Sierra Nevada Corporation’s (SNC) Dream Chaser pressure test article arrived at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 3, 2020, from Louisville, Colorado, and was transported to the high bay in the Space Station Processing Facility.

Inside the low bay of the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers assist as Sierra Nevada Corporation’s (SNC) Dream Chaser pressure test article on its support structure is lowered by crane on June 3, 2020, for its move into the high bay. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

The test article is similar to the actual pressurized cabin being used in the Dream Chaser spaceplane for Commercial Resupply Services-2 (CRS-2) missions. NASA selected Dream Chaser to provide cargo delivery, return and disposal service for the International Space Station under the CRS-2 contract.

Under the contract, Dream Chaser will provide a minimum of six cargo missions to and from the space station, carrying critical supplies like food, water and science experiments, and return to Earth with a landing at Kennedy’s Launch and Landing Facility, managed by Space Florida.

The pressure test article was used to validate that Dream Chaser can withstand the demands associated with repeated launches and returns from space. SNC designed the Dream Chaser spacecraft to be reusable for as many as 15 missions. The pressure article specifically verified the composite and bonded structure of the spacecraft.

The test article will remain at Kennedy while SNC engineers use it to develop and verify refurbishment operations that will be used on Dream Chaser between flights.