A Collection of Rockets
Engine Test Fire - SpaceX
Rockets...Need I say more?
After my latest article History and Innovation, I could not decide what I wanted to research and write next. As more time goes by I'm sure something will come to mind.
Until then, this post is dedicated to pure unadulterated rocket porn! Well, thats one way of putting it. What I mean by that is great pics and videos posted by commercial rocket companies over the past couple of years of their rockets being fired. You might just learn something from it too, so enjoy the post!
Commencing awesomeness in 3...2...1...
Hold!
I know I said we would be looking at photos, but before we get into it, we will start more on the educational side. If you know how a liquid rocket works and don't care to hear an explanation, skip this part and enjoy some pics. If you don't know how it works, this may be worth your while...
Most new rocket engines being built by SpaceX, Armadillo Aerospace, XCOR, and other commercial space companies are liquid rocket engines. So what is a liquid rocket engine? First off, let's explain how every rocket works. Every rocket works by taking some source of fuel and a concentrated oxygen source, mixing the two, and then igniting them in a combustion chamber. By doing this, you create a stream of high pressure, high velocity gas. Then, the gas is turned supersonic as it is passed through a precisely shaped nozzle. This generates the thrust for the rocket, as this mass of gas is expelled at high speed out of the nozzle. Your sources of fuel and oxygen can be in solid form, liquid form, or a mixture of the two (hybrid). Most companies prefer there fuel/oxidizer source in liquid form for a couple of important reasons:
- You can start and stop a liquid rocket engine, and throttle them as needed. With a solid propellant, this is a much more complicated task.
- Liquid propellant typically has a higher specific impulse (more thrust generated per unit of mass of propellant) than a solid.
- Many liquid propellants have a non-toxic exhaust
- Good liquid propellants are stable and can be stored for many years without deterioration or decomposition
- Emergencies with the combustion of a liquid rocket system are more controllable, and less catastophic compared to a solid motor.
So now you know a little about the engines. You feel good about it? I do. So let's take a look at some pics!
XCOR XR-4K5
The XR-4K5 was a LOX/Kerosene engine XCOR developed after their 4K14 Engine, which was used on their rocket racer. This engine produces 1,800 pounds of thrust, which was a step up from the 4K14's 1,500 pounds of thrust. In this engine they were able to double the amount of chamber pressure, and use a much smaller/lighter electrical design than previous generations.
Quick Nerd Moment: Anyone remember Barrett from Final Fantasy 7? This looks like something he would attach to his arm...
Prototype XR-4K5 engine - XCOR
Camera at 1/4000 shutter to reveal shock diamonds in bright kerosene plume - Photo by Mike Massee / XCOR
Armadillo CH4K
Armadillo Aerospace is developing a LOX (Liquid Oxygen) and Methane engine for NASA's Project Morpheus. The purpose of Project Morpheus is to design and test a system that integrates new technologies that can be used in creating new spacecraft that can land on the Moon, Mars, Asteroids, and other locations. Below is a test of a the LOX/Methane engine designed by Ben Brockert of Armadillo, capable of producing over 4000 lbf of thrust.
Virgin Galactic SpaceShip 2 Hybrid
Hybrid Motor Test - Virgin Galactic XCOR XR-5K18 "Lynx" Engine
Developed by XCOR, the "Lynx" Engine is a LOX/Kerosene engine that produces over 2,500-2,900 pounds of thrust. XCOR is developing a suborbital vehicle called the Lynx, and will have 4 of these engines strapped to its back! Like the old saying goes: More engines, more thrust, more fun (Is that a saying? Well it should be). This engine is regeneratively cooled, has been tested to run continuously at thermal equilibrium, and can stop and restart with the use of a proprietary spark torch igniter system.
5K18 engine testing continues through winter and spring in the High Desert - Mike Massee/XCOR
XCOR 5M15
This engine was developed by XCOR under a contract with NASA and ATK to develop a LOX/methane engine capable of over 7,500 lbf of thrust for NASA's Advanced Development LOX/Methane Engine Program. This has been the largest engine that XCOR has developed thus far, and it is a monster! Check out the video below to see a test firing of the rocket.
You know when you see something, and it makes you go "WHOA!" That's how I feel about this video. I don't even think you have to be really into rockets to appreciate it either. I have shown many of my friends from all walks of life this video and they all have that same reaction. I think Mike Massee of XCOR does a great job of not only capturing the capability of this engine (and all of XCOR's engines really), but also presenting it in an aesthetically pleasing way, with great quality video and picture.
The 5M15 prototype - Photo by Mike Massee / XCOR
The picture below is an absolutely great picture, if not the best picture that captures the power of this engine
The XR-5M15 prototype engine is run at XCOR's test site on the Mojave Spaceport - Photo by Mike Massee / XCOR
As a matter of fact, I've been staring at this photo every day on my iPhone for the past year...
Why Methane?
You may notice that two engines (Armadillo CH4K, and XCOR 5M15) were made to run off liquid Methane, which is not typical rocket fuel. So why is NASA funding research of Methane engines? A number of compelling reasons:
1. Methane is abundant throughout the solar system, and is found in the atmosphere of many of planets (Jupiter, Saturn, uranus, and Neptune), and Saturns moon Titan is covered in liquid methane. We can potentially harvest this methane and use it in fuel depots we set up throughout the solar system.
2. Although Mars is not abundant in Methane, it can be manufactured on the surface using the Sabatiere process, which involves heating a mixture of carbon dioxide and hydrogen to produce methane.
3. Methane is not toxic, and does not require hazmat suits to handle, unlike other liquid fuels.
4. It can be stored at -161 C, compared to liquid hydrogen used on the space shuttle main engines, which needs to be stored at -230 C. Warmer temperatures mean less insulation, which equals less weight for the rocket.
SpaceX Merlin 1C
The Merlin Engine is a Liquid Oxygen and RP-1(Rocket Propellant number 1) Kerosene Rocket engine, and is the power house behind the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. One Merlin engine can produce up to 125,000 lbf (556 kN) of thrust at sea level, and up to 138,800 lbf (617 kN) in a vacuum. As the name suggests, the Falcon 9 features 9 of these engines in it's first stage, collectively producing a thrust for the rocket of over 1,110,000 lbf (4.94MN) of Thrust!
You will notice an exhaust coming out of the left side of this engine, that is because this engine uses turpopumps to pump large amounts of fuel into the thrust chamber, and in order to spin the turbo pump, they feed and burn a small amount of propellant passed a turbine which in turn spins the turbopump, feeding propellant downwards. That exhausts also produces a small amount of thrust as well, and SpaceX uitlizes that small amount of thrust in their Falcon 9 second stage for roll control.
Merlin 1C Test Fire - SpaceX
Thats all for now!
Hope you enjoyed the post, and hope you learned something new. If you have any pictures/videos that you think are awesome, please share them. Leave a comment with a link for all to enjoy. Until next time, thank you for reading!
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