With a gargantuan wingspan of 385 feet (117 m) and six engines, the plane is taking a new approach in the private space race, by launching satellites and spacecraft into orbit from high altitude. The advantage of the approach will be the ability to position the plane so satellites can be directly delivered into very precise orbits and do so quickly, without launch range scheduling issues and weather-related delays, Chuck Beames, who oversees Allen's space ventures, said.
Initially, the system is intended to deliver satellites weighing up to about 13,500lbs (6,124 kg) into orbits between 112 miles and 1,243 miles (180 km and 2000 km) above Earth.
Instead of a satellite, the Stratolaunch airplane could launch a Dream Chaser spaceship. This could act as a mini-shuttle to reach low Earth orbit destinations and return astronauts or payloads to runway within 24 hours.
I know the Guardian has a reputation for spelling mistakes, but honestly this Daily Fascist article is chock full of 'em. And it has this hugely annoying
Originally shared by George Virginia
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3649882/Paul-Allens-space-company-nears-debut-worlds-biggest-plane.html
That's an impressively bad article. It's as though there was no editing or proofreading, but surely that couldn't be true.
ReplyDeleteI've heard of Stratolaunch before, but wasn't aware they were getting close to testing.
ReplyDelete...Actually, I have yet to see proof that they are close to testing. I suspect this burst of press coverage is really about seeking clients:
http://spacenews.com/stratolaunch-seeks-launch-partners-as-aircraft-nears-completion/