From Earth to Orbit An Assessment of Transportation Options (1992) / Chapter Skim
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2 A Path to a Desirable National Space Launch System
2 A Path to a Desirable National Space Launch System
Pages 15-21
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From page 15... ...
These vehicle and infrastructure shortcomings were largely hidden as long as the United States had a near monopoly on space launch capability, but they have now emerged as severe detriments to the health of the U.S. space launch industry from the perspectives of global competitiveness and the ability to meet national needs.
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From page 16... ...
Current processes and payload preparation philosophies require a lengthy time on the launch pad, and in the event of damage or other problems on a pad, rapid recovery is not possible. At times, insurmountable difficulties arise if it is necessary to change from one payload to another, and the small number of available pads for each type of launch vehicle on both the East and West Coasts greatly restricts scheduling flexibility.
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From page 17... ...
civil and military space program. Through improved design concepts and more effective launch operation procedures, it should be possible to obtain Tower costs per pound of payload to low-Earth orbit, to provide competitive services to users, and to effectively meet national needs.
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From page 18... ...
Costs can be reduced through use of basic modules or elements in assembling vehicles with different performance capabilities. Operability: Payload changeover constraints, a lack of performance margin, a need for considerable and multiple testing, extensive paper checkoff systems, and a lack of continued, automated health monitoring cause poor operability in current U.S.
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From page 19... ...
Meanwhile, the United States must deal with current vehicles and existing infrastructure. It is essential that the launch system approach described here be incorporated, to the extent practical, into existing launch facilities and the current family of launch vehicles.
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From page 20... ...
The probability of a system failure, in this case meaning the failure of more than one engine can be greatly diminished by the provision of active redundancy. This increased reliability is at the expense of increased weight and the cost of the extra engine, but the enhanced reliability offers a reduction of the costs associated with launch failures.
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From page 21... ...
, many of which carry high-value cargo, as well as for manned vehicles. The Con~nittee believes that the advantages of enhanced reliability are significant and strongly recommends a careful evaluation of the advisability of including pad holddown with engine shutdown capability and active redundancy in the first stage of the next generation of launch vehicles.
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