List of canceled launch vehicle designs
 | The examples and perspective in this article may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. (May 2020) |
Even before the launch of Sputnik 1, there were various types of launch vehicle designs. The launch vehicle designs described below are either canceled or never left the drawing board.
20th century
| Name | Designer | Proposed | Canceled |
|---|---|---|---|
| Von Braun Ferry Rocket | Wernher von Braun | 1950s | |
| North American X-15B | USAF and NACA | 1958 | |
| Mercury-Jupiter | NASA | 1959 | |
| Saturn C-2 | 1959 | 1962 | |
| Saturn C-3 | |||
| Saturn C-4 | |||
| Nova | |||
| BAC Mustard | BAC | 1960s | 1967 |
| NEXUS | General Dynamics | ||
| Saturn C-5N | NASA | 1972 | |
| Saturn INT-20 | |||
| UR-700 | Vladimir Chelomei | ||
| Saturn C-8 | NASA | 1962 | 1962 |
| Sea Dragon | Robert Truax | ||
| Douglas SASSTO | Philip Bono | 1967 | |
| Martin Marietta Spacemaster | Martin Marietta | ||
| Saturn V-A | NASA | 1968 | |
| Saturn V-C | |||
| Saturn V-Centaur | |||
| Saturn V-D | |||
| Saturn INT-21 | 1970s | ||
| Chrysler SERV | Chrysler | 1971 | |
| Saturn-Shuttle | NASA | 1972 | |
| Hermes | CNES and ESA | 1975 | 1992 |
| Rockwell X-30 | Rockwell International | 1980 | 1993 |
| British Aerospace HOTOL | British Aerospace and Rolls-Royce | 1982 | 1989 |
| Shuttle-C | NASA | 1984 | 1995 |
| VentureStar | Lockheed Martin | 1990s | 2001 |
| National Launch System | NASA | 1991 | 1992 |
| Black Horse | Mitchell Burnside Clapp | 1993 | 1996 |
| Kankoh-maru | Japanese Rocket Society | ||
| K-1 | Rocketplane Kistler | 1994 | 2007 |
| Roton | Rotary Rocket | 1996 | 2001 |
| Magnum | NASA | 2004 |
21st century
| Name | Designer | Proposed | Canceled |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ares IV | NASA | 2000s | 2010 |
| Ares V Lite | |||
| Jupiter | DIRECT | 2010 | |
| Falcon 1e | SpaceX | 2011 | |
| Haas | ARCAspace | ||
| Orbital Space Plane Program | NASA | 2002 | 2004 |
| Falcon 5 | SpaceX | 2003 | 2005 |
| Galaxy Express | Galaxy Express Corporation | 2009 | |
| Ares I | NASA | 2005 | 2010 |
| Ares V | |||
| Rocketplane XP | Rocketplane Kistler | 2011 | |
| Shuttle-Derived Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle | NASA | 2009 | 2010 |
| Liberty | ATK and Astrium | 2011 | 2012 |
| Falcon 9 Air | SpaceX | ||
| Mars Colonial Transporter | 2012 | 2016 | |
| Interplanetary Transport System | 2016 | 2017 | |
| Big Falcon Rocket | 2017 | 2018 | |
| OmegA | Northrop Grumman | 2016 | 2020 |
See also
- Comparison of orbital launch systems
- Non-rocket spacelaunch
- List of orbital launch systems
- List of private spaceflight companies#Crew and cargo transport vehicles
- Spaceplane
- List of crewed lunar lander designs
Further reading
- SP-4221 The Space Shuttle Decision Chapter 8 (NASA)
- Dr. Wernher Von Braun (July 1970). The Spaceplane that can put you in orbit.
{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help) - T.A. Heppenheimer - SP-4221 The Space Shuttle Decision (NASA, 1998)
External links
- Encyclopedia Astronautica - orbital launch vehicle
- INTRODUCTION TO FUTURE LAUNCH VEHICLE PLANS [1963-2001] by Marcus Lindroos (Updated 6/15/2001)
- Space Future - Vehicle Designs
- Category:Proposed or planned spacecraft (Wikimedia Commons)
- 10 Space Shuttles which never flew (Lockheed Starclipper, Chrysler SERV, Phase B Shuttles, Rockwell C-1057, Shuttle C, Air Launched Sortie Vehicle (ALSV), Hermes, Buran, Shuttle II, Lockheed Martin VentureStar)