All Seeing Eye
Admiral
What do you think would be the best manned space vehicle of the future? The NASA Orion capsule or a European manned spaceship based on the successful Jules Verne space freighter?
Best Manned Space Vehicle?
- Thread starter All Seeing Eye
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I gotta go with MarianLH on this one.
DC-X showed much promise till that fateful day when someone forgot to connect the wiring harness on one of the landing legs.
(BTW... Scaled composites built the fuel tanks for DC-X, and also were the primary integrators on the Roton Rotary Rocket... What's old Rutan's next trick gonna be?)
AG
DC-X showed much promise till that fateful day when someone forgot to connect the wiring harness on one of the landing legs.
(BTW... Scaled composites built the fuel tanks for DC-X, and also were the primary integrators on the Roton Rotary Rocket... What's old Rutan's next trick gonna be?)
AG
Can't vote yet...haven't seen either in service.
Than what? Orion essentially is Apollo.
Whoops, didn't realize at first what the Jules Verne was. The Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) that Europe launched earlier this year. Ah yes...
Well, in that case, the Orion will be... why? Simple reason, the Orion has a heat shield...the ATV...doesn't.
[from Wikipedia:
Once its mission is accomplished, the ATV, filled with up to 6.5 tonnes of waste, separates. Its thrusters move the spacecraft out of orbit (de-orbit) and place it on a steep flight path to perform a controlled destructive re-entry high above the Pacific Ocean.]
Therefore...if you wanna man it and come back in it...you'd best go up in the Orion...otherwise...you're toast.
Oh, wait...you said "based on" the ATV. Well, in that case, it might be a toss up until we see such vehicles in use.
Personally, I'm waiting for the eventual Mars craft. Whatever that might be.
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Timo and Psion, those are both damn fine candidates.
While I have already made a pitch for DC-X, I do think there is another candidate that should at least get honorable mention:
Gemini
The US learned more about space operations from Gemini than probably any other program. We leared to take our first steps with Mercury, but Gemini taught us how to tap dance with partners. With the exception of of TLI burns and the actual landing procedures, everything that had to be learned for Apollo was pioneered by Gemni.
Maybe I'm looking at the program more than the craft here.
AG
While I have already made a pitch for DC-X, I do think there is another candidate that should at least get honorable mention:
Gemini
The US learned more about space operations from Gemini than probably any other program. We leared to take our first steps with Mercury, but Gemini taught us how to tap dance with partners. With the exception of of TLI burns and the actual landing procedures, everything that had to be learned for Apollo was pioneered by Gemni.
Maybe I'm looking at the program more than the craft here.
AG
the difference between the two being that one is fantastic, silly, primitive,
and will probably actually never fly, and the other is merely fictional.
I'll go with fictional, thanks.
and will probably actually never fly, and the other is merely fictional.
I'll go with fictional, thanks.
Seconded. And damn McNamara to hell for cancelling it.
All Seeing Eye
Admiral
Why doesn't the ESA and NASA utilise the 'Jules Verne ATV' design, alter it around so it works like lego and build lots of different segments, lift them off into space and join them together in orbit and build a huge space ship?
X-33/VentureStar They could have built it if they would have used a conventional fuel tank.
They did that, it´s called the International Space Station.
My vote is for Soyuz, both from a historic standpoint and future standpoint.
...One wonders if, with the new Soyuz launch pad coming on line in French Guyana and all, somebody wouldn't breach a few copyrights and start manufacturing a generic equivalent in the 'States. 
Also, one of the early plans for utilizing the modular Soyuz was indeed to build a spacecraft in orbit out of multiple modules, LEGO style, then use it for going around the Moon. Granted, it was just a workaround when the Soviets couldn't get their big boosters to work, but still a viable technique as such. However, the vehicle of choice probably wouldn't be Soyuz now, but its big brother TKS:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TKS_spacecraft
Lots of interesting stuff there when you follow through the links. Back when I was reading up on spaceflight, it was just a silly rumor that the Soviets had armed their military Salyuts with 23 mm cannon. Now it's interesting, solid, a bit scary fact. And the story of the first Energiya payload is interesting in this respect as well.
Timo Saloniemi
Also, one of the early plans for utilizing the modular Soyuz was indeed to build a spacecraft in orbit out of multiple modules, LEGO style, then use it for going around the Moon. Granted, it was just a workaround when the Soviets couldn't get their big boosters to work, but still a viable technique as such. However, the vehicle of choice probably wouldn't be Soyuz now, but its big brother TKS:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TKS_spacecraft
Lots of interesting stuff there when you follow through the links. Back when I was reading up on spaceflight, it was just a silly rumor that the Soviets had armed their military Salyuts with 23 mm cannon. Now it's interesting, solid, a bit scary fact. And the story of the first Energiya payload is interesting in this respect as well.
Timo Saloniemi
All Seeing Eye
Admiral
That's a space station and not a spaceship! like I suggested.
...One wonders if, with the new Soyuz launch pad coming on line in French Guyana and all, somebody wouldn't breach a few copyrights and start manufacturing a generic equivalent in the 'States.
Also, one of the early plans for utilizing the modular Soyuz was indeed to build a spacecraft in orbit out of multiple modules, LEGO style, then use it for going around the Moon. Granted, it was just a workaround when the Soviets couldn't get their big boosters to work, but still a viable technique as such. However, the vehicle of choice probably wouldn't be Soyuz now, but its big brother TKS:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TKS_spacecraft
Lots of interesting stuff there when you follow through the links. Back when I was reading up on spaceflight, it was just a silly rumor that the Soviets had armed their military Salyuts with 23 mm cannon. Now it's interesting, solid, a bit scary fact. And the story of the first Energiya payload is interesting in this respect as well.
Timo Saloniemi
Ah, why the heck would we want to build a Soyuz equivalent when we can build an Apollo equivalent? Soyuz makes sense for the Russians since they have many, many years experience with that technology and design. The US has experience with Apollo and they are using that to build the Orion.
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