Aerospace Research and Development

The John F. Kennedy Space Center in Florida is the historic departure point for human space explorers, situated on Florida's central Atlantic "space coast". As each returning Shuttle mission breaks the sound barrier before touching down at the center's landing strip, it's obvious that business is booming at the world's busiest spaceport.

Kennedy's expertise in constructing and operating the world's premier spaceport forms the foundation for a new Spaceport Technology Center (STC). The STC will encompass all new technologies supporting new and proposed spaceports on Earth and on other planets.

One Kennedy team is developing the concepts and the architecture of future spaceports. A major element of the work is to optimize ground operations for launch vehicle processing, to help lower the overall costs of space transportation. An interactive design tool is under development, to help spaceport planners assess interactions between needed ground infrastructure and flight systems. This activity, and other work, is being pursued to capture global launch capabilities and help focus future Kennedy roles in meeting NASA and customer requirements. With results in hand, Kennedy officials expect to foster new initiatives, upgrade existing systems, and respond to the technology needs of customers using the spaceport. Given movement toward new generations of launch vehicles, including reusable space transportation, taking a long look into the future is prudent.

Critical to future spaceports is environmental protection. The center occupies 140,000 acres of land and water on Merritt Island. Just a small fraction of Kennedy's land area is utilized for space operations. The remaining acreage is a wildlife refuge and national seashore. Meeting space launch demands, while being effective stewards of the precious natural environment, is an important challenge at the center, one that is being met by effective monitoring and protection of the area's environmental quality. Kennedy is committed to environmental leadership, and is making important strides in ecosystem management and modeling, environmental remediation, and remote sensing applications.

Kennedy Space Center workers rotate the International Space Stations Node 1 and Pressurized Mating Adapter-1.

Kennedy is playing a significant role in the scientific advancement of bioregenerative life support systems for long duration spaceflight. Center researchers are engaged in ground-breaking studies in utilizing biological systems, life support systems, and microbial ecology. New technologies in lighting, nutrient delivery, microbial monitoring, closed chamber construction and control, gas exchange, and crop productivity are leading to future designs for life support systems. Production of edible crop biomass and the processing of other biomass and waste are enabling technologies for future human space travelers.

Kennedy is also supporting NASA's long-term evaluation of the effects of microgravity on plant microbial systems. Kennedy's work in this area of biological systems has already led to important partnerships with academia and industry in advancing information in biological systems and their management and commercial product development.

The Cassini spacecraft is lowered onto its launch vehicle adapter in Kennedy Space Center's payload Hazardous Servicing Facility.

Handling complex space launchers and satellites demands sharp skills and the ability to integrate and test. This operational knowledge and expertise at Kennedy is helping to master the creation of "what if" software, that is, highly intelligent computer test software that reduces the time of engineers to configure, operate, and interpret the results of tests. Advanced simulation techniques, including virtual reality, are evolving to ensure the role of mission processing is as cutting-edge as feasible.

Also supporting Kennedy's collective vision to foster the birth of the Spaceport Technology Center is the new cryogenics testbed, which is a partnership with industry and academia. Formed under a reimbursable Space Act Agreement, Kennedy's extensive knowledge regarding cryogenics can be harnessed for both space and down-to-earth initiatives.

Kennedy has long used cryogenic liquids as launch vehicle propellants. In the private sector, there are many applications for such super-cold liquids. Biology and medicine use liquid nitrogen for preservation and storage of human and animal cells and tissues, as well as for the destruction of cancer tissue. Hospitals use superconductive magnets cooled with liquid helium for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Also, the food industry uses liquid nitrogen for freezing and long-term storage. Kennedy's know-how in cryogenics has also spurred the development of new thermal insulation materials and methods for better overall performance of cryogenic containers and piping systems. The center's cryogenics testbed is viewed as an important step to promote international excellence in cryogenic testing, training, and education.

Roy D. Bridges, Jr., Kennedy director, foresees a productive future for America's premier spaceport. "Kennedy Space Center is in a unique position to carry the U.S. space program into the next century. Our work force has no equal in the launch and payload processing business, and our ability to look to the future and prepare for the natural evolution of missions and technology will ensure that we are strategically positioned to respond to those needs," Bridges says.

What that future might entail is thrilling, he adds. "While we look forward to preparing for the on-orbit assembly and operation of the International Space Station, we also eagerly embrace the challenge of what lies beyond, whether it be a return human mission to the Moon or the first crewed expedition to Mars. We'll be ready."

 

STS-80 lands at Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility.