Jump to content

SpaceShipTwo: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Content deleted Content added
Update test summaries link
Line 27: Line 27:
[[File:SpaceShipTwo technical diagram.jpg|thumb|300px|A schematic diagram of SpaceShipTwo.]]
[[File:SpaceShipTwo technical diagram.jpg|thumb|300px|A schematic diagram of SpaceShipTwo.]]
The SpaceShipTwo project is based in part on technology developed for the first-generation [[Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne|SpaceShipOne]], which was part of the Scaled Composites [[Tier One]] program, funded by [[Paul Allen]]. The Spaceship Company licenses this technology from [[Mojave Aerospace Ventures]], a joint venture of Paul Allen and [[Burt Rutan]], the designer of the predecessor technology.
The SpaceShipTwo project is based in part on technology developed for the first-generation [[Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne|SpaceShipOne]], which was part of the Scaled Composites [[Tier One]] program, funded by [[Paul Allen]]. The Spaceship Company licenses this technology from [[Mojave Aerospace Ventures]], a joint venture of Paul Allen and [[Burt Rutan]], the designer of the predecessor technology.



YO MAMMAS TIGHT PUSSY IS NICE =P THAYS RIGHT I LICKED IT




SpaceShipTwo is a [[Aspect ratio (wing)|low-aspect-ratio]] passenger [[spaceplane]]. Its capacity will be eight people: six passengers and two pilots. The [[Apsis|apogee]] of the new craft will be approximately 110&nbsp;km (68 miles) in the lower [[thermosphere]], 10&nbsp;km (6 miles) higher than [[Kármán line]] which had been the SpaceShipOne target (though the last flight of SpaceShipOne also penetrated the 'official' beginning of outer space and reached a one-time altitude of 112&nbsp;km). SpaceShipTwo will reach 4,200&nbsp;km/h (2,600&nbsp;mph), using a single [[hybrid rocket]] motor – the [[RocketMotorTwo]].<ref name="RocketMotorTwo HotFire Tests">{{cite web | url = http://www.scaled.com/projects/rocket_motor_2_hot-fire_test_summaries | title = Project Test Summaries | accessdate = 2012-04-05 | author = Scaled Composites LLC | publisher = Scaled.com}}</ref>
SpaceShipTwo is a [[Aspect ratio (wing)|low-aspect-ratio]] passenger [[spaceplane]]. Its capacity will be eight people: six passengers and two pilots. The [[Apsis|apogee]] of the new craft will be approximately 110&nbsp;km (68 miles) in the lower [[thermosphere]], 10&nbsp;km (6 miles) higher than [[Kármán line]] which had been the SpaceShipOne target (though the last flight of SpaceShipOne also penetrated the 'official' beginning of outer space and reached a one-time altitude of 112&nbsp;km). SpaceShipTwo will reach 4,200&nbsp;km/h (2,600&nbsp;mph), using a single [[hybrid rocket]] motor – the [[RocketMotorTwo]].<ref name="RocketMotorTwo HotFire Tests">{{cite web | url = http://www.scaled.com/projects/rocket_motor_2_hot-fire_test_summaries | title = Project Test Summaries | accessdate = 2012-04-05 | author = Scaled Composites LLC | publisher = Scaled.com}}</ref>

Revision as of 15:48, 14 May 2013

SpaceShipTwo
SpaceShipTwo (central fuselage) carried under its mothership, White Knight Two.
Role Passenger spaceplane
Manufacturer The Spaceship Company
First flight 10 October 2010 (first glide flight)

29 April 2013 (first powered flight)

Status Powered test flight program underway
Primary user Virgin Galactic
Developed from SpaceShipOne

The Scaled Composites Model 339 SpaceShipTwo (SS2) is a suborbital, air-launched spaceplane designed for space tourism. It is under development as part of the Tier 1b program[not verified in body] under contract to The Spaceship Company, a California-based company that is 100% owned by its sister company Virgin Galactic.

SpaceShipTwo is carried to its launch altitude by a jet-powered mothership, the Scaled Composites White Knight Two, before being released to fly on into the upper atmosphere, powered by a rocket motor. It then glides back to Earth and performs a conventional runway landing.[1] The spaceship was officially unveiled to the public on 7 December 2009 at the Mojave Air and Space Port in California.[2] On 29 April 2013, after three years of unpowered testing, the spacecraft successfully performed its first powered test flight.[3]

The Virgin Galactic spaceline plans to operate a fleet of five SpaceShipTwo spaceplanes in a private passenger-carrying service, starting in 2014,[4][5][6][7] and have been taking bookings for some time, with a suborbital flight carrying a ticket price of US$200,000.[8] The spaceplane could also be used to carry scientific payloads for NASA and other organisations.[9] The ticket price will be increasing to $250,000 in 2013.[10][11]

Design overview

File:SpaceShipTwo technical diagram.jpg
A schematic diagram of SpaceShipTwo.

The SpaceShipTwo project is based in part on technology developed for the first-generation SpaceShipOne, which was part of the Scaled Composites Tier One program, funded by Paul Allen. The Spaceship Company licenses this technology from Mojave Aerospace Ventures, a joint venture of Paul Allen and Burt Rutan, the designer of the predecessor technology.


YO MAMMAS TIGHT PUSSY IS NICE =P THAYS RIGHT I LICKED IT


SpaceShipTwo is a low-aspect-ratio passenger spaceplane. Its capacity will be eight people: six passengers and two pilots. The apogee of the new craft will be approximately 110 km (68 miles) in the lower thermosphere, 10 km (6 miles) higher than Kármán line which had been the SpaceShipOne target (though the last flight of SpaceShipOne also penetrated the 'official' beginning of outer space and reached a one-time altitude of 112 km). SpaceShipTwo will reach 4,200 km/h (2,600 mph), using a single hybrid rocket motor – the RocketMotorTwo.[12] It launches from its mothership, White Knight Two, at an altitude of 15,200 m (50,000 ft), and goes supersonic within 8 seconds. After 70 seconds, the rocket motor cuts out and the spacecraft will coast to its peak altitude. SpaceShipTwo's crew cabin is 3.66 m (12 ft) long and 2.28 m (7.5 ft) in diameter.[13] The wing span is 8.23 m (27 ft), the length is 18.29 m (60 ft) and the tail height is 4.57 m (15 ft).[14]

SpaceShipTwo uses a feathered reentry system, feasible due to the low speed of reentry – by contrast, the Space Shuttle and other orbital spacecraft re-enter at orbital speeds, closer to 25,000 km/h (16,000 mph), using heat shields. SpaceShipTwo is furthermore designed to re-enter the atmosphere at any angle.[15] It will decelerate through the atmosphere, switching to a gliding position at an altitude of 24 kilometres (15 mi), and will take 25 minutes to glide back to the spaceport. Once the passengers return, their passports will receive a spaceflight stamp and they will be awarded their astronaut wings at an awards ceremony. They will also be able to relive their flight from footage filmed during the spaceflight.

SpaceShipTwo and White Knight Two are, respectively, roughly twice the size of the first-generation SpaceShipOne and mothership White Knight, which won the Ansari X Prize in 2004. SpaceShipTwo has 43 cm and 33 cm (17 and 13 in)-diameter windows for the passengers' viewing pleasure,[14] and all seats will recline back during landing to decrease the discomfort of G-forces.[16] Reportedly, the craft can land safely even if a catastrophic failure occurs during flight.[17] In 2008, Burt Rutan remarked on the safety of the vehicle:

This vehicle is designed to go into the atmosphere in the worst case straight in or upside down and it'll correct. This is designed to be at least as safe as the early airliners in the 1920s...Don’t believe anyone that tells you that the safety will be the same as a modern airliner, which has been around for 70 years.[15]

In September 2011, the safety of SpaceShipTwo's feathered reentry system was tested when the crew briefly lost control of the craft during a gliding test flight. Control was reestablished after the spaceplane entered its feathered configuration, and it landed safely after a 7-minute flight.[18]

Fleet and launch site

The launch customer of SpaceShipTwo is Virgin Galactic, who have ordered five vehicles.[19][20] The first two were named VSS (Virgin Space Ship) Enterprise[21] and VSS Voyager.[22] As of February 2013, only VSS Enterprise[23] has made glide flights; VSS Voyager has yet to begin flight tests.[22]

The SpaceShipTwo crafts will take off from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California during testing. Spaceport America – formerly Southwest Regional Spaceport, a US$212 million spaceport in New Mexico partly funded by the state government[24] – will become the permanent launch site when commercial launches begin.[13]

Development

On 28 September 2006, Sir Richard Branson unveiled a mock-up of the SpaceShipTwo passenger cabin at the NextFest exposition, in the Javits Convention Center, New York.[25] The design of the vehicle was revealed to the press in January 2008, with the statement that the vehicle itself was around 60% complete.[13] On 7 December 2009, the official unveiling and rollout of SpaceShipTwo took place. The event involved the first SpaceShipTwo being christened by then-Governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger as the VSS Enterprise.[26]

2007 test explosion

On 26 July 2007, an explosion occurred during an oxidizer flow test at the Mojave Air and Space Port, where early-stage tests were being conducted on SpaceShipTwo's systems. The oxidizer test included filling the oxidizer tank with 4,500 kg (10,000 pounds) of nitrous oxide, followed by a 15-second cold-flow injector test. Although the tests did not ignite the gas, three employees were killed and three injured, two critically and one seriously, by flying shrapnel.[27]

RocketMotorTwo testing

Between 2005 and 2009, Scaled Composites conducted numerous small-scale rocket tests to evaluate SpaceShipTwo's engine design. After settling on the RocketMotorTwo hybrid rocket design, the company began performing full-scale hot-fire rocket tests in April 2009.[28] By December 2012, 15 full-scale tests had been successfully conducted,[29][28] and additional ground tests continued into March 2013.[30] In June 2012, the FAA issued a rocket testing permit to Scaled Composites, allowing it to begin SS2 test flights powered by RocketMotorTwo.[31]

List of SpaceShipTwo test flights

SpaceShipTwo in a captive flight configuration underneath White Knight Two, during the runway dedication of Spaceport America in October 2010. VMS Eve is shown carrying VSS Enterprise.

As of April 2013, SpaceShipTwo has conducted 26 successful test flights, with one other flight in June 2011 being cancelled after the spacecraft failed to separate from its White Knight Two carrier aircraft. The spacecraft has used its "feathered" wing configuration during six of these test flights.[32]

In September 2012, Virgin Galactic announced that the unpowered subsonic glide flight test program was essentially complete. The company thereafter stated its intention to fit the hybrid rocket motor and control system to the vehicle, before resuming the glide flight test program with the rocket motor installed, in order to recharacterize the spacecraft's glide performance with slightly different weight distribution and aerodynamics.[33] In October 2012, Scaled Composites installed key components of the rocket motor, and SpaceShipTwo performed its first glide flight with the engine installed in December 2012.[34][35] The spacecraft's first powered test flight took place in April 2013.[36] Richard Branson said it "couldn't have gone more smoothly".[37]

Sources: [29][38][34][4][39]

Flight designation Date Duration Maximum altitude Top speed Pilot / co-pilot Feathered (Fxx)
115 / PF01[40][36] 29 April 2013 13 min[41] 17,130 metres (56,200 ft)[41] Mach 1.22[41] Stucky / Alsbury[41] None
114 / CF01 12 April 2013 10 min, 48 sec ? ? Stucky / Alsbury None
113 / GF24 3 April 2013 9 min ? ? Stucky / Nichols F06
109 / GF23 19 December 2012 13 min, 24 sec ? ? Stucky / Alsbury None
93 / GF22 11 August 2012 8 min, 2 sec ? ? Stucky / Binnie None
92 / GF21 7 August 2012 9 min, 52 sec ? ? Siebold / Colmer F05
91 / GF20 2 August 2012 8 min ? ? Stucky / Nichols F04
90 / GF19 18 July 2012 10 min, 39 sec ? ? Siebold / Nichols None
88 / GF18 29 June 2012 13 min ? ? Stucky / Mackay None
87 / GF17 26 June 2012 11 min, 22 sec ? ? Siebold / Alsbury None
73 / GF16 29 September 2011 7 min, 15 sec ? ? Stucky / Nichols F03
68 / GF15 27 June 2011 7 min, 39 sec ? ? Siebold / Binnie None
67 / GF14 23 June 2011 7 min, 33 sec ? ? Stucky / Nichols None
66 / GF13 21 June 2011 8 min, 55 sec ? ? Siebold / Nichols None
65 / GF12 15 June 2011 10 min, 32 sec ? ? Stucky / Nichols None
64 / GF11 14 June 2011 13 min, 18 sec ? ? Siebold / Shane None
62 / (CC12) 9 June 2011 N/A (release failure) Planned glide test flight N/A Siebold / Shane None
61 / GF10 25 May 2011 10 min, 14 sec Above 15,240 m (50,000 ft) ? Stucky / Binnie F02
60 / GF09 19 May 2011 11 min, 32 sec ? ? Siebold / Binnie None
59 / GF08 10 May 2011 13 min, 2 sec ? ? Stucky / Shane None
58 / GF07 4 May 2011 11 min, 5 sec 15,697 m (51,500 ft) 4,724 m per min (15,500 ft per min) Siebold / Nichols F01
57 / GF06 27 April 2011 16 min, 7 sec ? ? Stucky / Alsbury None
56 / GF05 22 April 2011 14 min, 31 sec ? ? Siebold / Shane None
47 / GF04 13 January 2011 11 min, 34 sec ? 250 kn EAS 3.8 g Stucky / Nichols None
45 / GF03 17 November 2010 11 min, 39 sec ? 246 kn EAS 3.5 g Siebold / Nichols None
44 / GF02 28 October 2010 10 min, 51 sec ? 230 kn EAS 3 g Stucky / Alsbury None
41 / GF01 10 October 2010 13 min 14,020 m (46,000 ft) 180 kn EAS 2 g Siebold / Alsbury None
GFxx=Glide Flight
CCxx=Captive Carry Flight
CFxx=Cold Flow Flight
PFxx=Powered Flight

Costs

SpaceShipTwo's total development costs were estimated at around $400 million in May 2011, a significant increase over the 2007 estimate of $108 million.[42]

Commercial operation

The duration of the flights will be approximately 2.5 hours, though only a few minutes of that will be in space. The price will initially be $200,000.[43] More than 65,000 would-be space tourists applied for the first batch of 100 tickets. In December 2007 Virgin Galactic had 200 paid-up customers on its books for the early flights, and 95% were passing the 6-8 g centrifuge tests.[44] By the start of 2011, that number had increased to over 400 paid customers,[45] and to 575 by early 2013.[10]

Following the first successful powered flight of SpaceShipTwo in April 2013, Virgin Galactic announced that the price for a seat would increase 25 percent to $250,000,[10] before the middle of May 2013, and would remain at $250,000 "until the first 1,000 people have traveled, so that it matches up with inflation since [Virgin Galactic] started."[11]

Following 50–100 test flights, the first paying customers are expected to fly aboard the craft in 2014.[4] Refining the projected schedule in late 2009, Virgin Galactic declined to announce a firm timetable for commercial flights, but did reiterate that initial flights would take place from Spaceport America. Operational roll-out will be based on a "safety-driven schedule".[46] In addition to making suborbital passenger launches, Virgin Galactic will market SpaceShipTwo for suborbital space science missions.[46]

NASA sRLV program

By March 2011, Virgin Galactic had submitted SpaceShipTwo as a reusable launch vehicle for carrying research payloads in response to NASA's suborbital reusable launch vehicle (sRLV) solicitation, which is a part of the agency's Flight Opportunities Program. Virgin projects research flights with a peak altitude of 110 km (68 mi) and a duration of approximately 90 minutes. These flights will provide approximately four minutes of microgravity for research payloads. Payload mass and microgravity levels have not yet been specified.[1] The NASA research flights could begin during the test flight certification program for SpaceShipTwo.

Future spacecraft

In August 2005, the president of space tourism company Virgin Galactic stated that if the suborbital service with SpaceShipTwo is successful, the follow-up SpaceShipThree will be an orbital craft. In 2008, Virgin Galactic changed their plans and decided to make it a high-speed passenger vehicle, offering transport through point-to-point suborbital spaceflight.[47]

Production

While the first WhiteKnightTwo and the first SpaceShipTwo were built by Scaled Composites, The Spaceship Company has responsibility for the manufacture of the second WK2 aircraft and the second SS2 spacecraft for Virgin Galactic, as well as additional production craft as other customers for the vehicles emerge.[48] In October 2010, TSC announced plans to build three WhiteKnightTwo aircraft and five SpaceShipTwo rocket planes.[49]

Specifications

Sources: [50][51]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 2
  • Capacity: 6 passengers

Performance

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "sRLV platforms compared". NASA. 7 March 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2011. SpaceShipTwo: Type: HTHL/Piloted
  2. ^ Amos, Jonathan (8 December 2009). "Richard Branson unveils Virgin Galactic spaceplane". BBC News. Retrieved 23 March 2010.
  3. ^ "Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic spaceship ignites engine in flight". BBC. 29 April 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  4. ^ a b c "Space Ship Completes 24th Test Flight in Mojave". HispanicBusiness.com. 4 April 2013. Retrieved 5 April 2013.
  5. ^ "Virgin Galactic to Launch Passengers on Private Spaceship in 2013". Space.com. 8 June 2012. Retrieved 11 June 2012.
  6. ^ "Virgin Galactic space tourism could begin in 2013". BBC. 26 October 2011.
  7. ^ John Schwartz (23 January 2008). "New Tourist Spacecraft Unveiled". New York Times. Retrieved 23 January 2008.
  8. ^ Booking. Virgin Galactic. Retrieved 21 December 2012.
  9. ^ "Virgin spaceship aims to be science lab". BBC. 4 December 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  10. ^ a b c Messier, Doug (2013-04-29). "Reserve Your SpaceShipTwo Seat Now — Big Price Increase Coming Soon". Parabolic Arc. Retrieved 2013-04-30.
  11. ^ a b Ticket Price for Private Spaceflights on Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo Going Up, space.com, 30 April 2013.
  12. ^ Scaled Composites LLC. "Project Test Summaries". Scaled.com. Retrieved 2012-04-05.
  13. ^ a b c Rob Coppinger. "Pictures: Virgin Galactic unveils Dyna-Soar style SpaceShipTwo design and twin-fuselage White Knight II configuration". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 2008-01-23.
  14. ^ a b Virgin Galactic. "Spaceship Unveil Presspack". virgingalactic.com. Retrieved 2008-02-10.
  15. ^ a b Dignan, Larry (2008-01-23). "Virgin Galactic unveils SpaceShipTwo; Plans open architecture spaceship". Between the lines. zdnet.com. Retrieved 2008-02-10.
  16. ^ Tariq Malik (2006-09-28). "Virgin Galactic Unveils SpaceShipTwo Interior Concept". Space News. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
  17. ^ Peter de Selding. "Virgin Galactic Customers Parting with Their Cash". Space News. Archived from the original on 2007-12-12. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
  18. ^ "Virgin Galactic's private spaceship makes safe landing after tense test flight". Space.com. 17 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
  19. ^ "Richard Branson and Burt Rutan Form Spacecraft Building Company". Space.com. 27 July 2005. Retrieved 17 October 2009.
  20. ^ Malik, Tariq (23 January 2008). "Virgin Galactic Unveils Suborbital Spaceliner Design". Space.com. Retrieved 25 January 2008.
  21. ^ "Virgin Galactic to Offer Public Space Flights". Space.com. 27 September 2004. Retrieved 20 December 2007.
  22. ^ a b Wilson, Simon (21 January 2008). "Will space tourism ever take off?". MoneyWeek. Retrieved 20 December 2008.
  23. ^ "Scale comparison chart of Spaceshipone and Spaceshiptwo". Gizmodo. Retrieved 6 April 2007.
  24. ^ New era draws closer: Spaceport dedicates runway on New Mexico ranch. El Paso Times. 23 October 2010. Retrieved 25 October 2010. "two-thirds of the $212 million required to build the spaceport came from the state of New Mexico...The rest came from construction bonds backed by a tax approved by voters in Doña Ana and Sierra counties."
  25. ^ Sophie Morrison (2006-09-30). "Buckled up for white knuckle ride". BBC News. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
  26. ^ Richard Branson unveils Virgin Galactic spaceplane. BBC News, 7 December 2009.
  27. ^ Abdollah, Tami and Silverstein, Stuart (2007-07-27). "Test Site Explosion Kills Three". Los Angeles Times. 27 July 2007. Retrieved on 2007-07-27
  28. ^ a b RocketMotorTwo Hot-Fire Test Summaries. Scaled.com. Updated 9 August 2012. Retrieved 16 December 2012.
  29. ^ a b "Virgin Galactic successfully completes SpaceShipTwo glide flight test and rocket motor firing on same day". SpaceRef.com. 28 June 2012.
  30. ^ Richard Branson (5 March 2013). "This isn't sci-fi". Virgin.com. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  31. ^ "SpaceShipTwo Gets Thumbs Up for Rocket-Powered Flights". Flying Magazine. 1 June 2012.
  32. ^ "Feather flight and nitrous vent test success". Virgin Galactic. Retrieved 12 April 2013.
  33. ^ Rosenberg, Zach. "Virgin Galactic finishes unpowered flight test". FlightGlobal.com. 13 September 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
  34. ^ a b "SpaceShipTwo straps on its engine". NBC. 20 December 2012. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  35. ^ "SpaceShipTwo Fitted With Rocket Propulsion System". Aviation Week. 22 October 2012. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
  36. ^ a b "VIRGIN GALACTIC BREAKS SPEED OF SOUND IN FIRST ROCKET-POWERED FLIGHT OF SPACESHIPTWO". Virgin Galactic. 29 April 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  37. ^ "SpaceShipTwo makes first powered flight". 3 News NZ. April 30, 2013.
  38. ^ Test Summaries. Scaled Composites. Updated 11 August 2012. Retrieved 16 December 2012.
  39. ^ "Virgin SpaceShipTwo aces 2nd flight test". Bakersfield Californian. 12 April 2013. Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  40. ^ "SpaceShipTwo PF01: SS2 and WK2 preps underway". NewSpaceWatch.com. 28 April 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  41. ^ a b c d "SpaceShipTwo Test Summaries". Scaled Composites. 29 April 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  42. ^ "A Look at Cost Overuns and Schedule Delays in Major Space Programs". parabolicarc.com. May 4, 2011. Retrieved April 1, 2012.
  43. ^ "Rich Chinese buying tickets to space". Zee News. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
  44. ^ Anon. "Virgin Galactic's timetable for progress". Spaceflight (Volume 50, February 2008, page 48), British Interplanetary Society.
  45. ^ "Hold tight: SpaceShipTwo makes near-vertical plunge towards Earth on test flight as space tourism dream edges closer". Daily Mail. London. 2011-05-05.
  46. ^ a b Will Whitehorn (2009-10-27). International Astronautical Congress 2009: Civilian Access to Space (video, comments at c. 20:00). Daejeon, Korea: Flightglobal Hyperbola, Rob Coppinger.
  47. ^ "SpaceShipThree poised to follow if SS2 succeeds". Flight International. 2005-08-23. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
  48. ^ Norris, Guy (8 July 2011). "An Inside Look At A New Spaceship Factory". Aviation Week and Space Technology. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
  49. ^ "Spacecraft factory to break ground in Mojave". Los Angeles Times. 8 November 2010. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  50. ^ Virgin Galactic - Overview. Retrieved 2011-10-29.
  51. ^ "How Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo Passenger Space Plane Works (Infographic)". Space.com. 10 October 2012. Retrieved 14 November 2012.