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42-454: SpaceDev, the world's first commercial space exploration company, was founded in 1997 by Jim Benson , as a result of a merger between Integrated Space Systems of Southern California and a defunct publicly traded corporate shell. In August 1998 SpaceDev acquired all patents, intellectual property, test results, and documents that had been produced by the bankrupt American Rocket Company (AMROC). Some of these documents would later be used to create

84-595: A Common Core Booster and a hybrid transfer stage. The Streaker is designed to offer quick response launches of payloads in the 1,102-pound class to low Earth orbit but can support loads of up to 2,204 pounds. The goal of the Streaker is to achieve a launch cost of under US$ 5,000,000 per launch. An additional SpaceDev facility was built in Poway, California in order to design and test the Streaker. Jim Benson James William Benson (April 3, 1945 – October 10, 2008)

126-643: A partnership with United Launch Alliance to turn the Dream Chaser into an orbital vehicle by launching it on an Atlas V rocket. Benson and his team were going to try to go all the way to orbit." SpaceDev acquired the former Integrated Space Systems, a space systems engineering firm, in 1998. In 1998, SpaceDev and its chairman James Benson were named in an administrative proceeding alleging securities fraud. The SEC alleged that SpaceDev and chairman Benson made false and misleading statements through various media in an attempt to increase its stock value. A settlement

168-562: A possibility of landing on conventional runways. No flight hardware was built. With increasing national interest in obtaining routine access to space, a number of Earth-to-orbit transportation systems were studied in the mid-1980s. One, referred to as a Personnel Launch System (PLS), could utilize the HL-20 and an expendable launch system to provide crewed access complementing the Space Shuttle . A full-size engineering research model of

210-481: A request for proposal to SpaceDev for the design and development of its SpaceDev Dream Chaser spaceships. BSC expected to be one of SpaceDev's largest customers, purchasing multiple spaceships and safe hybrid rocket motors for use in personal spaceflight. However, Jim Benson's illness and death led to the dissolution of the company. SpaceDev announced on October 10, 2008, that James Benson had died earlier that day. He had been diagnosed with Glioblastoma multiforme ,

252-492: A runway similar to the return of the Space Shuttle . Total mission duration could be as low as 72 hours. Other potential missions defined for a PLS included the orbital rescue of stranded astronauts, priority delivery and observation missions, and missions to perform satellite servicing. For these other missions, the basic HL-20 design would be unchanged, but interior subsystems and arrangements would be modified according to crew accommodations, duration, and equipment required for

294-520: A study to determine the feasibility of developing a prototype and operational system. Their objectives were to assess technical attributes, determine flight qualification requirements, and develop cost and schedule estimates. A cooperative agreement between NASA, North Carolina State University and North Carolina A&T University led to the construction of a full-scale model of the HL-20 PLS for further human factors research on this concept. Students at

336-470: A type of brain tumor, in the spring of 2008. HL-20 The HL-20 Personnel Launch System was a NASA spaceplane concept for crewed orbital missions studied by NASA's Langley Research Center around 1990. It was envisaged as a lifting body re-entry vehicle similar to the Soviet BOR-4 spaceplane design. Its stated goals were to achieve low operational costs, improved flight safety, and

378-422: A year-long contracted effort managed by Langley Research Center to perform an in-depth study of PLS design and operations with the HL-20 concept as a baseline for the study. Using a concurrent engineering approach, Rockwell factored supportable, efficient design and operations measures into defining a detailed, cost-effective design along with a manufacturing plan and operations assessment. A key finding of this study

420-415: Is a suitcase-size science microsatellite that is also the first U.S. mission to use only TCP/IP Internet communications for end-to-end satellite operations control, becoming the first satellite whose mission control and operations center is any laptop computer located anywhere in the world. Although the nominal mission duration was one year, the satellite operated successfully for almost five years when mission

462-479: Is based on the HL-20 lifting-body design. It was developed by SpaceDev for the 2004 Commercial Orbital Transportation Services competition and was being developed by Sierra Nevada Corporation for the Commercial Crew Development program (CCDev). The crewed Dream Chaser was not selected by NASA for the final phase of development of commercial crew (CCtCap). However, the cargo Dream Chaser

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504-502: Is important when returning sick, injured, or deconditioned Space Station crew members to Earth. Wheeled runway landings would be possible, permitting simple, precision recovery at many sites around the world, including the Kennedy Space Center launch site. Originally, delivery of passengers to Space Station Freedom would have been the primary mission of a PLS. For the baseline space station mission, depending on design,

546-649: Is propelled using High Performance Mass Fraction hybrid common core boosters, which will use HTPB and nitrous oxide as fuel. The two motors involved in this system are the Hybrid Upper Stage motor and the SpaceDev Streaker Small Common Booster motor, which will produce 20,000 and 120,000 pounds of thrust respectively. Both motors are used in the SpaceDev Dream Chaser . Other important components include

588-529: The HL-20 's potential as a project that had already received huge amounts of development money. [The vehicle had] friendly flying characteristics combined with a thick pedigree of expensive studies." SpaceDev licensed the HL-20 technology from NASA and extended it to use for its new Dream Chaser suborbital spacecraft . Later, the Dream Chaser became a candidate for NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) Program for delivering cargo to and from

630-557: The International Space Station . In the event, SpaceDev was not selected for award under COTS, but did sign a non-reimburseable Space Act Agreement to facilitate additional exchange of non-cash project milestones with NASA. Afterwards, Benson stepped down as Chairman of SpaceDev and founded the Benson Space Company to pursue the Dream Chaser project. "In the fall of 2007, Benson Space announced

672-678: The Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. SpaceDev acquired the intellectual property of American Rocket Company in 1999 after AMROC's 1996 bankruptcy. The AMROC-derived hybrid rocket motors were used in several SpaceDev projects that followed. SpaceDev started developing the science mission CHIPSat for the University of California, Berkeley in 1999. In 2003, SpaceDev launched the United States' smallest, low-cost, high performance satellite named CHIPSat for NASA. CHIPSat

714-513: The HL-20 PLS would depend both on the required date of initial PLS operations and the cost of booster development and launches. The HL-20 PLS concept was to complement the Space Shuttle with safe, reliable crewed transportation at the lowest cost. Crew safety was of utmost importance with the HL-20 design emphasizing crew protection during aborted launches and vehicle recovery. Other requirements had focused on minimizing life-cycle costs of

756-517: The HL-20 preparation man-hours to less than 10 percent of the Space Shuttle Orbiter's requirement. To protect the crew during an aborted launch, the HL-20 PLS incorporates several safety features. Its interior layout with a ladder and hatch arrangement was designed to permit rapid egress of passengers and crew for emergencies on the launch pad. For emergencies during which the crew must leave at once (launch vehicle fire or explosion),

798-744: The HL-20 was 23,000 pounds (10 t) compared to the Space Shuttle Orbiter's empty weight of 185,000 pounds (84 t). Its cockpit, although smaller than that of the Shuttle, would exceed that of today's small corporate business jets. A focus on easy maintenance would reduce the operating costs of the HL-20 PLS. The vehicle would be prepared in a horizontal position, and its large exterior access panels permit easy access to subsystems, allowing easy servicing or replacement. The selection and design of these subsystems would emphasize simplicity and reduce maintenance requirements: for example, hydraulic systems would be replaced by all-electric controls. Moreover, unlike

840-432: The HL-20 was constructed in 1990 by the students and faculty of North Carolina State University and North Carolina A & T University for studying crew seating arrangements, habitability, equipment layout and crew ingress and egress. This 29-foot (9 m) long engineering research model was used at Langley to define the full-scale external and internal definition of the HL-20 for utilization studies. The PLS mission

882-545: The HL-20, in a manner much similar to Apollo program rockets, would be equipped with emergency escape rockets to push the PLS away from the booster. Once at a safe distance, three emergency parachutes would open to slow the vehicle's descent into the ocean. Upon splashdown, inflatable flotation devices would ensure that at least one of the PLS's two hatches is above the water and available for emergency crew egress. In October 1989, Rockwell International (Space Systems Division) began

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924-412: The Space Shuttle, the HL-20 would not have a payload bay or main engine propulsion, and its thermal protection system , while similar to the Space Shuttle's combination of tiles and ablative coatings, would be far quicker to inspect and maintain due to the HL-20's much smaller size. These design changes and subsystem simplifications, along with the adoption of aircraft maintenance philosophies, could reduce

966-665: The SpaceDev Streaker. In April 2003, SpaceDev announced the creation of the Streaker as part of a propulsion program based on the hybrid motor of the SpaceShipOne , a vehicle created by Scaled Composites. SpaceDev also received an Air Force Research Laboratory contract to develop the SpaceDev Streaker Hybrid Upper Stage rocket, one of two used in the vehicle. The Streaker was expected to undergo first launch in 2007–08. The Streaker

1008-428: The challenge of starting a space commercialization venture. It combined his lifelong interests in science, technology and astronomy with his successful business experience. Benson started the trend of successful high tech entrepreneurs moving into the space development arena, by incorporating SpaceDev, Inc. as a publicly owned space exploration and development company in 1997. Benson and SpaceDev worked to develop

1050-505: The computer field, spanning the era from the introduction of modern mainframe computers to the dominance of the computer industry by microcomputers. Benson's partner Hal Woodward invented modern full text computer indexing and searching in 1981 based on the Federal Acquisition Regulation – the search system was called FARA (FAR Automated), and Benson exploited the new field through companies he co-founded. Benson

1092-495: The crew size would be either 8 or 10 crew members. A typical HL-20 mission operation would commence at the Kennedy Space Center with the HL-20 being processed horizontally in a vehicle-processing facility, while an expendable launch vehicle is processed vertically in a separate facility. The launch vehicle and HL-20 would be mated at the launch pad, and the launch sequence initiated as the space station passes over

1134-707: The design of the Space Shuttle , several lifting-body craft, including M2-F2 , M2-F3 , HL-10 , and the X-24 A and X-24B , were flown by test pilots from 1966 through 1975. The M2-F2 and the HL-10 were proposed in the 1960s to carry 12 people to a space station following launch on a Saturn IB . The HL-20 PLS concept was evolved from these early shapes, being further influenced by the Soviet MiG-105 and especially BOR-4 . The "HL" designation stands for horizontal lander, and "20" reflects Langley's long-term involvement with

1176-505: The emerging multibillion-dollar space tourism or personal spaceflight industry, with the safest and lowest cost astronaut-making suborbital missions. "I am dedicated to opening space for all of humanity and, with SpaceDev well-managed and growing, I plan to spend the next several years creating the possibility that anyone who wants to go to space will be able to, safely and affordably," said Benson in September, 2006. SpaceDev owns many of

1218-413: The launch site. Following launch, the HL-20 would initially enter a low 100-nautical-mile (200 km) orbit to chase after the space station and then transfer up to the space-station orbit altitude of 220 nautical miles (410 km). After rendezvous and docking at Space Station Freedom, crews would be exchanged, and the HL-20 would decelerate for return to Earth . The HL-20 would land horizontally on

1260-508: The lifting-body concept, which included the Northrop HL-10. A lifting-body spacecraft would have several advantages over other shapes. With higher lift characteristics during flight through the atmosphere while returning from orbit, the spacecraft can reach more land area, and the number of available landing opportunities to specific sites would be increased. Deceleration loading during entry would be limited to about 1.5 G. This

1302-537: The particular mission. The HL-20 concept of the PLS is adaptable to several launch vehicle concepts. Titan IV was an existing booster system which could have been used for uncrewed prototype launches or, with modification, as a crewed system. A future launch system option would have been the National Launch System under study by the Air Force and NASA in the 1990s. Choice of a launch system for

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1344-409: The patents and intellectual property rights associated with hybrid rocket motors used for safe human spaceflight. Under Benson's guidance, SpaceDev developed critical hybrid rocket motor technology and furnished all of the rocket motors for Paul Allen 's SpaceShipOne, the craft that earned the $ 10 million Ansari X Prize in 2004. Benson Space had completed its first round of financing and submitted

1386-452: The system by ensuring simple operations, low-cost manufacturing, and high utilization potential. When not including the time of the mission, turnaround time was expected to be 43 days. With an overall length of about 29 feet (8.8 m) and wingspan of 23.5 feet (7.2 m), the HL-20 would be a much smaller craft than the Space Shuttle Orbiter; it could fit within the payload bay of the Shuttle with wings folded. Projected empty weight of

1428-462: The universities, with requirements furnished by Langley and guidance from university instructors, designed the research model during their spring 1990 semester with construction following during the summer. The resulting model was used to evaluate human factors such as crew ingress and egress operations, crew volume and habitability arrangements, and visibility requirements for the crew during docking and landing operations. The Dream Chaser spacecraft

1470-466: The world's first private sector enterprise to profitably explore and develop space beyond earth orbit. SpaceDev's mission is to help "make space happen" for all of humanity, through the development of a comprehensive private space program, by delivering affordable and practical space technologies, products and solutions to SpaceDev's government and commercial customers, while creating value for SpaceDev stockholders. Benson searched NASA's archives and "saw

1512-589: Was active in the early days of Internet Relay Chat (IRC). In the early 1990s, he assembled a large collection of help files that became the predecessor to today's IRChelp.org . Benson was a founding member of the Personal Spaceflight Federation. Benson was on the board of directors of the California Space Authority from 2005 to 2007 was named one of the "50 People to Watch in 2005" by San Diego magazine , and

1554-538: Was an American aerospace entrepreneur who founded SpaceDev , a commercial satellite and satellite component development company, and the Benson Space Company, a civilian spaceflight venture focused on commercial space tourism. Benson was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri , where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Geology from the University of Missouri–Kansas City . He spent 30 years associated with

1596-534: Was later agreed upon that states that the SEC was founded in its allegations and SpaceDev cease and desist from committing or causing violations or future violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act and Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5 thereunder; and Mr. Benson cease and desist from committing or causing violations or future violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act and Section 10(b) of

1638-587: Was named 2005 "Alumnus of the Year" by the University of Missouri at Kansas City. He founded the non-profit Space Development Institute, and introduced the Benson Prize for Amateur Discovery of Near Earth Objects . Benson was Vice-Chairman and private sector representative on NASA 's national Space Grant Review Panel. After a successful career as a computer industry entrepreneur, Benson decided to take on

1680-697: Was terminated in April 2008. In 2004, SpaceDev's hybrid rocket motors were used by Burt Rutan 's SpaceShipOne to win the $ 10 million Ansari X Prize . During his 10 years with the company, Benson served as founder, chairman, chief executive officer and chief technology officer of SpaceDev. He stepped down on September 28, 2006 to announce that he was starting a new venture called Benson Space Company. Jim Benson announced on September 28, 2006 that he had launched an ambitious new venture focused on commercial space tourism, Benson Space Company ( BSC ). As of 2006 , Benson Space stated intentions to be first to market in

1722-504: Was the realization that while design and technological factors could reduce costs of a new crewed space transportation system, further significant savings would be possible only if a new operations philosophy were adopted which treated PLS in a manner similar to an operational airliner rather than a research and development space vehicle. In October 1991, the Lockheed Advanced Development Company began

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1764-488: Was to transport people and small amounts of cargo to and from low Earth orbit, i.e., a small space taxi system. Although never approved for development, the PLS concept spaceplane was designed as a complement to the Space Shuttle and was being considered an addition to the crewed launch capability of the United States for three main reasons: Two designs that were considered for PLS differed in their aerodynamic characteristics and mission capabilities: Predating and influencing

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