SPACE FIRMS MAY TEAM UP.Byline: Jim Skeen Staff Writer PALMDALE - 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. and 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. are in talks to join together in pursuing the development of the orbital space plane The Orbital Space Plane (OSP) program was designed to support the International Space Station requirements for crew rescue, crew transport and contingency cargo such as supplies, food and other needed equipment. , the nation's next manned spacecraft. Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin have signed a memorandum of understanding A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is a legal document describing a bilateral or multilateral agreement between parties. It expresses a convergence of will between the parties, indicating an intended common line of action and may not imply a legal commitment. to negotiate an arrangement to act as a team. Over the next months, talks will be held to define what roles and responsibilities each company would undertake. ``By consolidating the contracts, this gives NASA NASA: see National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA in full National Aeronautics and Space Administration Independent U.S. an opportunity to lessen its risks and broaden the industrial base working on the program,'' said Northrop Grumman spokesman Brooks McKinney. ``This is a great combination of leading space experts. Collectively we give NASA a great resource.'' Talks are also under way to have Orbital Sciences Corp., Northrop Grumman's current orbital space plane partner, as part of the contracting team, Lockheed Martin Space Systems Lockheed Martin Space Systems is one of the 4 major business divisions of Lockheed Martin. It is headquartered in Denver, Colorado. From a rich history of major companies Lockheed Martin has brought them together to offer design, integration, and production of: If the negotiations are successful, the arrangement would cut the number of contracting teams working on the program from three to two. The other contractor vying to develop the spacecraft is Boeing. Lockheed Martin and Boeing have staff in Palmdale working on the program. Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. in Palmdale is working on design studies for the spacecraft while Boeing in Palmdale is building an experimental craft, the X-37, which will be used to test technologies for the space plane. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), civilian agency of the U.S. federal government with the mission of conducting research and developing operational programs in the areas of space exploration, artificial satellites (see satellite, artificial), wants to have the orbital space plane ready for use as a lifeboat for the International Space Station by 2008. The agency wants the spacecraft to be ready for use to take astronauts to the space station by 2012 at the latest, and preferably by 2010. NASA wants the spacecraft to be able to carry at least four astronauts. The spacecraft would be launched into orbit atop a rocket such as the Atlas V or the Delta IV. NASA also wants to be able to keep the spacecraft attached to the space station for up to six months at a time. In the wake of the Columbia accident, NASA is requiring the contractor teams to come up with a spacecraft that will have escape and rescue provisions for every aspect of operations, from launch to landing. The NASA requirements are pushing the contractor teams to explore simpler designs for the spacecraft. |
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