Transcript Space topics briefing

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Responsive Air Launch
Mr. Warren Frick, Orbital Sciences Corporation
Dr. Joe Guerci, Deputy Director, DARPA/SPO
Mr. Brian Horais, Schafer Corporation
2nd Annual Responsive Space Conference
22 April 2004
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Military Utility
• 2002 Operationally Responsive Spacelift (ORS)
Mission Need Statement (MNS)
– Establishes the requirement for responsive, on-demand access to,
through and from space.
– This requirement encompasses the spacelift missions of delivering
payloads to, or from, mission orbit and changing the orbit of existing
systems to better satisfy new mission requirements.
– It also requires on-demand, flexible, and cost effective operations.
SOURCE: RDT&E BUDGET ITEM JUSTIFICATION SHEET (R-2 Exhibit) February
2003, 04 - Advanced Component Development and Prototypes (ACD&P)PE 0604855F
Operationally Responsive Launch, Project A013
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Air Launch Study
• Study task awarded to Orbital Sciences Corporation
(OSC) in OCT 03 to:
– “Address the feasibility of air-launching tactically significant
payloads from existing military aircraft with minimal or no
modification to the aircraft payload interfaces.”
– 6 month study includes:
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Assessment of candidate technologies
Preliminary Concept Design(s)
Evaluation/Downselect of Candidate Design Approaches
Development of Program Plan
Final Report
– This presentation and paper summarize
selected findings from the
DARPA/SPO Air Launch study
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“Wooden Round”
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The term “Wooden Round” is used in
reference to munitions logistics
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The Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) is another
example of a “wooden round” tactical munition.
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JDAM
The M26 Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) is a
current example
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JDAM can have its mission parameters loaded after it is
on the launch aircraft.
consists of a warhead and guidance tailkit stored as
“wooden rounds” and then loaded onto the warheads
The M26 rocket is a “wooden round” with a shelf life of at
least 15 years
The rockets are assembled, checked, and packaged in a
dual-purpose launch-storage tube at the factory
This design provides for tactical loading and firing of the
rocket without troop assembly or detailed inspection
Current Space Launch Systems are
custom, one-off assemblies – the opposite
of a wooden round
“WOODEN ROUND”
Characteristics
• Long shelf life
• Self-contained system
• Insensitive munitions
• Minimal field assembly
• Minimal inspection before
use
• Produced for low cost
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Responsiveness
Responsive Space = ƒ(LAUNCH VEHICLE, SPACECRAFT, PROCESS)
• Launch Vehicle Variable
– Pegasus, F-15 SLV, Rascal, Minotaur, Taurus, Falcon SLV,
EELV (ESPA), Shuttle
– Transportability across LV’s allows target of opportunity launch
– Responsive Payloads need not be large (500 to 1000 lbs)
• Spacecraft Variable
– Eliminate design and build time by developing a Modular
Architecture with open standardized & reconfigurable interfaces
– 1 meter diameter payload provides significant capability
• Process Variable
– Reduce demand with autonomous checkout and ops
– Adopt “Wooden Round” approach of tactical munitions
– Direct data link to user
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Recent Assessments
DoD Office of Space Architect (predecessor of NSSA) conducted 1998
Launch-on-Demand (LOD) Impact Study, with findings on Technology,
Systems and Operations in the 2010 – 2020 timeframe
Function
30-Day
Response
7-Day
Response
1-Day
Response
Space Vehicle Design
Launch Vehicle Design
Infrastructure
Operations
GREEN: Anticipated
technology/program
development will
support LOD
YELLOW: Requires
redirection/augment
ation of
technology/program
development
RED: Requires new
technology or major
change in present
development
program
Shortfalls exist in ALL ASPECTS of Responsive Spacelift
Development for quick response (1-Day) mission capabilities
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Parameter Space
During the study competing approaches for responsive spacelift
were evaluated against a set of common parameters to establish
the strengths and weaknesses of potential solutions.
ELV
Ground
FALCON
SLV
AIR
LAUNCH
RASCAL
RLV
On- Demand
30 days+
Same
Day
Same
Day
Same Day
GOOD for ORS
Any Orbit
No
No
Yes
Possibly
Marginal for ORS
Payloads
1000#
and up
1000#+
500 to
1000#
200#
Unsatisfactory for
ORS
Launcher
Ground
Ground
Existing
A/C
NEW A/C
Autonomy
NO
(ground
launched)
YES
YES
NO
Cost was not included in the parameter space
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Ground Launch Limitations
• Existing US launch sites are geographically constrained, limited in
available launch directions and must use existing range capabilities.
• representative launch azimuth constraints for the Eastern and Western
US Continental launch sites are depicted below
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Air Launch Flexibility
Overwater Air Launch eliminates need for ground-based range control
2 hrs
4 hrs
8 hrs
Pacific Launch
Area
Flyout
Times
Air Launch enables positioning of
Drop Point to intercept orbital
plane coincident with desired
overflight conditions
West Coast-Based Launch Aircraft
can reach majority of Pacific Launch
Area within 8 hours
(@ 400 to 450 knots)
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Air Launch Advantages
• Air-launched space launch vehicles have many performance
advantages over traditional ground-launched vehicles:
– Altitude ignition increases optimal nozzle expansion ratio
– Rocket energy requirements are reduced by launch aircraft kinetic and
potential energy
– Air pressure at altitude is greatly reduced from air pressure at sea level
• There are also operational advantages to air launch:
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Rendezvous opportunities increase
The first stage is reusable
The mission is recallable
Weather can be avoided
Any runway of adequate length is a potential launch site
The Carrier Aircraft can serve as the vehicle transporter if needed
Over-water launch operations increase flexibility
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Aircraft Choice
Air Launch from EXISTING Military Aircraft eliminates the need to
develop new launch platforms and integrates the responsive launch
process into existing force structures and crew processes
External launch
• B-52
• 25 K Lb Pylon Mount
• 500 # to LEO
Internal Launch
• C-17
• 170 K Lb Internal
Carriage
• 1000#+ to LEO
F-15, B-1 and B-2 capabilities were also evaluated but did not meet mass or length requirements
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B-52H Space Launch Capability
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The B-52H launch aircraft imposes a rocket
mass constraint of 25,000 lbs. for externally
carried stores on each wing pylon
Various rocket configurations were investigated
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Performance ranged from 297 lbs for a solid rocket
using Orion-heritage motors with Pegasus mass
fractions
to well over 500 lbs for a liquid 3-stage vehicle that
would be very logistically challenging to launch and
expensive to build
Very high performance motors such as H2/LOX and air
turbo ramjets were also considered
The optimum study concept achieved a rocket
performance of 488 lbs to a 500 km, 97.4 degree
inclination
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Three stage solid rocket with a 1-meter payload
envelope
Nearly twice the payload mass fraction of the current
Pegasus XL
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B-52H Space Launch
• 488 lb payload
• 1 meter payload diam.
• Launch to 500 km
• 97.4 degree inclination
• Total vehicle 25,000 lb
• Two vehicles per A/C
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Process Compression
How it is Done Today in 12 months +
How MARVAL Will do it in < 24 hours
Existing 12-month+ GN&C Process
Minimized by
Assembly
Process
Time Between Steps
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Launch Vehicle Tests
Process Durations
by Category
Range
Coordination
Load & Launch
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Eliminated by
Self-contained
Range Control
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Mission Planning
• Accomplished during Factory Buildout
• Periodic “Health & Status Checks in storage
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<1
<1
Space Tasking Order (STO)
Duration (HOURS)
<12
<6
Dynamic Mission Planning Software
<12
<6
Load & Launch
______________
_______
52 wks
< 24 HOURS
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Dynamic Tasks
Duration (weeks)
Launch Vehicle Testing
Pre-Done Tasks
A
sequential
and
iterative
process
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Mission Planning
•
Space launch mission planning is a
complex process even from fixed launch
sites
Orbital Calculations
– Orbital solutions, stage drop-offs, vehicle
dynamics and collision avoidance do not
always converge
– Human intervention is often necessary to
derive a solution
– When a mobile, air-launched capability is
added, the problems becomes even more
complex
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Current practices blend computer
solutions with developer expertise to
guide the solution over a period of weeks
The challenge for Responsive Space
Launch is to develop an automated and
optimized complex process that requires
minimal operator involvement and can
produce launch solutions within hours
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Stage Drop-offs
Control System S/W
Collision Avoidance
Mission Planning is a dynamic,
iterative process
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Time-extended Solution
False Local Solutions
Presolved
Time-Extended Solution Provides Approach to
Support Responsive Space Mission Planning
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Optimum
Global Exact
Solution
Mission Planning non-linear
optimization batch solution preconducted offline
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Multidimensional Objective Surface Defines potential solutions
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Pre-Solved
Exact Solution
at time ‘t’
Realtime
solution
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Time-extended solutions are based on
pre-solved optimization
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∆t
No closed final solution
Currently solved iteratively with human
expert in the loop to guide deviations to
solutions
Not amenable to responsive launch
solutions
Update solution with small time increment
variations (minutes)
Easy to maintain solutions for thousands
of possible orbital tasking scenarios
Operator not required to conduct full nonlinear optimization solution
Updated Solution at
(t+∆t)
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Conclusions
• 2002 ORS MNS :
– establishes the requirement for responsive, on-demand access to,
through and from space
– It also requires on-demand, flexible, and cost effective operations
– FALCON and RASCAL are examples of ORS initiatives
• Responsive Space Lift is a function of the launch vehicle,
the payload and the process support.
– True process compression will require departures from the highly
individualized and hands-on processes associated with existing
space launches in the US
The most time-critical ORS missions for
tactically sized payloads can best be
accomplished using air launch from existing
military aircraft to achieve the desired timelines
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