It's something that's on the drawing board, since it'll be a big modification to her rear end structure. It's something they've promised her when her main engines reach their running-hour limits, provided at least two of them reach the limit intact. It helps discourage her from just blowing them up, and encourages her to keep them within their rated limits. Though, if it's planned to become a production propulsion upgrade for in-service orbiters, Mel may well volunteer(beg) to be the guinea pig. Then it becomes a matter of finding time in her busy schedule to do the work, which is right back to major engine overhaul time.
The OMS engines were done when one of her OMS pods was ripped off, at the same time as the transmitter in her stabiliser was added. It made sense to do it at the time, and gives her some extra payload capacity off the ground, or some extra speed up in vacuum.
Speaking of shuttle upgrades, there're bound to be all sorts out there available. There's an image on the wiki of an OV-200 mounted to an external tank and booster set. Instead of external fuel tanks, maybe a shuttle-transported mobile space-station (taking example from Stellvian early construction), allowing a reasonably sustainable outpost to be left behind at any mission site, which can then be resupplied or removed when the science is done. The hard part, was getting them off Earth's surface.
Anyone have any thoughts?
________________________________
--m(^0^)m-- Wot, no sig?
The OMS engines were done when one of her OMS pods was ripped off, at the same time as the transmitter in her stabiliser was added. It made sense to do it at the time, and gives her some extra payload capacity off the ground, or some extra speed up in vacuum.
Speaking of shuttle upgrades, there're bound to be all sorts out there available. There's an image on the wiki of an OV-200 mounted to an external tank and booster set. Instead of external fuel tanks, maybe a shuttle-transported mobile space-station (taking example from Stellvian early construction), allowing a reasonably sustainable outpost to be left behind at any mission site, which can then be resupplied or removed when the science is done. The hard part, was getting them off Earth's surface.
Anyone have any thoughts?
________________________________
--m(^0^)m-- Wot, no sig?