AEROSPIKE ENGINES AND ROCKET ENGINES 101 FOR THE "ROCKETS DON'T WORK IN SPACE! CROWD" ... | |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 78100222 United States 10/24/2019 09:33 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
darth
User ID: 28178764 United States 10/24/2019 09:33 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | I worked on the Shuttle program at Rockwell International. Rocketdyne was one of the divisions and they invented the aerospike. Its an interesting concept. Not sure why they did not use it more, but I am sure there were trade studies. When I worked on the Advanced Launch System, aka Big Dumb Booster, we did hundreds of trade studies optimizing every aspect of the vehicle. I had all the deliverables, i.e., the products of that contract that we delivered to NASA. The volumes filled up several filing cabinets. Sorry to say all the volumes and drawings were lost over the years as they moved me to different projects. Anecdote: We were behind schedule and over budget on our design studies. One of the old VPs said, "Get the Apollo veterans in here!". We hired about 10 retirees. They got more done in a week than 150 engineers had accomplished in 3 months. Why? They already had studied everything we needed to know. Back in the 1960s they had 60,000 people working at my division and the amount of new science and engineering that came out was staggering. You can get results like that when the budget is 1% of GNP and every talented person in the world is dying to come help. Hell, we were going to the Moon! We attracted some serious talent. BTW, I often wonder how much we have lost since then. Its not just the "idiocracy effect". Kids don't get the same education I got. |
darth
User ID: 28178764 United States 10/24/2019 09:41 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | Everything else has progressed in the computer age except for space flight??? Odd Quoting: Anonymous Coward 78100222 Actually, those guys landing boosters on the barges is incredibly impressive. You have to understand that we pushed every element in the periodic table to its max capability. For example, the Space Shuttle Main Engines develop 700 HP per CUBIC INCH. Have we discovered a better fuel than Lox/Hydrogen? Have we developed alloys with better thermal conductivity than copper? What other turbine material can go from liquid hydrogen temp to 3000F in a microsecond without disintegrating? We DO have a few new materials, but they are not revolutionary. The key to new vehicles is the engines efficiency, specific impulse, and power-to-weight. Not easy. My fave is nuke-thermal using slush hydrogen propellant with a specific impulse of 900 seconds. You could have a vehicle the size of a 737 that takes off from a runway and goes straight to orbit without staging or drop tanks. Refuel and you can visit all of the inner Solar System out to Jupiter. Its just a political decision. |
Pilgrim001
User ID: 78018011 United States 10/24/2019 10:12 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
Anonymous Coward User ID: 78107320 Australia 10/24/2019 10:24 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | Actually, those guys landing boosters on the barges is incredibly impressive. You have to understand that we pushed every element in the periodic table to its max capability. For example, the Space Shuttle Main Engines develop 700 HP per CUBIC INCH. Have we discovered a better fuel than Lox/Hydrogen? Have we developed alloys with better thermal conductivity than copper? What other turbine material can go from liquid hydrogen temp to 3000F in a microsecond without disintegrating? We DO have a few new materials, but they are not revolutionary. The key to new vehicles is the engines efficiency, specific impulse, and power-to-weight. Not easy. My fave is nuke-thermal using slush hydrogen propellant with a specific impulse of 900 seconds. You could have a vehicle the size of a 737 that takes off from a runway and goes straight to orbit without staging or drop tanks. Refuel and you can visit all of the inner Solar System out to Jupiter. Its just a political decision. are they still using inconel for the rocket turbines ? |