Us company in the verge of creating the perfect high-speed missiles.
The American company Generation Orbit Launch Services in the near future will begin a series of tests of a prototype advanced hypersonic missile carrier Launcher 1, which will allow you to display different payload on a suborbital trajectory. As written by Aviation Week, will soon begin test firing of the rocket, and then flight tests on the aircraft carrier. These inspections will be conducted at the site of the air base, the U.S. air force “Edwards” in California.
Currently, the us developers don’t have tools that would allow a broad range of research in the field of microgravity and high-speed atmospheric flight. Prior to 1968, such research in the USA was conducted using the experimental rocket plane X-15, originally engineered for space flight with the carrier aircraft. Before closing the program X-15 rocketplane with different equipment were used for studies whose data was used, including in the development of the American space program.
The new hypersonic missile will be a carrier for the various measurement equipment that will allow to study not only in microgravity but also astrophysics. In addition, the rocket could be used for to the launch of nano-satellites. As expected, during the first flight tests of the rocket carrier will be a modified business jet Gulfstream III. With it, will determine the aerodynamic characteristics of the missile and its impact on the parameters of the flight vehicle.
As expected, after firing and purge tests of the missile Launcher 1, Generation Orbit Launch Services, collect the first flying prototype, which will be fully ready and will make the first flight on the aircraft carrier until the end of 2018. First undock in the air solo flight and the rocket will perform in early 2019. Soon after, the missile Launcher 1 is running on liquid fuel, will begin to use for the first research launches.
The weight of the new missile is estimated to be 1.1 tons. Its engine will run on kerosene and liquid oxygen and will be able to produce thrust of about 22,2 kN at sea level. GOLauncher 1 can carry different hardware or micro-satellites with a total mass of from 136 to 454 kg. Rocket could be used for research launches on suborbital trajectories in height from 15.2 to 36.6 thousand meters with flight speeds of four to eight Mach numbers (from 4.9 to 9.9 thousand kilometers per hour).
After the start of serial production of the missile Launcher 1 the American company intends to start production of heavier its derivatives — GOLauncher GOLauncher 2 and 3. These rockets can carry larger volume and weight of the cargo, to fly along the trajectories with a large range of altitudes at higher speeds. The carrier of these missiles will be wide-body DC-10 aircraft from the U.S. air force.
Today, several countries are interested in conducting research in the field of hypersonic flight. In mid-July this year, a research group at the defence science and technology of the Ministry of defence of Australia, together with the Research laboratory of the U.S. air force has completed the first phase of testing advanced hypersonic missiles HIFiRE. This phase included several launches of missiles, the last of which she was able to develop a speed of 7.5 Mach number.
The HIFiRE program was launched in 2012. Its main goal is the research and development of technology long-established hypersonic flight. In the course of the program is planned to test a hypersonic glider missile with a hypersonic ramjet engine, the speed eight Mach number and hypersonic aircraft. The device will be tested at the speed of a well-established hypersonic flight at speeds at eight Mach numbers.
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