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DARPA's experimental Phantom Express spacecraft stepped closer to flying with the Aerojet Rocketdyne AR-22 rocket-pump engine that successfully completed 10 shots. test in 240 hours. Based on the main engine of the Space Shuttle, the new variant is designed for rapid recycling to create an aircraft-type launcher capable of sending satellites into orbit as quickly as planes leave airports
. a being developed in partnership between DARPA and Boeing, with the aim of accelerating the launch of orbital loads and reducing costs. The idea is that the space plane could launch small satellites of 3,000 lbs (1,361 kg) for $ 5 million each with 10 flights in 10 days
To achieve this, the Phantom Unmanned autonomous express comes off vertically buffer. After reaching a hypersonic speed, it enters a sub-orbital trajectory to the edge of the space, where it releases a second superimposed stage to send the payload into orbit. The key to the space plane is an updated version of the AR-22 engine. It burns a mixture of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen to produce more than 375,000 pounds of thrust for at least 100 seconds.
From June 26 to July 26 at NASA's Stennis Space Center, Aerojet Rocketdyne performs 10 test shots interspersed with inspections and data. opinion. The goal was to demonstrate that it is possible to recycle the engine fairly quickly after each flight to be ready for the next one, and to improve the design of the operational variant.
"Aerojet Rocketdyne continued to refine the reusable engine technology that we had originally developed for the Space Shuttle program," says Eileen Drake, CEO and President of Aerojet Rocketdyne. "With the AR-22, we bring reuse to the next level and demonstrate that a daily and affordable access to space is at your fingertips."
Source: Aerojet Rocketdyne
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