So here I am minding my own business this morning when I hear an aircraft fly overhead. But it was an odd-sounding one. I go outside and see…. this:
I can only assume he’s out looking for rocketninjas in the volcanic craters.
A freakin’ gyrocopter. BAH! What’s next? Jetpacks?
Once again, this is clearly discrimination, a result of massive wealth inequality in America. Where’s my ObamaGyrocopCare? Redistribute some of that aviation *my* way!
It hit a bridge and did some minor damage to the foam on a wingtip.
Note: Image not entirely relevant.
The Boeing “Phantom Eye” drone has flown. This is a remarkably tubby aircraft… because it’s fueled with low density liquid hydrogen. The eventual goal is to cruise at 65,000 feet for four days, with a 450-pound payload. It won’t be much good for carrying ordnance, but it might do ok in the high-altitude, long-duration recon role… in areas where it can get liquid hydrogen fuel.
More info and a flight video here.
A photo gallery is here.
NASA has recently uploaded to YouTube an early video presentation on the NASP, showing the initial “du Pont” configuration.
[youtube 2bkZ2Sbsjp0]
Just as the title described. A technically well-done taxidermy project wrapped a dead cat around a remote control helicopter. It’s a remarkable achievement that just gives me the willies.
And then there’s this…
Egad.
Last Tuesday the Sierra Nevada Corp flew a full-scale version of their Dream Chaser lifting body spaceplane – under a Sikorsky Skycrane helicopter. This was an engineering test article… something like halfway between a mockup and a functioning craft. Aerodynamically and probably mass-wise it was an accurate representation of the proposed vehicle, with some aerodynamic control, but not space-capable nor fitted with propulsion systems.
With SpaceX’s recent success, Virgin Galactic hopefully to begin powered flights of the Spaceship2 shortly, and Sierra Nevada and Xcor both seeming to be on track to fly manned vehicles shortly, there just might be hope for the American space program after all.
A less-known aspect of the F-104 Starfighter was its experimental use as a launch platform for small sounding rockets. By using a jet fighter as a first stage, an expensive expendable rocket stage could be dispensed with, and launch location could be chosen pretty much at will. Studies showed that an F-104 launched single-stage Viper sounding rocket should attain 800,000 feet altitude; a two stage Altair should reach 6,000,000 feet (1136 miles).
From about 1958 to 1962, NASA undertook a series of tests to demonstrate the concept. An F-104 that had been modified for air launched weapons testing was used. The aircraft had an extendable launch rack for the MB-1 “Genie” nuclear tipped air-to-air missile; a Sidewinder launch rail was attached to that rack, and was used to hold and launch the sounding rocket. The rocket was a single-stage vehicle based on the Grand Central Rocket Co. Viper I-C solid rocket motor. This rocket was referred to as the ALSOR (Air Launched Sounding Rocket).
Image of F-104 with ALSOR (via NASA)
Image of F-104 with ALSOR (via NASA)
The rocket was produced with two different nose geometries, Model A and Model B. The Model A design was for the launch of a balloon: it would inflate after deployment (using water and isopentante, which would boil in the low pressure environment), and included an aluminized corner reflector inside. The balloon would fall and be measured by radar; atmospheric density could then be measured by careful examination of acceleration profiles.
Photo of a deployed atmospheric density-measuring balloon.
Model A payload section
As for Model B:
The model B vehicle was designed for a classified experimental scanning device that telemetered a continuous signal to ground receivers during a flat – trajectory launch in which maximum range (160 nautical miles) was desired.
The “Viperscan” was a Naval Ordnance Test Station device designed to take infrared images of the surface of the Earth and transmit them to ground station; it was not recoverable. Not much is known about it; it seems like the sort of thing that might have made for a handy fast-reaction recon system. Nowhere near as capable as an SR-71, but probably far cheaper and faster (no film recovery and development, for instance).
Models A and B
Artists impression of F-104 in steep vertical climb launching an ALSOR.
ALSOR mission profile
Data on the five test flights.
The test program demonstrated that the concept of an aircraft-launched sounding rocket was practical. However, the F-104 proved to be temperamental in this role, and apparently the concept was dropped.
This fifty-year-old concept was recently revived by the Star Lab project, which is planned to use an F-104 to launch a suborbital rocket.
Because eventually your supersonic nuclear powered seaplane is going to fail, you are going to need a way to bail out at speed and at altitude. Obviously ejector seats are out of the question… you’d get shot distressingly close to both the reactor and the radioactive exhaust. Additionally, punching a hole in the massive lead cockpit shield big enough to get an ejector seat through *without* torching the crew would be problematic at best. So, Convairs solution to the problem, as shown in this 1956 diagram, was to eject the entire cockpit as a capsule. This is similar to the method used on the F-111 and the B-1A.
Note that the three parachutes are shown hilariously out of scale.
Here I am, with a pilots license I haven’t used in a decade and a half, and due to financial reasons will likely never use again, and I’m surrounded by my fellow man taking to the skies. Hrrrmmmph.
He was buzzing around again this evening, but not terribly close, so I jumped in the car and followed him around. Sadly, due to sun angle and property lines I didn’t get much of anything you’d call “good,” but I did get two I found interesting:
1) The Photobomber:
2) Pulled over at the side of the road and caught the cropduster coming and a passing car going. Gives a hint as to the operating altitude.
And while I was out I noticed a pronounced sun dog:
