Videos: Boeing Goes Public With 7 Pax 'Space Station Taxi'... The CST-100
Saturday, June 28, 2014 at 09:27AM
I admit that I don't follow modern manned-spacecraft development very closely, and you can tell because I didn't even realize Boeing was developing a 7 seat spacecraft to serve as a low Earth orbit taxi!
This video released yesterday gives a nice overview of the CST-100 project... and the one I found below shows a capsule drop-test from an Air-Crane where systems like the very critical parachute system and the air bag cushioning system used for terra firma landings were put to the test.
Video screenshot: Boeing CST-100 manned spacecraft capsule recovery drop test
If I understand the information correctly, these drop tests actually took place in 2012, and they appear to have been very successful. The CST-100 is part of the NASA Commercial Crew Development program which is investing money in various projects from several manufacturers, and it shows that at the very least America is headed the right direction in having some form of successor to the Space Shuttle for getting our people up into space and back. Looks like I need to be paying more attention to what's going on!
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Reader Comments (1)
Looks like to me that virgin galactic will get there much earlier than Boeing but of course its good see other people going into space should lower the costs