mrb1@cbnewsh.ATT.COM (maurice.r.baker) (08/10/89)
Hi --- With all the recent postings about the meaning of "VAB", and the flurry of press coverage for the latest mission, the following question came to mind: There must be a "VAB-like" structure at Vandenberg AFB for the (presently) abandoned Space Launch Complex intended as a Shuttle launch site. What do they call it ? While we're at it, 1.) Are there any good written references re: Shuttle launching facilities at Vandenberg (i.e., journal articles, books, etc.) which come to mind ? 2.) How close to "done" is it ? I know there was some problems with poor workmanship (welds?), etc. along with a potential for H2 build-up at base of pad (think this may have been "fixed" before mothballing) but what would it take to make it operational if facility in Florida were somehow destroyed or otherwise made unavailable ? Is this even an option ? More enquiring minds want to know, I guess. M. Baker hoqub!mrb
nickw@syma.sussex.ac.uk (Nick Watkins) (08/21/89)
In article <2995@cbnewsh.ATT.COM>, mrb1@cbnewsh.ATT.COM (maurice.r.baker) writes: > There must be a "VAB-like" structure at Vandenberg AFB ... I don't think there is exactly. The vehicle was apparently to be erected on the pad, so operations would differ from LC39 and also the USAF Titan pads at the Cape. > 1.) Are there any good written references re: Shuttle > launching facilities at Vandenberg ... A brief article in Spaceflight, Vol 24, No. 5, May 1982 by G Borrowman on "The Military Role in the Shuttle" has some details and a sketch of the pad. If this has changed since 1982, my apologies. It was the most recent reference to hand. Nick -- Nick Watkins, Space & Plasma Physics Group, School of Mathematical & Physical Sciences, Univ. of Sussex, Brighton, E.Sussex, BN1 9QH, ENGLAND JANET: nickw@syma.sussex.ac.uk BITNET: nickw%syma.sussex.ac.uk@uk.ac Voice: +44 273 678072
steve@polyslo.CalPoly.EDU (Steve DeJarnett) (08/23/89)
In article <1258@syma.sussex.ac.uk> nickw@syma.sussex.ac.uk (Nick Watkins) writes: >In article <2995@cbnewsh.ATT.COM>, mrb1@cbnewsh.ATT.COM (maurice.r.baker) writes: >> There must be a "VAB-like" structure at Vandenberg AFB ... > I don't think there is exactly. The vehicle was apparently to be >erected on the pad, so operations would differ from LC39 and also the >USAF Titan pads at the Cape. I believe that the VAB at Vandenberg is a movable building. That is, the building is actually two pieces on tracks that slide together during the assembly phase, then slide apart before launch. This of course saves on the cost of having the huge crawlers to transport the shuttle from the VAB to the pad, and probably cuts the overhead cost for Vandenberg, since they don't have to maintain a set of new buildings for the shuttle. Of course, this is all probably academic now, as I think the Vandenberg site is being decommissioned (at least for the near future). One of the interesting things about Vandenberg (before the shuttle launch facility cancellation) was that all of the roads leading from the main runway (where the shuttle carrier would land) to the launch facility had to be specially carved up. If you drive along these roads, you see a notch cut out of the hills, right at the height that the shuttle's wings would be (actually, the whole hill above the level of the shuttle's wings was removed -- I hope that was obvious). ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Steve DeJarnett | Smart Mailers -> steve@polyslo.CalPoly.EDU | | Computer Systems Lab | Dumb Mailers -> ..!ucbvax!voder!polyslo!steve | | Cal Poly State Univ. |------------------------------------------------| | San Luis Obispo, CA 93407 | BITNET = Because Idiots Type NETwork | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
rogers@wlf.isi.edu (Craig Milo Rogers) (08/23/89)
Another interesting aspect about the road at Vandenberg is the traffic control signs (such as "no parking" or "speed limit"), which are either very low or built with hinges; you swing them down (manually) before the shuttle goes by, and swing them back up afterwards. Craig Milo Rogers