Obama banks on NASA's big launcher [View All]

[The Straight Story]

Obama banks on NASA's big launcher


US President Barack Obama will ask Congress to jettison NASA's plans to develop its next-generation Ares 1 crew launch vehicle and increase funds for the "simpler" Ares V heavy lift rocket to replace the space shuttle fleet.

The revised direction for US human space flight was decided Wednesday at a White House meeting with NASA administrator Charles Bolden, according to Science Insider, citing "officials familiar with the discussion." NASA would receive an extra $1bn in 2011 under the plan towards developing the heavy lift launcher as well as creating more robotic Earth-snooping spacecraft, the publication reports.

Under NASA's current plans for human spaceflight to the moon and beyond, the two-stage Ares I rocket is designed to be topped by the Orion crew vehicle and its launch aboard system. The vehicle's primary intent would be to carry crews of four to six astronauts to Earth orbit or to use its 25-ton payload capacity to deliver supplies to the International Space Station.

Ares V is planned to be NASA's primary vessel for delivering large-scale hardware to space, such as lunar landers, materials for a moon base, or supplies needed for extended missions beyond Earth's orbit. Ares V can carry about 188 metric tons to low-Earth orbit.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/12/18/report_aresi_aresv_nasa_new_direction/