Post by AlaCowboy on Mar 31, 2016 19:42:33 GMT -5
Huntsville one step closer to landing spacecrafts at airport
Huntsville is one step closer to being able to land spacecraft at Huntsville International Airport. Engineers, airport and city officials came together Thursday afternoon to discuss the second phase in the process of landing spacecrafts here in the Rocket City.
The second phase will include applying for FAA licenses and making sure Huntsville has the commercial market and infrastructure to support the missions.
Sierra Nevada Corporation is currently developing the Dream Chaser mini-shuttle. When finished, the space shuttle will be able to do multiple tasks while flying horizontally.
It can conduct experiments, deliver cargo to the ISS and retrieve or deploy satellites.
The project got through phase one, which determined whether it was physically possible for a spacecraft to land and takeoff from Huntsville airport.
Now they're figuring out flight plans and how the spacecraft would impact other air travel. But for right now, Sierra Nevada knows Huntsville is a perfect fit.
“Not everywhere you go, the communities are interested in having space programs,” John Roth with Sierra Nevada said. “They're nervous about it, they're wondering what it would mean to have something come out of space and land. We have the community support, we got the company infrastructure and it just turned out to be a great place to do business.”
Another reason why Huntsville Airport makes sense, is because it's now one of the largest runways in the southeast.
www.waff.com/story/31614954/huntsville-one-step-closer-to-landing-spacecrafts-at-airport
Huntsville is one step closer to being able to land spacecraft at Huntsville International Airport. Engineers, airport and city officials came together Thursday afternoon to discuss the second phase in the process of landing spacecrafts here in the Rocket City.
The second phase will include applying for FAA licenses and making sure Huntsville has the commercial market and infrastructure to support the missions.
Sierra Nevada Corporation is currently developing the Dream Chaser mini-shuttle. When finished, the space shuttle will be able to do multiple tasks while flying horizontally.
It can conduct experiments, deliver cargo to the ISS and retrieve or deploy satellites.
The project got through phase one, which determined whether it was physically possible for a spacecraft to land and takeoff from Huntsville airport.
Now they're figuring out flight plans and how the spacecraft would impact other air travel. But for right now, Sierra Nevada knows Huntsville is a perfect fit.
“Not everywhere you go, the communities are interested in having space programs,” John Roth with Sierra Nevada said. “They're nervous about it, they're wondering what it would mean to have something come out of space and land. We have the community support, we got the company infrastructure and it just turned out to be a great place to do business.”
Another reason why Huntsville Airport makes sense, is because it's now one of the largest runways in the southeast.
www.waff.com/story/31614954/huntsville-one-step-closer-to-landing-spacecrafts-at-airport
