Garvey Spacecraft - John Garvey

Garvey Spacecraft - John Garvey

Nanosat Launch Vehicle Development Status - the progress over the last year.  There have been some good days and some challenging days.

Here are my notes from his talk last year.

Executive Summary:

The GSC team is developing an Nanosat Launch Vehicle (NLV) through an approach based on incremental flight testing.  Now independent from Cal State

Have focused on low-altitude flights for cost reasons

Thirty-two flights test since 1998, 3 since Space Access 2012

Had over eleven customers

Two to four years to first orbital attempt under fully funded programs

Experimenters do not have to wait that long for low-altitude suborbital test flights


Next goals - implement thrust vector control and conduct a high altitude (More than 100 km) flight

Plans are to sell the service of taking 10/20 kg up to 250 km, and around 20/50 kg up to 450 km.

GSC has provided test support for HyperTherm's LOX-methane engine featuring an advance CMC-lined ablative chamber.  They have initiated conversion to LOX/propylene propellant for their 4.5k first stage engine.  Their shop is now in Huntington Beach, California.

He showed this video:




The full agenda for Space Access 2013 agenda.