spinning surf-launch

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toby - 15 Jan 2004 12:12 GMT

Would it make any sense to design a surf launched tourist vehicle which is
spun up while floating in the water? This could then be a totally passive
guidance 'system'. Just point it straight up, spin, then launch. Not a
transistor
in sight.

The hard bit would be designing the counter-rotating crew-module on top. It
might need a motor and bearing a bit like on the roton engine, depending on
how
much friction there is between the two sections.

Or perhaps, just making the crew compartment rotate a little bit in the
opposite
direction by adding canted fins too it would be enough, so that by the time
the
booster separated the crew compartment would have ended up rotating gently
in the same direction as the booster.

Toby

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Alex William Russell - 24 Jan 2004 08:54 GMT

> Would it make any sense to design a surf launched tourist vehicle which is
> spun up while floating in the water? This could then be a totally passive
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
>
> Toby

If rapid spinning is involved, slosh might mess up fuel flow so solid
rocket rather than liquid propellants might have to be used.

No need to start in water, just put on rotating launch pad or put
tilted fins at bottom to quickly create a spin after firing.

Hmmm, I like the idea of getting rid or cost/weight of computers and
thrusters for maneuvering, but how about using an onboard
(high-tech-carbon-fiber-million_revolution_per_second) flywheel
spinning and thereby creating gyroscopic force that will fight any
variation from vertical. Why not use this on current rockets at least
for mostly-vertical first stages!

Hmmm, this is a weird idea, but how about getting the liquids in a
ship "rotating" thus creating momentum, and then launch ? Would
rotating fluids (i.e., quasi-pressurized) fluids put in motion before
launch, when let into combustion chamber boost ISP without cost of
onboard pumps?

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Henry Spencer - 25 Jan 2004 21:52 GMT

>Hmmm, I like the idea of getting rid or cost/weight of computers and
>thrusters for maneuvering, but how about using an onboard
>(high-tech-carbon-fiber-million_revolution_per_second) flywheel
>spinning and thereby creating gyroscopic force that will fight any
>variation from vertical. Why not use this on current rockets at least
>for mostly-vertical first stages!

Because it's much heavier than active control. Moreover, even first
stages generally turn away from vertical quite a bit.

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MOST launched 30 June; science observations running | Henry Spencer
since Oct; first surprises seen; papers pending. | henry@spsystems.net

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Space Forum / Space Flight / January 2004

spinning surf-launch