|
|
|
A U.S. Army CH-47 Chinook helicopter slowly lowers the X-40 sub-scale technology demonstrator to the ground under the watchful eyes of ground crew at the conclusion of a captive-carry test flight.
|
|
|
Photo Number: |
EC00-0362-8
|
Photo Date: |
December 8, 2000
|
|
|
Formats: |
458x640 JPEG Image (92 KBytes)
917x1280 JPEG Image (627 KBytes)
2400x3350 JPEG Image (6,170 KBytes)
|
|
|
Description: |
A U.S. Army CH-47 Chinook helicopter slowly lowers the X-40 sub-scale technology demonstrator to the ground under the watchful eyes of ground crew at the conclusion of a captive-carry test flight at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California. Several captive-carry flights were conducted to check out all operating systems and procedures before the X-40 made its first free flight at Edwards, gliding to a fully-autonomous approach and landing on the Edwards runway. The X-40 is an unpowered 82 percent scale version of the X-37, a Boeing-developed spaceplane designed to demonstrate various advanced technologies for development of future lower-cost access to space vehicles. Flight tests of the X-40 are designed to reduce the risks associated with research flights of the larger, more complex X-37.
|
|
|
NASA Photo by: |
Tom Tschida
|
|
|
Keywords: |
X-40; X-40A; sub-scale technology demonstrator; X-37; U.S. Army CH-47 Chinook helicopter; captive-carry test flight; stabilization parachute; low cost access-to-space vehicles
|