Damon Hill wrote in message . 132...
Markus Baur wrote in newsAKEb.146722
:

one thing that has not yet mentioned (at least i could not find any
mention of this) is the opportunity of using SSO as a manned sounding
rocket ..

i would guess a number of resaerch institutions and universites might
be very interested in this .. your opinion ?

Don't see why it couldn't be used as a launcher for a sounding rocket,
or a multistage light satellite launcher. The hybrid motor is pushing
a heavy mass to a pretty good altitude; how high would it go by itself
and a small payload?

I would not be surprised to see them try this, or perhaps it's their
real goal.


I wonder who would use it. Most NASA sounding rocket flights
carry smaller payloads to much higher altitudes (usually for
studying the radiation belts, etc.) Of the 26 sounding rocket
launches planned by NASA during the next fiscal year
("http://www.wff.nasa.gov/~code810/pages/srpo_monthly_sch.html")
only two seem to be lower altitude, heavy-payload, single-stage
Black Brants.

- Ed Kyle