Hypersonic Vehicles/Scramjets

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http://www.flightglobal.com/articles...-for-2010.html

India plans delayed scramjet flight test for 2010


India's first scramjet technology demonstrator will be flight-tested next year, four years later than planned and having failed to meet two previous targets, by the government-run Defence Research and Development Laboratory in Hyderabad.

The Indian military wants to use scramjet systems for a hypersonic missile. The first demonstrator flight test will be carried out at India's integrated test range on its east coast.

Flight International revealed in 2004 that the country had planned a 2006 scramjet test. When that failed to take place, Israel Aerospace Industries announced in 2007 it was helping India develop the technology for a first flight in 2008.

"The biggest challenge [will] be how to sustain stable combustion during the high-speed trans-atmospheric flight of the vehicle," says sources at the Indian government's Defence Research and Development Organisation, under which the laboratory operates.

India has longer-term plans to use scramjet technology for its proposed 25,000kg (55,000lb) spaceplane called Avatar, the Sanskrit word for a god who appears in bodily form on Earth. The spaceplane would ferry civilian and military satellites of about 1,000kg into a low Earth orbit.
 
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http://beta.thehindu.com/news/national/article139135.ece .

Advanced Technology Vehicle successfully flight-tested

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Wednesday successfully flight-tested its new-generation, high-performance sounding rocket at the spaceport in Sriharikota, near here.

The Advanced Technology Vehicle (ATV- D01), weighing three tonnes at lift-off, is the heaviest sounding rocket developed by the ISRO. It carries a passive scramjet (supersonic combustion ramjet) engine combustor module as a test-bed for a demonstration of the air-breathing propulsion technology. An ISRO release said the rocket successfully flew at a velocity of more than Mach 6 (six times the speed of sound) for seven seconds. These conditions were required for a stable ignition of active scramjet engine combustor module planned in the next ATV flight.

“The successful flight-testing is a step ahead towards the advanced technology initiative from the ISRO in the area of air-breathing propulsion,” the release said.

The air-breathing rocket systems used the atmospheric oxygen from their surroundings and burned it with the on-board fuel to produce the forward thrust. This was in contrast to the conventional chemical rocket systems, which carried both oxygen and fuel on board, a rocket technologist said.

The air-breathing rockets, therefore, are much lighter and more efficient than the conventional rockets, leading to reduction in the cost of space transportation. That is, the cost incurred to put a satellite in orbit will be much lower.

The development of scramjet engine was complex and it involved a number of technological challenges. They included mixing of very high speed air (velocity around 1.5 km a second) with fuel, achieving stable ignition and holding the flame in addition to ensure efficient combustion within the length of the combustor, the rocket technologist said.

Keywords: ISRO, Advanced Technology Vehicle
 

Rahul Singh

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Great news LF. Thanks for sharing. So, it means ISRO is about to win the race and get government funding because i remember some reports saying, one who will fly it first is one who will stay.
 
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yes Rahul ISRO has won the race and they delivered just like they said they would; a hypersonic space plane was reported years ago as a project they wanted to test in 2010.
 

Rahul Singh

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Successful flight testing of advanced sounding rocket




March 03, 2010

Indian Space Research Organisation successfully conducted the flight testing of its new generation high performance sounding rocket today (March 3, 2010) at 08.30 Hrs, from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC), SHAR.

Advanced Technology Vehicle (ATV-D01), weighing 3 tonnes at lift-off is the heaviest sounding rocket ever developed by ISRO. It carried a passive scramjet engine combustor module as a test bed for demonstration of Air- Breathing propulsion technology.

During the flight, the vehicle successfully dwelled for 7 seconds in the desired conditions of Mach number (6 + 0.5) and dynamic pressure (80 + 35 kPa). These conditions are required for a stable ignition of active scramjet engine combustor module planned in the next flight of ATV.

The successful flight testing of ATV-D01 is a step ahead towards the advanced technology initiative taken up by ISRO in the area of Air- Breathing propulsion.
 

SATISH

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yes Rahul ISRO has won the race and they delivered just like they said they would; a hypersonic space plane was reported years ago as a project they wanted to test in 2010.
uhh LF....idnt DRDO already make shaurya...hypersonic cruise missile?
 

Rahul Singh

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yes Rahul ISRO has won the race and they delivered just like they said they would; a hypersonic space plane was reported years ago as a project they wanted to test in 2010.
Frankly LF, earlier i used to take reports on HSTDV with a bag of salt. Congratulations to ISRO. Hope we soon turn this tech into something war winning tool.
 
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uhh LF....idnt DRDO already make shaurya...hypersonic cruise missile?
yes Satish but this will eventually be a scramjet engine used in a space plane, this is the first news of this project in years and i knew the silence would eventually mean a positive outcome along with Sayareakd we kept the faith.
 
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http://www.hindu.com/seta/2006/01/19/stories/2006011900151500.htm


Towards air-breathing rockets


THE INDIAN Space Research Organisation (ISRO) added another feather to its cap when it successfully tested the use of oxygen moving at a speed of Mach 6 — six times the speed of sound — in laboratory conditions to produce a stable supersonic combustion lasting for a few seconds.

Put in a nutshell, the organisation has tested the scramjet (supersonic combustion ramjet) technology that uses air moving at supersonic speed (Mach 6) for ignition. The speed of sound is 750 km per second and is called Mach 1. Anything beyond Mach 1 is considered supersonic. Ramjets, on the other hand, use air at subsonic speed (below Mach 1) for ignition.

Joining the elite club

With this, India has joined the elite club comprising a handful of nations that are working on mastering the technology. The U.S., Japan, China, Russia, Australia, and some countries in Europe, according to an ISRO press release, are working on scramjet technology. But none, except the U.S., has tested it in an experimental flight.

Using oxygen present in the atmosphere to burn the fuel is nothing new — all fighter planes with turbojet engines use this technology. The fuel carried by these engines is ignited by air compressed using fans. The expanding gases after compression are directed towards the rear to propel the planes forward.

Conventionally, rockets carry oxygen and fuel and do not depend on oxygen present in the atmosphere to burn the fuel. That is because rockets, unlike fighter planes fitted with turbojets, move at a very high speed, and using oxygen at such high speeds is a challenging task; fighter planes with turbojet engines attain speeds in the range of Mach 2-2.5.

Stable combustion

"Our achievement is not just reaching Mach 6 but being able to produce stable combustion at such a high velocity for a few seconds," said B.N. Suresh, Director of the Thiruvananthapuram based Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC). "It's like lighting a matchstick in a hurricane condition."

To be more precise, the achievement is not just lighting a matchstick in a hurricane condition but also sustaining the flame for the entire duration of operation.

ISRO's achievement was in a laboratory environment. The air velocity was simulated to reach Mach 6 at entry conditions and combustion produced by supplying hydrogen fuel. It next plans to test the technology in a sounding rocket by mid 2007.

Greater thrust achieved

Using air breathing scramjet technology has many advantages. "Rockets using liquid fuel will have a specific impulse of 300 seconds (thrust generated by burning 1 kg of propellant in 1 second) and cryogenic fuel will have 440-450 seconds compared with 2500-3000 seconds with scramjet," Dr. Suresh explained.

"So compared with cryogenic, scramjet propulsion has significant advantage in enhancing the payload capability with cost advantage."

Greater the thrust, the lesser the propellant that needs to be carried. Scramjet powered rocket utilising oxygen available in the atmosphere can thus reduce the amount of oxygen to be carried on board considerably.

Oxygen accounts for nearly 60 per cent of the propellant's weight in a rocket. Rockets would thus become lighter and smaller or can carry more payload.

Dr. Suresh does not wish to commit himself at this stage regarding the quantum of weight reduction that can be achieved. "There will be weight reduction. But how much would depend on the configuration and systems that would be used," he said.

Cost advantage

There is a definite cost advantage when using the air breathing scramjet technology. "The cost reduction will be substantial," is all Dr. Suresh likes to say at this stage.

For all its advantages, air-breathing rockets have to still use conventional fuels to reach an acceleration of Mach 6 before scramjet technology can take over.

Oxygen availability

Another issue is the availability of oxygen. Oxygen is limited to the atmosphere and is dense in the 10-20 km region. "It is best to use [scramjet] optimally at this height," Dr. Suresh underlined.

One would be crossing the denser region of the atmosphere beyond 40-45 km. As a rule, thinning of oxygen is seen as we go higher up the atmosphere.

Oxygen availability in the atmosphere will per force require some changes in the trajectory of the launch vehicle.

Change in trajectory

While a nearly vertical trajectory followed by rockets is possible when oxygen is carried on board, the use of scramjet will necessitate a more horizontal trajectory.

"The trajectories have to be redesigned to allow the launch vehicles [rockets] to be in the atmosphere for longer periods," Dr. Suresh explained.

Longer trajectories in the atmosphere have their own share of problems. "About 2200-2800 Kelvin temperature will be produced [when the rocket is in the atmosphere at higher velocities for longer periods].

"So thermal problems would arise and we need to find solutions for these [problems]," he noted. "We are mastering the technology [to overcome these problems]."

Using scramjet technology becomes all the more important as ISRO has set its eyes on re-launch vehicles (rockets that can be reused). "We are ultimately looking at re-launch vehicles [where we can use this technology]," he noted.

So when does ISRO plan to use scramjet technology in launch vehicles? Dr. Suresh is unwilling to specify a target date. "Let us go step by step," he said, "It is not wise to specify any date now." Sources at ISRO, however, say that it would take 7-10 years before it could ever be used in launch vehicles.
 

rahulrds1

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AVATAR(from "Aerobic Vehicle for Hypersonic Aerospace Transportation") is a single-stage reusable rocket plane capable of horizontal takeoff and landing, being developed by India's Defense Research and Development Organization along with Indian Space Research Organization and other research institutions.

When operational, it is planned to be capable of delivering a payload weighing up to 1,000 kg to low earth orbit. It would be the cheapest way to deliver material to space at about US$67/kg. Each craft is expected to withstand 100 launches.

No country has yet achieved horizontal takeoff and landing of space craft .

Reference : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avatar_(rocket)




Wind Tunnel Model of Avatar.


 
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bengalraider

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Hate to be the one to burst the bubble here , but while AVATAR is laudable and shall in all respects take indian aerospace to dizzying heights. we are nowhere close to what the Khanate has achieved or have none of you heard about Aurora (even though it's still supposedly a black project)yet.
 
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Any attempts to reduce the cost of getting weight into space will be worth pursuing ,we don't need to be first in producing the space plane ;but if we are the lowest cost in sending the material into space it is better than being first.
 

sayareakd

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DRDO & IN's ATV and ISRO ATV both are great. I wonder why the ISRO called it ATV.
 

nitesh

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I think this important piece is missing in this thread:

http://www.domain-b.com/aero/mil_avi/miss_muni/20080513_hypersonic_version.html

13 May 2008

New Delhi: India's showpiece supersonic cruise missile, the BrahMos, has now been successfully tested in a hypersonic version, though under laboratory conditions, according to BrahMos Aerospace chief executive officer, Dr A Sivathanu Pillai.

''We have achieved a speed of Mach 5.26 in our laboratory tests of the hypersonic version of the BrahMos. However, it will take some 15-20 tests under controlled conditions before the missile can be actually test-launched,'' Dr Pillai said. The test was conducted at the Hyderabad-based Advanced Systems Laboratory of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) which has developed the missile through a joint venture with Russia's NPO organisation. The BrahMos missile is currently available in a tri-sonic form (Mach 2.86) and can be described as belonging to the high supersonic class, which describes missiles in the Mach 3-4 category. Hypersonic missiles fly at speeds over Mach 5. According to Dr Pillai, the Brahmos hypersonic version will not only have higher speed, but will also consume less fuel and require less operational time to deploy. These qualities are expected to provide the missile longer range, and also ensure less reaction time from the enemy. High speeds also make the missile difficult to detect, and increase the kinetic impact on the target. The velocity of the missile is directly proportional to the destruction it causes, with higher velocities causing higher damage, Dr Pillai elaborated. Dr Pillai also said the hypersonic version was powered by a scramjet engine that is also used for launching satellites at low cost.
 
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For all that asked for this link

http://www.flightglobal.com/article...elps-india-develop-scramjet-demonstrator.html

Israel helps India develop scramjet demonstrator

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) is co-operating with India's Defence Research and Development Organisation on a hypersonic technology demonstrator vehicle (HSTDV), with the target of conducting a flight test in 2008.

Some of the windtunnel testing is being being performed at IAI. DRDO is developing the HSTDV to demonstrate a kerosene-fuelled scramjet engine capable of powering air-breathing vehicles to a speed of Mach 6.5-7, with the goal of reducing the cost of putting payloads into orbit by a factor of 100, to $200/kg ($90/lb).

India is researching special materials for thermal protection of the HSTDV, which would resemble NASA's X-43A, including carbon-carbon composites, nickel-based superalloys, niobium alloys and high thermal conducting copper alloy.
 
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http://spacefellowship.com/news/art...sting-of-advanced-indian-sounding-rocket.html

Successful flight testing of advanced Indian sounding rocket


(ISRO) – Indian Space Research Organisation successfully conducted the flight testing of its new generation high performance sounding rocket today (March 3, 2010) at 08.30 Hrs, from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC), SHAR.

Advanced Technology Vehicle (ATV-D01), weighing 3 tonnes at lift-off is the heaviest sounding rocket ever developed by ISRO. It carried a passive scramjet engine combustor module as a test bed for demonstration of Air- Breathing propulsion technology.



During the flight, the vehicle successfully dwelled for 7 seconds in the desired conditions of Mach number (6 + 0.5) and dynamic pressure (80 + 35 kPa). These conditions are required for a stable ignition of active scramjet engine combustor module planned in the next flight of ATV.
ATV-D01 Takes Off



The successful flight testing of ATV-D01 is a step ahead towards the advanced technology initiative taken up by ISRO in the area of Air- Breathing propulsion.
 
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cross posted
http://www.space-travel.com/reports/HIFiRE_Five_Times_The_Speed_Of_Sound_999.html

HIFiRE: Five Times The Speed Of Sound
Greg Combet, Minister for Defence Personnel, Materiel and Science, has announced that the Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) and the US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) have successfully completed a second hypersonic flight at the Woomera Test Range.
Hypersonic flight is flight through the atmosphere at speeds above Mach 5.5, or more than five times the speed of sound.

"The flight represents a significant scientific milestone, enabling scientists to collect fundamental data critical to the design and development of an engine capable of sustained hypersonic flight," Mr Combet said.

"The flight was the second in a series of up to ten planned flight experiments under a joint research program between DSTO and the US Air Force.

"The program, called the Hypersonic International Flight Research Experimentation (HIFiRE), is investigating the fundamental science of hypersonics technology and its potential for next generation aeronautical systems.

"The research being undertaken by DSTO and AFRL scientists is aimed at investigating fundamental air vehicle and propulsion technologies critical to the realisation of sustained hypersonic flight.

"Hypersonic flight has the potential to revolutionise global air travel and provide cost-effective access to space, giving Australia the opportunity to launch satellites economically for communication purposes.

"The continued collaboration between DSTO and the US Air Force Research Laboratory will help expedite the development of hypersonics technology and the potential for high-speed flights in the future.

"Thanks to the work of this dedicated team of DSTO scientists, Australia is at the forefront of this technology," said Mr. Combet.
 

sandeepdg

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Guys, one member just pointed out that this is a race between ISRO and DRDO, i.e. whoever is able to get their tech demonstrator flight tested will win the competition for government funding... so that means that since ISRO's Avatar is the winner considering the fact it has successfully tested the sounding rockets, does that means that DRDO's HSTD project will be put in the backburner ??
 

SATISH

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Guys, one member just pointed out that this is a race between ISRO and DRDO, i.e. whoever is able to get their tech demonstrator flight tested will win the competition for government funding... so that means that since ISRO's Avatar is the winner considering the fact it has successfully tested the sounding rockets, does that means that DRDO's HSTD project will be put in the backburner ??
Thats why the Bhramos is already working on it....
 

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