Space program of the United States
From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.
This page is a summary of the US government space programme, part of a series of such summaries and covers all aspects pertinent to the nation's space progamme.
Note that this article does not cover aeronautics or aerospace, the history of or complete scope of NASA or US commercial spaceflight.
Programmes
The US national space program is managed by NASA on behalf of the United States Government and can be divided up into three main areas:
| Contents |
|
|
Active Human Spaceflight Projects
Space Shuttle Orbiter
Main article: Space Shuttle
United Space Alliance
Lockheed Martin
Orbiter Processing Facility
International Space Station
Main article: International Space Station
Developmental Human Spaceflight Projects
Project Constellation
Main article: Crew Exploration Vehicle
Project Prometheus
Main article: Project Prometheus
Solar System Exploration
Mercury
Main article: MESSENGER
Mars
Mars is the current focus of US robotic exploration. Available every 26 months, launch windows to Mars afford regularly spaced opportunities to capitalise on planetary alignments and reduce fuel costs and flight times. NASA's current forcast calls for the following:
- 2005: Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
- 2007: Phoenix polar lander
- 2009: Mars Science Laboratory
- 2011: Mars Telecommunications Orbiter
See also: Exploration of Mars
Jupiter
Main article: Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter
See also: Galileo spacecraft
Saturn
Main article: Cassini-Huygens
Kuiper Belt
Main article: New Horizons
Educational Outreach
NASA's Office of Education (http://education.nasa.gov/home/) is responsible for overseeing all outreach programs the organisation is involved in. These range from liaising with the Astronaut Office and their Educator Astronaut Corps, through projects and seminars held at universities to attract new blood into NASA, to production of the Why Files children's science show.
