DRYDEN LOOKING AT MOON CENTER STAFF LIKELY TO HELP DEVELOP CRAFT.

Byline: Jim Skeen Staff Writer

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE - NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center could play a role in the testing and development of the spacecraft proposed under the president's initiative to return to the moon, the center's director said.

Returning from meetings at National Aeronautics and Space Administration headquarters, Dryden Director Kevin Peterson said much, including Dryden's role, remains to be determined about the president's proposal for the new moon initiative. However, Peterson said Dryden probably would help develop the needed spacecraft.

``I assume we'll be part of that,'' Peterson said. ``There will be a need for test activities, for atmospheric test activities, and I expect we'll be part of that.''

Before the president's announcement, two high-profile access-to-space projects involving Dryden were well under way - the unmanned X-43 and X-37 experimental craft. Both likely will be reviewed by NASA's new Office of Exploration Systems, which will oversee the moon effort.

``Some of our work will be moved into the exploration enterprise,'' Peterson said. ``The fate of those programs will be evaluated there.''

The X-43, scheduled to fly in the next few weeks, will test scramjet engine technology. The goal is to develop powerful engines that would use air from the atmosphere, rather than carry oxygen as a rocket does. By not having to carry oxygen, a spacecraft could save fuel weight and carry more equipment.

The first X-43 is expected to hit speeds of more than Mach 5, about 3,500 mph. The second is expected to fly at speeds up to Mach 10, about 7,600 mph.

The X-37 was intended to test technologies for the orbital space plane, what had been proposed as NASA's next manned spacecraft. With a new moon project, the orbital space plane effort would be refocused on producing an exploration vehicle for a human crew.

The fate of the two X-37 vehicles is uncertain at this point.

One X-37 had been planned for use in high-altitude flight tests, starting late this year at Edwards. NASA officials planned to conduct five drop tests with the high-altitude X-37 from a modified B-52. That craft is nearing completion at Boeing's facilities in Palmdale.

Another X-37 craft, still in the design stage, was planned to be launched into space atop a booster rocket in 2006, but the new moon initiative is raising questions about whether that effort will survive the budget ax.

Peterson said he expects the work force at Dryden to stay relatively stable through the rest of this year. The effects of the moon initiative probably won't begin to be felt until next year.

``We will have an opportunity to retool for the new work,'' Peterson said.

Peterson oversees a NASA center with an annual budget of about $218 million and a work force of about 1,200 people, making it one of the Antelope Valley's largest employers.

Jim Skeen, [phone]

james.skeen(at)dailynews.com