luke strawwalker
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Here's another 400+ pages of rocket goodness from 1962, written by Boeing... "Study of Large Launch Vehicles Utilizing Solid Propellants". This study presented some very interesting designs in several different sizes. It starts off with a small solid-first stage/LH2 powered upper stage booster to develop the first stage SRM, and then uses it in cluster configurations to make larger boosters, coupled with larger LH2 upper stages to orbit very large (Saturn class) payloads. Interestingly, it's the first presentation I've seen on the idea of using the SRM's arranged around the liquid second stage ala Titan III-- using the SRMs as a 'stage zero' and airlighting the second "core" stage at SRB burnout. This idea would return again as an airstarted S-II stage with four 120 inch SRMs mounted around it acting as the first stage (stage zero) lifting it to altitude where the J-2's would be lit at SRB burnout. It wasn't the baseline configuration but it was noted that it should be studied further (and apparently was given it's reappearance later on!)
Anyway, there's a lot of interesting prototypes here for modelling boosters that "might have been". Enjoy! OL JR
View attachment NASA Study Summary- Study of Large Launch Vehicles Utilizing Solid Propellants.txt
Anyway, there's a lot of interesting prototypes here for modelling boosters that "might have been". Enjoy! OL JR
View attachment NASA Study Summary- Study of Large Launch Vehicles Utilizing Solid Propellants.txt