NASA Selects Explorer Mission of Opportunity Investigations
June 20, 2008
WASHINGTON, June 20 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — NASA has selected two
science proposals to be the agency’s next Explorer Program Mission of
Opportunity investigations. One activity will study black holes and other
extreme environments in the universe. The other will determine how the
Earth’s outer atmosphere responds to external forces.
The first investigation will provide a U.S. science instrument to the
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s New exploration X-Ray Telescope, or
NeXT. The telescope, currently planned for launch in 2013, will open a new
observing window on X-rays and the study of astrophysical phenomena. NASA’s
proposed funding for the instrument and operations is $44 million.
The other investigation will fly an atmospheric remote sensing
instrument package aboard a yet-to-be-determined future commercial
satellite. The investigation initially will be funded at approximately
$250,000 for a concept study to aid in a NASA decision on further
development.
“These selections offer unique and cost-effective science
opportunities,” said Charles Gay, deputy associate administrator for NASA’s
Science Mission Directorate in Washington. “They expand NASA’s science
through partnerships with international and commercial organizations.”
The two investigations were selected from among 17 proposals received
by NASA earlier this year. They were evaluated by peer reviewers. The
selected proposals are:
— High-Resolution Soft X-Ray Spectrometer (SXS) for NeXT, Principal
Investigator Richard L. Kelley, Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt Md.
The SXS will probe matter in extreme environments; investigate the nature
of dark matter on large scales in the universe; and explore how galaxies
and clusters of galaxies form and evolve.
— Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD), Principal
Investigator Richard Eastes, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Fla.
GOLD will increase our understanding of the temperature and composition in
the ionosphere; and provide understanding of the global scale response of
the Earth’s thermosphere and ionosphere.
NASA’s Explorer Program is designed to provide frequent, low-cost
access to space for heliophysics and astrophysics missions with small to
mid-sized spacecraft. The program is managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight
Center, Greenbelt, Md., for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.
SOURCE NASA
Northrop Grumman Remains Under Air Force Contract; Ready Now with America’s New Tanker
June 20, 2008
WASHINGTON, June 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — As the Air Force reviews
the analysis in this week’s report from the GAO, Northrop Grumman
Corporation (NYSE: NOC) urges a speedy resolution of the issue.
“We respect the GAO process and are confident the Air Force will
appropriately address its recommendations,” said Paul Meyer, Northrop
Grumman vice president of Air Mobility Systems and KC-45 program manager.
“However, the GAO report does not change the fact that a new fleet of
tankers is needed now, and Northrop Grumman is ready now,” said Meyer.
“Northrop Grumman remains under contract and remains ready to serve with
the most modern, most capable tanker in the world.”
“Any significant delay only punishes the men and women who are forced
to fly an aging fleet,” he added.
On the floor of the United States Senate, yesterday, Alabama Senator
Jeff Sessions said that it is critical “that politics not infect the
process and that they select the best aircraft for the military.”
Nothing in the GAO report points to any need for delay, as it was a
review of the process, not the Boeing and Northrop Grumman product
offerings. As the GAO said in its initial release, “Our decision should not
be read to reflect a view as to the merits of the firms’ respective
aircraft.”
“We agree and, in fact, Northrop Grumman is the only company in this
competition that has built, tested and flown its tanker aircraft,” said
Meyer, adding, “We’re also the only company that has a refueling boom that
has been built and that has successfully passed fuel dozens of times to
combat aircraft.”
“The Air Force needs a new tanker, and nothing in the GAO report
refutes the fact that the Northrop Grumman KC-45 is the most capable tanker
and is ready now to go into production,” he added.
“Our men and women in uniform should not be asked to wait any longer.”
About the KC-45
The KC-45 Tanker aircraft will be assembled in Mobile, Ala., and the
KC-45 team will employ 48,000 American workers at 230 U.S. companies in 49
states. It will be built by a world-class industrial team led by Northrop
Grumman, and includes EADS North America, General Electric Aviation and
Sargent Fletcher.
Northrop Grumman Corporation is a global defense and technology company
whose 120,000 employees provide innovative systems, products, and solutions
in information and services, electronics, aerospace and shipbuilding to
government and commercial customers worldwide.
SOURCE Northrop Grumman Corporation
Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne Engine Launches New Ocean-Mapping Satellite into Orbit
June 20, 2008
CANOGA PARK, Calif., June 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Pratt & Whitney
Rocketdyne helped scientists better understand global warming and hurricane
prediction by successfully boosting the 1,100-pound Jason 2 satellite into
orbit from Vandenberg Air Force Base today. Jason 2 is onboard a United
Launch Alliance Delta II rocket powered by Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne’s
RS-27A engine. It was the 223rd consecutive successful mission for a launch
vehicle powered by the RS-27 family of engines. Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne
is a United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX) company.
The new satellite is a joint effort by NASA and the French Space Agency
(CNES) to study rising sea levels and their potential link to global
warming. Jason 2, also known as the Ocean Surface Topography Mission, is
the third in a series of satellites to track global sea levels for climate
studies. It will monitor global ocean circulation, explore the tie between
oceans and the atmosphere, improve global climate predictions, and monitor
events such as El Nino and ocean eddies.
“It’s incredibly rewarding to know we’re playing a part in better
understanding issues related to global warming and severe weather
patterns,” said Elizabeth Jones, program manager for the RS-27. “Pratt &
Whitney Rocketdyne is proud to support NASA and CNES in their efforts to
better understand and take care of our planet.”
Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, Inc., a part of Pratt & Whitney, is a
preferred provider of high-value propulsion, power, energy and innovative
system solutions used in a wide variety of government and commercial
applications, including the main engines for the space shuttle, Atlas and
Delta launch vehicles, missile defense systems and advanced hypersonic
engines.
Pratt & Whitney is a world leader in the design, manufacture and
service of aircraft engines, space propulsion systems and industrial gas
turbines. United Technologies, based in Hartford, Conn., is a diversified
company providing high technology products and services to the global
aerospace and building industries.
SOURCE Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne
Boeing Achieves 787 Power On
June 20, 2008
EVERETT, Wash., June 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — The Boeing Company
(NYSE: BA) has completed the Power On sequence for the first 787
Dreamliner, marking the completion of the next major milestone on the path
to first flight later this year.
Power On is a complex series of tasks and tests that bring electrical
power onto the airplane and begin to exercise the use of the electrical
systems. The 787 is a more-electric airplane with the pneumatic, or bleed
air, system being totally replaced by electronics.
“The team has made great progress in bringing the bold innovation of
the 787 to reality,” said Pat Shanahan, vice president and general manager
of the 787 program. “There is plenty of work to be done between now and
first flight, but with every step forward we grow more and more confident.”
The Power On sequence began in early June with a series of pretest
continuity checks to verify that the wiring installed in the airplane had
been connected properly. Upon completion of those checks, the Boeing team
plugged in an external power cart and slowly began to bring full power into
each segment of the system, beginning with the flight deck displays. From
that point forward, the pilot’s controls were used to direct the addition
of new systems to the power grid.
At each step of the testing, power is allowed to flow into one
additional area and gauges are used to verify that the right level of
electrical power reached the intended area.
“We are very methodical in ensuring the integrity of the airplane’s
systems,” said Shanahan. “In completing the Power On sequence, we have
verified both that the electrical power distribution system is installed as
designed and that it functions as intended.”
An inside look at the Power On testing sequence will be featured on
http://www.boeing.com and newairplane.com beginning Monday at 5 a.m. PDT.
Work will continue to finish building the first 787 and further test
its readiness for operations. First flight is expected in the fourth
quarter.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is a more fuel-efficient mid-sized jetliner
capable of serving on long-distance routes. The 787 is expected to enter
revenue service in 2009 after an extensive flight test program.
Fifty-eight customers around the world have ordered nearly 900 787s
since the program was launched in April 2004, making the Dreamliner the
fastest-selling new commercial jetliner in history.
SOURCE The Boeing Compa
NASA Launches Ocean Satellite to Keep A Weather, Climate Eye Open
June 20, 2008
PASADENA, Calif., June 20 /PRNewswire/ — A new NASA-French space
agency oceanography satellite launched today from Vandenberg Air Force
Base, Calif., on a globe-circling voyage to continue charting sea level, a
vital indicator of global climate change. The mission will return a vast
amount of new data that will improve weather, climate and ocean forecasts.
With a thunderous roar and fiery glow, the Ocean Surface Topography
Mission/Jason 2 satellite arced through the blackness of an early central
coastal California morning at 12:46 a.m. PDT, climbing into space atop a
Delta II rocket. Fifty-five minutes later, OSTM/Jason 2 separated from the
rocket’s second stage, and then, unfurled its twin sets of solar arrays.
Ground controllers successfully acquired the spacecraft’s signals. Initial
telemetry reports show it to be in excellent health.
“Sea-level measurements from space have come of age,” said Michael
Freilich, director of the Earth Science Division in NASA’s Science Mission
Directorate, Washington. “Precision measurements from this mission will
improve our knowledge of global and regional sea-level changes and enable
more accurate weather, ocean and climate forecasts.”
Measurements of sea-surface height, or ocean surface topography, reveal
the speed and direction of ocean currents and tell scientists how much of
the sun’s energy is stored by the ocean. Combining ocean current and heat
storage data is key to understanding global climate variations. OSTM/Jason
2’s expected lifetime of at least three years will extend into the next
decade the continuous record of these data started in 1992 by NASA and the
French space agency Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales, or CNES, with the
TOPEX/Poseidon mission. The data collection was continued by the two
agencies on Jason 1 in 2001.
The mission culminates more than three decades of research by NASA and
CNES in this field. This expertise will be passed on to the world’s weather
and environmental forecasting agencies, which will be responsible for
collecting the data. The involvement of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the European Organisation for the
Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) as mission partners on
OSTM/Jason 2 helps establish this proven research capability as a valuable
tool for use in everyday applications.
OSTM/Jason 2’s five primary instruments are improved versions of those
flying on Jason 1. These technological advances will allow scientists to
monitor conditions in ocean coastal regions — home to about half of
Earth’s population. Compared with Jason 1 measurements, OSTM/Jason 2 will
have substantially increased accuracy and provide data to within 15 miles
of coastlines, nearly 50 percent closer to shore than in the past. Such
improvements will be welcome news for all those making their living on the
sea, from sailors and fishermen to workers in offshore industries. NOAA
will use the improved data to better predict hurricane intensity, which is
directly affected by the amount of heat stored in the upper ocean.
OSTM/Jason 2 entered orbit about 6 to 9 miles below Jason 1. The new
spacecraft will gradually use its thrusters to raise itself into the same
830- mile orbital altitude as Jason 1 and position itself to follow Jason
1’s ground track, orbiting about 60 seconds behind Jason 1. The two
spacecraft will fly in formation, making nearly simultaneous measurements
for about six months to allow scientists to precisely calibrate OSTM/Jason
2’s instruments.
Once cross-calibration is complete, Jason 1 will alter course,
adjusting its orbit so that its ground tracks fall midway between those of
OSTM/Jason 2. Together, the two spacecraft will double global coverage.
This tandem mission will improve our knowledge of tides in coastal and
shallow seas and internal tides in the open ocean, while improving our
understanding of ocean currents and eddies.
CNES is providing the OSTM/Jason 2 spacecraft. NASA and CNES jointly
are providing the primary payload instruments. NASA’s Launch Services
Program at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida was responsible for launch
management and countdown operations for the Delta II. NASA’s Jet Propulsion
Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., manages the mission for NASA’s Science
Mission Directorate, Washington.
SOURCE NASA
Boeing Completa la Secuencia de Encendido de Sistemas Eléctricos del 787
June 20, 2008
EVERETT, Wash., 20/06/2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — The Boeing Company ha completado la secuencia de encendido de sistemas eléctricos (Power On) para el primer avión 787 Dreamliner, lo que marca la concreción del próximo hito importante en el plan para realizar el primer vuelo a fines de este año.
La secuencia “Power On” consiste en una compleja serie de tareas y pruebas que proveen energía eléctrica al avión y comienzan a practicar el uso de los sistemas eléctricos. El avión 787 usa una gran cantidad de sistemas eléctricos, ya que el sistema neumático, o de liberación de aire, ha sido reemplazado íntegramente por sistemas electrónicos.
“El equipo ha logrado un gran avance en el plan de convertir la más osada innovación del 787 en realidad”, dijo Pat Shanahan, vicepresidente y gerente general del programa 787. “Todavía queda mucho por hacer hasta el momento de realizar el primer vuelo, pero cada paso hacia adelante que damos nos brinda una confianza cada vez mayor”. (FUENTE The Boeing Company)
Cessna Takes $87 Million Citation Order at CBAA from Execaire
June 20, 2008
Cessna Takes $87 Million Citation Order at CBAA from Execaire
Wichita, Kan., June 20, 2008 – Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, announced today at the 47th annual Canadian Business Aviation Association convention and trade show, an order from Execaire for nine Citations.
The order consists of four Citation Mustangs, three Citation Sovereigns, and two Citations XLS+ aircraft. Canada-based Execaire, one of North America’s oldest corporate aircraft companies, has managed maintained and operated aircraft for more than 40 years. Execaire is an authorized Cessna sales representative, parts distributor and Citation Service Center with facilities at Toronto’s Lester Pearson International Airport.
“Execaire really knows the Canadian market, so this order is a good indication of the strength of business aviation in the country,” said Todd Duhnke, Cessna director, International Sales. “More and more Canadian businesses are seeing Citation business aircraft as a tool to really enhance productivity, allowing employees to travel to where they want to go, not to just where the airlines travel, and to set their flight schedules based on individual business needs.
“Citations are particularly well suited for Canadian operations as they can use almost all of the airports in Canada, many in remote locations and many as short as 3,500 feet,” Duhnke said.
Deliveries of the aircraft are expected to begin in 2010.
The Citation models ordered represent three best-selling Cessna business jet models. The Citation Mustang, the world’s only fully operational entry level jet, recently surpassed the 500 order mark. Cessna is expected to deliver about 100 Mustangs in 2008 and ramp up to about 150 deliveries in 2009.
The Citation XLS+ is the latest version of the world’s best-selling business jet. The XLS+ version received FAA certification in May. The Citation Sovereign is one of Cessna’s largest aircraft and has enjoyed operational success in every part of the world.
Bombardier Secures Order for 110 Learjet 60 XR Aircraft
June 20, 2008
– Firm order for 25 aircraft and 85 conditional aircraft
MONTREAL, QUEBEC–(Marketwire – June 20, 2008) – Bombardier Aerospace today announced a significant business jet sale as an undisclosed European customer placed an order for 110 Learjet 60 XR aircraft, of which 25 are firm and 85 are conditional aircraft orders. The transaction for the firm order is valued at approximately $340 million U.S. and the total value of the contract, if all conditional orders are confirmed, will be approximately $1.5 billion U.S., based on the 2008 list price of a typically equipped aircraft. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2009.
“This is a tremendous announcement for Bombardier,” said Steve Ridolfi, president, Bombardier Business Aircraft. “This major sale confirms that the Learjet 60 XR aircraft offers an optimum performance-cabin-value combination that is key for midsize jet operators. With nearly 45 years of history Learjet aircraft are the proven choice for leading flight departments worldwide.”
In service since July 27, 2007, the Learjet 60 XR aircraft combines the extraordinary value and high-speed performance of its predecessor, the Learjet 60 aircraft, with a state-of-the-art Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 avionics suite and a completely redesigned cabin.
The Pro Line 21 avionics suite features the latest flight deck design, human factors concepts and system technology, equipping pilots with immediate, intuitive access to vital flight information. The totally redesigned interior features five available floorplans, a larger galley, a brighter and more spacious lavatory, a new cabin management system with three-inch (7.6-cm) LCD control modules and ports for laptops, MP3 players and other audio/video equipment and LED lighting is featured throughout the cabin.
Learjet is the first name in corporate aviation. Since acquiring Learjet Inc. in 1990, Bombardier Aerospace has carried forward the brand’s proud legacy by launching eight high-performance and fuel-efficient aircraft.
Continental Airlines y United Airlines Anuncian Plan Integral de Cooperación Global; Continental Planea Unirse a la Red Star Alliance
June 20, 2008
CHICAGO, 20/06/2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Continental Airlines y United Airlines anunciaron un acuerdo marco de amplia cooperación, que unirá sus redes y servicios en todo el mundo para beneficiar a los clientes y creará nuevas oportunidades de ingresos, ahorro en costos y otros beneficios. Además, Continental planea sumarse a United en la red Star Alliance, la alianza de aerolíneas más amplia del mundo.
Equipos de las dos organizaciones han estado trabajando intensamente durante las últimas semanas en el estudio de soluciones creativas para ver cómo ambas empresas podrían alcanzar eficiencias y sinergias que extiendan más allá de lo establecido los grandes beneficios de la relación de código compartido. Su trabajo se concentró en planes para una significativa cooperación en programas de viajeros frecuentes, salas de espera, uso de instalaciones, tecnología de la información y compras. Este trabajo estuvo respaldado por las oportunidades de eficiencia identificadas y las relaciones desarrolladas durante las tratativas al inicio de la fusión entre las partes. (FUENTE Continental Airlines; United Airlines)
Boeing Statement on Tanker Protest Ruling
June 19, 2008
ST. LOUIS, June 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Boeing (NYSE: BA) was
informed today that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found in
Boeing’s favor on a number of issues related to its protest of the U.S. Air
Force’s award of a $35 billion contract to supply the service with its
next-generation aerial refueling aircraft — or KC-X tankers — to begin
replacing the current fleet of KC-135 tankers.
In response to the ruling, Boeing released the following statement from
Mark McGraw, vice president, Tanker Programs:
“We welcome and support today’s ruling by the GAO fully sustaining the
grounds of our protest.
“We appreciate the professionalism and diligence the GAO showed in its
review of the KC-X acquisition process. We look forward to working with the
Air Force on next steps in this critical procurement for our warfighters.”
SOURCE Boeing
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