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SCIENCEMonday 18 January 2016

NASA adds 3rd company as space station shipper; shuttle back

Sierra Nevada Corp. engineers and technicians prepare the Dream Chaser engineering test vehi- for Sierra Nevada. It com- program manager, Kirk
cle for tow tests at NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center in California. On Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016, peted for NASA’s commer- Shireman, said he’s been
NASA announced the Sierra Nevada Corp. will join SpaceX and Orbital ATK in launching cargo to cial crew contract, but lost assured that the Dream
the International Space Station. These flights, yet to be finalized, will run through 2024. out in 2014 to SpaceX and Chaser could touch down
Boeing in a bid to ferry as- on lots of runways — in lots
(Ken Ulbrich/NASA via AP) tronauts. of places. The goal is to
The Sparks, Nevada-based retrieve science samples,
MARCIA DUNN Nevada business that will Orbital ATK in launching company is developing a though, as quickly as pos-
AP Aerospace Writer bring back a mini version of cargo to the International scaled-down shuttle called sible for analysis. A run-
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) the shuttle. Space Station. These flights Dream Chaser to haul car- way touchdown would be
— NASA is adding a third Late last week, NASA an- will begin in 2019 and run go. gentler than the ocean
company to its short list of nounced Sierra Nevada through 2024. The other companies use parachute drop used by
space station suppliers, a Corp. will join SpaceX and This marks a second chance standard-shaped cap- SpaceX.
sules. Like SpaceX, Sierra “The air traffic controllers
Nevada plans to launch would hate us landing” at
from Cape Canaveral, Washington Dulles Interna-
Florida. The spacecraft will tional or other major air-
be able to land back on ports, Shireman said. “Most
Earth, like the shuttle, and likely, we’ll land in Florida,
bring back science experi- right close to where our fa-
ments and other items from cilities are.”
the station. Now, only SpaceX can re-
“Within a few short years, turn goods. In its latest pro-
the world will once again posal,
see a United States winged SpaceX has offered to re-
vehicle launch and return turn its Dragon capsules to
from space to a runway land as well, Shireman said.
landing,” Mark Sirangelo, Other cargo ships, includ-
vice president of Sierra Ne- ing Orbital’s Cygnus and
vada’s space systems, said Russia’s Progress, are filled
in a statement. with trash and burn up on
NASA’s space station re-entry.q

Particles could reveal clues to how Egypt pyramid was built

MARAM MAZEN of the Heritage Innovation ing particle accumulations, with the new technology, to build a smooth-sided
Associated Press Preservation Institute, said scientists may learn more we would like to either con- pyramid.
CAIRO (AP) — An interna- that plates planted inside about the construction of firm or change or upgrade The Scan Pyramids project,
tional team of researchers the pyramid last month the pyramid, built by the or modify the hypotheses which announced in No-
said Sunday they will soon have collected data on ra- Pharaoh Snefru. that we have on how the vember thermal anomalies
begin analyzing cosmic diographic particles known “For the construction of the pyramids were construct- in the 4,500 year-old Khufu
particles collected inside as muons that rain down pyramids, there is no single ed,” he said. Pyramid in Giza, is coupling
Egypt’s Bent Pyramid to from the earth’s atmo- theory that is 100 percent The Bent Pyramid in thermal technology with
search for clues as to how sphere. proven or checked; They Dahshur, just outside Cai- muons analysis to try to
it was built and learn more The particles pass through are all theories and hypoth- ro, is distinguished by the unlock secrets to the con-
about the 4,600-year-old empty spaces but can be eses,” said Hany Helal, the bent slope of its sides. It is struction of several ancient
structure. absorbed or deflected by institute’s vice president. believed to have been an- Egyptian pyramids.q
Mehdi Tayoubi, president harder surfaces. By study- “What we are trying to do cient Egypt’s first attempt