BU Students Working On a Cheaper, Gentler Suborbital Rocket

Zothecula writes The International Space Station may get all the glory, but suborbital rocket flights still play a vital part in space research. The problem is that even though such flights only go to the edge of space, they are expensive, few in number, and put massive stresses on experiments. Partly funded by a Kickstarter campaign, students at Boston University are developing an inexpensive suborbital rocket for educational purposes that uses new engine designs to create a cheaper, reusable suborbital rocket that's easier on the payload.

Comments

Airship one headed in the right direction

[Anonymous Coward]

Cheaper way would be a large high altitude jet to carry the rocket to the edge of space. Use the oxygen in the air as long as possible and not carry the oxygen aboard. A maglev launcher like the Navy is experimenting with,(only bigger) have as much horsepower on the ground as possible.
Get the whole thing up to 500mph and then 500 ft up. The jet engine takes over and goes up to 60000+ ft. 700 mph, not quite mach 1.
Then the rocket can kick in and go to the station.