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2004-07-16 Home Front: Tech

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Posted by Dar 2004-07-16 1:49:20 PM|| || Front Page|| [4 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 This is almost a eulogy...

NASA's real value: Seed Corn. Do you eat it in fits of faux-sociology foolishness - or save it for planting next spring, so you eat for another year?

Find the funding Dubya, Frist, et al. Congress, after the election, should yank it out of some of those idiot programs - there are certainly plenty to choose from. A line item veto approach is essential to good governance - puhleeze bring it back before it's too late.

Make it so, Capt Picard.

Posted by .com 2004-07-16 2:29:18 PM|| 2004-07-16 2:29:18 PM|| Front Page Top

#2 The X-43 technology never really made sense and had limited practical use. It doesn't work until you get up to a certain speed so you need to piggy-back your way with another plane or you have to have a second set of engines to get you up to speed. Then its no good in space because its an air breather, so you need a rocket engine there as well. So we're talking two or three engines.

Posted by Yank 2004-07-16 4:45:14 PM|| [politicaljunky.blogspot.com] 2004-07-16 4:45:14 PM|| Front Page Top

#3 Actually Yank several perfectly good uses for such a platform come immediately to mind: 1) it would make one hell of a kinetic energy weapon; 2) ditto an unmanned surveillance platform; but the best is probably 3) if it can be scaled up it might present a very attractive option for replacing the current space shuttle fleet.

The "extra engines" problem isn't quite as bad as it seems since the current space shuttle requires two solid fueled rocket boosters, a normal liquid fueled burn via the shuttles main engines, and then a separately powered orbital maneuvering system (monomethyl hydrazine + nitrogen tetroxide which spontaneously combust when mixed). And this sort of vehicle could (in theory) do something the current shuttle cannot: fly back in under its own power.

Clearly for use #3 there's a ways to go in finding an efficient way to get the craft to the necessary speed to light the scramjet but the cost/benefit potential of such a system is breathtaking. Well worth the pittance it'll cost us to continue the research IMHO.

Posted by AzCat 2004-07-16 10:02:04 PM|| 2004-07-16 10:02:04 PM|| Front Page Top

#4 it would make one hell of a kinetic energy weapon;

hmmmm what were we discussing about penetration speed necessary to destroy bunkers?

Posted by Frank G 2004-07-16 10:08:47 PM|| 2004-07-16 10:08:47 PM|| Front Page Top

#5 #4 hmmmm what were we discussing about penetration speed necessary to destroy bunkers?

That's what I've been suggesting lately. Excellent military application of hypersonic flight technology.

Posted by Zenster 2004-07-16 10:38:14 PM|| 2004-07-16 10:38:14 PM|| Front Page Top

#6 Wonder if you can fry bacon and eggs on the skin?

Posted by raptor 2004-07-17 10:16:47 AM|| 2004-07-17 10:16:47 AM|| Front Page Top

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