Aquarius (rocket)
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| Function | SSTO Expendable launch system |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Space Systems/Loral, Aerojet, Microcosm |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Size | |
| Height | 43.00 m (141.00 ft) |
| Diameter | 4 m (13.10 ft) |
| Mass | 130 000 kg (10 000 kg empty) (287 000 lb) |
| Stages | 1 |
| Capacity | |
| Payload to LEO | 1000 kg (2200 lb) to a 200 km orbit |
| Launch history | |
| Status | Cancelled |
| Launch sites | Hawaii |
| Total launches | 0 |
| First stage | |
| Engines | 1 |
| Thrust | 400,000 pounds-force (1.8 MN) |
| Burn time | |
| Fuel | LOX/LH2 |
Aquarius was a low-cost launch vehicle concept designed by Space Systems/Loral to carry small, inexpensive payloads into LEO.
Contents |
[edit] Concept
The vehicle will be primarily intended to launch into orbit bulk products, like water, fuel, and other consumables, that are inexpensive to replace in the event of a launch failure. The target launch cost is $1 million. As currently designed, Aquarius will be a single-stage vehicle 43 meters (141 ft) high and 4 meters (13.1 ft) in diameter and powered by a single pressure fed engine using liquid hydrogen and oxygen propellants stored in a carbon fiber epoxy liner-less composite pressure tank at around 30 atmospheres (450 psi)[1]. The vehicle is floated in the ocean prior to launch to minimize launch infrastructure and will be able to place a 1,000-kilogram (2,200 lb) payload into a 200-kilometer (120 mi), 52-degree orbit. The payload, located in the base of the vehicle, will be extracted by an orbiting space tug for transfer to its ultimate destination, like the iss or a propellant depot after which the vehicle will de-orbit and be destroyed.[2]
[edit] Vortex Cooled Chamber Wall Engine
Space Systems/Loral teamed with Microcosm, and Wilson Composite Technologies to study Aquarius under a $110,000 grant awarded by the state of California in April 2001 and delivered a final report in June 2002. Funding of $1 million was provided in the FY 2004 Defense Appropriations Act to develop a prototype of the low-cost engine for the vehicle. The engine would provide 400,000 pounds-force (1.8 MN) of thrust using liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen as propellants. For the engine development, Space Systems/Loral is partnered with Aerojet, ORBITEC and Microcosm, under the auspices of the Air Force Research Laboratory and was completed in 2006[3][4]. It confirmed that an ORBITEC engine design with inherently low cost can be scaled up to an intermediate thrust level, from which the next scale-up step to Aquarius should be achievable. [5][6]
[edit] COTS bid
The proposal made with Constellation Services International for Commercial Orbital Transportation Services in 2006 was not selected.[7]$150 Millions was the planned development cost part of a $700 million project (that included a space tug), 100 launches per year where needed to be profitable, one third of the launches where by design allowed to fail.Target costs where $1 million per launch or 1000$/kg to leo.[1]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b "aquarius". astronautix.com. http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/aquarius.htm. Retrieved February 13, 2012.
- ^ Andrew E. Turner (January 30, 2006). "Low-cost launch and orbital depots: the Aquarius system". thespacereview.com. http://www.thespacereview.com/article/544/1.
- ^ Andrew E. Turner, Aaron Leichner (24-10-2006). "Hydrogen Pressurization of LOX: High Risk/High Reward". dtic.mil. http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a467734.pdf.
- ^ Andrew E. Turner (2005). "AQUARIUS LOW COST LAUNCH MAIN ENGINE STUDY". AIAA. responsivespace.com. pp. 24. http://www.responsivespace.com/Papers/RS3/SESSION%20PAPERS/SESSION%206/6001-TURNER/6001C.pdf.
- ^ "2004 U.S. COMMERCIAL SPACE TRANSPORTATION DEVELOPMENTS AND CONCEPTS: VEHICLES, TECHNOLOGIES, AND SPACEPORTS". Commercial Space Transportation Office. pp. 15. http://www.faa.gov/library/reports/commercial_space/dev_concepts/media/Book1screen.pdf.
- ^ Andrew W. Turner ; William H. Knuth (March/April 2006). "The Vortex Cooled Chamber Wall Engine: A Tamed Tornado". SPACE TIMES Magazine. http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA452364.
- ^ "Space Systems/Loral Proposes Bus for NASA's Cargo Needs" (Press release). Space News. 2007-12-10. http://www.space.com/businesstechnology/071210-busmon-cots-loral.html. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
- Space Time magazine, May/June 2001
[edit] External links
- Video presentation Aquarius concept Part 1
- Video presentation Aquarius concept Part 2
- Audio interview Andrew E. Turner on the space show
- Ocean-based launch: extending a successful approach to new applications , Andrew E. Turner , the space review 2007
- LEO on the Cheap. Air University Press. October 1994. ISBN 0894991345. http://www.dunnspace.com/leo_on_the_cheap.htm.
