BA Genesis up up and away!

[crix]

http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/060712_genesis-1_launch.html<br /><br />Alright! No updates on their website yet.<br /><br />www.bigelowaerospace.com

 

[j05h]

That is great news. I'm looking forward to deployment pictures. Great to see Dnepr fly, too!<br /><br />josh <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <div align="center"><em>We need a first generation of pioneers.</em><br /></div> </div>

 

[baktothemoon]

It sucks that they are so tight lipped about the whole thing though. I am extremely glad that it launched successfully, but there is no info out about when they will inflate it and hardly any images. A lack of avaliable information seems to be a rule a thumb in the private space industry.

 

[CalliArcale]

There is that. <img src="/images/icons/frown.gif" /> Sometimes somebody lets the good news out before the launch is really over. At least it's not a Volna; I've really lost my faith in those after the various problems it caused for the Cosmos spacecraft. (Loss of the suborbital test article, loss of Cosmos-1, no successful flights, both failures due to booster problems.)<br /><br />Anybody know much about Dnepr? What's it's record like?<br /><br />In any case, I really do hope this has been a successful flight. It would be wonderful to see this technology take off (no pun intended). There have of course been attempts at getting inflatables going in space, but all have either failed to leave the drawing board, or were abandoned after preliminary tests. I hope Bigelow's innate stubbornness makes the difference here. <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>

 

[crix]

Uh oh. I just assumed it had already made it to orbit safely.

 

[CalliArcale]

Indeed. It's far too early to declare this sufficient to replace ISS or anything else for that matter.<br /><br />Fortunately, unlike some ISS-bashers, Bigelow is quite aware of that. That is why I think he may succeed. He understands the scale of the challenge. <br /><br />(And why does it have to be a competition between Biglelow and ISS anyway? Wouldn't the world be better served by having multiple space stations?) <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>

 

[CalliArcale]

Wahoo!!!! That's wonderful news! I can breathe! <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>

 

[shoogerbrugge]

Dnepr is pretty reliable, 6 commercial launches while about 300 launches as ICBM with 98% reliability. Most failures where in the early stage of development.<br /><br />The Volna has a less good record, however the first Cosmos failed to seperate which was no fault of the launch vehicle if I remember correctly. The Volna was used in 5 commercial launches with launch vehicle failures, not that reliable indeed. <br /><br />Im hoping for news on the Genesis 1, lets hope they picked up its signal.

 

[crix]

Nice! Can't wait to see some pictures from inside and out!

 

[Swampcat]

I've been looking forward to this mission for a long time. It's great to see it get into orbit. This is just one small step for private spaceflight, but an important one. Hardware is in orbit. That's significant.<br /><br />According to the MSNBC article we should know something about the health of the module sometime after 6pm. Let's hope it inflates properly and we see a successful ongoing mission for Genesis 1. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="3" color="#ff9900"><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong><em>------------------------------------------------------------------- </em></strong></font></p><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong><em>"I hold it that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms in the physical. Unsuccessful rebellions, indeed, generally establish the encroachments on the rights of the people which have produced them. An observation of this truth should render honest republican governors so mild in their punishment of rebellions as not to discourage them too much. It is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government."</em></strong></font></p><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong>Thomas Jefferson</strong></font></p></font> </div>

 

[Swampcat]

<font color="yellow">"Actually they still do not have a module yet. They plan up to 10 test launches of the sub scale version. There is a lot of development yet to come."</font><br /><br />I certainly don't doubt there is more work to be done (that's what these subscale tests are all about), but they in fact <b><i>do</i></b> have a module up and in orbit. True, it's a scaled down version of their BA330, but it's an inflatable module nonetheless.<br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="3" color="#ff9900"><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong><em>------------------------------------------------------------------- </em></strong></font></p><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong><em>"I hold it that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms in the physical. Unsuccessful rebellions, indeed, generally establish the encroachments on the rights of the people which have produced them. An observation of this truth should render honest republican governors so mild in their punishment of rebellions as not to discourage them too much. It is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government."</em></strong></font></p><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong>Thomas Jefferson</strong></font></p></font> </div>

 

[josh_simonson]

I don't see bigelow competing with the ISS either. <br /><br />As space stations age, the wear of being lived in and the weathering of the space environment degrade them over time until they need to be replaced. It wouldn't be hard to envision some ISS modules being replaced with inflatables once they're worn out in the future.

 

[Boris_Badenov]

Wahhoo, Go, Go, Go!!! <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font color="#993300"><span class="body"><font size="2" color="#3366ff"><div align="center">. </div><div align="center">Never roll in the mud with a pig. You'll both get dirty & the pig likes it.</div></font></span></font> </div>

 

[bender13]

This is awesome. Hopefully it inflated succesfully. Even though it's just a test module I'm just as exited about this as I was about Space Ship One.

 

[kane007]

SPACE.COM<br />2006_07_12<br /><br />Thanks to a boost today from a Russian and Ukrainian rocket-for-hire company, a U.S. private space firm has sent a novel expandable module toward Earth orbit – and a step forward in providing commercial space habitats.<br /><br />Bigelow Aerospace of North Las Vegas, Nevada is flying prototype hardware that the firm anticipates will advance habitable structures in space to carry out research and manufacturing, among other tasks.<br /><br />The Genesis-1 module was lofted skyward atop a Dnepr booster under contract with ISC Kosmotras. The rocket – a converted Cold War SS-18 Intercontinental Ballistic Missile – roared out of its silo from the Yasny Launch Base, an active Russian strategic missile facility.<br /><br />“That’s one small step for Bigelow…one giant leap for entrepreneurial space,” reported Mike Gold, corporate counsel for Bigelow Aerospace in Washington, D.C. - on hand for the Dnepr liftoff. “We’ve had a successful launch. Of course this is just the first step in what’s going to be a long mission. We’re eager to get more information in regards to the progress of the mission,” he said.<br /><br />Bankrolling the expandable space module concept – now roughly a $75 million investment -- is businessman, Robert Bigelow, owner of the Budget Suites of America Hotel Chain among other enterprises, and head of Bigelow Aerospace.<br /><br /><b>Packing and deployment procedures</b><br /><br />Gold told SPACE.com via phone that this first flight of a Bigelow module was also the inaugural ISC Kosmotras Dnepr takeoff from the Yasny site. If all goes according to plan, the Genesis-1 is to be injected into Earth orbit. From there, the focus of the mission is establishing if both packing of the module and deployment procedures are optimal and functional, he added.<br /><br />Once the module is in orbit, command and control of the hardware will be done through a

 

[kane007]

<b>MISSION UPDATE</b><br /><br />Bigelow Aerospace mission control has begun to acquire information from the Genesis I spacecraft. The ISC Kosmotras Dnepr rocket has flawlessly delivered the Genesis I into the target orbit of 550km altitude at 64 degrees inclination. The internal battery is reporting a full charge of 26 volts, which leads us to believe that the solar arrays have deployed.<br /><br />The internal temperature of the spacecraft is reported to be 26 degrees Celsius and we have acquired the spacecraft's Global Positioning System (GPS) signal that will enable us to track the ship in flight.<br /><br />We have initiated communication with the ship's onboard computers and expect to download more information over the next few hours.

 

[kane007]

<b>MISSION UPDATE</b><br /><br />5:20 PST<br />Bigelow Aerospace has received confirmation from the Genesis I spacecraft that it has successfully expanded.<br /><br />We have also confirmed that all of the solar arrays have been deployed.

 

[radarredux]

> <i><font color="yellow">I don't see bigelow competing with the ISS either.</font>/i><br /><br />There are some possibilities, especially if Bigelow has a research module sent up. Then he would argue that the government shouldn't sponsor research projects being done on government sponsored facility (ISS), when a perfectly good commercial facility is available. This is part of a long running argument of whether the government should compete with the private sector. However, I doubt it will come to this...<br /><br />The latest timeline for Bigelow (according to MSNBC's web page) has the first commercial complex available in the 2015 timeframe. This is getting close to ISS's retirement. If ISS is seen to be valuable at that time, Bigelow modules may be seen as logical replacements for ISS.<br /><br />Furthermore, ISS is not set up for large-scale manufacturing of anything. If some research proves valuable on ISS (e.g., casting jet engine turbine blades, drug development, whatever), a company may want to license a Bigelow facility for full scale production.</i>

 

[earth_bound_misfit]

<blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr /><p>The cameras will beam pictures and video of the craft back to Earth and also monitor the module's living inhabitants, which include cockroaches and Mexican jumping bean moths.<br /><br /><hr /></p></blockquote>>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/5173388.stm<p><hr /><br /><br />Yummy <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" /></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p> </p><p>----------------------------------------------------------------- </p><p>Wanna see this site looking like the old SDC uplink?</p><p>Go here to see how: <strong>SDC Eye saver </strong>  </p> </div>

 

[comga]

This is terrific news. Congrats to everyone at Bigelow.<br />

 

[Swampcat]

<font color="yellow">"Does that mean it reached orbit safely? <br />hard to believe this 'module' - or whatever they wanna call it - operates so well thus far."</font><br /><br />According to information from the Bigelow Aerospace website and other sources, the module is indeed in orbit, inflated, solar panels deployed and communications links established.<br /><br />At this point it appears everything is working according to plan. It will be interesting to see how this first module holds up over time. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="3" color="#ff9900"><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong><em>------------------------------------------------------------------- </em></strong></font></p><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong><em>"I hold it that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms in the physical. Unsuccessful rebellions, indeed, generally establish the encroachments on the rights of the people which have produced them. An observation of this truth should render honest republican governors so mild in their punishment of rebellions as not to discourage them too much. It is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government."</em></strong></font></p><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong>Thomas Jefferson</strong></font></p></font> </div>

 

[3488]

Sorry guys. I do not mean to be thick (I was just born that way), but how was the module inflated? Was it like the airbags used on the Mars Exploration Rovers landings & Mars Pathfinder, or was the gas pumped from a pressurized tank?<br /><br />I feel that there is something a bit 'Titanic' about this, with the claim that the module is puncture proof. Fair enough, it is constructed to the required standard that it can withstand 99.99% of perceived impacts, but this seems to be a repeat of a similar boast made about the RMS Titanic in 1912, prior to her ill fated maiden trip across the Atlantic to New York from Southampton, United Kingdom. <br /><br />Nothing is space is puncture or impact proof, no more so than an 'unsinkable ship'.<br /><br />Anyway, it is a great development & lets hope the idea does not die, due to lack of follow up funding & interest.<br /><br />Did NASA not attempt a huge inflatable High Gain Antenna on a space shuttle flight, quite some time ago? Cannot remember the outcome though. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080">"I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before".</font> <em><strong><font color="#000000">Linda Morabito </font></strong><font color="#800000">on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.</font></em></p><p><font size="1" color="#000080">http://www.launchphotography.com/</font><br /><br /><font size="1" color="#000080">http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearth</font></p><p><font size="1" color="#000080">http://web.me.com/meridianijournal</font></p> </div>

 

[grooble]

I'd like to see some images and video!

 

[nyarlathotep]

<font color="yellow">Sorry guys. I do not mean to be thick (I was just born that way), but how was the module inflated? Was it like the airbags used on the Mars Exploration Rovers landings & Mars Pathfinder, or was the gas pumped from a pressurized tank? </font><br /><br />Pressurised nitrogen tank. <br /><br /><font color="yellow">Fair enough, it is constructed to the required standard that it can withstand 99.99% of perceived impacts, but this seems to be a repeat of a similar boast made about the RMS Titanic in 1912</font><br /><br />Only if you extend the analogy to include the ISS in the event of an unforseen impact as a repeat of the Sultana in 1865.

 

[cuddlyrocket]

" feel that there is something a bit 'Titanic' about this, with the claim that the module is puncture proof. Fair enough, it is constructed to the required standard that it can withstand 99.99% of perceived impacts, but this seems to be a repeat of a similar boast made about the RMS Titanic in 1912, prior to her ill fated maiden trip...."<br /><br />That's why this is a <i>test flight</i> - to obtain data on how well it performs etc.<br /><br />And it doesn't have to reach 100% of perceived impacts. It just needs to reach a similar standard to current modules (which don't reach 100% either).<br /><br />This isn't in competition with the ISS. In fact, if the technology is successfully demonstrated, I bet one of its first uses will be to provide additional modules on the ISS.