X51 to get to stretch it's leg (finally!)

[EHM-0654 Murray]

The X-51A "Waverider" scramjet will fly at last tomorrow. We may well be about to witness the next quantum leap in "aircraft" engine technology, as the X51 doesn't use exotic fuels, just plain old jet fuel, as it accelerates to a hypersonic Mach 6 (hopefully).

[ http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/05/21/x_51_scramjet_test_confirmed/ ] and [ http://www.space-travel.com/reports/X_51A_WaveRider_Flight_Test_On_May_25_999.html ] for more info. If anyone comes across any info on any streams of the test flight, please, please, please post them; I've got the rest of the week off work as of tomorrow...

[EHM-0654 Murray]

The test flight got delayed by a day because a cargo ship interdicted the test range on the day the test flight was supposed to happen, but the following day they did launch "Waverider" and she got up to a sustained Mach 5 before flaming out for as yet unspecified reasons. All good data up to that point though, so I look forward to some news about this flight soon.

[EHM-1001 Robert]

Hi Murray,

do you know wether it is a military or a civilian project ? I think it was already proved that the scramjet engine works, and NASA can build it - if I remember well that is (was) the Aurora project, also the SR-71 had a similar variable engine that could work as a scramjet. Why is it so special now that Boeing and P&W is also able to build a mini airplane with scramjet engine ?

Why the developers forget we still could not solve the problem of the sonic boom ? Why they forget we still not have a material that could survive that flight under control and in "aircraft" size and shape? Why the developers think that the gap between Mach 3 (which we already achieved) and Mach 6...8 is already DONE and we do not need to cope with it ? We have not had an aircraft yet that could takeoff, accelerate above Mach 2, and then land somewhere else, ...while taking more than 10 tons of payload. It is a great achievement that we have a little engine which can "deliver" itself at Mach 6 and that is all. I am afraid this is going to be a military project for a new ultra fast and ultralong range weapon rather than a technology demonstration for future civil air travel.

Maybe I am pessimistic, but I do not see the well-thought steps in the development. I would prefer a modern and working Mach 2...3 "heavy" airliner first, which proved that we can go beyond the Concorde heritage and we are already well prepared for hypersonic travel.

[EHM-0654 Murray]

The "big secret" of this engine project is that it burns plain jet fuel rather than hydrogen. So, much smaller fuel tanking requirements, and that in turn will mean this engine technology will transition to non-military (and unfortunately, military as well...) applications far more easily.

There are some big hopes riding on this project; NASA are one of the more vocal proponents of this, they can see a future orbital shuttle powered by this. "Plain" jet to low altitude/mach, then scramjet to high altitude/mach, finally followed by a hugely reduced rocket requirement to push it out to orbit. For getting back down, it'll do much the same as the current shuttle, glide in.