This flight has been oversold... - April 23, 2009
If you travel enough that gets to be an oft-heard and much dreaded refrain. But its not just a problem for frequent fliers; it looks like NASA's follow-on to the Space Shuttle, the Orion crew capsule, may also end up overbooked. Planners are now weighing whether to fly the capsule with four seats, instead of the advertised six.
It all comes down to weight: The Orion has to be able to land using just two of its three parachutes. That in turn means that the capsule can weigh no more than 9525 kg (2100 lbs). At present it's within "a couple of hundred pounds" of that weight limit, according to Jeff Hanley, who oversees the Orion's development.
All of this may add to fuel to the efforts of some in Congress to keep the shuttle running past its 2010 retirement date.
Image: NASA
Comments
If congress or the president is going to do something to preserve SSME capabilities, they'll have to do it quick.
April 30 is the deadline, and then the Ares mafia will begin their NAZI scorched Earth policy they inherited from their Dear Leader.
Posted by: Thomas Lee Elifritz | April 24, 2009 05:37 PM