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Armadillo Aerospace was an aerospace startup company based in Mesquite, Texas. Its initial goal was to build a manned suborbital spacecraft capable of space tourism, and had also stated long-term ambitions of orbital spaceflight. The company was founded by John Carmack.〔(Armadillo Aerospace FAQ )〕 On October 24, 2008, Armadillo won $350,000 by succeeding in the Level 1 Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge. On September 12, 2009, Armadillo won $500,000 by succeeding in Level 2 of the same challenge.〔(Armadillo Aerospace Claim Level 2 NGLLC Prize )〕〔(Lunar lander qualifies for prize )〕 In 2010, they were working on a sub-orbital commercial aircraft with Space Adventures.〔 (Perhaps You'll Visit Space In Your Lifetime, After All ), Gizmodo, 2010-05-12, accessed May 15, 2010.〕 In August 2013, Carmack announced that Armadillo Aerospace had been put in "hibernation mode", following setbacks including the crash of the STIG-B rocket in January 2013.〔 In May 2014, several former employees of Armadillo Aerospace formed a new company, Exos Aerospace, which was created to carry their former company's research into reusable commercial space craft. The new company set up their operations in one of Armadillo's former facilities at the Caddo Mills Municipal Airport, in Texas.〔 (Armadillo Aerospace Vets Start New Space Company 2014-05-19 - Space News reports new company formed by former Armadillo employees. )〕 Exos completed acquisition of Armadillo assets in early 2015, and intends to begin launches of the Suborbital Active Rocket with Guidance (SARGE) in 2016 from Spaceport America in New Mexico. SARGE will be an enhanced Armadillo STIG-B.〔 〕 ==Research and development principles== The company placed a strong emphasis on a rapid build and test cycle. Armadillo Aerospace designed and built a number of different vehicles using a variety of propellants. Each design had several features in common. One was the use of modern computer technologies and electronics to simplify rocket control and reduce development costs. Another was the use of liquid propellants and VTVL to facilitate short launch-to-launch times. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Armadillo Aerospace」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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