NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

It takes a lot of crane to lift a three-and-a-half-ton space shuttle main engine up from its trailer, and the laws of physics must be understood to tip up even a scale model of the planned Ares I Crew Launch Vehicle (CLV) rocket combination. Rising about 24 feet over the ramp in front of the NASA building at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wis., the Ares I stack is only 1/15 the size of the envisioned real thing. That real thing is still in the early stages of its development.

Image left: Easy does it as a real space shuttle main engine is hoisted into position at Oshkosh, Wis. (Photo by Frederick A. Johnsen)

As NASA looks ahead to the retirement of the space shuttle fleet around 2010, the agency needs a new capability to reach out into space. Far from Earth the moon beckons. Beyond the moon, places like Mars await future explorers. The proven ability to dock in space gives NASA the confidence to premise the next lunar human mission on a two-phase set-up. The Ares I CLV is expected to put a new Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) into Earth orbit where the CEV will link up with other components launched by the bigger Ares V before making the trans-lunar journey. The Ares I is expected to heft the first CEV into Earth orbit early next decade as the vision for space exploration moves ahead.

Visitors to the NASA exhibit at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh between July 23-30 can see a scale version of Ares I, and a full-size concept of the CEV, along with NASA staffers who are happy to explain the acronyms.

Meanwhile, reusable rocket engines like the massive space shuttle powerplant in front of the NASA building continue to boost shuttles into Earth orbit as NASA works to complete the International Space Station (ISS). Modular pieces get a lift to the ISS inside a space shuttle each time one of the fleet of three shuttles roars forth from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

As EAA increasingly embraces the realm of spaceflight, NASA's contribution to AirVenture this year lifts the curtain on the next generation of space exploration beyond Earth orbit while also showcasing the ongoing mission of the space shuttles.

By Frederick A. Johnsen
NASA Public Affairs