[ExI] darpa's notion of using a retrofitted fighter jet to launch payloads

[justin corwin]

I don't think I've ever seen a setup with engines mounted so high on the
fuselage, is there an engine/reference design that could be used for that?
The artist seemed to have some very specific details one wouldn't just
assume.

I like the idea of establishing some numbers. I know that BAE in Mojave
makes(or made) drones out of F-4 Phantoms to be used as targets for missile
tests. Any chance somebody knows what they pay for those? You'd want it
unmanned anyway.

At that weight, you're talking about a ring of 6 P-POD launchers (or a
similarly sized single payload), which is a good amount of money to fund
it. Cubesat launch slots have been getting more expensive lately. When I
first started looking they were in the 70k range, but recent costs are over
100k. 6 pods is 18U of space, which puts your payload at almost 2 million,
almost enough to underwrite a second attempt if DARPA's numbers are
anywhere near right.

If there were a dedicated small payload rocket, I think more cubesats might
get made, but assuming there aren't, you have a market of about two
successful launches a year of an 18U carrier. If you could kick your prices
down, more might occur. Also, currently small payloads often have to wait,
which mean timely payloads need dedicated launchers. If you could guarantee
a launch within six months, you might attract more business as well.

On Mon, Feb 9, 2015 at 7:35 AM, spike <spike66 at att.net> wrote:

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> http://video.foxnews.com/v/4036325757001/watch-how-darpa-plans-to-launch-satellites-into-space/?#sp=show-clips
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> *From:* extropy-chat [mailto:extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org] *On
> Behalf Of *Kelly Anderson
> *Sent:* Sunday, February 08, 2015 11:57 PM
> *To:* ExI chat list
> *Subject:* Re: [ExI] darpa's notion of using a retrofitted fighter jet to
> launch payloads
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> >…Looks like a rip off of Virgin Galactic's basic concept. My question is
> why would this cost a million dollars?? -Kelly
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> I can think that a lot of the cost of this would be in the inertial
> reference gear in the guidance system.  For typical satellite work, that
> stuff doesn’t come cheap.  But given some kind of standard bus, there would
> be mass production, thousands of units perhaps.  I can imagine a
> standardized thousand unit production run of guidance and control systems
> including thrust vector control getting down below a million clams, and
> everything else combined below 100k.
>
> spike
>
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-- 
Justin Corwin
outlawpoet at gmail.com
http://programmaticconquest.tumblr.com
http://outlawpoet.tumblr.com
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