ATV EVOLUTIONS - ESA'S NEXT STEPS IN SPACE

[701shep]

wont happen in the next 30 years end of story

[realsupercopter]

@701shep "Rendez-vous dans 10 ans" ;-)

[nikobrown1990]

why cant they just invest more in the SABRE/ Skylon project, (due to me up and running by 2020) which (like the HOTOL project of the 1980s - British "space shuttle") would put cargo and astronauts into space with a single stage (SSTO) and land on a conventional runway instead of a tiny portion of the craft reaching LEO....? 

[realsupercopter]

@nikobrown1990 : For what I know of the project, I don't think Skylon is supposed to transport any crew.

Anyway, of course it's a fantastic and exciting project, like all Space planes and Space gliders projects...

I wish the Hermes spacecraft was never stop as well, we would have had an "European shuttle" for decades !

[Qasimbajwaa]

one word, ORION

[realsupercopter]

@Qasimbajwaa - two words : "almost cancelled" ...

;-P

[Qasimbajwaa]

@realsupercopter =(

[URProductions]

I think that guy's at 1:40 is in the mob.

[dirtTdude]

Philippe Berthe @ 3:00 is sporting a sweet hair cut

[BigKwell]

Sweet? Looks like he had it done with a bowl on his head!

[19prodigy85]

It´s funny that some years ago a British scientist wanted ESA to cancel human flight and just let the US do all the manned flights, while ESA should have specialised in robotic flight.

Just stupid idea if yout think that almost all the technology for manned flight is already possesed by ESA.

I also find it very intersting that it is France and Italy who spend the most money in ESA, while GB is much behind them.

[pluto4847]

@19prodigy85

Why is GB behind? Doesn't the Prime Minister want manned space flight for british and other Eurpean Euronauts?

[19prodigy85]

If I remember correct at the time I wrote that comment that was the case. I am not well informed if that still is so. But as far as I know, GB doesn´t even have an own astronaut program yet.

[nikobrown1990]

@pluto4847 we very nearly had our own space shuttle but it was cancelled - look up "HOTOL" on google or the continuation of it by Reaction Engines Limited

[swunt10]

@19prodigy85 GB?!? you mean germany...

[bombarderoazul]

The problem with the european space agency is that not all the countries seem to agree on the same project, that's why Hermes was cancelled.

[swunt10]

@bombarderoazul noone needs Hermes. that's why it was cancelled.

[Saukko31]

Fascinating. Europe needs its own spacecraft. Go ESA.

[BigKwell]

Yeah. We got the Space Shuttle and Orion (and maybe SpaceX Dragon, Russia's got Soyuz and China Shenzou. About time Europe developed its own spacecraft rather than leach-off the other three!

[Extremelongkanker]

Esa already got their own Launch vehicles/space crafts

they're called "Ariane 5"

[BigKwell]

I know! Since then, Japan's launched their own supply vehicle, HTV.

[Extremelongkanker]

Why? they saw also the profit of having their own vehicle?

[canuzzi]

@BigKwell : The Europeans have already a spacecraft: The ATV. The ATV is basically a modulized spacecraft design. And their goal was from the beginning an evolutionary approach towards a manned vessel later on. the next step will be the ARV - an unmanned return vessel.The modulized design alllows to use the whole engine section from the ATV and will reduce cost massively in the future.