DALLAS, Texas - Space entrepreneur, Jim Benson, head of Benson Space
Company of Poway, California is set to announce a fresh approach in the design of his
firm's "Dream Chaser" space tourism vehicle.
The firm's new
suborbital design will be based on a melding of the NASA and Air Force X-2,
X-15, and T-38 vehicles - rather than using an earlier design - the orbital
NASA HL-20 lifting body craft. The new NASA/Air Force-derived design is "safer
and better," Benson said. [see image]
A five month-long study by
SpaceDev and Benson Space Company (BSC) has determined that this new design
will provide "the first, safest and best astronaut-making spaceflights for the
emerging space tourism market." The announcement is slated to occur during the
National Space Society's International Space Development Conference that gets
underway here this week.
This new design is deemed
safer and more aerodynamic, Benson said. It will also allow Benson Space
Company to remain on schedule to make its initial commercial spaceflights in
2009.
Large windows, good view
The new Dream Chaser
spaceship design is lighter and sleeker, Benson is reporting, resulting in less
drag and requiring less propulsion than the earlier HL-20 design.
The vehicle is to be
powered by safe hybrid rocket motors, will launch vertically, followed by glide
to a landing at the launch site.
A safer "carefree reentry" --
after achieving an altitude of at least 65 miles Benson reports, will subject
passengers to minimal G-forces, compared to other designs. It will also have
many large, well-placed windows for ideal passenger views of the Earth and
space during the suborbital trek.
While the
new design is safer and more aerodynamic, Benson noted, it will also be easier
and faster to construct, allowing BSC to remain on-schedule to make its initial
commercial spaceflights in 2009. The aim is to provide the first, safest and
best astronaut-making spaceflights for the emerging space tourism market, he
added.
Better
ride, more spectacular views
"During the
past two months a small, highly experienced team has taken a fresh look and
concluded that we can do better," Benson noted in a press statement.
"To that
end, the new spaceship will incorporate the best elements selected from other
successful vehicles. This will result in a spaceship that provides a better
ride and even more spectacular views, and at this early stage we will lose
little time in bringing it to the commercial market," Benson explained.
Established
in September 2006, Benson Space Company seeks to provide the first, safest and
lowest cost astronaut-making spaceflights for the emerging personal spaceflight
market. BSC is currently developing Dream Chaser spaceships -- based on proven
designs that the firm anticipates will allow them to offer the world's first,
commercial, suborbital spaceflights.
NOTE: The
views of this article are the author's and do not reflect the policies of the National
Space Society.
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