*HTML is ON *UBB Code is ON Smilies Legend
Smilies Legend
[i]Swapping places with the Bell X-1 that Chuck Yeager flew to become the first to break the sound barrier, SpaceShipOne will be hung in a perpetual landing, with its unique "feathers" deployed in the shuttlecock form that set it apart from previous vehicles.[/i]
[i]...while in operation, the feather is held in the raised position by air pressure only; there are no "up" locks. Since we will display the artifact in the reentry configuration for years, we needed to provide a mechanical means of keeping the feather deployed. Gary Gordon, our collections department in-house machinist, fabricated aluminum collars that fit over the actuator pistons to keep them from retracting back into their cylinders should a loss of system pressure occur over time. We performed two trial deployments of the feather to ensure the proper design and fit of the collars, and we also verified the volume of space the aircraft needs in the gallery to be suspended in this configuration. The artifact takes up about 6 meters (20 feet) of vertical height in the new configuration. We operated the feather system by following the normal flight procedure using levers and gauges in the cockpit. This meant pressuring the system via a quick-connect service port, which services all four onboard air bottles simultaneously. However, I did not recognize the quick-connect fitting as standard aerospace hardware. As it turns out, and owing to the experimental nature of the craft, the fitting is the same type as used for a paintball marker![/i]
If you have previously registered, but forgotten your password, click here.
*** Click here to review this topic. ***
Contact Us | The Source for Space History & Artifacts
Copyright 1999-2024 collectSPACE. All rights reserved.