From Jonathan's Space Report No. 529, 2004 Jun 28
http://www.planet4589.org/jsr.html
Nevertheless this is a historic moment, marking the real dawn
of commercial human spaceflight. The trajectory was highly
suborbital, with a perigee close to the center of the Earth -
inertial orbit parameters at apogee were about 6374 x 100 km
x 35.0 deg. The inertial velocity at apogee was probably at
most 0.3 km/s; if they had launched east instead of west they
would have reached 0.5 km/s. The velocity needed for orbit
at 100 km is 7.8 km/s, a big difference.
> From Jonathan's Space Report No. 529, 2004 Jun 28
> http://www.planet4589.org/jsr.html
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
> would have reached 0.5 km/s. The velocity needed for orbit
> at 100 km is 7.8 km/s, a big difference.
So its basically a super X-15 then? Have they any plans for an orbital, or
at least a continent hopping design. In my view this is a very rudimentary
system, purely there to show it can be done, but then it already has been.
What is required for real public access, is some form of runway to space
system that does not rely on being carried up under another aircraft. You
also need some form of air breathing engines for loitering when you come
down, or you might have a problem if your trajectory is a bit off beam!
Brian

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Brian Gaff....Note, this account does not accept Bcc: email.
graphics are great, but the blind can't hear them
Email: briang1@blueyonder.co.uk
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