Reusable Launch Vehicle: Technology Development and Test Program (1995)
Chapter: FRONT MATTER
NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the panel responsible for the report were chosen for their special competencies and with regard for appropriate balance.
This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
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COMMITTEE ON REUSABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE TECHNOLOGY AND TEST PROGRAM
RICHARD A. HARTUNIAN, Chair,
Aerospace Corporation
(Ret.),
San Pedro, California
RICHARD ARSENAULT,
University of Maryland at College Park, College Park, Maryland
YVONNE C. BRILL,
Skillman, New Jersey
PAUL CASTENHOLZ,
Colorado Springs, Colorado
JAMES R. FRENCH,
JRF Engineering Services, Los Angeles, California
CLARK W. JOHNSON,
Hughes Space and Communications Company, Los Angeles, California
MARSHALL H. KAPLAN,
Launchspace, Inc., Falls Church, Virginia
HUGH McMANUS,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts
EDGAR A. STARKE, Jr.,
University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia
RICHARD R. WEISS,
Richard R. Weiss Consultant Services, Palmdale, California
PETER G. WILHELM,
Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, D.C.
Advisor
ERIC STRAUSS,
Englewood, Colorado
ASEB Liaison
JOHN K. BUCKNER,
Lockheed Martin Tactical Aircraft Systems, Fort Worth, Texas
Staff
JOANN C. CLAYTON, Director
ALI ESKANDARIAN, Study Director
WILLIAM E. CAMPBELL, Administrative Assistant
AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ENGINEERING BOARD
JACK L. KERREBROCK, Chair,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts
STEVEN AFTERGOOD,
Federation of American Scientists, Washington, D.C.
JOSEPH P. ALLEN,
Space Industries International, Inc., Washington, D.C.
GUION S. BLUFORD, Jr.,
NYMA, Inc., Brook Park, Ohio
JOHN K. BUCKNER,
Lockheed Martin Tactical Aircraft Systems, Fort Worth, Texas
RAYMOND S. COLLADAY,
Martin Marietta Astronautics, Denver, Colorado
RUTH M. DAVIS,
Pymatuning Group, Inc., Alexandria, Virginia
STEVEN M. DORFMAN,
Hughes Telecommunications and Space Company, General Motors Hughes Electronics, Los Angeles, California
DONALD C. FRASER,
Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts
JOHN M. HEDGEPETH,
Digisim Corporation, Santa Barbara, California
TAKEO KANADE,
Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
BERNARD L. KOFF,
Pratt & Whitney, West Palm Beach, Florida
DONALD J. KUTYNA,
Loral Corporation, Colorado Springs, Colorado
JOHN M. LOGSDON,
George Washington University, Washington, D.C.
ROBERT R. LYNN,
Bell Helicopter Textron, Euless, Texas
FRANK E. MARBLE,
California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California
C. JULIAN MAY,
Tech/Ops International, Inc., Kennesaw, Georgia
BRADFORD W. PARKINSON,
Stanford University, Stanford, California
ALFRED SCHOCK,
Orbital Sciences Corporation, Germantown, Maryland
JOHN D. WARNER,
The Boeing Company, Seattle, Washington
Staff Director: JOANN C. CLAYTON
Preface
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) requested that the National Research Council (NRC) assess the Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) technology development and test programs in the most critical component technologies. At a time when discretionary government spending is under close scrutiny, the RLV program is designed to reduce the cost of access to space through a combination of robust vehicles and a streamlined infrastructure. Routine access to space has obvious benefits for space science, national security, commercial technologies, and the further exploration of space.
Because of technological challenges, knowledgeable people disagree about the feasibility of a single-stage-to-orbit (SSTO) vehicle. The purpose of the RLV program proposed by NASA and industry contractors is to investigate the status of existing technology and to identify and advance key technology areas required for development and validation of an SSTO vehicle. This report does not address the feasibility of an SSTO vehicle, nor does it revisit the roles and responsibilities assigned to NASA by the National Transportation Policy. Instead, the report sets forth the NRC committee's findings and recommendations regarding the RLV technology development and test program in the critical areas of propulsion, a reusable cryogenic tank system (RCTS), primary vehicle structure, and a thermal protection system (TPS).
Because of the divergent approaches to and unique requirements for each of the key technology areas, the committee quickly discovered the equivalent of four reports would be needed to do justice to the program. Therefore, this report emphasizes each of the four key component areas and addresses issues pertaining to the performance, producibility, and reusability of each. Advances in all of these areas are critical to reducing the cost of access to space.
The committee would like to express its appreciation to the many NASA and industry teams that invested long days describing their programs and answering questions. The committee also appreciates their willingness to provide additional clarification. A list of the participants in meetings with the committee appears as Appendix A.
In addition, the chairman would like to express his appreciation to the committee members for their extensive contributions to this study with extra thanks to the leaders of the technical areas for taking on that additional responsibility. Finally, the invaluable contributions of the NRC staff are gratefully acknowledged: JoAnn Clayton for her
advice to the chairman and assistance in preparing background material and editing sections of the report; Dr. Ali Eskandarian for his tireless efforts in arranging all the briefings, for collating, editing, and commenting on the committee's additions to the final report, and for providing counsel to the chairman; and Bill Campbell for his many contributions throughout the study, including preparation of numerous drafts of the report.
Richard A. Hartunian, Chairman
Committee on Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Development and Test Program
List of Tables and Figures
TABLES
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4-1 |
Space Shuttle TPS Damage |
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4-2 |
100 Mission Maximum Operating Temperature for Space Shuttle Orbiter |
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4-3 |
TPS Concepts for Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) |
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5-1 |
NASA/Industry Cooperative Propulsion Technology Programs |
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5-2 |
Characteristics of Flight-Proven 400,00 lb Thrust LOX/LH2 Engines |
FIGURES
