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SpaceNut

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From: New Hampshire

Registered: 2004-07-22

Posts: 29,431

Re: Da Vinci in the Running - Let the Space Race Begin!

While this articles title is sort of miss leading it however does contain info on the Wild Fire rocket and the helium balloon.

The whole idea is to raise the Earth, get the rocket as high as you can to minimize drag and reduce the size of the (rocket) engine you need to get to space.

The most dangerous area for a rocket is near the ground under powered flight. If you lose the engine there, you've got very little time to bring in an abort scenario, whereas at altitude you've got lots of time to actually effect various scenarios and procedures.

Last week, the 45-year-old aspiring astronaut -- Feeney plans to pilot his own ship -- completed a major milestone with the construction and testing of the 200-foot-tall, 153-foot-diameter reusable helium balloon. The inflatable, made of polyethylene sheets, is designed to carry more than 7 1/2 tons of weight to an altitude of about 70,000 feet -- about twice as high as commercial airliners fly.

Space Race 2: Inflatables take shape