Reusable Rockets
1. What is the main incentive behind the
idea of a reusable rocket system?
Traditionally, we had a tried and tested
system of launching rockets that had been in use for over three decades and
that has been used enough times to ensure minimum failure rate. This was the
Expendable rocket launch system where we would divide the parts of the rocket,
each part to serve the requirements of the different stages of launch of a
rocket and as each stage was executed the parts responsible for the stage would
detach from the rocket and in the end only the final satellite would reach the
destination or orbit. But, as the technology with these systems improved and as
more and more rockets and satellites began to be launched into outer space, people
found out two major problems with the system that was in use.
First one being that the price of operation
of a single rocket launch had increased by up to three-fold for certain
large-scale launches.
The second problem, which was slightly more
concerning, was that the parts of the rocket that would be detached after the
rocket had reached a height above which the gravity of earth was minimum, would
just end up in space and increase the amount of space debris and hence making
‘space pollution’ a thing. And if this continued, then we would have a very big
problem of not being able to launch more rockets in the future because of the
risk of colliding with the debris that might already be in the path of the
rocket.
So due to all these concerns, the very
logical and brilliant idea that the scientists came up with was to build
rockets that could be reused for multiple launches. This would dramatically
reduce the amount of fresh space debris and also, in the long run, reduce the
cost of each launch cycle.
But the idea was just the beginning, and it
was easier said than done to build a system like this.
2. The story of the first reusable
rocket launch mission and its failure.
The first reusable rocket mission was the Space Shuttle back in 1981, which was a mission initiated by NASA.
This was our first attempt at making a
reusable launch system. The way it worked was that the entire rocket that would
be launched to space would have 2 parts and one of the parts that has an
aerodynamic design, much like modern airplanes, would be able to land back on
the earth just like a normal airplane would do.
The problem with this mission was that it
was unable to achieve its initial goal of reducing the cost of fuel for the
flight. It costed way over the originally projected cost of the mission, which
also placed its cost a significant amount higher than what it would cost to
operate a traditional expendable rocket launch system.
But the failure of the concept did not stop
us from innovating and the idea of this concept still stayed with the world and
continued to evolve.
3. The current state of technology and
usability in this field.
In recent years, with the private companies
like Virgin Atlantic and Space X stepping in on finding ways to make a reusable
rocket, the development in this field has been massive.
Space X setup a program in 2011 to build their
own reusable rocket system with the aim of bringing back and reusing as many
parts as possible from a rocket launch. Their first successful attempt at this
was on December 21,2015 when they launched their Falcon 9 rocket and
successfully brought back the entire part of the rocket required for the first
stage of the launch. This part was later reused during late 2016.
As of today, Space X has successfully
carried out 122 take offs of the Falcon 9, out of which 84 rockets have been
landed back on earth and 64 of them have been used again. According to them,
this method, once reused, could produce up to $5 to $7 million of savings for
each launch.
4. The working of most successful
reusable rocket system.
Space X has built a very one of a kind
working system for reusing rockets.
So let us see how their Falcon 9 functions
when it comes to bringing back the components of the rocket.
The Falcon 9 is on the lower end of the
Space X rocket line-up in terms of size and weight. But it is the first and
most successful reusable rocket system to date.
The Falcon 9 is basically like typical two
stage rocket where in it has two parts, the first of which is used for lift-off
to upper atmosphere and the second one that is used for basically the rest of
the flight.
Usually, the first part is rendered useless
once the rocket completed the first stage of launch and it detaches from the
second part. The Falcon 9 uses extra fuel that is stored in the first part so
that it can be brought back safely and landed for further use in the following
several launches.
There are two methods of landing this part
of the rocket here it can either be landed on land or on a platform placed in
the sea, or basically on water.
The second method is a little more fuel efficient than the first one but at the same is also more difficult to achieve.
The mission, till date, has a success rate
of 98.41% and it has been in use since the first successful launch in 2015.
5.This is what happens when travel
enthusiasts hear about a new technology!!
The major implications of such a
development in technology is that the cost of fuel and operation is set to go
down by a very considerable amount.
One of the major new things that is pooping
out as a result of this reduction in price in the future is Space Tourism where
initially, a very small sliver of the population would be able to have access
to space just for recreational purposes.
The first of these flights has already been
conducted successfully by the company Virgin Galactic which owned by the
aviation giant The Virgin group. The CEO of Virgin group, Richard Branson along
with three other employees of Virgin, have conducted the first flight to
space that lasted 1.5 hours. Although they were technically within the height
threshold beyond which is what we have classified as ‘space’(The Karman Line,
60 miles above the surface of earth), these kinds of developments are a clear
indicator that the reusable rocket technology is being used in more than one
way.
Jeff Bezos, the CEO of Amazon, also took a trip to space in their Blue Origin rocket and NASA also has a group of people who are being trained to go to proper space in the year 2022.
All around, this is a field in which shocking amounts of developments are taking place at a surprisingly fast pace.
Credits & References: Avinash Sreelal (Team Tech Tuesday)
https://www.spacex.com/vehicles/falcon-9/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_reusable_launch_system_development_program
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