New Mars Forums

cIclops

Member

Registered: 2005-06-16

Posts: 3,230

Re: USV - Unmanned Space Vehicle

First flight tests of Italy’s 8m supersonic glider are expected soon. This prototype is part of an ESA RLV research project.

More details here

---

[color=darkred]Let's go to Mars and far beyond -  triple NASA's budget ![/color] [url=irc://freenode#space]  #space channel !! [/url] [url=http://www.youtube.com/user/c1cl0ps]   - videos !!![/url]

PurduesUSAFguy

Banned

From: Purdue University

Registered: 2004-04-04

Posts: 237

Re: USV - Unmanned Space Vehicle

First flight tests of Italy’s 8m supersonic glider are expected soon. This prototype is part of an ESA RLV research project.

More details here

That's very spiffy, but about 20 years too late, the USAF developed and likely briefly deployed a weapon system in white world papers referred to as the Hypersonic Glide Vehicle. The idea was basically you hang several solid rockets with lifting body encased warheads off the side of a B-52, which heads to 40,000 feet, the solid rockets light off and send the Warheads on their way which then separate at half way to their target and glide at over mach 9 the rest of the way. The idea being that they could go through early warning radars undetected and maneuver their way around ABM defenses.

When the program was run in the mid to late 1980s it was SAR which is why you likely haven’t heard of it, now details are slowly starting to leak out.

GCNRevenger

Member

From: Earth

Registered: 2003-10-14

Posts: 6,056

Re: USV - Unmanned Space Vehicle

Well, it basically needs to be about ten times faster to be a workable space vehicle too.

---

[i]"The power of accurate observation is often called cynicism by those that do not have it." - George Bernard Shaw[/i]

[i]The glass is at 50% of capacity[/i]

cIclops

Member

Registered: 2005-06-16

Posts: 3,230

Re: USV - Unmanned Space Vehicle

USV succesfully launched - February 2007

The first mission of the USV Unmanned Space Vehicle, has been completed. The first prototype called FTB1 of the Italian Centre for Aerospace Research CIRA, has been launched on February 24 at 8:30 from the airport of Tortolì-Arbatax-Polygon of Salto di Quirra, in Sardinia, Italy. The vehicle has been carried to an high of 31 Km by a stratospheric baloon and has been dropped onto the sea. During the 70 seconds of flight at Mach 1,05, some transonic manouvres has been carried out and computers and sensors have been tested. Important data on structure themal behaviour and aerodynamic have been acquired.

---

[color=darkred]Let's go to Mars and far beyond -  triple NASA's budget ![/color] [url=irc://freenode#space]  #space channel !! [/url] [url=http://www.youtube.com/user/c1cl0ps]   - videos !!![/url]

dicktice

Member

From: Nova Scotia, Canada

Registered: 2002-11-01

Posts: 1,764

Re: USV - Unmanned Space Vehicle

I got the impression from reading the attachments that it's a research vehicle preliminary to an eventual fly-back booster--not a space vehicle.

GCNRevenger

Member

From: Earth

Registered: 2003-10-14

Posts: 6,056

Re: USV - Unmanned Space Vehicle

And that would make some sense, like replacing the SRBs on Ariane rockets... if they had a good reason to fly more often.

---

[i]"The power of accurate observation is often called cynicism by those that do not have it." - George Bernard Shaw[/i]

[i]The glass is at 50% of capacity[/i]

publiusr

Banned

From: Alabama

Registered: 2005-02-24

Posts: 682

Re: USV - Unmanned Space Vehicle

Not big on wings on rockets these days.