (Source: Lockheed Martin, 09/03/13) Core propulsion system work on the A2100 is done at Stennis Space Center, Miss. Previous