by David Todd | Jul 26, 2021 | exploration, Launches, NASA, SLS, SpaceX
While NASA’s US$4.25 billion Europa Clipper scientific unmanned exploration flyby mission to Jupiter’s moon Europa was always mooted as going on the NASA Heavy lift launch vehicle (HLV) SLS, and, in fact, was at one stage Congressionally obliged to do so,...
by David Todd | Nov 9, 2020 | Seradata News, SLS, Space politics
After a record-breaking turnout and tense counts in swing states, Democrat challenger Joe Biden beat Republican incumbent President Donald Trump in the US Presidential election. Although more votes were cast for Trump than in 2016, he was beaten by Biden both in the...
by David Todd | Mar 27, 2019 | Apollo, Blue Origin, exploration, NASA, Seradata News, SLS, SpaceX
The Trump Administration has signalled a change of space policy on a human return to the Moon. Addressing the National Space Council in Huntsville, Alabama, and hinting that the USA was in effect in a race with China, US Vice President Mike Pence called for a human...
by David Todd | Oct 15, 2018 | Launches, NASA, SLS, Technology
While the SLS Block I variant is nearly certain to achieve flight status, new heavy-lift rockets on the block threaten to usurp later variants of this huge US$20 billion Heavy Lift launch vehicle (HLV). Nevertheless, during the Heads of Agencies’ press conference,...
by David Todd | Jun 12, 2018 | NASA, SLS, Technology
Napoleon once said that he did not care if his generals were any good, but rather, whether they were lucky. Todd May, was, and is, both. The very well regarded current director of the NASA Marshall Space Center, and “midwife” of the SLS Heavy Lift launch...
by David Todd | Apr 26, 2018 | China, exploration, NASA, Seradata News, SLS
After US Congress decided to cancel the human-rating of the Delta IV upper-stage-derived ICPS (Interim Cryogenic Propulsion System) it looked as though the SLS Block 1 rocket (itself delayed until 2020) would only ever fly once on an unmanned flight called EM-1...
