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NASA's new launch platform

  • 13-12-2004 1:27pm
    #1
    evilhomer
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,464 ✭✭✭


    i was amazed to see that NASA were "thinking outside the box" when they came up with their new orbital launch platform the X-4000
    could this be their greatest triumph ever?? ;)


Comments

  • #2
    mike65
    Closed Accounts Posts: 88,972 ✭✭✭✭mike65


    I reckon they could reach the next county with that! :D

    Mike.


  • #3
    Capt'n Midnight
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 93,563 Mod ✭✭✭✭Capt'n Midnight


    http://forums.seds.org/showthread.php?p=2309

    also google for tethers


  • #4
    Tomk1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 776 ✭✭✭Tomk1


    That X-4000 sounds crazy,

    Capt'n Midnight excellent link most intresting.

    I once heard of an idea to launch from under the sea by pumping the water out of a launch tube. and then use water pressure with the aid of rockets.

    But water and air friction.


  • #5
    Scruff
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,225 ✭✭✭Scruff


    launching from underwater eh...

    they would need to acheive supercavitation in order to do that. Interesting article on it here: http://www.marinetalk.com/articles_HTML/xxx000103539TU.html
    Just a few years after Shkval's debut, NUWC (USA) researchers announced they had gone supersonic. An unpowered projectile, with a carefully designed flat nose and fired from an underwater gun, broke the sound barrier in water. That's nearly 5400 kilometres per hour--or 1.5 kilometres per second. Lacking any onboard power to sustain its motion, the shell slowed rapidly, but this was still a vivid demonstration of the speeds that supercavitation makes possible. Already they aren't very far off the 2.5 kilometre-per-second speed record for conventional munitions in air, and scientists have calculated that their supercavitating projectiles should be able to match or even surpass this.


  • #6
    Capt'n Midnight
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 93,563 Mod ✭✭✭✭Capt'n Midnight


    Tomk1 wrote:
    That X-4000 sounds crazy,

    Capt'n Midnight excellent link most intresting.

    I once heard of an idea to launch from under the sea by pumping the water out of a launch tube. and then use water pressure with the aid of rockets.

    But water and air friction.
    You can't build a very tall tower, (miles) so one I option I saw was to use water under high pressure, like a ballon or like plants do, to get high up.


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  • #7
    Shrapnel
    Closed Accounts Posts: 26 ✭Shrapnel


    A working prototype was built at Area 51,

    now, seeing as the US government continues to deny the existance of this facility, i'd be highly sceptical of this source, and thus, the idea of the x-4000.

    In any case I doubt it would be suitable for launching manned missions, because of the forces involved, and i also doubt that the acuracy needed for the orbital positioning of satellites, could be provided by this device.


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