XCOR EZ-Rocket: Difference between revisions
No edit summary |
→Specifications: Finally found the engine designation on the XCOR site. |
||
| Line 33: | Line 33: | ||
[[Image:DickRutan.jpeg|thumb|right|[[Dick Rutan]] standing next to the engines of the EZ-Rocket]] |
[[Image:DickRutan.jpeg|thumb|right|[[Dick Rutan]] standing next to the engines of the EZ-Rocket]] |
||
* Two 400 |
* Two '''XR-4A3''' {{convert|400|lbf|kN}} thrust rocket engines (non throttleable, restartable in flight)<ref name=xcor-loxalc>{{cite web |url=http://xcor.com/engines/LOX-alcohol_4A3.html |title=LOX-Alcohol Rocket Engine |website=www.xcor.com |publisher=XCOR Aerospace, Inc. |accessdate=2015-06-15}}</ref> |
||
* 20 sec 500 m takeoff roll |
* 20 sec 500 m takeoff roll |
||
* Vne = 195 kt |
* Vne = 195 kt |
||
Revision as of 15:21, 15 June 2015
The XCOR EZ-Rocket is a test platform for the XCOR rocket propulsion system. The airplane is a modified Rutan Long-EZ, with the propeller replaced by first one, then later a pair of pressure-fed regeneratively cooled liquid-fuelled rocket engines and an underslung fuel tank. The engines are restartable in flight, and are contained within Kevlar armor shielding. The EZ-Rocket is registered as an experimental aircraft.
EZ-Rocket was the first privately built and flown rocket-powered airplane, making its maiden flight in 2001.[1]
Development and history
The first flight took place on July 21, 2001, flown by test pilot Dick Rutan.
On a typical flight, the EZ-Rocket takes off on rockets, gains altitude for a minute or so, then switches off the rockets and glides to a deadstick landing.
The vehicle actually flies better during deadstick glide landings than a Long-EZ due to lack of drag from a stationary pusher propeller — the vehicle's aerodynamics are cleaner in spite of its belly tank. It is also lighter due to the lack of a piston engine (the rocket propulsion system is significantly lighter), so enjoys significantly lower wing loading than a stock Long-EZ.
XCOR registered it as a conventional aircraft, rather than a suborbital, because the vehicle is incapable of reaching the 100 km Kármán line altitude.
Milestones and records
- October 8, 2000 - First firing of an XCOR Aerospace LOX-powered rocket engine.[2]
- July 21, 2001 - First flight, flown by Dick Rutan (single-engine configuration).[2]
- October 6, 2001 - First flight in twin-engine configuration.[2]
- July 24, 2002 - First touch-and-go of a rocket-powered aircraft (world record).[2]
- December 3, 2005 - Set the point-to-point distance record for a ground-launched, rocket-powered aircraft, flying 16 km from Mojave to California City in just under ten minutes, flown by Dick Rutan.[3][4] Also first official delivery of U.S. Mail by a rocket-powered aircraft.[3] In recognition of this achievement, the FAI awarded Rutan the 2005 Louis Blériot Medal.[5]
- December 15, 2005 - First arrival of a rocket-powered aircraft at the Mojave Spaceport on a flight originating at another airport, return flight from California City, piloted by Rick Searfoss.[3]
- 2008: The XCOR EZ-Rocket X-Racer prototype rocketplane flew at the 2008 EAA AirVenture Oshkosh air show.[6]
Derivatives
The Rocket Racing League aircraft currently in development, the Mark-III X-racer, is a design descendant of the EZ-Rocket aircraft. Although XCOR is not the developer of the rocket engine for the Mark-III, XCOR did develop the rocket engine for the Mark-I X-Racer, the first of the X-Racers to use a single rocket engine on a Velocity SE basic airframe, and the first X-Racer to utilize kerosene instead of isopropyl alcohol fuel. XCOR used both design and operational experience from the EZ-Rocket in the Mark-I rocket aircraft design.[citation needed]
Specifications
- Two XR-4A3 400 pounds-force (1.8 kN) thrust rocket engines (non throttleable, restartable in flight)[7]
- 20 sec 500 m takeoff roll
- Vne = 195 kt
- climb rate = 52 m/s (10,000 ft/min)
- maximum altitude = 10,000 ft
- Fuel : isopropyl alcohol and liquid oxygen
- Chamber pressure : ~ 350 psi
- specific impulse : 250 to 270 seconds[citation needed]
- Noise: 128 dB at 10 meters[8]
See also
References
- ^ Knapp, Alex (2014-06-18). "Bootstrapping To The Stars". Forbes. Retrieved 2014-06-19.
- ^ a b c d "First Flights - XCOR Aerospace". Mojave Virtual Museum. Retrieved 2006-11-13.
- ^ a b c Deaver, Bill (2005-12-22). "XCOR EZ-Rocket makes more history at CalCity". Mojave Desert News.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ FAI Records
- ^ List of Blériot medals awarded to Dick Rutan
- ^ XCOR X-Racer, by Nancy Atkinson, Universe Today, 2009-08-06, accessed 2010-04-26.
- ^ "LOX-Alcohol Rocket Engine". www.xcor.com. XCOR Aerospace, Inc. Retrieved 2015-06-15.
- ^ [1]
External links
