SPACCE RACE A.V. HOPES TO WIN SPACECRAFT JOBS.Byline: Jim Skeen Staff Writer PALMDALE - As NASA NASA: see National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA in full National Aeronautics and Space Administration Independent U.S. officials this week begin examining the proposals from aerospace industry teams vying to build America's next manned spacecraft This is a list of manned spacecraft (including space stations) sorted by manufacturer/operator and series in chronological order. Operational spacecraft China National Space Administration
The Antelope Valley officials are hoping some of the work comes to California. Sometime this fall, NASA will select either a team led by 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. or one led by 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. , with Boeing as its major partner, to build the crew exploration vehicle
The Crew Exploration Vehicle (or CEV) was the conceptual component of the Vision for Space Exploration that later became known as the Orion spacecraft. , which looks like a larger version of the Apollo spacecraft The Apollo spacecraft was designed as part of the Apollo Program, by the United States in the early 1960s to land men on the moon before 1970 and return them safely to earth. This goal was set forth by President Kennedy after the first flight of the Mercury Space Program. that went to the moon in the 1960s and '70s. Assemblywoman Sharon Runner, R-Lancaster, co-authored legislation to provide state tax credits for work on the CEV CEV Crew Exploration Vehicle (NASA) CEV Contemporary English Version (Bible) CEV Confédération Européenne de Volleyball CEV Confederation Européenne de Volleyball . She is now looking at trying to get those credits included into the governor's revised budget proposal in May. ``We have to have some real incentives to offer,'' Runner said. ``This way it comes sooner rather than later.'' The tax credit would be for 10 percent of an employee's wages and 10 percent for equipment purchased directly for the program. The Lockheed Martin team has already announced it will assemble the spacecraft in Florida if it wins the contract. The Florida state government is putting up an incentive package valued at $45.5 million for the winning contractor team. The Northrop Grumman-led team will not disclose its assembly site, saying that it would be premature to talk about proposal details. California officials said they haven't given up on attracting work from either team. Incentive packages for both teams have been put together. The details of those packages are not being disclosed, but officials said they include tax credits for research and development work, assistance with employee training, and information about local incentives, such as the Antelope Valley's enterprise zone, which provides tax credits on wages and equipment purchases for work done within the zone. The state team that put together the CEV incentives supports the tax credit effort by Runner and co-author Assemblyman Ted Lieu, D-Torrance, said Eric Daniels, spokesman for the California Space Authority The California Space Authority (CSA) is a nonprofit corporation representing the commercial, civil, and national defense/homeland security interests of California's diverse space enterprise community in four domains: Industry, Government, Academia, and Workforce. , which is coordinating the team's efforts. ``It looks promising,'' Daniels said. Palmdale Mayor Jim Ledford said he is optimistic that at least some work would be done in the Antelope Valley, even if the contract is won by Lockheed Martin. ``I think we do have a chance,'' Ledford said. ``We have the expertise here for some of the component manufacturing.'' Northrop Grumman has a strong California presence and has been enhancing its operations in Palmdale, Ledford said. Some research and development work on the program will be done at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center The Dryden Flight Research Center (DFRC), located inside Edwards Air Force Base, is an aeronautical research center operated by NASA. On March 26, 1976 it was named in honor of the late Hugh L. at Edwards Air Force Base Edwards Air Force Base, U.S. military installation, 301,000 acres (121,805 hectares), S Calif., NE of Lancaster; est. 1933. It is one of the largest air force bases in the United States and has the world's longest runway. . Anticipated work at Dryden includes flight testing of a launch-abort system, drop tests of a subscale model to evaluate approach and landing technologies and procedures, and range safety analyses. The planned spacecraft will transport up to six crew members to and from the International Space Station and up to four astronauts for moon missions, which the agency expects to start in 2018. NASA estimates it will cost $104 billion to return astronauts to the moon by 2018. The Apollo program spent the equivalent of $165 billion in today's dollars from 1961 through the Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969. NASA referred to the new moon plan as ``Apollo on steroids.'' The plan calls for placing four astronauts on the moon's surface instead of two, as during the Apollo days. Astronauts will be able to stay on the moon's surface for four days to a week, compared with the three-day mission of Apollo 17. Jim Skeen, (661) 267-5743 james.skeen(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 4 photos Photo: (1 -- color) Workers at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Texas assemble a mock-up mock·up also mock-up n. 1. A usually full-sized scale model of a structure, used for demonstration, study, or testing. 2. A layout of printed matter. of the planned crew exploration vehicle. (2 -- color) An artist's conception shows the crew exploration vehicle landing on air bag cushions. The craft would take up to four astronauts on moon missions. (3 -- color) A CEV scale model is being prepared for wind tunnel tests at NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif. (4 -- color) In an artist's conception, a crew exploration vehicle launches. The CEV will take astronauts to the International Space Station and to the moon. NASA |
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