The Universities of Texas, Minnesota, and New Orleans, and Texas Tech University are undertaking research supported by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research on critical issues for a launch to space from a railgun carried on an airborne platform. The University of Texas at Austin is studying techniques to achieve hypervelocity with a goal of 7 km/s: So far, 5.2 km/s has been achieved in a 7-m augmented railgun using a preinjected plasma armature. Texas Tech University is studying distributed power feed concepts that will improve the efficiency of launch for a long railgun: So far, 11 km/s has been achieved with a plasma arc in a five-stage system. The Universities of Minnesota and New Orleans are investigating the aerothermal behavior of a 10-kg projectile for flight from a high-altitude launch into orbit: So far, the results show that an acceptable amount ($sim$ 15 mm) of nosetip ablation will occur. This paper provides an overview of progress in these areas; more details on specific topics are provided in companion papers.
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