Aerojet Rocketdyne defends SLS engine contract costs, Space News “Maser declined to give the cost of an individual engine alone, without the additional labor and overhead. “There’s a lot of other activity included in there that is well beyond just assembling and testing engines,” he said. The $40 million cost estimate widely cited for the SSME does not have a date attached. If it comes from 2000, around the time […]

Breitbart, other conservative outlets escalate anti-SpaceX campaign, Ars Technica “The central canard of these attacks is that John McCain did not, in fact, add “Section 1615″ to the Defense Authorization Act, which is now being finalized by a conference between the House and Senate. This clause does not exist at all in the Senate language. Rather, it was inserted into the House legislation by US Rep. Mike Rogers, a Republican […]

Blue Origin’s new engine isn’t good enough for some congressmen, Ars Technica “At the end of February, two US representatives, Mike Rogers of Alabama and Mac Thornberry of Texas, decided to push a little harder. On February 28, they sent a letter to Lisa Disbrow, the acting secretary of the US Air Force, and James MacStravic, who is performing the duties of the undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology, and […]

Air Force Awards Final Rocket Propulsion System Prototype OTAs, Space and Missile Systems Center “Today the Space and Missile Systems Center awarded the final Other Transaction Agreements for shared public-private investments in Rocket Propulsion System prototypes. One award is to Aerojet Rocketdyne for development of the AR1 rocket propulsion system. The initial government investment is $115.3 million. The other award is to United Launch Alliance for development of the Vulcan/BE-4 […]

Aerojet weighs higher offer for Lockheed-Boeing venture – sources, Reuters “Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings Inc is considering raising its $2 billion offer for United Launch Alliance, a rocket launch venture of Boeing Co and Lockheed Martin Corp, but faces big hurdles after a public rejection of the bid last week, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. … The sources said Aerojet faces an uphill climb given growing tensions between […]

SpaceX Rival ULA May Get Boost In New Space Race, Investors.com “Aerojet Rocketdyne made the offer, and negotiations are in advanced stages, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources. Those sources also said a buyout could enhance ULA leadership and improve funding for its development of U.S.-made rockets. The offer comes as United Launch Alliance is seeking to keep its position as the Pentagon’s top rocket supplier while also grappling […]

Aerojet makes $2 billion offer for Lockheed-Boeing joint venture: sources, Reuters “Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings Inc has submitted a $2 billion offer to buy United Launch Alliance (ULA), a spacecraft launch services provider that is a joint venture of Lockheed Martin Corp and Boeing Co, according to sources familiar with the matter. Aerojet Rocketdyne board member Warren Lichtenstein, the chairman and chief executive of Steel Partners LLC, approached ULA President Tory […]

Orbital, GenCorp spar over cause of October rocket crash, Reuters “Orbital ATK Inc and engine maker GenCorp Inc on Tuesday offered competing explanations for what caused the Oct. 28 explosion of Orbital’s Antares rocket, bound for the International Space Station. Ronald Grabe, Orbital’s executive vice president and president of its flight systems group, told the annual Space Symposium conference that an investigation led by his company had concluded the explosion […]

NASA’s Space Launch System Booster Thunders During Successful Ground Test “The largest, most powerful rocket booster ever built successfully fired up Wednesday …” Aerojet, Wikipedia “Between Sept. 25, 1965 and June 17, 1967, three static test firings were done. SL-1 was fired at night, and the flame was clearly visible from Miami 50 km away, producing over 3 million pounds of thrust. SL-2 was fired with similar success and relatively […]

40-Year-Old Russian Engine at Heart of Rocket Investigation “The thing to keep in mind in all this is that we don’t know what caused the mishap,” Cowing cautions. “We all saw the explosion at the bottom of the rocket, but that doesn’t mean anything. These investigations take time, and sometimes we don’t even end up with all the answers.” Did Soviet-era engines doom Antares?, Mad Science Innovation “Not that older […]