Bigelow Aerospace Launch!

[Mazon Del]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/space/os-expandable-living-space-for-astronauts-heading-to-space-20160318-story.html

Bigelow Aerospace is finally getting to send up their module to the ISS in or about April on one of the SpaceX launches which SHOULD include some form of landing attempt. I am pleased to see this day. Anybody got any additional info on the module in question?

[Scotius]

Yeah. Apparently it will not be "used". It will be connected, pressurised and then left empty - with periodical visits by astronauts to check the status of the module.

[Emperor of the Titan Squid]

Have they cancelled sundancer? i wish they would do some of the things they say they will.

[fredinno]

16 minutes ago, Emperor of the Titan Squid said:

Have they cancelled sundancer? i wish they would do some of the things they say they will.

Yes.

[sevenperforce]

33 minutes ago, Mazon Del said:

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/space/os-expandable-living-space-for-astronauts-heading-to-space-20160318-story.html

Bigelow Aerospace is finally getting to send up their module to the ISS in or about April on one of the SpaceX launches which SHOULD include some form of landing attempt. I am pleased to see this day. Anybody got any additional info on the module in question?

The one NASA veteran launching to the ISS via Soyuz today will be heading up activities related to the BEAM.

A barge landing attempt will be made, either because the weight of the BEAM + Dragon makes RTLS too risky, or because they really really want to pull off a successful barge landing and think this mission has enough margin to be sure. 

[AngelLestat]

I love that they will start testing inflatable modules, but this in particular is so small that it would work just to store your shoes.
And its compact´s (no deployment) volume is not very different than the inflated version.
About the mass, no sure if they achieve any reduction vs current modules of similar size.
If they made it so massive because they are concern about safety, they should started with an isolated inflatable module not connected to the space station.  Something like a big sphere or cylinder with light materials to test the wear, pressure lost, etc.  

Edited March 19, 2016 by AngelLestat

[ModZero]

4 minutes ago, AngelLestat said:

they should started with an isolated inflatable module not connected to the space station.  Something like a big sphere or cylinder with light materials to test the wear, pressure lost, etc.  

But they did! Look up Genesis 1 & 2. BEAM is another stage, to (cautiously) put in near humans, test an integrated module etc.

[AngelLestat]

9 minutes ago, ModZero said:

But they did! Look up Genesis 1 & 2. BEAM is another stage, to (cautiously) put in near humans, test an integrated module etc.

ok you are right   I read it in the wiki, but there is no much info about it, the test was a success?  they keep its pressure?  They are both still in orbit dont you?
 

[Nibb31]

The tests were successful. The technical details have pretty much been solved. The problem is that there is no customer, so their main purpose these days is to build mockups and models so that Bigelow keeps them employed.

The problem with Bigelow Aerospace is that it's a billionnaire's pet project with no real direction or vision. The business model changes every two weeks and upper management is more concentrated on pleasing the Bigelow himself than on actual progress. SpaceX is a pretty bad employer, but Bigelow seems to be worse. It's one of the lowest rated employers in the aerospace industry.

 

Edited March 19, 2016 by Nibb31

[fredinno]

7 hours ago, AngelLestat said:

I love that they will start testing inflatable modules, but this in particular is so small that it would work just to store your shoes.
And its compact´s (no deployment) volume is not very different than the inflated version.
About the mass, no sure if they achieve any reduction vs current modules of similar size.
If they made it so massive because they are concern about safety, they should started with an isolated inflatable module not connected to the space station.  Something like a big sphere or cylinder with light materials to test the wear, pressure lost, etc.  

Nah, It's definitely big enough to sleep in. It's the size of a closet, so I guess you can keep clothes in there, I guess.

[RainDreamer]

Well, considering there is no demand yet for private space station...it is just going to be a test.

Quick, someone comes up with a sitcom in space so the entertainment industry can get interested and fund a space station!

[fredinno]

8 hours ago, RainDreamer said:

Well, considering there is no demand yet for private space station...it is just going to be a test.

Quick, someone comes up with a sitcom in space so the entertainment industry can get interested and fund a space station!

There have been numerous attempts at this kind of thing, but it's likely not happening soon.

[RainDreamer]

18 minutes ago, fredinno said:

There have been numerous attempts at this kind of thing, but it's likely not happening soon.

Wait, you mean there has been attempts at making a space sitcom on actual space stations?

[fredinno]

6 minutes ago, RainDreamer said:

Wait, you mean there has been attempts at making a space sitcom on actual space stations?

http://www.russianspaceweb.com/iss_enterprise.html

In December 1999, Washington-based Spacehab Inc. announced its plans to build in cooperation with RKK Energia a commercially operated module for the International Space Station. According to the company, the spacecraft, named Enterprise, was intended for media and entertainment activities onboard the ISS. The Enterprise, reportedly, would carry an "multimedia studio" designed among other things to deliver live TV broadcasts from orbit. As raising funds for the Enterprise project proved difficult, Spacehab tried to "reorient" the module toward the needs of the company's more traditional customer -- NASA. However, ultimately, the project had to be abandoned and replaced with Russian-built Mini-Research Module-1, MIM-1.

[RainDreamer]

 

1 hour ago, fredinno said:

http://www.russianspaceweb.com/iss_enterprise.html

In December 1999, Washington-based Spacehab Inc. announced its plans to build in cooperation with RKK Energia a commercially operated module for the International Space Station. According to the company, the spacecraft, named Enterprise, was intended for media and entertainment activities onboard the ISS. The Enterprise, reportedly, would carry an "multimedia studio" designed among other things to deliver live TV broadcasts from orbit. As raising funds for the Enterprise project proved difficult, Spacehab tried to "reorient" the module toward the needs of the company's more traditional customer -- NASA. However, ultimately, the project had to be abandoned and replaced with Russian-built Mini-Research Module-1, MIM-1.

Well, that's very interesting. Considering now we already have YouTube videos of astronauts, that probably won't be needed anymore. Imagine space broadcast though, sounds fun.

[ModZero]

3 hours ago, RainDreamer said:

Wait, you mean there has been attempts at making a space sitcom on actual space stations?

Well, we already have a quite long-running reality show...

[fredinno]

4 hours ago, RainDreamer said:

T

Well, that's very interesting. Considering now we already have YouTube videos of astronauts, that probably won't be needed anymore. Imagine space broadcast though, sounds fun.

I imagine TV broadcasts from this would be more entertaining, with the extra room to do non- sciency stuff.

[Wjolcz]

We have the ISS Stream, so it's kind of 24/7 entertainment. Except it's not scripted. Probably for the better. The astronauts don't have much free time anyway.

[kerbiloid]

Maybe, WWE commercial module would be a solution...

Edited March 21, 2016 by kerbiloid

[fredinno]

7 hours ago, kerbiloid said:

Maybe, WWE commercial module would be a solution...

Good luck wrestling in space. That alone would be a new sport all in itself.

[Scotius]

Entertainment factor would be sky-high Just imagine two burly men, clad in colorful spandex flailing wildly in freefall or trying to hit each other with chairs I despise all wrestling shows, but i would watch such space matches for shizzles

[StrandedonEarth]

1 hour ago, fredinno said:

Good luck wrestling in space. That alone would be a new sport all in itself.

How do you pin someone to the mat in zero-g anyways? I think it would have to be more like the high-school sport of "pin-them-in-the-locker"

[wumpus]

On 3/19/2016 at 3:49 AM, fredinno said:

Nah, It's definitely big enough to sleep in. It's the size of a closet, so I guess you can keep clothes in there, I guess.

The bulky "spacewalk" spacesuits or the orange jumpsuits worn by NASA types that aren't pressurized?  Certainly the latter, I'd think that a spacesuit hanging around without gravity can get pretty big.

[fredinno]

1 minute ago, wumpus said:

The bulky "spacewalk" spacesuits or the orange jumpsuits worn by NASA types that aren't pressurized?  Certainly the latter, I'd think that a spacesuit hanging around without gravity can get pretty big.

The orange jumpsuits. The airlock is too far away to make a spacesuit storage area there useful.

it might also make a decent, if small, storage area.

[Wjolcz]

How much cheaper the expandable modules are compared to the standard, rigid ones? Could it mean lowering the costs of modules/space stations if the tests are successful?