TEST FLIGHT SET TODAY FOR X-38.Byline: Jim Skeen Daily News Staff Writer NASA's 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. , engineless X-38, a technology demonstrator for a space station ``lifeboat,'' is set to make its second flight today after an 11-month delay. The flight will test changes made to the X-38's 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.] system, a rectangular steerable parachute that would lower the craft gently to earth. The X-38 will be taken aloft and then dropped by the same B-52 used in the 1960s to launch X-15 rocket planes Rocket planes or rocket aircraft can be subdivided by the few rocket powered aircraft to have existed. Some early attempts at flights used engines that might be considered the first 'rocket' powered aircraft. . After the craft falls for a few seconds, the parafoil system will be deployed and used for the aircraft's final descent and landing. During the aircraft's first flight in March, the parafoil - which covers the same area as a Boeing 747 wing - twisted during deployment, and a piece of fabric ripped. NASA NASA: see National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA in full National Aeronautics and Space Administration Independent U.S. had originally planned to conduct the second flight Friday but canceled because of thick early morning clouds. The aircraft is the first of three X-38 vehicles NASA's Johnson Space Center, in collaboration with NASA 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, is using to develop the Crew Return Vehicle, a spacecraft that would be docked to the international space station as a lifeboat. The vehicle would fly back into Earth's atmosphere “Air” redirects here. For other uses, see Air (disambiguation). Earth's atmosphere is a layer of gases surrounding the planet Earth and retained by the Earth's gravity. It contains roughly (by molar content/volume) 78% nitrogen, 20.95% oxygen, 0.93% argon, 0. like the space shuttle but land using its parafoil. Researchers also are looking to develop a design that could be modified for other uses, including launching people into space by attaching the vehicle to a French Ariane 5 booster. The first X-38 has its flight control surfaces in a fixed position and will be steered only with the parafoil. The second X-38 will have a flight-control system for extended flight maneuvers. The second X-38 is expected to make its first flight Feb. 26. The third X-38 is under construction. Plans for the program include a flight test from space in 2000. |
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