[extropy-chat] SpaceX announces Falcon 9, private EELV-class rocket

[Mike Lorrey]

--- Rik van Riel <riel at surriel.com> wrote:

> On Fri, 16 Sep 2005, Mike Lorrey wrote:
> 
> > I've been watching it. I'm finding the NASA funds for the CEV
> > interesting. Billions to develop a Apollo-class capsule technology
> they
> > already had 30 years ago and tried to burn the blueprints for when
> the
> > shuttle came along. What are the funds really being blown on?
> 
> <cynical>
> In order to get approval for building the CEV, maybe NASA
> needs to make sure they buy some piece of technology from
> the constituencies of as many senators as possible?
> </cynical>

Good point. In the wake of the Hyper-X team being scattered to the four
winds after only the X-43A vehicle flying (cancelling the larger
hydrocarbon fuelled B model that could have attained orbit), I'm seeing
some went to the GTX program, which is a bit more sophisticated and
integrates some Hyper-X engine knowledge. The GTX vehicle looks
curiously like a souped up Battlestar Galactica "Viper" fighter, with
three rocket-based-combined-cycle engines arrayed around the fuselage
with three small fins of a curiously science fictiony nature. The
scaled test vehicle will launch vertically with some Black Brant
boosters to reach mach 2.5, then engage the RBCC engines first in
Ramjet then scramjet mode, up to mach 11. The full size reference
vehicle will then demonstrate the full flight regime without booster
assist, taking off with its own rocket power with some ram assist,
going to ramjet, then scramjet, then to full rocket thrust.

My only real criticism of the reference vehicle is that it follows the
strange fixation of NASA on hydrogen fuel. Because of its very low
density, the large fuel tanks it mandates make it a terrible choice for
any vehicle that spends a lot of time in a high-drag aerodynamic regime
that penalizes large vehicle cross sections and volumes (this is why
the first stage of the saturn V used kerosene instead). Better choices
would be trimethylacetelene, cyclopropane, UDMH/Hydrazine, or
propylene, which can all deliver more than twice as much payload to
orbit for a fixed tankage volume than LH2 can.

Mike Lorrey
Vice-Chair, 2nd District, Libertarian Party of NH
Founder, Constitution Park Foundation:
http://constitutionpark.blogspot.com
Personal/political blog: http://intlib.blogspot.com

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