Isakowitz 4 is published

Launch vehicle aficionados will be pleased to know that the fourth edition
of AIAA's International Reference Guide to Space Launch Systems
(colloquially known as "Isakowitz" after its first author) has finally been
published. My apologies and thanks to those who have been waiting patiently
or impatiently. It was originally intended to cover through the end of 2002
and come out in 2003, but a series of delays postponed the publication date.
As a result, the launch logs and other data were updated to cover through
the end of 2003, although the text is still sparse regarding events last
year.

All chapters were revised and updated since the previous edition in 1999,
and four new chapters were added for new launch vehicles (see below). The
format is largely unchanged from the 3rd edition, but the print quality in
this edition is much better than last time. The performance comparison graph
in the front is, IMHO, an improvement over the old, and we added graphs in
several chapters depicting the performance growth over time of the more
venerable vehicles, as well as graphs comparing launch vehicle and spaceport
usage.

It's available direct from AIAA
(http://www.aiaa.org/content.cfm?pageid=360&id=1051). Barnes and Noble has
it, but Amazon still seems to be advertising the older edition at the
moment. Note that AIAA members can buy the book at a substantial discount,
but only through AIAA.

The book covers all vehicles that have been active since the previous
edition in 1999 or that are expected to have a first launch by 2006.
Chapters in this edition a
Angara
Ariane (4 & 5)
Atlas (IIAS, III, V)
Cyclone (2, 3, 2K & 4)
Delta (II and IV)
Dnepr
Falcon (New)
H-IIA
K-1
Kaituozhe KT-1 (New)
Kosmos
Long March
M-V
Minotaur
Pegasus
Proton
PSLV/GSLV
Rockot
Scorpius (New)
Shavit
Shtil and Volna (completely rewritten)
Soyuz and Molniya
Space Shuttle
Start
Strela (completely rewritten)
Taurus
Titan (II & IV)
Vega (New)
VLS/VLM
Zenit
Spaceports



Josh Hopkins

On 2004-09-21, Josh Hopkins wrote:

All chapters were revised and updated since the previous edition in 1999,
and four new chapters were added for new launch vehicles (see below). The
format is largely unchanged from the 3rd edition, but the print quality in
this edition is much better than last time.

Quick question - is there much information removed? I seem to remember
being told that when the third edition was published, a lot of
information - generally relating to obsolete LVs - was removed; is there
likewise material in the third that's not in the fourth? Just curious...

--
-Andrew Gray

"Andrew Gray" wrote in message
. ..

Quick question - is there much information removed? I seem to remember
being told that when the third edition was published, a lot of
information - generally relating to obsolete LVs - was removed; is there
likewise material in the third that's not in the fourth? Just curious...

When we did the third edition, we made the decision not to continue
including the sections on historical launch vehicle families, since many
readers are repeat buyers who already had the same info in the two previous
editions, and since the third edition was already going to be a much bigger
book. In the fourth edition, we likewise removed the chapters on Beal's BA-2
and Japan's J-1 since both programs were cancelled. We also removed data on
some retired launch vehicle variants from within their chapters, such as
Delta III and the original H-II. Each chapter was reviewed and revised, so
if some fact was out of date or no longer true it might be taken out, or a
picture might be replaced by a better one, but the general trend is an
increase in content. The 4th edition is just shy of 600 pages, compared to
about 550 in the 3rd and 340 in the 2nd edition. But, don't throw away your
old editions. I still refer to my copy of the 1st edition occasionally.

The plan is to put those older chapters on the web at some point, and now
that the book is finished we have a little more time to focus on that task.

Josh Hopkins

Just a comment: it's a terrific contribution. We already have two copies of
Edition 4 in my office.


Matt Bille
)
OPINIONS IN ALL POSTS ARE SOLELY THOSE OF THE AUTHOR