Lockheed Martin has announced plans of its own private spaceship that will be among the contenders for the next contract for cargo supply to the International Space Station for NASA called Commercial Resupply Services-2 (SRC-2). The company proposes a solution more sophisticated than its competitors’ because it’s not simply a cargo spaceship but a combination of a reusable space tug, called Jupiter, and a cargo module called Exoliner.
This solution is the result of the union of several existing technologies and Lockheed Martin’s design provides the ability to use the Jupiter / Exoliner system even for deep space missions. Competing for the CRS-2 contract is only the first use it would have but plans are long-term, also for private space missions.
The Jupiter space tug derives from the technology used for the MAVEN spacecraft, which was built for NASA by Lockheed Martin. The Exoliner cargo module derived from ESA’s ATV spacecraft, whose design was already modified for the service module of NASA’s Orion spacecraft. This system will use for its launches the very reliable Atlas V rockets of the ULA (United Launch Alliance), a joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Boeing.
The difference compared to the competitors’ solutions is how this system works. Put simply, in the case of supplies to the International Space Station, the Jupiter tug can be reused for an indefinite number of times to handle the transport of new Exoliner cargo modules. Jupiter can be launched only once, stay in orbit and from there transport the Exoliners.
If Lockheed Martin gets the contract, the Jupiter tug will be launched together with the first Exoliner cargo module and will reach the International Space Station, carrying up to 6,500 kg (about 14,300 pounds) of cargo between pressurized and non-pressurized. The Exoliner will be unloaded and filled with junk, when the time comes it will undock and in the meantime another Exoliner will be launched.
In space, the Jupiter tug will use a robotic arm derived from the one used by the Space Shuttles and the International Space Station to swap the two Exoliners. One full of new cargo will be transported to the Station for a new supply. The Exoliner full of junk will be connected to the Centaur, the last stage of the Atlas V rocket, and both will fall into the atmosphere, disintegrating.
This system allows to reuse the Jupiter tug, which is equipped with all the sophisticated avionics typical of today’s spacecraft. It’s equipment that’s also very expensive therefore using only one Jupiter for a indeterminate amount of missions would already save a lot of money, also because it can remain in orbit so the cost of the launch would also be lower because only the Exoliner module would be launched.
Lockheed Martin’s project is ambitious for both the sophisticated system and the possibilities of use for any type of refueling mission in orbit. If the projects of other space stations, including commercial ones, and even space hotels, will become a reality, the Jupiter / Exoliner system could be ready to resupply them.
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