Re-usable Launch Revisited: Low Cost Potentials? Gordon R. Woodcock

摘要

Re-usable launch vehicles have been studied since the beginnings of the space program. No serious attempt to build one was made until the space shuttle. The shuttle itself was started as a fully re-usable program but was changed to partially re-usable due to budget limitations. Since shuttle, NASA and DoD attempts to further re-usable technology have pursued risky and unfruitful concepts. Currently there is no government activity towards re-usable launchers, but ideas for space utilization beyond very limited exploration depend on significant cost reductions. Two relatively conservative rocket propulsion fully reusable concepts are analyzed and compared to a new expendable over a wide range of launch rates and reuse parameters. It is shown that re-use alone is not enough; we must also attain long vehicle life including very high probability of intact return, fast turnaround time, and low spares cost. If these goals are reached, future re-usable space launch systems can operate below