3,500 to 5,000 mph -mach 7-in ten seconds with 2 pouds of fuel? I defy anybody not to be impressed by that perfomance and fuel economy!.... manned or unmanned-It will be perfectly feasable for a full size payload carrying vehicle using one of these types of engines to also carry along powerful H2 burning jet engines for takeoff and acceleration to high supersonic, and a linear aerospike rocket engine or two plus enough LOX for the short additional boost to orbit! only if they are all using the same fuel though.
As reported in the mercury news story, With TWO POUNDS of gaseous hydrogen, it accelerated from 3,500 mph to to over 5,000 mph in TEN seconds!..... ZOUNDS!
This is only the first test of the technology. The scramjet concept has been around a long time, and they have tested them in wind tunnels before, but no one has ever actually flown one yet. Future models WILL go mach 10, but this one wont. Baby technologies take baby steps.
Quoted from 'The High Frontier' byGerard K. O'neill, 1976. 3rd edition c2000 Space Studies institute. Apogee books ISBN 1-896522-67-X www.cgpublishing.com
Chapter 4 page 35
"A typical Apollo sample contains by weight, more tha 20% silicon, more than 12% aluminum, 4% iron, and 3% magnesium. Many of the Apollo samples contained more than 6% titanium by weight.... Finally, the lunar suface is more than 40% oxygen by weight." end quote.
Also, as we know from the Clementine missions, on the moons' south pole we found.. WATER!!
Further quoting from "The High Frontier";
"It has been shown by analyzing the spectra of sunlight reflecting from asteroids that some of them are rich in carbon, nitrogen, and hydrogen - they are about as good a source of petrochemicals as oil shale. " end Quote.
Not to mention the nickel- iron ones which are nearly solid metal! Man, it's raining soup out there!
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3,500 to 5,000 mph -mach 7-in ten seconds with 2 pouds of fuel? I defy anybody not to be impressed by that perfomance and fuel economy!.... manned or unmanned-It will be perfectly feasable for a full size payload carrying vehicle using one of these types of engines to also carry along powerful H2 burning jet engines for takeoff and acceleration to high supersonic, and a linear aerospike rocket engine or two plus enough LOX for the short additional boost to orbit! only if they are all using the same fuel though.
As reported in the mercury news story, With TWO POUNDS of gaseous hydrogen, it accelerated from 3,500 mph to to over 5,000 mph in TEN seconds!..... ZOUNDS!
If you missed it they are going to show it again. Also dont miss press briefing at 4PM pacific time.
This is only the first test of the technology. The scramjet concept has been around a long time, and they have tested them in wind tunnels before, but no one has ever actually flown one yet. Future models WILL go mach 10, but this one wont. Baby technologies take baby steps.
Quoted from 'The High Frontier' byGerard K. O'neill, 1976. 3rd edition c2000 Space Studies institute. Apogee books ISBN 1-896522-67-X www.cgpublishing.com Chapter 4 page 35 "A typical Apollo sample contains by weight, more tha 20% silicon, more than 12% aluminum, 4% iron, and 3% magnesium. Many of the Apollo samples contained more than 6% titanium by weight. ... Finally, the lunar suface is more than 40% oxygen by weight." end quote.
Also, as we know from the Clementine missions, on the moons' south pole we found.. WATER!!
Further quoting from "The High Frontier";
"It has been shown by analyzing the spectra of sunlight reflecting from asteroids that some of them are rich in carbon, nitrogen, and hydrogen - they are about as good a source of petrochemicals as oil shale. " end Quote.
Not to mention the nickel- iron ones which are nearly solid metal! Man, it's raining soup out there!