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SPACEX'S DRAGONEYE NAVIGATION SENSOR SUCCESSFULLY DEMONSTRATED ON SPACE SHUTTLE
Hawthorne, CA (September 25, 2009) – Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) announces the successful demonstration of a proximity sensor, called DragonEye, on NASA's STS-127 shuttle mission. DragonEye launched aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour on July 15th, 2009, and was tested in proximity of the International Space Station (ISS) in preparation for future visits by SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft.
With the help of NASA's Commercial Crew and Cargo Program Office, DragonEye, a Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) sensor, has undergone flight system trials aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour in preparation for guiding the Dragon spacecraft as it approaches the ISS. The DragonEye LIDAR system provides three-dimensional images based on the amount of time it takes for a single laser pulse from the sensor to the reach a target and bounce back, providing range and bearing information from the Dragon spacecraft to the ISS.
DragonEye will make its operational debut on the final flight of the Dragon spacecraft under NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program, where the spacecraft will demonstrate the ability to berth with the ISS.
Developed in just 10 months from concept to final hardware, DragonEye was delivered to NASA's Kennedy Space Center on February 16th, 2009, for integration with the Space Shuttle Endeavour, successfully completing all of NASA's payload safety milestones.
Using flight data gathered onboard Space Shuttle Endeavour, DragonEye was able to detect the ISS and track it through various approach and departure maneuvers. Upon Endeavour's return, the DragonEye system was returned to SpaceX, where flight data from the sensor was retrieved and is currently under evaluation.
"The verification and functionality of SpaceX's DragonEye are a testament to the unique government-commercial partnership created by NASA's COTS program," said Gwynne Shotwell, President, SpaceX. "SpaceX appreciates NASA's support with DragonEye and is proud to be a part of a program that is shaping the future of American spaceflight."
Together with SpaceX's Falcon 9 launch vehicle, the Dragon spacecraft is under contract with NASA to provide cargo resupply to the ISS when the Space Shuttle retires. This contract includes 12 flights between 2010 and 2015, with a guaranteed minimum of 20,000 kg of pressurized and unpressurized cargo to be carried to the ISS. SpaceX is the only COTS contender that has the capability to return cargo to Earth.
About SpaceX
SpaceX is developing a family of launch vehicles and spacecraft intended to increase the reliability and reduce the cost of both manned and unmanned space transportation, ultimately by a factor of ten. With the Falcon 1 and Falcon 9 vehicles, SpaceX offers highly reliable/cost-efficient launch capabilities for spacecraft insertion into any orbital altitude and inclination. Starting in 2010, SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft will provide Earth-to-LEO transport of pressurized and unpressurized cargo, including resupply to the International Space Station (ISS).
Founded in 2002, SpaceX is a private company owned by management and employees, with minority investments from Founders Fund and Draper Fisher Jurvetson. The SpaceX team now numbers over 800, with corporate headquarters in Hawthorne, California. For more information, please visit the company's web site at www.spacex.com.
When Spanish conquistadors first set foot on Colombian soil, they heard tales of how the Zipa, an indigenous king, would cover himself in gold dust and row out to the middle of a sacred lake to offer gold objects to the gods.
Thus was born the legend of El Dorado and Colombia became synonymous with precious metals and other natural riches.
Today, the administration of President Alvaro Uribe seems determined to push that image once again, and has made it clear that it wants mining, together with oil and gas, to be an integral part of economic development.
There are tentative signs this may be happening. Last year, gold production more than doubled on 2007 to about 34.3 tonnes – and gold exports rose from $332m to $891m.
Meanwhile, coal production is forecast to increase to more than 100,000 tons by 2012 compared with 69,000 tons last year.
“What we have today is a dynamic sector covering many different minerals and that is attracting some of the biggest mining companies in the world,” says Arturo Quiróz of Asominas, Colombia’s mining association, which represents the interests of private companies.
Mr Quiróz argues that at least two factors have helped spark the world’s interest in Colombia as a centre of mining activity.
The first is that Mr Uribe’s manifesto of “democratic security”, which has made combating the country’s armed insurgent groups a priority.
This has helped secure and pacify regions that were previously out of bounds – either because they were under the undisputed control of armed groups or because fighting between rebels and the armed forces was too fierce.
As a consequence, Colombia – twice the size of France – remains vastly under-explored even though it has long been considered as a strong source of mineral wealth.
The second reason is that alterations this year to the mining code have made land registration and the granting of concessions much simpler.
Exploration concessions will be for 11 years, compared with just five previously. A complex, sliding-scale system of annual land-use taxes has been simplified: instead of ranging between $8 and $2,000 a hectare, there is now a flat fee of $8.
Finally, an overhaul of the national land registry archives will expedite concessions.
Problems remain, however. Last month, Colombia’s Ministry of the Environment, Housing and Territorial Development denied AngloGold Ashanti, the South African mining company, rights to explore all but six of the 515 hectares for which it had requested permission.
The decision, based on environmental concerns, was applauded by green groups that had protested against the company’s plans. But it put on hold what preliminary exploration suggested might be one of the world’s 10 biggest gold deposits with estimated reserves of $12.3m.
AngloGold Ashanti’s experience illustrates the difficulties of operating in a country where many of the most promising areas for mineral exploration are located either in forestry or indigenous reserves – or both.
According to a study by the National Indigenous Organisation of Colombia, 65 per cent of mining concessions are on ancestral lands or among indigenous communities.
Furthermore, more than two dozen non-governmental organisations and independent environmental agencies have warned that Mr Uribe’s plans to stimulate mining could threaten the natural habitats.
At the immense Cerrejón coal complex in northern Guajira province however, Carbones del Cerrejón, the mine operator owned by BHP Billiton, Anglo American and Xstrata has been busy winning awards for its environmental programme.
León Teicher, the company’s president, says its land-rehabilitation programme has returned more than 2,600 hectares – about 25 per cent of the size of the mine – to its natural state, planting 1.2m trees.
Today, the company exports 32m tonnes of coal a year – almost half of national production – and it does so with a firm commitment to the environment, says Mr Teicher.
However, he admits that not all companies apply the same environmental standards. For example, he explains: “There are mining operations that transport coal over long distances in lorries.”
By contrast, Cerrejón’s coal is transported to the port via a purpose-built railway, and the company does not use open barges, which also pose environmental problems.
If the government manages to reconcile the interests of private business with the concerns of the country’s many indigenous communities and environmental groups, few doubt Colombia could become a world force in mining, and not just in coal.
Until that happens, however, most experts believe that Colombia’s potential will not be realised.