General Overviews of Future Launchers, Advanced Concepts, etc.

• Survey of Private Space Ventures - Dick's Rocket Dungeon - Dec.10.05
  • Survey of Private Space Ventures (continued) - Dec.11.05
• Low Cost Launch Vehicles - list at astronautix.com
• Science@NASA Propulsion Series:
  • The Right Stuff for Super Spaceships:Tomorrow's spacecraft will be built using advanced materials with mind-boggling properties.- Science@NASA - Sept.16.02
  • Houston, are we there yet? : NASA is developing a variety of new safe and fast technologies to propel explorers across the solar system. - Science@NASA - Sept.9.02
• The Future of Earth-to-Orbit Propulsion by Robert C. Truax - Rocketry Online - In Our Opinion
• Scientific American : February 1999 Issue - several articles on innovative propulsion schemes.
• ESA ACT Advanced Concepts Team
  • Advanced Propulsion Systems - ESA ACT Advanced Concepts Team
• SpecTech - Speculative Technology
• Institute for Future Space Transport - consortium of universities to study spacecraft technologies
  • NASA: UF to Head Major Initiative on Future Spacecraft" - Univ.of Florida - June.17.02
  • UF chosen to lead spacecraft initiative - UF Engineering - June.02
  • Space: The Next Generation - Univ. Florida
  • Making Space Flight Inexpensive and Routine - Cosmiverse - June.20.02

• AeroAstro's PacAstro Rockets
• Air-Launch
  • A Study of Air Launch Methods for RLVs (PDF 542kb) by Marti Sarigul-Klijn and Nesrin Sarigul-Klijn. of University of California, Davis.
  • AirLaunch LLC
    • Test team breaks its own record with C-17 drop - Spaceflight Now/Air Force - Aug.9.06
    • Debra Faktor Lepore (President of AirLaunch) interview on the SpaceShow - June.26.06
    • Edwards team performs second test of small launch vehicle - Air Force Link - June.19.06
    • More drop trials for QuickReach - Flight International - May.30.06
    • Air Drops Dummy Rocket for Darpa's Falcon - Aviation Week - Oct.23.05
    • Air Force C-17 Successfully Drops Prototype of Low-Cost Rocket - Airlaunchllc News - Oct.5.05
    • Trade Studies for Air Launching a Small Launch Vehicle from a Cargo Aircraft, M. Sarigul-Klijn et al, AIAA-2005-0621 - an overview of the concept.
    • DARPA Falcon program
  • t/Space
    • Flight Testing of a New Air Launch Method for Safely Launching Personnel and Cargo into Low Earth Orbit - t/Space - June.16.05 (pdf). - M. Sarigul-Klijn et al.
    • t/Space Offers an Option for Closing Shuttle, CEV Gap - SpaceNews/Space.com - May.9.05
  • Space Vector Corporation
  • Russia Air Launch
    • Blueprints For Russian Air Launcher Near Completion - SpaceDaily - June.14.00
    • Vozdushny Begins Design Of New Airlauncher - SpaceDaily - May.10.00
    • BBC - Space rockets to fire from plane - Apr.19.00
  • Israeli firms to test air-launched satellites - World Tribune.com - Feb.16.06
  • Flying air gun to shoot spacecraft into orbit - New Scientist - Sept.6.01
  • Air Breathing propulsion for first stage applications - Zoltan Szakaly
  • Coleman Aerospace Air Launch LRALT Program
• Beal Aerospace Technologies - out of business but still interesting historically
  • Archive of Beal Aerospace's website at web.archive.org
  • Love & Rockets - Dallas Observer Online - March.1.01
  • Statement from Andrew Beal Regarding Cease of Operations by Beal Aerospace - Spaceref - Oct.23.00
  • D. Andrew Beal testimony to Congress
  • Beal at Astronautix: BA-2, BA-2 Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3
  • Articles:
    • Beal Enters Into Agreement To Develop Spaceport Guyana - Space&Tech Digest- May.29.00
    • Beal signs deal for Guyana launch site-SpaceOnline-May 27, 2000
    • Rocket Man - Forbes - Apr.17.00
    • Man With a Mission - D Magazine article about Andy Beal - Feb.00
• EELV - Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle
  • Boeing Delta 4
  • Lockheed-Martin Atlas V
• E'Prime Aerospace  
  • Converted ICBM launchers
  • E'Prime - Global Security
  • E'Prime Aerospace Corporation Receives Launch Site Policy Review Approval - MarketWire/EPrime Aerospace - Nov.5.07
  • E'Prime Aerospace Corporation Selects First Launch Operations Facility - E'Prime Aerospace
• SpaceDev Streaker
  • SpaceDev Begins Development of its Small Launch Vehicle SpaceDev Streaker™ - SpaceDev - Apr.4.05
  • SpaceDev Announces Streaker™ Launch Vehicle - SpaceDev - Apr.22.05
• U.S. Astronautics
  • Start-up space company looking for site - al.com: July.29.02
• Minotaur - a Minuteman/Pegasus combo
  • Orbital Sciences Minataur
  • OSP Space Launch Vehicle Fact Sheet - USAF
  • The OSP Space Launch Vehicle
• Sea Launch
• Europe
  • Project Enterprise - alliance of the German TALIS-Institute and the Swiss Propulsion Laboratory (SPL)
    • Development of an economically and enviromentally friendly launch vehicle for small civilian scientific and commercial satellites - TALIS - Dec.15.04 (pdf)
    • animation (38.1MB mpg)
  • Vega
    • ArianeSpace - Vega Users Manual (pdf file, 2.6MB)
    • Vega: a European small launcher Marco Caporicci ESA Directorate of Launchers, Paris, 1998 (pdf)
    • Vega launcher to orbit smaller payloads in Arianespace service - Arianespace - Mar.4.03
    • Vega project at Rockets in Europe
  • Signature of contracts for full development of Vega small launcher and P80 - ESA - Feb.25.03
• Russia
  • Angara
    • Angara - Space Launch Report - Ed Kyle
    • Angara - Wikipedia
    • Test flights of Angara boosters to start in 2010 - RIA Novosti - Jan.22.07
• Japan
  • GX
    • GalaXy Express
      • GX Launch Vehicle: Easy Access to Space - Dec.04 (pdf)
        
      • GX Launch Services - Aug.05 (pdf)
    • GX rocket plans up in the air - Daily Yomiuri - Nov.15.06
      
    • Japan banks on new rocket for future launches - IOL - Oct.30.06
      
    • Japan eyes a second rocket - News24.com - Oct.28.06
    • Panel calls for gov't support for small commercial GX rocket - Kyodo News - June.11.02
  • Japan Plans 'New Generation' Launch Vehicle - Aviation Week - Sept.28.03

Very low cost ELV projects

• An alternative to reusability for lowering launch costs is to make expendables extremely cheap. Such attempts typically use some variation of the following approaches:
  • Trade off  performance for simplicity and robustness. The resulting lower costs more than make up for not using the highest performance systems.
  • Extremely simple engines and motors. For example, a Microcosm prototype engine had only 18 parts compared to thousands for most engines. Such approaches typically would use pressure fed engines rather than complex pumping systems.
  • Clustering - use clusters of a single basic building block booster in numbers required to launch a given payload.
  • eAc
• Falcon SLV Program - DARPA project to develop a rapid response launch vehicle by 2010 that can put 450lb into orbit for $5M or less. Long term it wants a hypersonic delivery vehicle.
  • Space Acquisitions: DOD Needs a Departmentwide Strategy for Pursuing Low-Cost, Responsive Tactical Space Capabilities, GAO-06-449, March 14, 2006
    • GAO on responsive space - Space Politics - Mar.22.06.
  • Responsive Space: Making space launch faster, easier, and cheaper sounds simple. It's not. - AirForce Magazine - March 2006
  • Task 2 Selection - DARPA PR - Sept.16.04 (pdf)
  • FALCON Task 2 Selection - RLV News - Aug.17.04
  • Speed Kills, Military Wants More - Wired - Nov.20.03
  • DARPA And Air Force Select Falcon Phase I Contractors - Spacedaily/DARPA PR - Nov.18.03.
  • FALCON fact sheet (1.4MB pdf).
  • FALCON_PIP_FINAL.pdf
  • FALCON at GlobalSecurity.org
  • Second contractors include
    • Microcosm
    • AirLaunch LLC - Gary Hudson & Bevin McKinney. (More AirLaunch LLC info.)
    • SpaceX
• ALV (ATK Launch Vehicle)
  • ATK unveils two-stage solid-fuelled launcher - Flight International - Oct.17.06
  • ATK Completes Successful Pathfinder for Its New Launch Vehicle: First Flight of ATK'S ALV Scheduled for 2007: ATK'S Development Program Aimed at Low-Cost Responsive Space Market - ATK- Oct.10.06
  • Alliant readies new launch vehicle - Star Tribune [Minneapolos, MN] - Oct.11.06
  • Re: New ATK Launch Vehicle - Space.com Forums
• eAc & Cesaroini Aerospace
  • MuLV (Micro Launch Vehicle) - 350-1200 lb payloads into low earth orbit.
  • Kestrel - designed for the DARPA Falcon program with Exquadrum
• Loral - Aquarius SSTO
  • Aquarius Low-Cost Consumables Launcher - Space Grant Database
  • Aquarius at Wikipedia
  • 28 page presentation from Jan.22.04 (pdf)
  • Notes on presentation at Space Access ' 06 by Andrew Turner of Loral about the Aquarius low-cost launcher. Here is an online description of the system:
  • Low-cost launch and orbital depots: the Aquarius system - The Space Review - Jan.30.06
• Microlaunchers - Charles Pooley - small launch vehicles for nanosats
  • Microlaunchers--a new approach to space access - Google Video
  • Microlaunchers Introduction - YouTube
• Nanosat Launch Vehicle (NLV) - Garvey Spacecraft
• Otrag - this project form the 1970s used clusters of low cost boosters. Interest is rising again in this concept.
  • Otrag - Astronautix
  • OTRAG - Rockets in Europe
• Rocket Propulsion Engineering Corporation (RP) (www.rocketprop.com)
  • RP Tests Prototype Small Launch Vehicle Upper Stage Engine - PR - May.7.07
  • RP C-50/150 Launch Vehicles
• Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) - led by Elon Musk
  • Falcon 1I - 2 stage, 1400lb payload to LEO, first stage is reusable (refurbished after water landing.
  • Falcon 5 - heavy follow-on vehicle to the Falcon I. The first stage booster uses 5 engines and allows for engine out capability
  • Falcon 9 - heavy load vehicle with multiple configurations
  • Inside the rocket shop - Cosmic Log / MSNBC.com - May.3.06
  • Interview: a tour of SpaceX (Part 1) - The Space Review - Feb.27.06
    • Part 2 - Mar.6.06
    • Part 3 - Mar 13.06
    • Part 4 - Mar.20.06
  • "The rocket business is a tough business" - The Space Review - May.15.06
  • Backgrounder: SpaceX making history - The Space Review - Feb.27.06
  • SpaceX's Musk and Thompson Q and A - NASASpaceflight - Jan.20.06.
  • Big plans for SpaceX - The Space Review - Nov.14.05
  • SHOOTING THE MOON: Internet multimillionaire Elon Musk bets his entire fortune developing a subcompact rocket that could make outer space as accessible as cyberspace - Discover/SpaceX -Sept.05 issue
  • Privately Funded Falcon-1 Rocket Nears First Flight By: By Leonard David - Space News/Space.com - Aug.16.04
  • The SpaceX Falcon Will Challenge Orbital Sciences and Boeing - Craig Covalt - AvWeek - Mar. 04
  • Falcon I Unveiling in Washington D.C. & Falcon V announcement - RLV News - Dec.6.03
  • SpaceX Falcon Rocket to Be Unveiled In Washington, DC December 4 - SpaceRef - Nov.24.03
  • Will Spacex Succeed where Beal failed? by Alan Breakstone - Space Future - Mar.26.03
  • Rocket Man: Paypal Co-Founder now Banks on Space - Futuredex Magazine - March 03 Issue
  • Partially Recoverable Falcon - RLV News Oct.22.02
• Streaker - SpaceDev
  • SpaceDev Conducts Hot-fire Test of Hybrid Upper Stage Rocket Motor: Development of SpaceDev Streaker Small Launch Vehicle Progressing - SpaceDev - Feb.1.07.
  • Almost There: Responive Space - G. Williams et al - 2nd Responsive Space Conf. - April-2004
• SpaceDev Begins Development of its Small Launch Vehicle SpaceDev Streaker™ - SpaceDev - April.4.04.
• SpaceDev Wins Small Launch Vehicle Contract - SpaceDev - July.18.03
• SpaceDev Announces Streaker™ Launch Vehicle - SpaceDev Propulsion Technology Spin-offs from SpaceShipOne Program - SpaceDev - Apr.22.03
• SpaceDev Hybrid Propulsion
• Big Dumb Rockets at FAR
• Retro Aerospace - George William Herbert
  • Venturer Aerospace
• General Astronautics Space Systems - Urania
• Microcosm Scorpius Low-cost Launcher
  • Scorpius Space Launch Company - Microcosm in 2006 split off the Scorpius program into a separate company.
  • Scorpius Flies
  • FAQ
  • For Microcosm it's close but no rocket launch: El Segundo firm's president says liftoff is 24 months away, but it won't happen if the U.S. government doesn't resume funding. - DailyBreeze.com [CA] - Sept.22.06
  • Microcosm-led Team Wins Phase II Award for Small Launch Vehicle from DARPA - Microcosm/CSA - Sept.16.04 (pdf)
  • The Falcon - Microcosm Scorpius Vehicle Family briefing from the 2nd Responsive Space Conference, El Segundo, California, April 2004 (pdf)
  • Kimbo IV - first time a composite LOX tank (provided by Microcosm) has ever flown.
• Xenotech Research - led by Sir Charles W. Shults III
  • Fireflies - balloon launched, 2-stage ELV
  • what we're doing around here - robot guy - Nov.6.06
• Zig Aerospace, LLC - Commercial Space Launch Systems for Nano-Satellites
• Truax water launch and other low cost launch concepts
  • Truax Engineering Multimedia Archive
  • Sea Dragon at Astronautix
  • Sea_Dragon_Concept_Volume_1.pdf (application/pdf Object)
    

In Space Propulsion

• In-Space Propulsion - NASA Glenn Research Center
• Electric Propulsion
• Space Sails
• In Space Services: Satellite Repair, Refueling, Assembly, etc - Investing
• Space Based Reusable Vehicles
• Lunar Landers
  • Crash Landing on the Moon - NASA - July.28.06

New & Proposed Unconventional Propulsion

• Hybrid Motors:
• History of hybrid rockets / Geschichte der Hybridraketen
• Hybrid Propulsion - LockheedMartin
  • Test Puts Hybrid Rockets Back On The Table - Aviation Week - Feb.3.03
  • Lockheed Martin-built Sounding Rocket Demonstrates Hybrid Propulsion Technology - PR - Jan.7.03
• ISDS/AAE Hybrid Rocket Project
• Environmental Aeroscience (eAc)
  • Hyperion Hybrid Research Rocket (H2R2) Program
  • HyperTEK - Hybrid Rocket Propulsion System
  • Advanced Propulsion Systems
  • Aerospike nozzle with Hybrid motors
  • Sounding Rockets
• Spacedev
  • SpaceDev Announces Streaker Launch Vehicle : SpaceDev Propulsion Technology Spin-offs from SpaceShipOne Program - SpaceDev - Apr.22.03
  • Reusable Hybrid Rocket at Spacedev, which bought rights to Amroc patents
• Paraffin Fuel
  • Aero Fluid Mechanics Lab - parraffin fueled hybrid rockets
  • Candle wax is rocket science: Paraffin fuels test launch - Stanford Report - Nov.5.03 via spacetoday.net
  • Scale-Up Tests Of High Regression Rate Liquefying Hybrid Rocket Fuels by Karabeyoglu et al, Stanford and NASA Ames - AIAA 2003
  • Refueling Rockets : Could spacecraft powered by a new wax be safer and cheaper? - Science News - Mar.22.03
  • NASA Tests Environmentally Friendly Rocket Fuel - NSA Ames - Jan.13.03
    • Hybrid Rocket Fuel (Paraffin) - NASA Ames - Images
• Hybrid propulsions vendors in Advanced Rockety
• Ceasaroni Aerospace
  • Pointy End Up? With Aerospike Rockets, It's Down, Too! - NASA - April.26.04
• Hybrid Rocket 'CAMUI' - ISAS/JAXA - Feb.7.05
• A Manual for Hybrid Propulsion System Design by William H. Colburn
• Steam Thrusters
  • Surrey successfully demonstrate steam micro-propulsion in-orbit - SSTL - Mar.17.04
  • Resistojet - Surrey Satellite Technology
  • Steam Rocket - Reaction Research
• Micro-thrusters:
  • DARPA-MTO-MEMS Digital Micro-Propulsion Project
  • DARPA - Small Scale Propulsion Systems
  • Micro-Rockets - MIT Power MEMS
  • Articles:
    • New Satellite Propulsion System Has Mass Below 100 Grams: Miniaturized propulsion systems are a critical technology for a new class of Air Force microsatellites performing highly specialized missions - Dec.01 - AFRL Horizons
    • Tiny Propulsion System Aimed At Micro-Sats - Aviation Week - May.16.01
• Pulse Detonation Propulsion:
  • NASA Tech Brief-Pulse Detonation Rocket Engines
  • Pulse Detonation Research Facility - Air Force Research Laboratory
    • PDE on Long-EZ update - AFRL Reports - June 2003
      
    • Images of PDE on Long-EZ
      
  • Pulse Detonation Engine Technology Project - NASA Glenn
  • Pulse Detonation Engines at APRI
  • After Combustion: Detonation! - Popular Science - Aug.03
  • MSE Technology Applications - contract work with NASA
    • Pulse detonation rocket engine testing begins at Marshall Center - NASA MSFC Press Release April.2000
    • New millennium concept: Rockets like auto engines-Spaceflight News - Feb.28.00
• Water Rocket - DARPA - on orbit electrolysis for thruster fuel and fuel cell energy storage
  
  • Water to Boost Satellite Snooping - Wired News - June.8.04
• Other Techniques:
  • Wave Rotor Research and Technology Development - Lewis Research Center

Electric Propulsion:

• Electric Rocket Propulsion Society Related Sites
• University of Michigan Plasmadynamics & Electric Propulsion Laboratory (PEPL)
• Ion propulsion - over 50 years in the making
• JPL Work on Russian Thrusters - JPL Universe (16-Dec-94)
• NASA Glenn Power & Propulsion : Earth Observer 1 - uses a pulsed plasma thruster
  • Solar Electric Propulsion Technologies for Orbit Transfer Vehicles - NASA Glenn
  • Thrusters precisely guide EO-1 satellite in space first - Spaceflight Now - Feb.9.02
• NASA Glenn Deep Space-1
• NASA GRC - Ion Propulsion
  • HiPEP - Ion Propulsion - GRC
  • NASA Successfully Tests Ion Engine - NASA - Nov.20.03
• Fakel Experimental Design Bureau - FAS Russian Space Industry
• Boeing Satellites (formerly Hughes Space)
  • NSTAR Ion Engine
  • Fact Sheet - Xenon Ion Propulsion
• BUSEK - Electric Propulsion
  • Hall Field Plasma Thrusters
• Electric Propulsion at General Dynamics Space Systems
• Dual-Stage 4-Grid (DS4G) Ion Thruster
  • DS4G ion engine - Encylopedia of Astrobiology. Astronomy, and Spaceflight
  • DS4G - Test Campaign - May 2007
  • Dual Stage 4-Grid Ion thruster overview - Thruster Design - ESA ACT (Advanced Concepts Team)
  • Dual Stage 4-Grid Ion thruster - background - ESA ACT
• ESA and ANU make space propulsion breakthrough - ESA Portal - Jan.11.06
• NEXT (NASA's Evolutionary Xenon Thruster)
  • Univ. of Michigan Plasma Dynamics & Propulsion Lab - pictures of test of the NEXT
  • New ion engine could propel spacecraft to Titan - New Scientist - July.26.06
• Qinetiq - Electric Propulsion projects
  • T5 ion thruster
  • T6 ion thruster
• Helicon double layer thruster
  • Europe develops new ion propulsion concepts - AIAA Aerospace America - Mar.2006
  • Helicon Double Layer Thruster Development - ANU
  • Plasma engine passes initial test - BBC - Dec.14.05
    
  • ESA accelerates towards a new space thruster - ESA - Dec.13.05
    
  • Advanced Dual-stage Gridded Ion Thruster - ESA ACT Advanced Concept Team
    
  • The Single Aperture Four Electrode (SAFE) Thruster - ACT Advanced Concept Team
• Space Plasma Power and Propulsion Group (SP3) - Australian National Univ.
  • Helicon Double Layer Thruster Development
  • Plasma Thruster - Catalyst - Aug.26.04
  • HDLT Inventors Get Their Thruster Off The Ground With New ESA Study - SpaceDaily - Jan.5.05
• Microwave/Plasma Thrusters:
  • Successful Flight Demonstration of Plasma Thruster Under Microgravity - SpaceDaily - Feb.27.01
  • ScienceDaily Magazine -- New Mini Microwave Thruster For Satellites Is Most Powerful In Its Class
• Advanced Electric Propulsion - Robert Winglee - Univ. Washington
  • High Power Helicon Plasma Thruster - Winglee at Univ. Wash.
  • Magnetized Beamed Plasma Propulsion - MagBeam
  • Magnetic beams could power swifter spacecraft - New Scientist - Oct.18.04
    
• New propulsion concept could make 90-day Mars round trip possible - Univ. Washington - Oct.14.04
  
• Resistojet - Surrey Satellite Technology
• Deep Space 1:
  • Solar Electric Propulsion
  • Ion Propulsion FAQ
  • Spectrum Astro
  • Innovative Engines on Deep Space 1 Break Their Own Record - Space.com - April.5.01
  • New space engine clocks up record - BBC News - Aug.18.00
• VASIMR (Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket)
  • Ad Astra Rocket Company
    • VASIMR
    • The Future of Space Propulsion: VASIMR - AIAA Houston Horizons Magazine - Winter 2007, by Leonard Cassady, Ad Astra Rocket Co.
  • Variable-Specific-Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket - NASA Tech
    
  • NASA - Propulsion Systems of the Future - VASIMR
  • MSE Technology Applications - contract work with NASA
  • NASA Exploring Mars: PROPULSION Advanced Space Propulsion Laboratory
  • VASIMIR - NASA HSF
  • Plasma rocket engine makes space flight much faster - ORNL
  • Articles
    • To Mars and Beyond: Rocket scientist Franklin Chang Diaz talks about finding the power and propulsion required to colonize space - Technology Review - Sept.25.07
    • Scientists in Costa Rica set plasma engine record - Reuters - June.13.07
    • Former astronaut to lead advanced rocket concept - Spaceflight Now/NASA - Jan.27.06
    • Agreement to Commercialize Advanced NASA Rocket Concept; Former Astronaut Franklin-Chang Diaz to Lead Effort - SpaceRef - Jan.23.06
    • VASIMR: A Plasma Rocket by Mark Whittington - Associated Content - Jan.13.06
    • Superfast VASIMR Rocket in Funding Limbo - Space.com - Aug.7.02
    • Advanced Rocketry: NASA Works On Powerful Plasma Rockets - Space.com - June.16.00
• Super-Accelerated Electromagnetic Engine - Reisz Engineers - Huntsville, Alabama
• Electrodynamic propulsion without a tether
  • Mason Peck at Cornell University
  • NIAC Phase 1, $75,000 awarded for Planetary Magnetic Fields Propulsion Research - spacecraftresearch.com - Feb.22.07
  • Applying Lorentz Forces to Propel Future Spacecraft Missions - spacecraftresearch.com - Oct.20.06
• Other Articles
  • PU lab chasing science fiction: A lithium-fed electromagnetic plasma thruster will eventually power a spacecraft to Mars. - Princont Packet - Aug.10.04
  • Boeing to build electric propulsion system for NASA - Spaceflight Now - Aug.18.03
  • Ion Engine Records No Tuneups, No Problems - JPL - July.30.03
  • Ion engine to open up the solar system - Spaceflight Now - Sept.10.02
  • Farther and Faster out of this World: Glenn Demonstrates High-Power Electric Propulsion - NASA Glenn PR - July.10.02
  • NASA Selects Teams to Lead Development of Next-Generation Ion Engine and Advanced Technology - NASA PR - June.27.02
  • ESA develops a smarter way to travel through space - ESA SCIENCE - June.11.02
  • Microsatellite Plasma Propulsion - Physics News Update - May.29.02
  • Ion Propulsion Turns Artemis Near-Defeat Into Victory - Unisci - Feb.22.02
  • The Incredible Ions of Space Transportation-SpaceScience.com-June.15.00

Exotic Systems

• Exotic Fuels
• Advanced Propulsion Concepts - giant collection of info on about every propulsion scheme ever built or proposed. Previously at JPL, now hosted by Island One Society
• Advanced Propulsion Concepts at The Encyclopedia of Astrobiology, Astronomy, and Spaceflight
• Nuclear and future flight propulsion - Aerospace America - Dec.01 (pdf)
• NASA JPL/MSFC/UAH Twelfth Annual Advanced Space Propulsion Workshop Proceedings - lots of papers on a wide range of propulsion systems.
• Buck Rogers, Watch Out! - Science@NASA - March.01.01 - self-healing materials, flapping wings and more.
• Earth-to-Orbit Transportation Bibliography - Andrew Nowicki
• NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts
  • Funded Studies
  • Far Out Propulsion Conference Blasts Off
• NASA Breakthrough Propulsion Physics (BPP) Project
• Assessing Potential Propulsion Breakthroughs - Marc Millis - review paper
• Discovery Online - Spaceships Out of this World - Sept.30.99 - tethers, sails, antimatter, ion propulsion
• Water Rockets Are Go Says Amateur Rocketeer - SpaceDaily - Dec.4.00
• Teleportation: Express Lane Space Travel by Leonard David - SPACE.com - July.8.05
• Catapult Launchers
  • Gun Launch - IslandOne - B. Dunn's review of Gerald Bull's HARP project
    • Project Babylon: Gerald Bull's Downfall - Damn Interesting - May.26.06
  • GunLaunch at Encyclopedia Astronautica
  • Gun Launch Systems at Columbiad.
  • NASA/MSFC demo project:
    • Sideways Rockets - Discover- Apr.00
    • 99-10-07 New Magnetic Levitation Track - NASA PR
    • New NASA Track Races Toward Cheaper Trips to Space (Oct.4.99)
    • photos
    • ScienceDaily Magazine -- New NASA Track Races Toward Cheaper Trips To Space - Oct.7.99
  • Maglev
    • MTSC Magnetic Support Technology
    • LaunchPoint
      • Magnetic Satellite Launch System
      • Magtube Transit System
      • Huge 'launch ring' to fling satellites into orbit - New Scientist - Oct.3.06
      • Magnetic sled could hurl objects into orbit - New Scientist - May.22.06
    • Space Show interview with John Barber - Sept.4.05
    • Maglev Launch Assist at Boeing
  • For Love of a Gun: The tumultuous history of electromagnetic launch - IEEE Spectrum - July.07 issue
  • Light Gas Guns at Livermore
  • Sky Ramp - propels an "RLV on a sled to supersonic speeds up a miles-long track before the RLV fires its engines."
  • RAM Accelerators-
    • Univ. Washington
    • The Ballistic Flight Group
      • Jules Verne returns: Will space guns provide low-cost access to space - Space Review - July.30.07?
      • FAQ - ram acceleration
  • Star Tram- Ultra Low-cost to Orbit - Plus Ultra
  • Rotational Slingshot Catapult (RSC) - space based catapult
  • Heron Aerospace
  • See Tethers in Space Systems section - tethers can be used for space based catapults
  • Amateur Railguns in Sci-Tech
  • Articles
    • World's Most Powerful Rail Gun Delivered to Navy - Military.com - Jan.25.08
    • Giant Slingshot: New Way to Space? - Defense Tech - May.8.06
    • Rocket-Powered Rosebud - Chair Force Engineer - Jan.24.06
    • Rocket-Powered Sled Sets Speed Record : Rocket-Powered Sled Travels About 6,400 MPH to Break 1982 World Land Speed Record - ABC News - May.1.03
    • Space Coast could be hub of research for next launch technology: magnetic levitation - Florida Today - Sept.8.02
    • Fastest Gun In The West Outdoes Nuclear Explosion - UniSci - Feb.26.01
• Laser and other Beamed Energy Propulsion: ground launch (see space sails for in space laser propulsion)
  • American Institute of Beamed Energy Propulsion
    • Bookstore - proceedings of conferences in 2002-2005, 2007
  • Leik Myrabo
    • Lightcraft Techologies
    • IslandOne
    • The Lightcraft Project at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
    • RPI Gas Dynamics Laboratory 
  • Microwave
    • Microwave rocket project heats up - Flight Int. - Sept.27.05
      
    • www.kevinparkin.org
    • Parkin, Kevin L.G. (2006-05-26) The microwave thermal thruster and its application to the launch problem - CalTech PhD Thesis
      
    • Feasibility and Performance of the Microwave Thermal Rocket Launcher - by Kevin Parkin, F. Culik - 2005 (pdf)
  • Jordin Kare
    • Kare, J.T., and Parkin, K.L.G, A Comparison of Laser and Microwave Approaches to CW Beamed Energy Launch, Proc. Fourth International Symposium on Beamed Energy Propulsion-2005, New York: American Institute of Physics. (pdf)
    • Modular Laser Launch Architecture:Analysis and Beam Module Design - NIAC Phase I Meeting - March 2004
  • Laser Propulsion Group - Andrew V. Pakhomov - Univ. of Alabama at Huntsville
    • One wee hop for a laser 'craft' might also be a giant leap - Univ. of Alabama at Huntsville - Oct.1 04
      
    • Unexpected explosion makes Pakhomov wait 10, 20 . a whole 50 microseconds - Univ. of Alabama at Huntsville - Mar.5.02
  • Plasma beams
    • Ride the ion train from the Moon to Earth - New Scientist - Jan.22.07
    • MagBeam - R. Winglee et al - NIAC Report - March 2005
      
    • Magnetized Beamed Plasma Propulsion (MagBeam) - NIAC FInal Report - Winglee & Ziemba - April-05
  • If a spacecraft was fitted with a laser would the photons emitted push the craft upwards as in the solar sail or beamed energy propulsion concepts? - Physlink.com tutorial
  • Articles:
    • Lasers to power to solar cells - involves development of the tracking techniques that laser launch systems would need.
      • What's Next: Soaring Into the Air With a Boost From a Laser Beam - NY Times - Nov.6.03
      • NASA Successfully Flies First Laser-powered Aircraft - SpaceRef - Oct.9.03
    • Sailing through space on microwaves: Brothers plan to be first to use beamed energy as flying fuel - Huntsville TImes - Nov.7.02
    • Powering the Aircraft of the Future From the Ground, With Laser Beams - NY Times - July.2.02
    • Lasers propel paper airplanes - optics.org - June.12.02
    • Laser propels plane Nature - June.10.02
    • Beam me up? "Star Wars" lasers could make light work of launching future satellites - CNN - Cold War History
    • Riding Laser Beams to Space - Space.com - July.5.00
    • Highways of Light By Leik N. Myrabo - Scientific American - Feb.99
    • CNN - Tomorrow/Today - Dec. 12, 1997
    • BBC News | Sci/Tech | Beam-riding rocket lifts off
• Microwave
  • The Lightcraft Project at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
  • Researchers develop 'microwave rocket' - Daily Yomiuri - Apr.15.03
  • Microwave Sciences - James Benford
    • Earth To Mars In A Month With Painted Solar Sail - Technovelogy.com - Feb.9.05
    • Ultimate Rocket: Doing Better than the Sun by Gregory and James Benford - Planetary Report - Jan/Feb 2003
    • Near-Term Beamed Sail Propulsion Missions: Cosmos-1 and Sun-Diver - 2002
    • Desorption Propulsion And Deployment
    • Microwave Beam-Driven Sail Flight Experiments , by J. Benford et al, 2001
    • More papers
    • Solar super-sail could reach Mars in a month New Scient