Rocketeers.co.uk - a British view of commercial spaceflight

(Source: Reaction Engines)

Company News

The D1 redesign of SKYLON is progressing well. The preliminary trajectory analysis has been fed into a preliminary configuration analysis to establish how the vehicle will be trimmed in aerodynamic flight. This is the start of an iterative cycle of performance analysis and configuration definition with increasing refinement and detail which will lead to the final D1 definition.

Work has started on the payload provision based on the interfaces proposed in Revision 1 of the SKYLON Users’ Manual. The public consultation produced no suggestions for any changes whatsoever (which was a bit of a surprise) so as a consequence those interfaces are now being worked into the D1 vehicle design.

Work also started on defining D1’s Auxiliary Propulsion System. This system performs many functions on SKYLON; orbit manoeuvring, reaction control, the supply reactants to both the fuel cells and hydraulic power unit, and heat absorption during re-entry. As part of this work, Lolan Naicker of Cranfield University will conduct a postgraduate research project as part of his MSc Astronautics and Space Engineering looking at the SOMA engine which provides SKYLON’s orbit manoeuvring propulsion.

The first firm results from the Reaction Engines trade mission to the USA (as reported last month) came in February with the placing of a small study contract with the Physical Science Laboratory at the New Mexico State University. NMSU will be undertaking a preliminary evaluation of the requirements that SKYLON D1 will need to meet for safe autonomous flight based on their extensive heritage with unmanned flight vehicles, their expert knowledge of the US National Airspace System, and their expertise and experience in the Global Airspace System.

General News

On 10th February at the QEII Conference Centre in London, the Space Innovation and Growth Team (Space IGT) released a report by the Space industry to advise Government on future Space policy. REL contributed to the report entitled ‘A UK Space Innovation and Growth Strategy 2010 – 2030’ and had a small exhibition stand in the foyer at the opening. SKYLON featured in the promotional movie as seen on the BNSC website.

(Source: Reaction Engines)

A small trade delegation from Reaction Engines toured the southern States of America at the end of January. The trip was organised by a United Kingdom Trade and Investment (UKTI) team based at the British Consulate in Houston. The trip included Louisiana, New Mexico and Texas and eight meetings making contact with fourteen companies and government organisations. There was considerable interest in SKYLON and many areas of possible cooperation are being explored further as a result. We would like to thank all our hosts for their very warm hospitality and to the UKTI for the superb organisation.

This trip is now even more significant after Barack Obama cancelled NASA’s Constellation programme which aimed to put astronauts on the Moon by 2020.

The team (left to right: Alan Bond REL, Mark Hempsell REL, Sam Hutchison REL, George Abbey Jr UKTI) at the Neutral Buoyancy Training Facility at NASA JSC, Houston.

REL started the D1 reconfiguration of SKYLON this month and the preliminary trajectory calculations have gone well.

During January the tank for the helium boiler inner spiral wound test coil was delivered. The heat transfer trials will commence in March.

The prototype manufacturing facility team has now performed a 100% inspection of almost 5000 tubes to detect any faults and flaws.

General News

REL welcomed Daniel Kent to the company this month. As Production Controller he will be based at the prototype manufacturing facility.

Rocketeer comments: Also covered by Hyperbola. Given the greater emphasis on commercial spaceflight and the increased opportunities for new technology development funding for launcher systems in Bolden's plans, this visit seems particularly timely. Best of luck to REL in any collaborations they may form. I expect that there will be a number of US companies very eager to get their hands on the airbreathing technology of the SABRE engine.

(Source: Reaction Engines)

This October the 60th International Astronautical Congress was held in the city of Daejeon, South Korea and Reaction Engines used the event to launch the SKYLON Users’ Manual. The Manual describes the payload bay interfaces and supplementary systems like upper stages and personnel module that enhance the capability of the basic SKYLON vehicle.

Mark Hempsell presented three papers explaining the background to the Manual and these supplementary systems.

Reaction Engines was also part of the small UK pavilion at the trade exhibition that accompanies the Congress showing the SKYLON operations video and offering hardcopies of the Users’ Manual. The photograph shows the stand manned by Simon Feast who designed it.

Website News

In support of the release of the SKYLON Users' Manual (available in the PDF Documents section), a new library of images of the various payload bay components has been created, containing images of all the items in medium and high resolution.

Payload Bay Image Library

FAQ's

The site now has a page for Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's) to address some of the most common questions about SKYLON.

Next Big Future features an interview with Richard Varvill, Technical Director of Reaction Engines, on their plans for the Skylon SSTO.

One interesting update: " The Orbital Base Station on the website was designed as part of Project Troy and is sized to provide an assembly facility for the human mission to Mars. We have also looked at supporting Solar Power Satellites, nuclear waste disposal, human lunar missions again all looking good. This OBS will not be the first station to be built when SKYLON becomes operational and the details of the cost and logistics flow have only been looked at superficially. We are looking in more detail at smaller and more imminent space stations and the results of that study – which will answers the questions of cost and maintenance flow, will be ready in about a year."

Andy Janes of Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Catgirls posts an interview with Mark Hempsell of Reaction Engines Limited about the Skylon project:

• Interview with Mark Hempsell of Reaction Engines Ltd. -- Hobbyspace

Well worth a read. I note particularly that REL are planning to rely on commercial funding for the bulk of their development costs:

"AJ: How likely do you think it is ESA will fund the follow on projects?

MH: ESA is actually the smallest of our funders; most of our funding comes from private investors, and is probably going to stay that way.

AJ: How likely do you think you will be able to raise the money privately with the current financial crisis?

MH: I don’t really know. It is not my field. At the moment it looks likely the majority of the £12 billion could come from private investors."

Rocketeer comments: I very much hope that the launch market will exist (or can be created) to make the Skylon development an economic proposition, and attractive to the large institutional investors that the project will require. I wish Skylon the best of British luck. My concern is that, if the market exists, it also exists for competing projects which are nearly as good, have significantly cheaper development costs, and lower technical risk. XCOR keeps dropping hints about a TSTO RLV. I don't know what Greason has costed the development of his "blank slide" launch system at, but I'd bet dollars to doughnuts that it's very significantly less than £12 billion.

To put it in perspective, Skylon will cost more than the Airbus A380 (€11B to first production aircraft) and on a par with Crossrail (£15.9B) and Chek Lap Kok international airport (US$20B).

Charles Lurio discusses Skylon economics in the 4th September issue of The Lurio Report (subscription required).

BNSC has released a promotional video for the UK space industry sector and the newly opened ESA centre at Harwell. The video features Skylon, but makes no mention of Virgin Galactic. Hmm...

(Source: Reaction Engines)

Reaction Engines Ltd celebrated its 20 year anniversary this month with a company cruise along the River Thames. We are certainly looking forward to the next 20 years which will see SKYLON fly!

The installation of benches, machines and equipment began at the production facility this month. Production trials using inspection equipment and ECM machines are due to commence at the end of September.

General News

During August, REL’s Mark Hempsell, Future Programmes Director, gave live interviews on The Space Show, broadcast in the USA, and on BBC Radio Oxford.

At REL, we frequently read see comments and questions on forums and blogs regarding SKYLON and other projects in the company. Answers to technical inquiries are found in our technical papers, which are easily accessible and downloadable on our website: PDF Documents

We will also soon be introducing an FAQ section to our website, which will answer general queries.

(Source: Reaction Engines press release)

On 15th August 2009, this Oxfordshire aerospace company celebrated its 20th anniversary. Reaction Engines Ltd (REL) has been developing the SKYLON spaceplane, a progression from the HOTOL project, over the past 2 decades and believes that a single stage to orbit (SSTO) reusable launch vehicle (RLV) is the future of global Space travel.

The secret to SKYLON’s success is its innovative SABRE engine which possesses the dual capability to be in air-breathing mode up to 30km and Mach 5 before switching to rocket mode.

Over the past six years, Reaction Engines Ltd has conducted vital studies on and development to the SKYLON concept. The company undertook significant R&D work on its wind tunnel in 2004 which enabled successful frost control studies to take place in 2005. 2005 also saw Reaction Engines Ltd’s custom-designed engine testing facility come to fruition at the B9 test area at Culham Science Centre; the facility has been used to conduct cryogenic testing of components, and in particular, advanced heat exchangers. In 2007 a dumb pre-cooler was installed at B9 in order to simulate a pre-cooler existing in front of an engine. Intensive studies on the LAPCAT A2 hypersonic airliner deflected further testing in the latter part of 2007. An experimental turbine, similar to that used in a SABRE or SCIMITAR engine, successfully demonstrated the robust performance of a counter-rotating stator-less turbine in 2008. Despite the turbine testing being terminated early due to a blade failure, the necessary data were successfully acquired.

Since 2005 the manufacture of heat exchanger modules has continued well. In 2008 the company focussed upon the tube drawing, machining, forming and brazing in preparation for the acquisition of a prototype production facility for heat exchanger components. A major technical issue is the manipulation of tubing with very small bore and walls only a few tens of microns thick, as commercial tube benders capable of handling this tube are unavailable. Reaction Engines has been developing this technology for the SABRE pre-cooler for 7 years with private funding. Recently this work has been applied to the LAPCAT project partly supported by EU funding.

Preliminary studies have begun to develop a larger version of the SKYLON design. SKYLON D1 will be capable of carrying a 25% larger payload into orbit than the current design. It will also be approximately 340 tonnes in weight at take-off compared with the current 275 tonnes.

The company has also undertaken extensive studies on future Space infrastructure projects including work on an Orbital Base Station (OBS) and an Orbit Transfer Vehicle (OTV). A facility such as the OBS is essential as a stepping-stone for much larger space missions. An example study, previously carried out by Reaction Engines Ltd for a future crewed Mars mission (Project Troy), was used as the initial starting point for the OBS. However, the design remains flexible and can be easily adapted to accommodate a range of mission requirements.

SKYLON is edging closer and closer to realisation thanks to not only its highly committed and believing investors, but also the British government. In February 2009, Reaction Engines Ltd received a €1m grant from the European Space Agency (ESA) via the British National Space Centre (BNSC) to investigate and validate its pre-cooler development for SKYLON. Reaction Engines Ltd works in close collaboration with UK institutions, such as University of Bristol and Airborne Engineering, but also with our European counterparts, predominantly Germany.

EADS Astrium in Ottobrunn and DLR Institute of Space Propulsion in Lampoldshausen are both using their expertise to work alongside Reaction Engines Ltd and investigate aspects of the pre-cooler including the combustion chamber technology of the SABRE Engine.

The Technology Demonstration Programme will last approximately 2.5 years and will benefit from another €1m from ESA at the halfway point of the programme. This programme will take Reaction Engines Ltd from a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 2/3 up to 4/5. It is a very exciting time for the company and its innovative spaceplane. The company is relishing the opportunity to demonstrate its concepts and findings. SKYLON’s first flight is planned for 2018 with its entry to service expected to take place in 2020.

For further information on Reaction Engines Ltd and its projects, please check out the website: www.reactionengines.co.uk .