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An Update On Dream Chaser & Its First Launch

Many years ago we watched the Space Shuttle perform countless missions and utilize its unique features. While by no means perfect, the design did offer a few different benefits that some companies today took note of. Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser spaceplane is a great example. This being said, Dream Chaser has some significant differences from the shuttle hoping to make it stand out as a next generation spacecraft.

Over the past few months, we have watched as Sierra Space completes some of the final preparations on its test article Tenacity. This spaceplane is set to lift off for the first time not long from now in 2023. However, before this launch, a few important milestones must be met by not only Dream Chaser but also its launch vehicle.

In addition to work on Tenacity, Sierra Space continues to stay quiet and construct the other Dream Chaser test article revealed just a few months ago. All of which in an effort to increase access to space and facilitate future ambitious projects. Here I will go more in-depth into Dream Chaser’s progress, its upcoming first launch, what to expect, and more.

Tenacity’s First Launch

While one of the last major updates on Tenacity and its first launch came a few months ago, recently Sierra Space has given us some hints into its progress and what’s been going on. For example, starting in early October, someone asked about Tenacity and how the test article was coming along. Sierra Space responded with a tweet saying, “Right now, our Dream Chaser team is hard at work affixing more than two thousand hand-cut thermal tiles. We’ll have more photos and close-ups of Tenacity coming soon.” In the months prior to this, we watched the assembly of Tenacity as it took shape into a full spaceplane. One of the final steps is the tedious process of attaching each and every thermal tile as the company pointed out. Based on the timeline of Dream Chaser and this tweet from Sierra Space, we can expect more updates and the completion of this process likely in only a few months.

In addition to work on Tenacity’s thermal tiles, NASA also released an update regarding the spaceplane’s first mission. Just over a week ago in late October, NASA tweeted mentioning, “Teamwork makes the dream (chaser) work. The first joint training simulation for @NASA and Sierra Space flight controllers happened earlier this month. The teams practiced operations for the new Dream Chaser spacecraft to fly to the @Space_Station.” Sierra Space replied highlighting, “Our team enjoyed working with the NASA Flight Operations team preparing for the upcoming Dream Chaser (CRS-2) cargo mission!” This is an important step and a good sign that this first mission is coming along.

The next update has to do with the launch vehicle responsible for getting Dream Chaser Tenacity into space for the first time. As I partially mentioned prior, United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan Centaur is set to be the rocket with the important job. However, this rocket shares some similarities with Dream Chaser in the fact that it has also never launched or been to space yet. As of right now, Vulcan is scheduled to have its first launch in the coming months. Assuming everything goes perfectly, it’s second ever mission will be with Dream Chaser Tenacity as a payload. Thankfully, the Vulcan Centaur has been making some promising progress, especially in the last few weeks.

Just yesterday Tory Bruno tweeted saying, “Fine looking BE4 engines.” This included an image of the second BE-4 flight engine that was recently delivered, and already being installed onto the rocket. With both these engines practically installed and ready, ULA is expected to ship the rocket to the launch site sometime this month. Once at the Cape, Vulcan will undergo a final series of tests to verify its readiness for flight, consisting of multiple tanking tests and a wet dress rehearsal, culminating in flight readiness firing in December, which will be the final step prior to launch. Following the successful final testing, Astrobotic and the other payloads will be installed on the launch vehicle. Once this first mission is complete, ULA will shift all of its focus to the next mission with Dream Chaser.

Dream Chaser Overview

Now that we know more about Dream Chaser Tenacity’s progress and what the Vulcan Centaur has been up to, we can take a closer look at what the mission entails, and what makes Dream Chaser so unique. Currently, the Dream Chaser Spaceplane is scheduled to lift off for the first time on top of a Vulcan Centaur in the third quarter of 2023. This mission is called SNC Demo 1, the planned first flight of the Sierra Nevada robotic resupply spacecraft Dream Chaser to the International Space Station (ISS) under the CRS-2 contract with NASA. The Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) are a series of flights awarded by NASA for the delivery of cargo and supplies to the International Space Station (ISS) on commercially operated spacecraft. The first CRS contracts were signed in 2008 and awarded $1.6 billion to SpaceX for twelve cargo Dragon and $1.9 billion to Orbital Sciences for eight Cygnus flights, covering deliveries to 2016. A second phase of contracts (known as CRS-2) was solicited in 2014. This time around, Sierra Nevada Corporation and the Dream Chaser Spaceplane were included in a minimum of seven missions.

These missions will utilize the uncrewed variant of Dream Chaser. With the help of the Shooting Star service module, Dream Chaser can deliver up to 5,500 kg of pressurized and unpressurized cargo to the space station, including food, water, supplies, and science experiments, then return to Earth. Dream Chaser can return critical cargo at less than 1.5 g’s using a gentle runway landing. Designed for high reusability, this vehicle reduces overall cost, providing quick turnarounds between missions. The ability to liftoff on top of multiple launch vehicles and land at a wide variety of runways makes Dream Chaser a flexible option for reliable transportation. After leaving the space station, the Dream Chaser Cargo System also offers disposal services via the Shooting Star transport vehicle. Once separated from Dream Chaser, Shooting Star burns up safely in Earth’s atmosphere.

Shooting Star adds a service for NASA to send additional critical science, food, and cargo to the space station. Crews can access the Shooting Star via the aft hatch, berthing to the space station. Traveling through the Shooting Star takes them to the forward portion where they can open the hatch and gain access to the Dream Chaser. When attached to the space station, Shooting Star provides a normal cabin environment for astronauts to work, and a prime location for cargo to be removed and placed onto the station after berthing. In addition, Shooting Star offers cargo disposal services for NASA. Once separated from Dream Chaser, the cargo module burns up safely in the Earth’s atmosphere and Dream Chaser glides gently back onto Kennedy Space Center’s runway. Since Shooting Star is disposed of on every CRS-2 mission, Sierra Space Corporation will maintain a production line to support all subsequent Dream Chaser missions.

You then have the crewed Dream Chaser variant. Currently, the first crewed Dream Chaser mission is scheduled for around 2026. Dream Chaser was originally designed as a crewed spaceplane, in part under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, capable of carrying up to seven astronauts to and from the space station and other low Earth orbit (LEO) destinations. Dream Chaser is 30 feet, or 9 meters long—roughly ¼ the total length of the space shuttle orbiters—and can carry up to seven crew members. The crewed version of Dream Chaser is approximately 85% common to the cargo system, limiting primary changes to windows, environmental control, and life support systems. In addition, an integral main propulsion system is available for abort capability and major orbital maneuvers.

Sierra Space highlights that the Dream Chaser spaceplane is a multi-mission vehicle capable of supporting a variety of LEO needs. It can be customized for both domestic and international customers via vehicle configuration, launch site, destination, landing site, duration, and a host of other variables. They have entered into agreements with multiple international space agencies. Together they are developing technologies, applications, and missions for Dream Chaser-based space systems. One of the most unique features of this spaceplane is its ability to land at airports around the world. Earlier this year in June, Sierra Space announced the signing of a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The agreement added the world-class New Mexico spaceport to Sierra Space’s portfolio of potential global landing sites for its Dream Chaser. Over time, as Sierra Space continues to make progress on Dream Chaser and make deals with different spaceports and companies around the world, the more possibilities for this spacecraft. A unique feature that makes Dream Chaser a more appealing choice for transportation to and from space in the future. However, it first needs to launch and demonstrate that its capable of what it says.

Conclusion

Sierra Space has been working on the Dream Chaser spaceplane for almost two decades. Most recently the company is completing some of the final work on the Tenacity test article scheduled to lift off for the first time in the 3rd quarter of next year. We will have to wait and see how it progresses and the impact it has on the space industry.