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GE unveils ramjet design for shuttle

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GE unveils ramjet design for shuttle

GUY NORRIS / LOS ANGELES

General Electric (GE) has revealed design details of the turbofan ramjet at the heart of one of NASA's long-term third-generation Space Shuttle replacement proposals. The Revolutionary Turbine Accelerator (RTA-1) engine is based on GE's YF120 variable cycle engine developed for the Advanced Tactical Fighter programme which spawned the Lockheed Martin F/A-22.

The RTA is being studied under NASA's Turbine Based Combined Cycle (TBCC) project aimed at providing aircraft-like spaceflight operations, as the first element of NASA's Next Generation Launch Technology initiative. The TBCC is competing against a rocket-based combined cycle alternative with a downselection expected in 2009.

Any full-scale production version of the RTA would be based on a versatile core derived from CFM International's Tech56 technology project and US government-industry versatile affordable advanced turbine engine development initiatives.

The RTA-1 is designed to accelerate from a standing start to around Mach [Link pending approval] at 56,000ft (17,000m) in eight minutes. Following a normal take-off and acceleration to Mach 2 with afterburner in single bypass mode, the RTA will transition to double bypass mode for acceleration to M3. A key feature of the RTA is a combined ramjet/afterburner dubbed the "hyperburner". Above M3 the hyperburner transitions from an afterburner to a ramjet burner for the final jump to M4-plus, after which the second-stage space vehicle will separate from the RTA-powered vehicle, the former landing as a conventional aircraft. At M4 GE says the engine core is at flight idle and all the thrust is generated by the hyperburner.

Design work is under way at GE on a new fan and fan frame for the YF120 which is being refurbished, and a new core-driven fan stage and hyperburner are being developed.

Would this be to complicated or expensive for mass production?

Would it make more thrust or just work better at different altitudes or speeds?

reusable spacecrafts were & are the dead idea so far, but ramjet has been pretty cool stuff -- rocket can've a follow scheme: 1st stage is LOX+LH2, second may be ramjet & 3rd is 1st-like. yet another moment's rocket could lift-off from mother-aircraft.

So, you think that advancing tech for its own sake is not worthwhile? You are backwards, my friend. That comes from reading several of your posts.

The shuttle program was a step towards true space exploration, a step that had to be taken. One does not just decide one day to build a ship for manned space exploration outside the confines of earth orbit without reference. The shuttle missions provided invaluable information for the future. A future that some day will have men standing on the surface of Mars, and even exploration of the entire solar system, and beyond. Not necessarily for any other reason than the need to see with our own eyes what is out there, and to prove that we can.

The pettiness, and jealousy of human beings towards one another is the only thing holding us back.

epicvalor wrote:

So, you think that advancing tech for its own sake is not worthwhile? You are backwards, my friend. That comes from reading several of your posts.

The shuttle program was a step towards true space exploration, a step that had to be taken. One does not just decide one day to build a ship for manned space exploration outside the confines of earth orbit without reference. The shuttle missions provided invaluable information for the future. A future that some day will have men standing on the surface of Mars, and even exploration of the entire solar system, and beyond. Not necessarily for any other reason than the need to see with our own eyes what is out there, and to prove that we can.

The pettiness, and jealousy of human beings towards one another is the only thing holding us back.

oh, come on Exclamation

i'm deviliciously the one of those, who hella want to see this civilization among most technologically advanced Exclamation

to use ramjet/scramjet as stage is really wise idea for rockets, to use mother-aircraft to lift off is useful too. but reusable spaceship has been useless rush so far Exclamation

next move after rocket with ramjet stage must be SOPL to power orbital tugs.

Quote:

Design work is under way at GE on a new fan and fan frame for the YF120 which is being refurbished, and a new core-driven fan stage and hyperburner are being developed.

I like the 6th gen idea. The YF120 was to power the F-22. Why not an advanced ramjet for high speed flight.

longrifleman wrote:

GE unveils ramjet design for shuttle

http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2003/09/23/171555/ge-unveils-ramjet-design-for-shuttle.html

That's from 2003. Most likely by now, the cobwebs on it have cobwebs and everybody who worked on the project works somewhere else.