US Spacecraft Projects #2: Spaceplanes

 aircraft, books, drawings, history, new products, projects, rockets, spacecraft, US Spacecraft Projects  1 Response »
Jan 212015
 

Now available: US Spacecraft Projects #02, the “Spaceplane Special.” This is done in the same style as the other US Aerospace Projects publications, but this issue is focused specifically on lifting spacecraft… and is more than twice as long as usual with more data and more diagrams.

USSP #02 includes:

  • Boeing Personnel/Cargo Glider: When you have space industry, you need a space bus
  • Convair Manned Orbiting Reconnaissance System: A 1958 concept for a recon spaceplane
  • North American D435-1-4: The delta winged X-15A-3 (not a true spaceplane… but still, relevant)
  • General Electric R-3 Lenticular Apollo: A 1962 Apollo concept for a lifting body lunar ship
  • General Dynamics VL-3A: a 1966 space station logistics transport
  • SRI Space Cruiser: An early 1980’s minimum manned spacecraft for the military
  • Boeing Model 844-2050E Dyna Soar: The almost-built spaceplane from 1963
  • Rockwell MRCC Orbiter: the do-everything concept, modified with additional rockets and propellant

USSP #02 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $6:

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ussp02ad2

ussp02ad

 Posted by at 11:43 pm

DEIMOS

 art, history, projects, spacecraft  2 Responses »
Jan 212015
 

Illustrations of a Martin concept from 1961 called “DEIMOS” (Development and Investigation of a Military Orbital System). Pitched to the Air Force, this entailed a modified Titan II launch vehicle, a standard cargo hauler and a scaled-up two-man Mercury capsule (this was before Gemini was finalized). The result was something akin to a smaller version of the later MOL (Manned Orbiting Laboratory).  The Titan II described here (modifications unknown) could put a 10,000 pound payload into a 300 nautical mile orbit.

Capabilities and roles of DEIMOS were not provided, but it would presumably serve much the same role as MOL, though simpler and lighter weight: basic science as well as reconnaissance and intelligence gathering. The claim as of August 1961 was that if work began soon DEIMOS could begin flying in 1963.

deimos 1

 Posted by at 9:54 am

Atoms for Peace Dirigible

 aircraft, art, history, news, nukes, Patreon, projects  22 Responses »
Jan 172015
 

I’ve made available to all APR Patreon patrons full-rez scan of of an article from Mechanix Illustrated, March, 1956. “Why Don’t We Build an Atoms-For-Peace Dirigible” was written and illustrated by Frank Tinsley and is, to say the least, kinda technologically optimistic. But it demonstrated a difference in psychology between then and now… sixty years ago, thinking this kind of big was not seen as crazy as it would be today.

atomdirigible

If this is of interest, please consider signing up to become a patron. For a pittance per month, you get all kinds of aerospace history goodies.

patreon-200

 Posted by at 11:08 pm

Forthcoming

 books, drawings, projects, US Spacecraft Projects  4 Responses »
Jan 122015
 

I have been plugging away on USSP#2, pretty much to the exclusion of all else, for a little while now. Shown below is the current status of the diagrams. USSP#2 has substantially more diagrams than the usual US Aerospace Projects publication. The empty spots are for two further spaceplanes. I really wish I was a faster draftsman, but there it is.

Generally I release these sort of things two at a time, but this might be released on its own.

ussp 02

 Posted by at 1:09 am

Saturn I with nuclear upper stage

 drawings, history, nukes, projects, rockets, spacecraft  9 Responses »
Jan 102015
 

This is one of the more unlikely-looking launch vehicle designs I’ve seen… a 1961 Saturn I first stage with an S-IV second stage and a nuclear upper stage. In and of itself that’s not that unusual… but the upper stage is *really* long and thin and appears to be devoid of a recognizable payload. The result, if it managed to survive launch and bending forces, is that at burnout it would be accelerating *really* hard.

However, the great probability here is that this was not an actual serious engineering study for a launch vehicle, but instead a notional concept, useful for studying the whichness of the why regarding the use of automated systems for nuclear rocket preparation an launch.

missiles and rockets Sept 61 nuclear rockets

 Posted by at 5:27 am

US Launch Vehicle Projects

 APR, blather, drawings, history, Hmm..., new products, projects, rockets, spacecraft  7 Responses »
Jan 092015
 

As soon as I branched beyond just Bombers in the “US Aerospace Projects” publications, a series on launch vehicles became both inevitable and mandatory. I haven’t yet put any together, however. I’ve been thinking about how to format them. The series on Spacecraft, of which a grand total of a single issue has been released, is very eclectic, with everything from work pods to space stations to starships; I asked the “up-ship emailing list” if that worked, and the result is that the *next* issue will be focused on a single type of spacecraft, and the one after that eclectic, rinse and repeat.

For Launchers, though, I’m considering following a pattern for each issue. As with Bombers, Transports, Spacecraft and so on, each issue will cover eight vehicles. I’m considering:

1) Designs leading up to the development of the Saturn I and V

2) Designs derived *from* the Saturn I and V

3) Heavy lifters… Nova, Post-Saturn and beyond

4) Aerospaceplanes of various types (airbreathing and non, just so’s they’re launch vehicles not payload)

5) early Space Shuttle designs

6) Shuttle derived vehicles

7) & 8) Misc

Here’s the thing: early Shuttle might often be *two* designs… the Booster and the Orbiter.

Comments? Complaints? Suggestions? Large bags of cash?

 Posted by at 11:25 pm

Long Beach w/Polaris

 art, history, nukes, projects, rockets, ships, weapons  13 Responses »
Jan 062015
 

A scan of a piece of art from 1961 depicting a Long Beach-class guided missile cruiser launching a Polaris ballistic missile. Note that the caption says that this *will* happen; as it turned out, not only was the Long Beach never equipped with Polarises, it was also the only ship in its class. The US Navy decided that putting strategic nuclear ballistic missiles on easily-spotted and tracked surface ships was less desirable than putting them on far stealthier submarines.

missiles and rockets feb 61 polaris long beach

 Posted by at 7:49 am

Orion

 art, books, drawings, history, Nuclear Pulse Propulsion, nukes, projects, rockets, spacecraft, weapons, wisdom  22 Responses »
Jan 022015
 

A nice writeup of some of my Orion drafting & scribbling here:

Hard SF Feature 04: Scott Lowther

Some of my Orion diagrams:

npp_17001_1_doomsday npp_06001_1 npp_06001_2 npp_55001_4000_ton_nexus npp_55001_4000_ton_nexus_2

I suppose I really do need to finish that book some day. Having the publisher vanish on me kinda sucked the joy out of it, though. You’d think I’d be used to that sort of thing by now… I guess that there just might not be  a maximum level of disappointment. You can always be more disappointed.

 Posted by at 6:25 pm

Lockheed ATF artwork

 aircraft, art, history, projects  6 Responses »
Jan 012015
 

An illustration from the 1980’s, publicized fairly widely by Lockheed to illustrate their thinking for an Advanced Tactical Fighter (which led to the F-22). This almost certainly did *not* represent actual design work on Lockheeds part, but instead pure artistry. This particular version of the artwork depicts a rather apocalyptic color scheme; other versions were rather cheerier.

lockheed atf art

 Posted by at 12:03 pm
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