Launch Vehicles

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Launch Vehicles
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Not all are the same -
Expendable and Reusable
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Sometimes they dont work !
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Two Types
Launch Vehicles

• Expendable launchers are consumed during the
  launch process and fall into the sea or burn up
  in the atmosphere.
• Reusable launchers make a soft landing on earth
  or at sea and can be refurbished for use on a
  future mission.

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Expendable Launchers

• Many evolved from or were developed concurrently
  with military ICBM designs.
• Liquid fuel is most common for main engines.
  Additional solid rocket boosters may be strapped
  on for additional lifting capacity.
• Despite more than 50 years experience, launch
  failures are very common.

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Reusable Launchers

• Designed specifically for spacecraft launch.
• Liquid fuel is used for main engines. Additional
  solid rocket boosters supply additional lifting
  capacity.
• Although not frequent, launch and recovery
  failures do happen.
• Challenger
• Columbia

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Launch Vehicle Classification

• Heavy-Lift
• Lifts up to 20 tons to LEO, up to 10,000 pounds
  to GTO, or 4,000 pounds to GEO
• Example Russian Proton system

• Light-Medium Lift
• Lifts less than 10,000 pounds to LEO/MEO
• Cheaper than a heavy-lift booster.
• Example Pegasus air-launched system

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How do you launch to orbit?

• LEO/MEO - direct orbital insertion is common.
• GEO
• 1st place in LEO
• 2nd kick into a GTO
• Apogee is at GEO
• Perigee is at LEO
• 3rd circularize orbit at GEO
• Some larger launchers can launch reduced mass
  payloads directly to GEO.

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Example of Clarke Satellite Belt
Panamsat GEO Satellites
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Liquid Fuel Rocket

• Liquid fuel and oxidizer, stored in tanks in the
  rocket is pumped into a combustion chamber where
  it burns.
• Hot exhaust gasses are expelled through a movable
  nozzle to provide thrust.
• Typical Fuels include hydrazine, kerosene,
  alcohol and liquid hydrogen, Oxidizer is
  typically liquid oxygen.

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XPIS - Xenon Ion Propulsion System

• Boeing 601HP Thruster13 centimeters in
  diameter500 Watts18 mN of thrust
• Boeing 702 Thruster25 centimeters in
  diameter4500 Watts165 mN of thrust

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What makes the Rocket go ?

• The Law of Conservation of Momentum is the key to
  understanding a rocket.

m Mass of Rocket v Velocity of
Rocket dm Mass of Fuel Expelled v
Velocity of Exhaust
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Rocket Equation
Rocket Equation
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Boeing Delta Family
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Delta III had some problems

• First Delta III launched suffered from a
  combustion chamber breach in the second stage
  engine.
• Stranded communications satellite in useless
  orbit.
• Shuttle mission may be used to attach a booster
  to the satellite and send it looping around the
  moon to return to GEO.
• Recently launched a dummy payload to prove its
  reliability.

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Delta III Launch
First stage falls away as viewed from within the
second stage engine fairing.
Solid booster separation from first stage.
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Delta IV Heavy Launcher

• 2-stage vehicle using common booster core and
  external solid rocket Graphite-Epoxy Motors
  (GEMs).
• 4-5 m diameter launch fairing.
• Up to 28,950 to GTO.
• Stages are restartable in flight for more precise
  payload placement.

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RS-68 Main Engine

• Boeing/Rocketdyne design.
• Liquid hydrogen fuel with LOX oxidizer.
• Produces 650,000 lbs thrust.

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Delta IV Mission Profile
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Lockheed Atlas V

• Lockheeds answer to Boeings Delta series
• Heavy lift launcher up to 19,114 lbs to GTO,
  45,238 lbs to LEO.

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Lockheed Atlas V

• Successful first launch August 2002, placed the
  Hot Bird commercial communications satellite into
  GEO ( 13 degrees East) for Eutelsat.

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Lockheed Titan IV

• Heavy-lift vehicle.
• Based on Titan ICBM, the Titan IV was first
  launched in 1989.
• Hybrid liquid-fuel/solid fuel first stage.
• 47,800 lb to LEO, 12,700 lb to GEO.

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Ariane

• Ariane 1 first flew in December 1979 and was
  designed as a commercial launcher.
• Ariane 1 superseded as payload masses increased,
  currently Ariane 5 is the latest design.
• Payload capacity GTO-14,000 lb, LEO- 46,000 lb.
• Liquid fueled with solid 2 rocket boosters
  affixed to the first stage.

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Russian Proton

• Heavy lift vehicle.
• Developed in the 1960s, has been very reliable
  with over 260 missions completed (including one
  9/5/00).
• 3 stages to LEO, 4 to GEO.
• 46,000 lb to LEO, 10,868 lb to GTO, 4,630 to GEO.
• Liquid fueled engines on all stages.
• Total liftoff weight of 1,500,000 lbs.

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Russian/Ukrainian Zenit

• Medium-Heavy lift launcher.
• Used in Sea Launch system in addition to
  ground-based launches.
• Sea-Launch uses a converted oil drilling platform
  for launching from the equator.
• Equatorial launches get an energy boost from the
  Earths rotation and can place more payload into
  GEO.
• Sea Launch can place 11,550 to GEO.

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Chinese Long March

• Different configurations depending on user
  requirements.
• Used to launch Iridium, other satellites.
• Up to 9,900 to GTO.
• 936,760 lb GTOW
• Source of much political controversy in the US.
• 70 million launch cost.

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Orbital Sciences Pegasus

• Launched at 40,000 ft from L-1011 or B-52
  aircraft.
• LEO only capability, up to 1000 lbs.
• 29 missions to date.
• 55.4 ft long, 50 in. diameter, 22 ft wingspan.
• 51,000 lb GTOW

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Boeing Inertial Upper Stage

• 2-stage booster used with the Space Shuttle and
  Titan IV launchers to boost satellites to GEO.
• Solid rocket motors
• 17.5 feet long, 9.5 feet dia.
• System weighs 32,000 lbs.

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Space Shuttle

• Manned, partially reusable heavy-lift launch
  systemorbiter and SRBs reused, external fuel
  tank expended.
• 55,000 lb to LEO.
• 4.5 million lb at takeoff, 394,000 lb at landing.
• Max payload 60 feet long, 15 ft diameter, 55,000
  lb.
• Intended for LEO satellite launching and repair.

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Rotary Rocket Roton

• Manned LEO launch and recovery capability.
• Fully reusable single stage to orbit vehicle.
• 7,000 lb per flight.
• 7,000,000 per flight (1,000 per pound).
• Uses kerosene and oxygen.
• Soft landing via autorotation and thrusters.
• Several successful ground launches, now canceled.

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Rotary Rocket Roton
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Kistler K-1

• Powered by Kuznetsov NK-33 and NK-43 engines left
  over from the defunct Soviet N-1 1970s manned
  lunar rocket program.
• Up to 10,500 lb to LEO, depending on inclination.
• 2 stages, fully reusable, LOX/kerosene fueled.
• 841,000 lb GTOW.
• NASA contract awarded May 2001.

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Privatization of Space

• Prior to the 1986 Challenger disaster NASA
  handled launches for commercial customers.
• The Space Shuttle was intended to serve as a
  reusable launch platform for government and
  commercial customers.
• Once the risks of manned flight were understood,
  it was decided that no more commercial payloads
  would fly on the shuttle.
• Expendable launch vehicle design had not been
  worked on with anticipation that the shuttle
  would handle all launches.
• Several companies in the US and Europe rushed to
  fill the void, and after the fall of the Soviet
  Union, Russia and the Ukraine entered the
  commercial launching services market. China,
  Brazil, India, Pakistan, and Israel all have the
  capability of launching satellites to GEO or LEO.
• After Columbia ?