"Douglas Holmes" wrote in message
...
"Jim Kingdon" wrote in message
news
There's one expected this afternoon.

I assume this is the one:
http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2005...ontractor.html

In a nutshell, they picked two contractors to compete for a
down-selection in 2006 (which is sooner than had been previously
planned). Moving up the down-selection has been widely reported for
some months now.

Is that what was expected or is there more?

The most interesting line for me was:

NASA's Vision for Space Exploration calls for the CEV to carry up to six
astronauts beyond low-Earth orbit soon after the Space Shuttle is retired
in 2010, and then on to the moon as early as 2015.

When did the CEV become a SIX man vehicle?

About the same time the Russian Kilper announced 2 pilots and 4 crew !
Last week the Europeans mentioend they may assist the Russians with the
design/build, etc.

gb


Helps explain the size increase from 20 to 30 tons.


Yes, in part - it does.