U.S.Testing Propane Rocket to launch small satellite payloaos inot ow-earth orbit

摘要

The U.S.military is poised to flight test a propane-fueled rocket released from the hold of an airlift cargo aircraft.It is designed to quickly and less expensively launch small pay-loads of up to 1000 Ib into low-Earth orbit,says the U.S.Air Force's online Print News Today.That forecast follows recent successful testing at California's Edwards Air Force Base where loadmasters aboard a heavy-lift C-17 Globemaster III released the restraints on a 65-ft mock QuickReach Booster rocket.The rocket drop test was the first of a series under the Falcon Small Launch Vehicle(SLV)program,a joint effort by the Air Force and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency(DARPA).