Hopefully an in-orbit maintenance capability will help keep more satellites from becoming jetsam in orbit, as many obsolete and damaged sats do now. We may wind up completely automating space, as nobody cares if a robot burns up. I’d rather see humans do it, because without a frontier what goals can a dreamer have? Having said that, we do need near space, and devices like this will help us do it.
A Boeing-led [NYSE: BA] industry team today announced the successful launch of Orbital Express, a demonstration spacecraft that is part of a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) program aimed at demonstrating fully autonomous on-orbit spacecraft servicing capabilities.
Liftoff occurred yesterday at 10:10 p.m. EST from Space Launch Complex 41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Following a nominal flight, the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket deployed the spacecraft to a low-Earth orbit.
“Orbital Express is a revolutionary system that will offer customers with appropriately configured on-orbit assets new options to enhance the operation of their systems,” said George Muellner, president of Boeing Advanced Systems. “This demonstration mission is the first step toward developing an operational system that can service satellites and support other space operations.
This will also aid in the militarization of space, but that’s already happening.
Here’s the USPS prototype:
http://www.ohgizmo.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/03/r2d2_mailboxes.jpg
hee-hee. and, oh yeah, it will close with, and kill enemy satellites.
Israel has a more down to earth robot. It’s bound to be a big seller among office workers who may need to repair “problems” in nearby cubicles, but aren’t allowed to leave their desks.
I’d say this is a vital project, and inevitable – but it would seem – and the lack of response would appear to bear me out – to be ‘booor-ing’ to the minds of most of those weaned on scientifically vacuous pseudo-SF like Star Wars/Trek, instead of Clarke / Asimov / Heinlein, and others of that more demanding / rewarding ilk…
And military applications are a foregone conclusion, considering Boeing’s status as a preëminent player in both the aerospace and military industries.
Hmm, just watched the Star Trek episode about the space probe that thought it was perfect and wanted to sterilize all humans because they were imperfect. Remember “Nomad?”
You would think a good first robot would be modeled after a garbage truck. Let it make the rounds and pick up all the space junk and then rendezvous with the space shuttle on it’s way back to Earth.
Nomad.