The German Mars Society is undertaking a project to design and hopefully deploy a Mars balloon probe called ARCHIMEDES. During the last 4 months, the project team in Munich and elsewhere has been busy with drafting mission requirements, testing schedules and development programs that will concern all major parts of ARCHIMEDES. This work included mainly the adaptation of the three major development programs CLEOPATRA (operations and flight testing), ARCHIMATTER (material research) and ARCHYFLOW (hypersonic flight and low speed descent analysis program) to the new testing opportunities on parablic flights, sounding rockets and ground facilities. It also included a thorough review of the major development and testing strategy.
Read the full media release.
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Update on ARCHIMEDES Project
Mars Polar Base Design Study Now Available
Read more and find out how to order here.
Starchaser Gears-up for Space Tourism
September 15th: Starchaser Industries, long-time friend and supporter of the Mars Society in the UK and Australia, and key backer of the Society's Mars Analogue Research Station programme have announced a major new initiative to extend their space tourism activities through the development of a new spaceplane that will offer up to 6 passengers a 40-minute sub-orbital flight into space. Operating alongside the company's already-in-development 3-person Thunderstar capsule, the space plane will allow Starchaser to provide a comprehensive range of space tourism flight options, supported by training and medical management. Flights are expected to cost some £98,000 (143,600 Euros).
Read more here.
MSA Rocket Engine - First Test Firing Successful
MSA is pleased to announce a major achievement by David Willson, MSA member and director, and also manager of the Mars-Oz project, in his hobby of scratch building rocket engines. Along with several work colleagues, David successfully test fired the rocket engine four times at a location 30 minutes drive from Hobart in Tasmania. Some 15 people came to the event and it was filmed as part of a documentary by MSA Western Australian member and film maker, Chris Dickinson. A paper on David's rocket engine will be a feature at AMEC 2006 in October at VSSEC.Read the full story here and view some more images ( 1,...
AMEC 2006 Registration Now Open
Registration is now open for the sixth annual Australian Mars Exploration Conference (AMEC 2006), to be held in Melbourne in October of this year at the Victoria Space Science Education Centre (VSSEC). You may register online using our secure registration form, or by downloading and faxing in a registration form (pdf).Find out more at the AMEC2006 homepage and register now for this exciting event.
New Book 'Mars Analogue Research' now Available
MSA members can order their copies from the MSA shop. Otherwise copies can be ordered online through the publisher's web site at http://www.univelt.com/htmlST/SciTecSS.htm
Public Lecture on MarsOz at the VSSEC
For more details, download a lecture flyer here (pdf).
Frame Complete
The project has moved forward slowly on two fronts: Bruce's work on a robust steel frame which defines much of the shape of the forward cabin and Stan and Graham working on the body steelwork. Bruce has now completed the frame, which is ready to take its place as part of the forward cabin steelwork, which can now continue. He will now be able to use that work to settle any remaining issues on the exact cabin shape and side window structure. The structure itself should go down the factory this week. The side windows are actually designed around Mitsubishi L300 doors, which contain a roll-down window. This would not be open in simulations, of course, but would rather be used as an emergency escape in case of smoke or fire inside the cabin. The doors need some modification to be mounted into the side cabin, which is expected to be done this week.
Meanwhile Stan Hart and Graham have been doing more special steelwork for the body and chassis. On Friday we mounted the forward...
Refining the Design
5 May, 2006. Efforts to accelerate the construction process have been made during March. Our strategy involves separating the construction work into several independent work packages, and have them carried out simultaneously at different sites. For example, the rover body can be separated from the vehicle chassis, so that the latter can be moved to another site for engine refurbishment work, while work continues on the body frame. A few jobs need to be finished before that can be done properly. In particular, the body mount structures needed to be completed. For the engine work the contractor ChevyPower, who gave a very competitive quote last year, has been chosen but we want them to do more than we arranged at that time, so a new deal is being negotiated. The body frame construction is currently waiting for engineer Bruce Armstrong to finish some construction drawings for fabrication. John Byfield cannot begin this work package without these drawings. Bruce says there are...
AMEC 2006 Call for Papers
For more details, visit the AMEC2006 homepage.
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