Posted on Nov 20, 2016
Next Job for X-37B Military Space Plane: Astronaut Ambulance?
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Thought this was pretty cool to share and a respite from the norm.
Next Job for X-37B Military Space Plane: Astronaut Ambulance?
Posted from space.com
Space
Posted 8 y ago
Responses: 2
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This is reminiscent of the USAF's cancelled Dyna Soar. Coincidentally it was one of the three spacecraft programs Neil Armstrong was chosen for before he was selected for Gemini & Apollo.
http://www.boeing.com/history/products/x-20-dyna-soar.page
http://www.boeing.com/history/products/x-20-dyna-soar.page
Boeing: Historical Snapshot: X-20 Dyna-Soar Space Vehicle
In 1963, $410 million had been spent on the Dyna-Soar, and astronauts were training to fly it, but the piloted, reusable space vehicle program was canceled and never went past the mockup stage.
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Similarly, there was also a rescue plan for Skylab:
https://www.wired.com/2012/07/skylab-rescue-plan-1972/
https://www.wired.com/2012/07/skylab-rescue-plan-1972/
If astronauts had become stranded on the Skylab Orbital Workshop, NASA had a plan, and in July 1973 it came very near to launching its plan. Beyond Apollo blogger and historian David S. F. Portree describes troubles on board the Skylab 3 Apollo Command and Service Module and NASA's plan to rescue the Skylab 3 crew.
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