Space

Inside the cutting-edge US factory building the Dream Chaser Spaceplane

  • Take a look inside the factory creating the Dream Chaser Spaceplane
  • The spaceplanes undergo rigorous and thorough testing
  • You can see the factory in action below

Published on Oct 02, 2024 at 1:50 AM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid

Last updated on Oct 02, 2024 at 3:03 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by Tom Wood

Take a look inside the US-based factory building the Sierra Space Dream Chaser spaceplanes. 

The Dream Chaser by Sierra Space is the world’s first winged commercial spaceplane.

Sierra Space has partnered with NASA and its first flights will consist of essential cargo transport missions to space.

Unlike the usual sort of craft we see blasting off into space, the Dream Chaser can fly like an airplane, take off, and land on a typical runway. 

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The Dream Chaser spaceplane will be used by NASA

The Dream Chaser is a reusable aircraft and the US space agency will use it for at least seven trips to the International Space Station.

As you’d imagine, creating one of these spaceplanes is no mean feat – and a glimpse around the factory where it’s made shows just how specialist a job it is. 

Firstly, due to the nature of its missions, the Dream Chaser is made of specialist high-tech materials, including advanced 3D woven composite materials such as carbon fiber-reinforced polymers that can withstand the sort of extreme temperatures the craft will encounter in space. 

Inside the cutting-edge US factory building the Dream Chaser Spaceplane
Sierra Space
Sierra Space Dream Chaser
Sierra Nevada Space Systems

Next is the delicate task of assembling the plane, which sees droves of experts on hand to ensure every single detail is taken care of.  

Once assembled the spaceplane is transferred to NASA’s Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, Ohio. 

The spaceplane undergoes rigorous testing

“Here, we have some of the world’s largest and most capable simulation and test facilities to test the harsh conditions that spacecraft will experience during launch and in flight,” said Doctor Jimmy Kenyon in a press release. 

These tests include using the world’s most powerful spacecraft shaker system to expose Dream Chaser to vibrations like those it will experience during launch and re-entry into the atmosphere.

It also gets placed inside a giant vacuum chamber that is able to simulate the space environment Dream Chaser will encounter on its mission. 

The spaceplane is put through its paces, experiencing low ambient pressures, low-background temperatures, and dynamic solar heating.

The Dream Chaser is set to take off on its inaugural space flight later this year. 

So…watch this space.

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Claire Reid is a journalist who hails from the UK but is now living in New Zealand. She began her career after graduating with a degree in Journalism from Liverpool John Moore’s University and has more than a decade of experience, writing for both local newspapers and national news sites. Across her career she's covered a wide variety of topics, including celebrity, cryptocurrency, politics, true crime and just about everything in between.