NASA outlines the next phase for its space taxi program

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA is looking for at least two U.S. firms to design and build space transport systems for ferrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station, program managers said Tuesday.

NASA plans to provide $300 million to $500 million in funding for each of the firms selected under new 21-month partnership agreements, Ed Mango, manager of NASA's Commercial Crew program, said at an industry briefing at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The spaceship development program, known as the Commercial Crew Integrated Capability Initiative or CCiCap, aims to build upon previous NASA awards to companies designing commercial passenger spaceships. Like the two earlier phases of the development program, the third phase will be governed by Space Act Agreements, which give companies more leeway for hitting agreed-upon milestones.

NASA and the White House are banking on private companies to build a new generation of spaceships for NASA's use by the year 2017.

"President Obama is working hard to create an American economy built to last," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said in a statement on the new phase of the program. "NASA's support of commercial innovation to reach low Earth orbit is helping to support these efforts by spurring new technological development and creating jobs and economic benefits for years to come."

Russian spaceships needed
With the retirement of the U.S. space shuttles last year, Russia has a monopoly on flying crews to the station. China, the only other country that has launched people into orbit, is not a partner in the project.

Russia charges NASA about $60 million per person for rides to the station, which flies about 240 miles (385 kilometers) above Earth and is staffed by rotating crews of six astronauts from the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan and Canada.

The CCiCap schedule calls on companies to submit proposals by March 23 for the development of an integrated system, including a launch vehicle as well as a crew capsule, ground operation and mission control. NASA would select the winners this summer.

Winning firms would have until May 2014 to complete the integrated designs for their transport system — with the intention, if funding allows, of proceeding with orbital test flights by the middle of the decade, Mango said. Goals of the test flights include reaching an altitude of at least 230 miles (370 kilometers), maneuvering in space and staying in orbit for at least three days, Mango said.

The test ships should be capable of carrying at least four people, he added.

Where the money has gone
Since 2010, NASA has provided a total of $365.5 million to private companies for crew vehicle development, including $130.9 million to the Boeing Co., $125.6 million to Sierra Nevada Corp., $75 million to SpaceX and $25.7 million to Blue Origin. Smaller amounts have gone to Paragon Space Development and United Launch Alliance.

Boeing is developing a capsule, called the CST-100, which would fly on an Atlas 5 rocket. SpaceX, already selected by NASA to fly cargo to the station, plans to upgrade its Dragon freighter and Falcon 9 rocket to fly crew as well.

Sierra Nevada is developing a winged vehicle called the Dream Chaser that resembles a miniature space shuttle. Blue Origin is working on a gumdrop-shaped capsule. Like Boeing's spaceship, the Dream Chaser and Blue Origin's orbital space vehicle would launch aboard Atlas 5 rockets, which are manufactured and sold by United Launch Alliance, a Boeing-Lockheed Martin partnership.

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NASA was allotted $406 million to spend on commercial crew programs for the year that began Oct. 1. Mango said about 75 percent of that money is available for the next phase of the program, with awards expected in July or August.

Because of future funding uncertainties, NASA is asking its potential partners to propose how they would proceed with flat funding of $400 million a year after 2014, as well as how much they would need to get to a flight demonstration.

"If we have multiple partners, we think the most we might be able to give them in the long term might be something along the lines of $400 million per partner," Mango said.

In addition to CCiCap, NASA is funding a separate program known as Commercial Orbital Transportation Services to develop unmanned cargo craft for resupplying the space station. SpaceX and Orbital Sciences are in line to receive a total of $684 million if they reach all the milestones in that program. SpaceX is due to launch its first cargo demonstration flight to the station by this spring, and Orbital is planning its on-orbit demonstration later this year.

NASA is also in the midst of a multibillion-dollar effort aimed at producing crew vehicles and heavy-lift rockets for going beyond Earth orbit in the 2020s.

This report includes information from Reuters and msnbc.com.