Ravn (missile system)
Ravn is an announced US missile system for the transport of payloads in Earth orbit . It is said to consist of an unmanned supersonic aircraft and a launcher , the latter taking off from the former in flight.
Ravn is marketed by Aevum, Inc. , founded in 2016 . Aevum is headquartered in Huntsville , Alabama and claims to have offices in California , Colorado and Oregon . The project is co-financed by the US Air Force .
Ravn X
Various Ravn models are planned, of which only the smallest variant, Ravn X , will be offered initially .
power
The Ravn X carrier aircraft is said to reach a speed of Mach 2.85 (3519 km / h) and deploy a two-stage rocket. Both rocket stages are operated with the jet A aircraft kerosene and liquid oxygen .
Aevum states that Ravn X can put up to 100 kg payload into 500 km high sun-synchronous orbit . The automated flight operations should enable extremely low take-off costs (2000 US dollars / kg) and a take-off preparation time of just three hours.
development
According to the company, the first concept for Ravn was created in 2011. In 2016, Aevum was looking for a manufacturer for the supersonic aircraft. A first prototype is said to have been under construction since 2017, although it remained unclear whether the aircraft, the missile or both are meant. The development of the system has been funded by the US Air Force since 2018. The start of flight testing has been announced for 2019 .
Starts
According to planning from mid-2018, the first payloads with Ravn should be launched by the end of 2019.
In September 2019, Aevum won an Air Force contract worth $ 4.9 million to launch Aslon-45 . These are several Cubesats that are scheduled to be launched from the Cecil Air and Space Port into low earth orbit in 2021 . The contract was originally awarded to competitor Vector Launch, who ran out of money to complete its Vector-R rocket . The Cecil Air and Space Port is a combined civil and military airport in Jacksonville , Florida, which has had a license to operate a spaceport since 2010 .
Similar systems
An airborne orbital launch system is already in use with the Orbital Sciences Corporation's Pegasus system . The under development LauncherOne of Virgin Orbit works on the same principle. Both, however, use conventional, pilot-controlled aircraft with speeds below 1000 km / h. With a payload capacity of around 500 kg, both are much more powerful than the planned Ravn X.
Web links
- Aevum website
- Three Ravn starts as computer animation , video by Aevum on Youtube , August 2018
Individual evidence
- ^ Aevum, Inc. Company Profile. Hoovers, accessed September 10, 2019 .
- ↑ Careers. In: aevumspace.com. Retrieved September 10, 2019 .
- ^ A b c Doug Messier, Aevum Wins USAF Contract to Explore Autonomous Launch Capabilities for Responsive Launch and Space Logistics. In: Parabolic Arc. August 19, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019 .
- ↑ a b c Charls Choi: Aevum's New Rocket-Drone Airplane Duo Could Launch Satellites Every 3 Hours. In: Space.com. June 18, 2018, accessed September 10, 2019 .
- ↑ a b Jay Skylus: Earth to Space Delivery Services Faster and Affordable with ANSYS Simulation. In: Ansys Blog. March 11, 2017, accessed September 11, 2019 .
- ↑ About. In: aevumspace.com. Retrieved September 10, 2019 .
- ↑ Twitter message from Aevum, August 31, 2016.
- ↑ Sandra Erwin: Vector relinquishes Air Force launch contract, mission re-awarded to Aevum. In: Space News. September 9, 2019, accessed September 11, 2019 .
- ^ Space and Missile Systems Center awards $ 4.9 million Small Rocket Program-Orbital contract; Mission: Agile Small Launch Operational Normalizer (ASLON) -45. Space and Missile Systems Center , September 9, 2019; accessed September 11, 2019 .
- ↑ Irene Klotz: Florida airport gets commercial spaceport license. Reuters , January 12, 2010, accessed September 11, 2019 .