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Launch Calendar
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 In
this in depth review ReelOrbit researches 19 spacecraft. Some have been with us for over two
decades while others are getting ready to launch humanity into a new era of
affordable access to space. Which one's will get
the development and funding to usher in a new era of
"cheap" space travel for the millemium.
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Space
Shuttle
- Since it was first designed in the early 70's, the
Shuttle has continuously evolved, taking advantage of new
technology when possible to increase safety, reduce cost and
enhance its capabilities. To this day the Shuttle is an excellent
platform for scientific research, satellite deployment
and earth observation missions. "We need to ensure that
it continues this evolution and remains ready to meet the
requirements in space for this country well into the 21st
century," Space Shuttle Program Manager Tommy
Holloway. Shuttle
Upgrades
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X-33
- The
wedge shaped X-33, developed under a cooperative agreement
between NASA and Lockheed Martin Skunk Works of Palmdale,
California, is a subscale technology demonstration prototype
of a Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) which Lockheed Martin has
labeled "Venture Star."
The X-33 design is based on a lifting body shape with two
revolutionary
"linear aerospike" rocket engines
and a rugged metallic thermal protection system. The X-33 also
features lightweight components and fuel tanks built to
conform to the vehicle's outer shape. The
X-33 was designed to take off vertically like a rocket,
reaching an altitude of up to 60 miles and speeds faster than
Mach 13 (13 times the speed of sound), and landing
horizontally like an airplane. |
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X-34
- The X-34
is a reusable technology testbed vehicle that is designed to
demonstrate technologies that are essential to lowering the
cost of access to space. The vehicle structure is an
all-composite with a one piece delta wing design 58 feet in
length and 28 feet wide. The vehicle is designed, built and
operated by Orbital Sciences Corporation. The X-34 vehicle is
powered by a LOX & RP-1 liquid Fastrac
engine that was designed and built by MSFC. The X-34
vehicle shall be capable of speeds up to Mach 8 and altitudes
of 250,000 feet. Specific technologies that are designed into
the vehicle are things such as composite structures, composite
RP-1 fuel tank, advanced thermal protection system, leading
edge tiles, and autonomous flight operations. The project will
not only serve as the agency's first testbed vehicle since the
X-15, but will also demonstrate low cost flight operations.
The project has a goal of reaching $500K/flight recurring cost
and demonstrating a rate of 24 flights in 12 months while
maintaining a small work force.
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X-37
- The X-37
is 27.5 feet long - about half the length of the Shuttle
payload bay - and weighs about 6 tons. Its wingspan is about
15 feet, and it contains an experiment bay 7 feet long and 4
feet in diameter. It is designed to be modular to allow for
rapid insertion of technologies and experiments. On-orbit
propulsion is provided by the AR-2/3, a highly reliable engine
with a legacy stretching back to the 1950's. It can produce
about 7,000 pounds of thrust. The X-37 will be capable of
approximately 20 flights and landings. |
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X-38
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The most immediate application of this innovative project is
to develop the technology for a prototype emergency crew
return vehicle (CRV), or lifeboat, for the International Space
Station (ISS). But the project is also aimed at developing a
crew return vehicle design that could be modified for other
uses, such as a possible joint U.S. and international human
spacecraft that could be launched on the Ariane 5 booster. And
the goal is to develop the vehicle with an unprecedented eye
toward efficiency, taking advantage of available equipment and
already developed technology for as much as 80 percent of the
spacecraft's design. |
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X40a
- Boeing and its subcontractor team designed and built the SMV
in the company' s Seal Beach facility. The 22-foot-long
vehicle with its 12-foot wing span is a 90-percent-scale
version of later-generation unpiloted space maneuver vehicles.
The vehicle rolled out will be the first to be flight-tested
to demonstrate SMV autonomous approach and landing capability.
In the long term, the Air Force Military Spaceplane program
will feature small, unpiloted, powered SMV vehicles
functioning as reusable satellites to carry out space missions
such as tactical reconnaissance and space object
identification and surveillance. |
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X-43a
- For NASA's X-43 (Hyper-X) program, we are building three
Pegasus-derivative rockets to carry small, unmanned research
scramjets to a predetermined altitude and velocity, where they
will be released to fly on their own. These scramjets will
study how air-breathing engines can achieve hypersonic speed,
a technology that could be applied to future reusable space
launchers as well as high-speed aircraft. The initial X-43
flights are scheduled for 2000 and 2001.
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Ascender
Spacecab
Spacebus
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Bristolspaceplanes -
Bristol Spaceplanes
Limited, based in Bristol, England, was formed in 1991 to
provide technical assistance to commercial organisations and
aerospace companies interested in low cost satellite launches,
and in tourism in space. Since then it has prepared plans to
develop the Ascender sub-orbital spaceplane, and an
experienced core design team has been formed.
Development of Ascender
is at present being funded privately. Discussions are in
hand with potential investors and strategic partners.
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Venture Star -
A signature lifting body. The most promising engine in
aerospace. Low maintenance. These innovative technologies
combine in the most efficient launch vehicle around.
Integrated fuel tanks. Lightweight composites. Off-the-shelf
components. Everything about the X-33's interior is focused on
minimizing weight and costs. But the Venture Stars development
has not been without it's problems.
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Proteus
- The Proteus designed with long wings and a low wing loading
needed for efficient high altitude loiter, showed grace,
stability, and low noise during its demonstration. The flight
also included dynamic maneuvers showing the aircraft’s
agility, needed to operate in adverse conditions. The crisp,
short takeoff and landing illustrated the unique
"three-mains" landing gear design intended to
increase crosswind and wet runway capability without the use
of spoilers. Also displayed was the Proteus graphite composite
cabin test component. This structure, which incorporates
several new design concepts, had recently been tested to 3.5
times the required operating cabin pressure.
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Thunderbird
- The Thunderbird stack is composed of two
discreet units:
1)
A
Command Module (including pressurised cabin, life support and
reaction control systems) which is situated at the forward end
of the rocket, and
2) A rocket booster
consisting of propellant tanks, engines and landing gear,
which effectively is everything aft of the command module. |
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Millennium
Express - The Millennium Express is a two-stage-to-orbit reusable launch
vehicle (RLV) that promises to reduce the cost of carrying
cargo and passengers to low Earth orbit to perhaps
one-twentieth to one fortieth current costs. Frequent,
reliable, low-cost access to space will enable new
applications such as space tourism. It will also permit
revolutionary approaches to old space applications such as
space-based telecommunications. |
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Starraker
- Proposed by Star-Raker
Associates, Star-Raker is a single stage to orbit horizontal
take off and landing vehicle intended to launch payloads of
upto 50,000 lbs and 200,000 lbs in its standard and largest
configurations, with an esitmated cost of $100/lb of payload
to LEO.
Low altitude engines comprise
of ten supersonic multi-cycle airbreather ramjets, based on
current existing technology, that lift the vehicle to
100,000ft at a speed of Mach 6 from take off at a conventional
commercial airport, at which point rocket propulsion takes
over. The aeroshell is a tri-delta form with Whitcomb airfoil
lifting sections that provide a high volume for LOX/LH
storage, the conical fuel tanks imparting increased strength
and resiliance to the wing sections in normal flight and
volumetric properties of comparable efficiency to normal
rocket fueltanks when ballistic. |
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StarBooster
- The StarBooster 200TM reusable booster is
described, along with the upper stages required to deliver
both Delta III/H-2 class low orbit payloads and large
communications satellites to their preferred orbits. An upper
stage complex named StarCore ITM, which is topped
by a Centaur stage, delivers over 3 tons to the geo-stationary
circular orbit when aided by dual StarBooster 200 boost. |
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Pogo
- This report describes the results of a preliminary concept
study into using aircraft jet engines for the propulsion of a
spacelift first stage, dubbed a Pogo. It compares relevant
altitude, velocity, and lift capabilities of current aircraft
and jet engines. It estimates the capabilities of such a first
stage and the associated launch costs. The results indicate
that a large cost saving and improved operability could result
from implementing this concept. Many references are cited and
a bibliography is included. Appendices cover a list of other
uses for this technology, possible Pogo variations, and a
survey of relevant supersonic inlets. |
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Cosmos
Mariner -
The Cosmos Mariner takes off from a
coastal airport near Houston with its two jet engines at full
throttle. After 15-20 minutes, the Cosmos Mariner positions
itself over open water in a stratospheric cruise (~40,000 ft,
Mach 0.8), performs an initial pitch up maneuver and
stabilizes for rocket ignition. The crew braces for an
additional 40 tons of thrust from the rocket engine. About 130
seconds are required to burn the propellant with shutdown at
Mach 7 and 200,000 ft. The Cosmos Mariner continues to arc
upward in free-fall, reaching apogee above 100 kilometers
about 100 seconds |
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Pioneer
Rocket Plane - Pioneer
Rocketplane is building a highly robust and flexible space
launch system based upon rocket powered aircraft and applying
in-flight propellant transfer to enable inexpensive satellite
launches. The new vehicles thus created will revolutionize
space launch and enable greater commercial opportunities in
space. This system will open the space frontier to many new
and exciting applications. |
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Kistler K1
- The K-1 vehicle is a
two-stage, fully reusable aerospace vehicle. The overall K-1
vehicle is 36.9 m (121 ft) long and weighs 382,300 kg (841,000
lbm) at liftoff. The K-1 vehicle is shown in Figure 2-1.
The first
stage, or Launch Assist Platform (LAP), is 18.3 m (60 ft)
long, 6.7 m (22 ft) in diameter, and weighs 250,500 kg
(551,000 lbm) at launch. The second stage, or Orbital Vehicle
(OV), is 18.6 m (61 ft) long, has a cylindrical diameter of
4.3 m (14 ft), and weighs 131,800 kg (290,000 lbm)
fully-fueled. Each stage carries its own suite of redundant
avionics and operates autonomously. |
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Roton
- The Roton™ is a piloted commercial space vehicle designed
from the outset to provide rapid and routine access to orbit
for both its two-person crew and their cargo. The Roton is a
fully reusable, single-stage-to-orbit (SSTO) space vehicle
designed to transport up to 7000 lbs to and from LEO in the
most cost-effective manner. The Roton will enter commercial
service in the year 2000 with a target price per flight of $7
million. |
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