Dream Chaser enters final testing ahead of 2024 debut space flight

Andrew Jones
·2 min read
21
A winged space plane with folded wings in a hangar.
A winged space plane with folded wings in a hangar.

Dream Chaser, Sierra Space's shuttle-shaped spacecraft, is undergoing final testing in preparation for its very first taste of space. It's called Tenacity.

Assembly of the spacecraft was completed in early November, after which it was shipped from a Sierra Space facility in Louisville, Colorado to NASA's Neil A. Armstrong Test Facility in Ohio for environmental testing, according to a Sierra Space statement.

Dream Chaser and Sierra Space's "Shooting Star" cargo module will be stacked in launch configuration, then exposed to extreme launch vibrations in the Mechanical Vibration Facility, which features the world's most powerful shaker table.

When ready, it will launch on a United Launch Alliance Vulcan Centaur rocket. It will lift off from Cape Canaveral and return to Space Florida's Launch and Landing Facility runway at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC). Vulcan Centaur is currently preparing for its first flight in January.

Related: Meet 'Tenacity': 1st Dream Chaser space plane gets a name

Related Stories:

— Dream Chaser: Sierra Space's design for spaceflight

— ULA test-fires new Vulcan Centaur rocket on the launch pad for 1st time (video)

— ULA Vulcan Centaur rocket's 1st launch delayed to January 2024

Sierra Space did not offer a target date for the launch of Tenacity beyond stating it would take place in 2024. Previous reporting suggests the flight could take place as soon as April 2024.

The Dream Chaser system is designed to carry cargo to the International Space Station (ISS). Tenacity is slated for an initial seven ISS robotic cargo resupply missions. A crew version will be able to carry up to seven astronauts.

Sierra Space says it is revolutionizing space transportation with its Dream Chaser platform. The spacecraft can land on commercial runways instead of splashing down in the oceans, and can be reused for a minimum of 15 missions per system. It also boasts fully autonomous operations, and a green, hydrogen peroxide-based propulsion system.

Along with Tenacity, a second Dream Chaser vehicle, named Reverence, is in production.