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Overview
The Constellation Program is NASA's initiative to return humans to the Moon -- this time to stay. It includes a constellation of new space vehicles: a new crew exploration vehicle, Orion, to carry crew and cargo; two new launch vehicles -- the Ares I rocket to carry Orion to low earth orbit and the Ares V heavy lift rocket to launch the Earth departure stage, a lunar lander, and lunar surface exploration vehicles and habitat modules.
As NASA implements Constellation's human and robotic space exploration program, Boeing Space Exploration is drawing on the company's defense and commercial aviation engineering and manufacturing best practices to help make the program affordable and sustainable. Boeing's participation in Constellation will facilitate a safe transition of the engineering experience and skills of the Space Shuttle and ISS programs to the new program.
Boeing SE is already working with NASA on several Constellation efforts:
- Ares I crew launch vehicle upper stage production and instrument unit avionics
- Systems engineering and integration support and test and evaluation engineering support to NASA's Constellation program office
- Altair lunar lander configuration and systems study
Upcoming Constellation new business pursuits include:
- Ares V heavy lift vehicle design support
- Altair lunar lander design support
- Exploration ground processing and launch services support
For more information, read the Constellation (PDF) overview.
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