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CATS and the re-use of RD-171s
I was reading Mark Wade's write-up on the Zenit's
RD-171s and couldn't help but focus on the fact that they recovered the engines on an early test flight in order to see how the engines fared. With an appropriate nod to Kistler, I'm intrigued by the possibility that a (partially) re-usable Zenit might be engineered. Four architectures seem possible for re-use of a first stage: 1) a liquid fly-back booster (Baikal), 2) parachutes and air-bags (Kistler), 3) tail-lander (DC-X), and 4) an engine pod/boat-tail. Each architecture has various strengths and weaknesses. My favorite for the moment is the engine-pod. I wonder how well the engineering aspects of this approach have been studied, and why we haven't seen one flown yet. As with the SSMEs, there's also the concern that the engines will have to be frequently rebuilt, but one has got to believe that that will be cheaper than throwing them away with each flight. - Cris Fitch San Diego, CA http://www.orbit6.com/ |
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CATS and the re-use of RD-171s
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CATS and the re-use of RD-171s
My favorite for the moment is the engine-pod. BRBR
Didn't Boeing's original submission for the EELV competition use one? Matt Bille ) OPINIONS IN ALL POSTS ARE SOLELY THOSE OF THE AUTHOR |
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