Eilon Engineering in the Orbital Age

The dawn of a new Space Age?

People have been fascinated by the cosmos since time immemorial. And ever since advancements in space exploration technology helped usher in the Space Age, our dream of reaching the stars is slowly turning into a reality.

But are we on the precipice of a new space era? In the eyes of one company, yes.

Welcome to the Orbital Age.

According to some, the Orbital Age will see human civilization pivot from having a handful of astronauts in government-run space stations to having thousands of people moving regularly through orbit on a fleet of spaceplanes, visiting various commercial space destinations.

By as early as the next decade, we may see people living in low Earth orbit (LEO) for months at a time as they work, vacation, grow crops, and more, all while living in inflatable space habitats 250 miles about the Earth’s surface.

If this comes to fruition, the Orbital Age may be as significant to human civilization as the Industrial Revolution was.

One company pushing the envelope and leading us into this new age is Sierra Space, which sees the Orbital Age as an “era of historical transformation marked by the transition from 60 years of human space exploration to human space commercialization.”

Sierra Space’s stated goal is “building a platform in space to benefit life on Earth.” The company believes that the number of humans in space will soon “reach critical mass and establish a permanent presence and lasting civilization off-world.”

In other words, Sierra Space is helping turn our ancient dreams of space into a reality in our lifetime.

Meet the Dream Chaser

The Dream Chaser is Sierra Space’s flagship spaceplane and is the only winged commercial space vehicle that can land horizontally on conventional runways. It’s the first of what Sierra Space plans on being a multi-mission space plane fleet that will regularly transport both cargo and crew to LEO destinations.

The first Dream Chaser space plane is named the Tenacity and has been selected by NASA to provide a delivery of cargo to the International Space Station. That first mission may happen as soon as this year, 2024.

Together with the Tenacity, the Shooting Star cargo module will also make the journey as an attachment to the Dream Chaser spaceplane.

The Tenacity is a DC-100, the smaller version of the Dream Chaser designed solely to transport and return cargo. But the DC-200 will be Sierra Space’s first manned space plane and will carry crew to and from LEO space destinations.

At the NASA test facility

Recently, in late 2023, the Tenacity Dream Chaser and the Shooting Star cargo module arrived at NASA’s Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, Ohio.

At the facility, the Dream Chaser will be set for the final testing phase in preparation for its maiden flight, scheduled for later this year.

The Dream Chaser will be stacked together with the cargo module in their launch configuration to undergo rigorous environmental testing in NASA’s Mechanical Vibration Facility. The test will simulate the extreme conditions and vibrations of a real launch using the world’s most powerful spacecraft shaker table.

During the transportation of both the Tenacity Dream Chaser and the Shooting Star cargo module, a wireless Ron 2501 dynamometer was used to verify the weight of the lifted load.

Here are some shots of our 30-ton 2501 Ron Crane Scale in action at the NASA facility, helping transport the Sierra Space spaceplane and cargo module:

The Tenacity spaceplane being lifted by a Ron 2501 wireless dynamometer

Dream Chaser space plane by Sierra Space being lifted by an Eilon Engineering load cell during testing at NASA’s Neil Armstrong Test Facility

Worker watch the Tenacity spaceplane as it’s hoisted using a Ron Crane Scale

A wireless Ron 2501 lifts the Tenacity spaceplane at the Neil Armstrong Test Facility

In the clip below, we see the Shooting Star cargo module being lifted into place with the help of a wireless Ron 2501 system in preparation for a comprehensive testing campaign to ensure it can withstand the rigor of launch and the challenging conditions of space.

A wireless Ron 2501 dynamometer lifts the Shooting Star cargo module

Gif of the Shooting Star cargo module being lifted and moved using a Ron 2501 load cell by Eilon Engineering

Eilon Engineering load cells: trusted in aerospace

For close to five decades, Eilon Engineering has been at the forefront of load cell technology.

In 1993 we pioneered the incorporation of wireless communication into our systems for easy and readily accessible load cell readings. We keep abreast of this constantly developing technology and continually integrate the latest advancements.

Further, in 2005 we combined our extensive knowledge in advanced wireless communication together with our proven load cell technology to develop an advanced multi-point load monitoring and overload prevention system. This breakthrough launched the Ron StageMaster and Ron CraneMaster systems, which quickly gained international recognition and earned innovation awards at both LDI and PLASA.

Because of our commitment to quality, safety, and dependability, our systems have been chosen time and again by some of the world’s leading aerospace companies.

Our Ron CraneMaster multipoint system is regularly used on the Boeing CST-100 Starliner, a partially reusable spacecraft designed to transport crew to the International Space Station.

And, a 3-ton wireless Ron 2501 dynamometer was used during the assembly of the Ball Aerospace JPSS-1, aka the NOAA-20, a satellite used for collecting critical data for civil and military weather forecasting, storm tracking, and climate monitoring.

The Boeing CST-100 Starliner held by a multipoint load cell system by Eilon Engineering

A Ball Aerospace employee works on the JPSS-1/NOAA-20 satellite with a 3-ton wireless Ron 2501 dynamometer

Eyes on the horizon

Over the decades, our focus at Eilon Engineering has always been twofold.

On one hand, we have an unwavering commitment to quality, using only the highest caliber materials in our systems, including aerospace grade steel in all of our load cell bodies. This allows our systems to be fatigue rated, meaning they can be used for an unlimited number of load cycles, so long as the load cell has never been overloaded.

On the other hand, we continuously looked toward the future, dedicating many resources to research and development of our load monitoring and overload prevention systems.

We believe it’s this commitment to both quality and technology that makes our weighing systems a favorite among aerospace projects.

Sierra Space is certainly a company with its eyes on the horizon, looking toward the future. Along with the development of its spaceplanes, the company is planning an ecosystem in LEO of inflatable environments attached to a modular core called the Orbital Reef.

We’re proud to see our systems used to lift and weigh such important aerospace equipment, like the new space planes by Sierra Space. Here’s to a future we can all be excited about.

Get in touch

No matter what sector or industry you’re involved in, Eilon Engineering is sure to have a system to meet your weighing-during-lifting needs. Get in touch today, and one of our experienced reps will be happy to help you find the perfect system for your unique application.

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