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46-482: Man-rating of the Apollo launch escape system was planned to be accomplished at minimum cost early in the program. Since there were no reasonably priced launch vehicles with the payload capability and thrust versatility that could meet the requirements of the planned tests, a contract was awarded for the development and construction of a specialized launch vehicle. The rocket's predecessor, Little Joe , had been used in testing

92-464: A boilerplate BP-12 command module, and performed the first successful abort using a live LES. A third launch on 8 December 1964, using BP-23, tested the effectiveness of the LES when the pressures and stresses on the spacecraft were similar to what they would be during a Saturn IB or Saturn V launch. The fourth flight, with BP-22 on 19 May 1965, was designed to test the escape system at a high altitude (although

138-496: A mass simulator , is a nonfunctional craft or payload that is used to test various configurations and basic size, load, and handling characteristics of rocket launch vehicles . It is far less expensive to build multiple, full-scale, non-functional boilerplate spacecraft than it is to develop the full system (design, test, redesign, and launch). In this way, boilerplate spacecraft allow components and aspects of cutting-edge aerospace projects to be tested while detailed contracts for

184-762: A time capsule . See BP-1227 photo . The only certainties about this capsule are that it was returned to the United States at Murmansk early in September 1970 during a visit by the USCG Southwind who returned it to the Naval Air Station, Norfolk, Virginia. There it remained until title was passed to the Smithsonian in April 1976 when it was passed on to Grand Rapids, Michigan to serve as a time capsule. Two official sources –

230-469: A hard over position as the result of an electronic failure. These problems were corrected and the abort test program was completed. The Qualification Test Vehicle launch, on 28 August 1963, carried a dummy payload consisting of an aluminum shell in the basic shape of the Apollo command module, with an inert LES attached, and demonstrated the rocket would work for the A-001 launch. This occurred on 13 May 1964, with

276-597: A human-rated spacecraft have some control over it. This set of technical requirements and the associated certification process for crewed space systems are in addition to the standards and requirements for all of NASA's space flight programs. The development of the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station pre-dated later NASA human-rating requirements. After the Challenger and Columbia accidents,

322-504: A series of ground qualification tests, was certified for crewed Gaganyaan spaceflight missions. The CE-20 will power the upper stage of the human-rated version of the LVM3 (formerly known as GSLV Mk III) launch vehicle. Each private spaceflight system builder typically sets up their own specific criteria to be met before carrying humans on a space transport system. Boilerplate (spaceflight) A boilerplate spacecraft, also known as

368-495: A spacecraft or launch vehicle, and the various entities that launch or plan to launch such spacecraft specify requirements for their particular systems to be human-rated. One entity that applies human rating is the US government civilian space agency, NASA . NASA's human-rating requires not just that a system be designed to be tolerant of failure and to protect the crew even if an unrecoverable failure occurs, but also that astronauts aboard

414-401: A variety of Apollo boilerplates. Apollo boilerplate command modules were used for tests of the launch escape system (LES) jettison tower rockets and procedures: BP-1101A was used in numerous tests to develop spacecraft recovery equipment and procedures. Specifically, 1101A tested the air bags as part of the uprighting procedure when the Apollo lands upside down in the water. The sequence of

460-466: Is required to be no more than 1 in 270. Maximum sustained acceleration is limited to 3 g . The United Launch Alliance (ULA) published a paper submitted to AIAA detailing the modifications to its Delta IV and Atlas V launch vehicles that would be needed to conform to NASA Standard 8705.2B. ULA has since been awarded $ 6.7 million under NASA's Commercial Crew Development (CCDev) program for development of an Emergency Detection System , one of

506-858: The Norfolk Naval Shipyard . This capsule was used in a beach abort test, and then subsequently used in the LJ1A flight. However, the term subsequently came to be used for all the prototype capsules (which in their own right were nearly as complicated as the orbital capsules). This usage was technically incorrect, as those other capsules were not made of boilerplate, but the boilerplate term had effectively been genericized . There were seven specifically named Gemini boilerplates: BP-1, 2, 3, 3A, 4, 5 and 201. Boilerplate 3A had functional doors and had multi-uses for testing watertightness, flotation collars, and egress procedures. Other boilerplates were designated FA-1A, MSC 312, MSC 313 and MSC-307. NASA created

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552-642: The Shenzhou spacecraft and Tiangong space station . Roscosmos , a Russian state corporation , conducts and oversees human spaceflights launched from Russia. This includes Soyuz spacecraft and the Russian Orbital Segment of the International Space Station. The space agency of India, ISRO , oversees planned human spaceflights launched from India. On 13 February 2024 the CE-20 engine, after

598-567: The prototype orbiter Enterprise was delivered to Edwards Air Force Base in California for the beginning of its overall test programme, which would encompass flight tests, fit-check and procedures testing of the orbiter, its systems, the facilities and procedures required to launch, fly and land the spacecraft safely. During 1977, Enterprise was used in what was called the Approach and Landing Tests programme of testing, which encompassed mating

644-600: The US Navy and the US Coast Guard – both say that it was lost by an ARRS (Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron) unit training in recovery procedures. A contemporary account of its return quotes a NASA spokesman as saying, " ... as far as NASA can determine the object... the Navy lost two years ago." A Lunar Module (LM) boilerplate, the LM test article, was launched with Apollo 8 to simulate

690-614: The abort actually occurred at low altitude due to a failure of the Little Joe II booster). The final launch, on 20 January 1966, carried the first production spacecraft, CSM-002. Minor spacecraft design deficiencies in the parachute reefing cutters, the drogue and main parachute deployment mortar mountings, and the command and service module umbilical cutters were found and corrected before the crewed Apollo flights began. However, all command modules flown achieved satisfactory landing conditions and confirmed that, had they been crewed spacecraft,

736-554: The amount of qualification testing required. The Little Joe II launch vehicle proved to be very acceptable for use in this program. Two difficulties were experienced. The Qualification Test Vehicle (QTV) did not destruct when commanded to do so because improperly installed primacord did not propagate the initial detonation to the shaped charges on the Algol motor case. The fourth mission (A-003) launch vehicle became uncontrolled about 2.5 seconds after lift-off when an aerodynamic fin moved to

782-561: The bags inflating caused the capsule to roll and upright itself. This McDonnell boilerplate is now on loan to the Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum , Denver, Colorado, from the Smithsonian. BP-1101A has an external painted marking of AP.5. Examination of the interior in 2006 revealed large heavy steel ingots. After further research, a new paint scheme was applied in June 2007. BP-1102

828-547: The correct weight and balance of the LM which was not ready for the flight. As part of the Space Shuttle program , a number of boilerplate vehicles were constructed using various materials to undertake key tests of procedures, infrastructure and other elements that would take place during a Shuttle mission. In 1977, the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) constructed a simple steel and wood orbiter mockup to be used in fit check activities for various elements of

874-540: The cost of undertaking this work, along with a number of design changes that had taken place between Enterprise being rolled out, and the final construction of the first operational orbiter, Columbia , meant that it was decided instead to upgrade the STA into a flight model. This began following the end of the STA testing in January 1979, with the completed orbiter, named as Challenger , rolled out in June 1982. In January 1977,

920-424: The crew would have survived the abort conditions. In addition, two pad abort tests were conducted in which the launch escape system was activated at ground level. Man-rating Human-rating certification , also known as man-rating or crew-rating , is the certification of a spacecraft or launch vehicle as capable of safely transporting humans. There is no one particular standard for human-rating

966-404: The criteria used by NASA for human-rating spacecraft were made more stringent. The NASA CCP human-rating standards require that the probability of a loss on ascent does not exceed 1 in 500, and that the probability of a loss on descent did not exceed 1 in 500. The overall mission loss risk, which includes vehicle risk from micrometeorites and orbital debris while in orbit for up to 210 days,

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1012-447: The far more expensive and delicate prototype orbiter, Enterprise . Following its use as a test article, the mockup was stored until 1983, when it was refurbished and modified to more closely resemble an actual orbiter, before being displayed in Tokyo . The Structural Test Article was built as a test vehicle intended for use in initial vibration testing to simulate entire flights. The STA

1058-767: The final pieces that would be needed to make these launchers suitable for human spaceflight. SpaceX is using Dragon 2 , launched on a Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket, to deliver crew to the ISS. Dragon 2 made its first uncrewed test flight in March 2019 and has been conducting crewed flights since Demo-2 in May 2020. Boeing's Starliner spacecraft is also a part of the Commercial Crew Program since Boeing CFT in June 2024. The China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) operates and oversees crewed spaceflight activities launched from China, including

1104-549: The final project are being negotiated. These tests may be used to develop procedures for mating a spacecraft to its launch vehicle, emergency access and egress, maintenance support activities, and various transportation processes. Boilerplate spacecraft are most commonly used to test crewed spacecraft; for example, in the early 1960s, NASA performed many tests using boilerplate Apollo spacecraft atop Saturn I rockets, and Mercury spacecraft atop Atlas rockets (for example Big Joe 1 ). The engine-less Space Shuttle Enterprise

1150-598: The first Orion pad abort test (PA-1) in 2009. On November 20, 2008 a complete test of the abort rockets took place in Utah. PA-1 is the first of the six test events in Orion Abort Flight Test subproject. Lockheed Martin Corp. was awarded the contract to build Orion on August 31, 2006. Other boilerplates would be used to test thermal, electromagnetic, audio, mechanical vibration conditions and research studies. These tests for

1196-666: The first time. Inside the Dynamic Structural Test Facility at the MSFC, the stack was subjected to a series of vibration tests simulating the various stages that it would be subjected to during launch. Following its use at Huntsville, Enterprise was then taken to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where she was again used in full boilerplate configuration to this time test the procedures of assembling and transporting

1242-458: The infrastructure needed to support the Space Shuttle, including roadway clearances and crane capabilities, as well as for testing in various buildings and structures used as part of the program, both at the MSFC and at the Kennedy Space Center . The mockup was designed to be the approximate size, shape and weight of an actual orbiter, and allowed these initial tests to be undertaken without using

1288-622: The launch escape system for the Mercury spacecraft from 1959 to 1960. The program was originally planned to be conducted at the U.S. Air Force Eastern Test Range at Cape Kennedy , Florida. However, because of a heavy schedule of high-priority launches at that facility, other possible launch sites were evaluated including Wallops Flight Facility , Wallops Island, Virginia, and Eglin Air Force Base , Florida. Launch Complex 36 at White Sands Missile Range, previously used for Redstone missile tests,

1334-587: The orbiter to the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft , a modified Boeing 747 to test the taxiing and flight characteristics of the Orbiter / SCA combination. This included flights of the combination in which Enterprise itself was powered up and crewed, to test crew procedures systems in flight, and finally a set of five so-called "free-flights", with Enterprise jettisoned from the SCA at altitude to land on its own, testing

1380-589: The orbiter's own flying and handling characteristics. In March 1978, following its use in flight tests during the ALT program , Enterprise was taken to the MSFC in Huntsville, Alabama for use in the Mated Vertical Ground Vibration Test. This would see Enterprise mated to an empty External Tank and dummy Solid Rocket Boosters , creating a boilerplate version of the complete Space Shuttle stack for

1426-462: The prime contractors for the launch vehicle ( General Dynamics / Convair ) and spacecraft ( North American Rockwell ). The White Sands Missile Range administrative, range, and technical organizations provided the facilities, resources, and services required. These included range safety, radar and camera tracking, command transmission, real-time data displays, photography, telemetry data acquisition, data reduction, and recovery operations. Little Joe II

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1472-586: The stack from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Complex 39 , as well as procedures required upon its arrival at the launch pad. In 1985, Enterprise was used again for this purpose, this time with the boilerplate configuration used to test the Air Force shuttle facilities at Vandenberg Air Force Base , including a full mating on the SLC-6 launch pad. The construction of the first Orion boilerplate,

1518-511: The test pad at Langley and at Wallops Island using the Little Joe rockets. The term boilerplate originated from the use of boilerplate steel for the construction of test articles/ mock-ups . Historically, during the development of the Little Joe series of 7 launch vehicles, there was only one actual boilerplate capsule and it was called such since its conical section was made of steel at

1564-465: Was a basic mockup prototype to test the assembling sequences and launch procedures at NASA's Langley Research Center while Lockheed aerospace engineers assemble the first rocket motors for the spacecraft's escape tower. The first boilerplate went to Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards, California, for integration of Lockheed's avionics and NASA's developmental flight instrumentation prior to shipment to New Mexico's White Sands Missile Range for

1610-534: Was a component-level flammability-test program to test for design decisions on selection and application of non-metallic materials. Boilerplate configuration comparisons with command and service module 2TV-1 and 101 were performed by North American. The NASA review board decided on February 5, 1967, that the boilerplate configuration had determined a reasonable "worst case" configuration, after more than 1,000 tests were performed. See BP-1224 photo set. Details regarding this test capsule are not clear, but most likely it

1656-623: Was a single-stage, solid-propellant rocket which used a booster motor developed for the Recruit rocket , and a sustainer motor developed for the Algol stage of the Scout rocket family . It could fly with a variable number of booster and sustainer motors, but all were contained within a single airframe. Fabrication of the detail parts for the first vehicle started in August 1962, and the final factory systems checkout

1702-472: Was built as essentially a complete orbiter airframe, but with a mockup of the crew compartment installed, and the thermal insulation only fitted to the forward fuselage. The simulation testing of the STA was undertaken over the course of eleven months following its rollout in February 1978; at the time, it was intended that the prototype orbiter Enterprise would be converted into a full flight ready model, but

1748-505: Was completed in July 1963. There was an original fixed-fin configuration and a later version using flight controls. The vehicle was sized to match the diameter of the Apollo spacecraft service module and to suit the length of the Algol rocket motors. Aerodynamic fins were sized to assure that the vehicle was inherently stable. The structural design was based on a gross weight of 220,000 pounds (100,000 kg), of which 80,000 pounds (36,000 kg)

1794-545: Was finally transferred from NASA to the Smithsonian in 1977, and is displayed now at the Udvar-Hazy Center with the flotation collar and bags that were attached to Columbia (the Apollo 11 Command Module) at the end of its historic mission. BP-1210 was used in landing and recovery training and to test flotation devices. It is on display outside the Stafford Air & Space Museum . The purpose of this series design

1840-847: Was lost at sea somewhere between the Azores and the Bay of Biscay in early 1969, and recovered in June 1969 off Gibraltar by the Soviet fishing trawler Apatit (possibly a Soviet spy ship disguised as such, which was commonplace during the Cold War ), transferred to the port of Murmansk in the Soviet Union, and returned to the US in September 1970 by the USCGC Southwind . It is now located in Grand Rapids , Michigan as

1886-546: Was payload. The structure was also designed for sequential firing with a possible 10-second overlap of four first-stage and three second-stage sustainer motors. Sustainer thrust was provided by Algol solid-propellant motors. The versatility of performance was achieved by varying the number and firing sequence of the primary motors (capability of up to seven) required to perform the mission. Recruit rocket motors were used for booster motors as required to supplement lift-off thrust. A simplified design, tooling, and manufacturing concept

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1932-626: Was selected as the most suitable for meeting schedule and support requirements. White Sands also allowed land recovery which was less costly and complicated than the water recovery that would have been required at the Eastern Test Range or at the NASA Wallops Island facility. The program was conducted under the direction of the Manned Spacecraft Center (now Johnson Space Center ), Houston, Texas , with joint participation by

1978-535: Was to simulate the weight and other external physical characteristics of the Apollo command module . These prototypes were in the 9000 lb range for both laboratory water tanks and ocean tests. The experiments tested flotation collars, collar installations, and buoyancy characteristics. The Navy trained their recovery personnel for ocean collar installation and shipboard retrieval procedures. These boilerplates rarely had internal equipment. See BP-1220 photo. BP-1224

2024-539: Was used as a boilerplate to test launch stack assembly and transport to the launch pad. NASA's now-canceled Constellation program and ongoing Artemis program used boilerplate Orion spacecraft for various testing. Mercury boilerplates were manufactured "in-house" by NASA Langley Research Center technicians prior to McDonnell Aircraft Company building the Mercury spacecraft . The boilerplate capsules were designed and used to test spacecraft recovery systems, and escape tower and rocket motors . Formal tests were done on

2070-497: Was used for water egress trainer for all Apollo flights, including by the crew of Apollo 11 , the first lunar landing mission. It was also adapted for mock-up interior components and used by astronauts to practice routine and emergency exits from the spacecraft. It was then modified again where the interior was set up to be configured either as Apollo/Soyuz or a proposed five-person Skylab Rescue vehicle. With these two conversions, astronauts could train for those special missions. It

2116-509: Was used to limit the number of vehicle components, reduce construction time, and hold vehicle cost to a minimum. Because overall weight was not a limiting factor in the design, over designing of primary structural members greatly reduced the number and complexity of structural proof tests. Whenever possible, vehicle systems were designed to use readily available off-the-shelf components that had proven reliability from use in other aerospace programs, and this further reduced overall costs by minimizing

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