Type of Publication
Year of Publication
2004
Authors

K. Aoki

ISBN Number

1081-6003 0-87703-510-5

Abstract

A reusable launch vehicle is one of the low-cost rocket launch system concepts suitable for large-scale space transportation, such as construction of solar power satellites and space tourism for the general public. From the result of studying "Kankoh-maru," the RLV design for space tourism, it is found that one RLV is required to be launched once a day for a successful commercial service. This means that the turn-around time for RLVs must be much shorter than that for existing expendable rockets, whose launch rate is a few times per year. The hydrogen aircraft, for which the turn-around time was supposed to be 64 minutes, was designed. Several motor companies make every effort to develop fuel cell-powered vehicles whose propellant is hydrogen. Judging from the above, we must be able to design the RLVs with the much shorter turn-around time like that of the hydrogen aircraft and the safety like that of fuel cell-powered vehicles for the general public. Studying a plan of the turn-around activities for the space shuttle tells us that the propulsion and feed system is one of the systems which require a lot of the turnaround activities. For shortening the turn-around time, it is a way to reduce the number of activities for that system.

Volume

117

Notes

Times Cited: 0 10th International Space Conference of Pacific Basin Societies Dec 10-12, 2003 Tokyo, JAPAN Amer Astronaut Soc; Chinese Soc Astronaut; Japanese Rocket Soc 0

Pagination

37-42