NASA'S CREW RETURN VEHICLE PUT TO TEST.Byline: Jim Skeen Daily News Staff Writer A stubby stub·by adj. stub·bi·er, stub·bi·est 1. a. Having the nature of or suggesting a stub, as in shortness, broadness, or thickness: stubby fingers and toes. b. aircraft without an engine, intended to serve as a stepping stone toward creating a ``lifeboat'' for space station astronauts, is back on the ground after a perfect first flight. The wingless X-38, whose odd shape provides the lift that keeps it in the air, was released Friday from a NASA NASA: see National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA in full National Aeronautics and Space Administration Independent U.S. B-52 at 26,000 feet and glided for 12 seconds before its huge parafoil par·a·foil n. A nonrigid, parachutelike, usually nylon airfoil of ribbed or cellular construction, used especially in kites and paragliders. [para(chute) + (air)foil.] deployed. Under the rectangular, steerable parafoil, the unmanned experimental aircraft flew a set of computer-controlled maneuvers before landing on Rogers Dry Lake, sliding 50 feet on its landing skids. ``We had a beautiful flight,'' said John Muratore John Muratore is a NASA engineer and Program Manager, well known in the aerospace circles for his flamboyant and unconventional style. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering in 1979 from Yale University and a Master of Science in Computer Science in , the X-38 program manager. Watching the X-38 program are four aerospace companies: Northrop Grumman Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is an aerospace and defense conglomerate that is the result of the 1994 purchase of Grumman by Northrop. The company is the third largest defense contractor for the U.S. , Lockheed Martin For the former company, see . Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) is a leading multinational aerospace manufacturer and advanced technology company formed in 1995 by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta. , Boeing and Orbital Sciences Corp. Later this month, NASA will issue a request for proposals for the design of the real crew return vehicle. Two contractors will be chosen to develop their designs. In 2001, NASA plans to select one contractor to actually build the crew return vehicle. Contractors will have to adhere to adhere to verb 1. follow, keep, maintain, respect, observe, be true, fulfil, obey, heed, keep to, abide by, be loyal, mind, be constant, be faithful 2. the X-38's overall shape and use a parafoil landing system in their design, Muratore said. The aircraft that flew Friday is one of three X-38 vehicles testing technologies for a proposed crew return vehicle, a space station lifeboat. The flight tests will culminate with a flight from space in mid-2000. The first X-38 made its first flight in March 1998. The flight was successful, but a section of the parafoil tore during the flight. The X-38 team spent the next 10 months refining the parafoil system. The first X-38 made its second flight last month. The first X-38 is now at famed aircraft designer Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites company in Mojave, where it is being modified for future flight tests. Unlike the first X-38, the second X-38 aircraft has a flight control system to allow the aircraft to maneuver in the air. The first X-38 had unmovable flaps and control surfaces. In addition to use as a lifeboat, NASA is also looking at the idea of using the crew return vehicle as a sort of taxi to take people to the space station. The craft could be mounted atop a rocket for trips to the station. |
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