Boron fiber: The original high-performance fiber
History and future developments for high-performance boron fiber.
NASA announces new James Webb Space Telescope target launch date
The observatory is expected to launch Oct. 31, 2021, a change resulting from technical challenges and the impact of the pandemic.
NASA rocket motors arrive at Kennedy Space Center for Artemis program
The rocket motors are the next step toward NASA’s Artemis I space launch in 2021.
Northrop Grumman awarded first crew module contract
The HALO module design is adapted from the Cygnus spacecraft designed by Northrop Grumman, and will serve as both crew habitat and docking hub for cislunar spacecraft.
Successful tower extension test for James Webb space telescope
The test ensured the tower extensions on NASA’s composites-intensive telescope would keep the structure cool enough to detect infrared light.
People in Composites: November 2019
Albany Engineered Composites, GKN Aerospace, Michelman and Sirrus Inc. announce new hires in the composites manufacturing industry.
Composites 2020: A Multitude of Markets
The manufacturing world likes to think of composites fabrication as a single, global entity that operates to serve its customers’ needs with a variety of highly engineered parts and structures.
Reading tea leaves: The outlook for aerospace
The coronavirus pandemic promises to wreak havoc on the aerospace composites supply chain, but it’s not too soon to start thinking about how a post-pandemic commercial aerospace market will evolve.
Jeff Sloan
Editor-in-Chief, CompositesWorld
Blue Origin to team up with Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Draper on lunar lander
Proposed lunar landing system to be considered for NASA’s Artemis program, which seeks to return humans to the moon by 2024.
California high school adds composites fabrication to curriculum
A STEM academy recently opened the doors to a brand-new composites fabrication lab, to prepare students for the local aerospace workforce after graduation.
NASA assembles James Webb Telescope
NASA has successfully connected the two halves — the Optical Telescope Element (OTE) and the Space Craft Element (SCE) — of the composites intensive James Webb Telescope for the first time, marking a major milestone for the program.
Merger mania, part II?
Columnist Dale Brosius considers the surges of company mergers that have affected the composites industry over the years.
Highlights: Composites Convention 2019
Highlights from the Composites Convention 2019, June 12-13, in Stade, Germany, organized by CFK Valley e.V. and Carbon Composites e.V, and the German Aerospace Center’s 5th Colloquium on Production Technology, on May 15, in Augsburg.
NASA funds Made In Space project to 3D print spacecraft components in orbit
Made In Space’s Archinaut One spacecraft will demonstrate the ability to manufacture and assemble spacecraft components in low-Earth orbit.
Composites in the race to space
Advanced materials use in current and upcoming NASA missions.
Scott Francis
Contributing Editor, CompositesWorld
Orion spacecraft completes launch abort tests
The successful test of the composites-intensive abort system moves NASA’s Orion crew capsule a step further toward travel to the Moon and beyond.
2019 Paris Air Show: Highlights
The 2019 Paris Air Show may have lacked the glamour of a new aircraft program announcement, but the composites industry represented is clearly gearing up for next-generation aerospace manufacturing.
Large, high-volume, infused composite structures on the aerospace horizon
Infused carbon fiber composite structures are not new, but they have never been built at the rates anticipated for next-generation, single-aisle aircraft. It is a daunting prospect — but a feasible one.
NASA selects American companies for lunar landers, propulsion element
NASA has announced the companies that will conduct research and build prototypes, and build the PPE spacecraft for its Artemis missions.
Composites industry leaders recognized at SME's AeroDef 2019
SME recently recognized Douglas D. Decker, technical fellow, Northrop Grumman and two prominent composites manufacturing companies with the 2019 Composites Manufacturing Awards.
Space: The next frontier and battleground
CW Editor-in-Chief Jeff Sloan reflects on the goals outlined leaders for space travel at the 35th Space Symposium – exploration, commercial travel and military defense among them – and the role of composites in the vehicles under development to reach them.
The markets: Aerospace (2020)
With the 737 MAX grounded, the global aerospace supply chain was thrown into disarray in 2019. Still, several new programs on the horizon portend increasing composites use in commercial aerostructures for coming decades.
Jeff Sloan
Editor-in-Chief, CompositesWorld
35th Space Symposium puts emphasis on collaboration, U.S. leadership in space
High-profile speakers at the 35th Space Symposium emphasized the need to increase collaboration with commercial entities and foreign partners to maintain U.S. dominance in space.
Stratolaunch aircraft completes first flight
On April 13, the world’s largest composite aircraft flew for 149 minutes in its initial flight test.
United Launch Alliance progresses manufacture of Vulcan Centaur
Updates on the progress of the new launch vehicle, scheduled for launch in 2021, were announced at the 35th Space Symposium.
Spar forming simplified
Adapting its Automated Stiffener Forming (ASF) technology to build spars directly in female molds, Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems anticipates dramatic drops in cycle time and manufacturing cost.
Stratolaunch cuts launch vehicle and rocket engine programs
Stratolaunch has reportedly backed off of development of a family of launch vehicles that were intended to use the company’s all composite carrier aircraft as a launch platform.
Aerospace outlook: A dynamic, evolving supply chain and market
With major new aircraft programs on the horizon, the aerospace industry is looking to reduce costs and increase efficiencies.