Tag: Dragonfly

NASA Awards Launch Services Contract for Dragonfly Mission

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Caption: Artist’s concept of Dragonfly soaring over the dunes of Saturn’s moon Titan. NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben NASA has selected SpaceX to provide launch services for the Dragonfly mission, a rotorcraft lander mission under NASA’s New Frontiers Program, designed to explore Saturn’s moon Titan. The mission will sample materials and determine surface composition in different geologic settings, advancing our search for the building blocks of life. The firm-fixed-price contract has a value of approximately $256.6 million, which includes launch services and other mission related costs. The Dragonfly mission currently has…

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NASA’s Dragonfly Tunnel Visions

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5 min read NASA’s Dragonfly Tunnel Visions Dragonfly Team Utilizes Unique NASA Facilities to Shape Its Innovative Titan-bound Rotorcraft  Dragonfly team members review the half-scale lander model after it underwent wind tunnel testing at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Pictured are (from left) Art Azarbarzin, Juan Cruz, Wayne Dellinger, Zibi Turtle, Chuck Hebert, Ken Hibbard, Bernadine Juliano and Bruce Owens. Johns Hopkins APL/Ed Whitman With its dense atmosphere and low gravity, Saturn’s moon Titan is a great place to fly.  But well before NASA’s Dragonfly rotorcraft lander soars…

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