NASA to build most powerful rocket in history !-- Andrew Purcell | -- 13:44 15 September 2011 Space Technology David Shiga, reporter Two months after the final flight of the space shuttle, NASA has decided on a replacement that can take humans into space. But the vehicle won't fly until 2017 at the earliest. Yesterday, the agency announced plans to build the most powerful rocket in history. If all goes to plan, the blandly named Space Launch System will have its first test flight in 2017 and be capable of launching humans beyond low Earth orbit (artist's impression, left). The initial version will lift 70 tonnes into low-Earth orbit. The tonnage delivered beyond low-Earth orbit would depend on the destination, which is not yet clear, although President Obama has called on NASA to send astronauts to visit an asteroid by 2025 . More powerful variants would be developed later, capable of lofting up to 130 tonnes to low-Earth orbit. The most powerful rocket flown to date, the Saturn V , was used to send astronauts to the moon and was able to haul 118 tonnes into low-Earth orbit. The rocket would burn liquid hydrogen and oxygen, using the same engines as the now-retired space shuttles . The initial version would get additional oomph from solid rocket boosters similar to those used on the space shuttle - though later versions might use liquid-fuelled boosters instead, NASA says. NASA says it would cost $18 billion to develop the initial version of the rocket, according to the Associated Press. Completing the more powerful version would cost more, but exactly how much more is not yet clear. Finding the money to do this could be a challenge, especially with Congress in a budget-cutting mood lately. "We are in an era in which we have to do more with less - all across the board - and the competition for the available dollars will be fierce," acknowledged Senator Bill Nelson of Florida, a supporter of the rocket, according to the Associated Press. In April, NASA's project to develop a smaller rocket called Ares I was cancelled , weighed down by delays and budget overruns. Ares I was intended to launch astronauts into low-Earth orbit, but NASA now plans to hitch rides on commercial space taxis instead. 来自 英国 新科学家 网站
标签: 美国宇航局
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