Here's another 400+ pages of rocket goodness from 1962, written by Boeing... "Study of Large Launch Vehicles Utilizing Solid Propellants". This study presented some very interesting designs in several different sizes. It starts off with a small solid-first stage/LH2 powered upper stage booster to develop the first stage SRM, and then uses it in cluster configurations to make larger boosters, coupled with larger LH2 upper stages to orbit very large (Saturn class) payloads. Interestingly, it's the first presentation I've seen on the idea of using the SRM's arranged around the liquid second stage ala Titan III-- using the SRMs as a 'stage zero' and airlighting the second "core" stage at SRB burnout. This idea would return again as an airstarted S-II stage with four 120 inch SRMs mounted around it acting as the first stage (stage zero) lifting it to altitude where the J-2's would be lit at SRB burnout. It wasn't the baseline configuration but it was noted that it should be studied further (and apparently was given it's reappearance later on!)

Anyway, there's a lot of interesting prototypes here for modelling boosters that "might have been". Enjoy! OL JR

Attached Files

NASA Study Summary- Study of Large Launch Vehicles Utilizing Solid Propellants.txt (26.6 KB, 42 views)

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The X-87B Cruise Basselope-- THE Ultimate Weapon in the arsenal of Homeland Security and only $52 million per round!

Pic one is the general configurations studied... Virtually all but the Nova vehicle used combinations of the same SRMs and liquid propellant engines in various clusters to create different vehicles.


Pic two is the first variant, which is the "prototype" for all the others. It's a 30,000 pound vehicle using a single SRM first stage and an LH2 powered J-2second stage. Sort of a 1962 version of Ares I "the stick"...


Pic three is a closeup of the first half of the previous picture, enlarged to show the small font of the dimensions more clearly...


Pic four is an enlargement of the back half of the first pic...


Pic five is the 100,000 lb vehicle, using a cluster of four identical SRMs as the 30k lb vehicle, and a larger second stage powered by a cluster of four J-2 engines (similar to the four J-2 engined 260 inch "S-II" stage proposed for Saturn C-3 at the time).


More to come! OL JR

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The X-87B Cruise Basselope-- THE Ultimate Weapon in the arsenal of Homeland Security and only $52 million per round!

Pic one is an enlargement of the front half of the 100k lb vehicle shown previously


Pic two is an enlargement of the back half of the same drawing...


Pic three is another version of the 100k lb vehicle...


Pic four is an enlargement of the front half of this vehicle...


Pic five is an enlargement of the back half of the same vehicle...


More to come! OL JR

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__________________
The X-87B Cruise Basselope-- THE Ultimate Weapon in the arsenal of Homeland Security and only $52 million per round!

Pic one is the 180,000 pound vehicle...


Pic two is the front half of the 180k vehicle...


Pic three is the back half of the 180k vehicle...


Pic four is 180k pound vehicle arranged with the SRMs 'laterally' as "stage zero" SRM's ala TITAN IIIC/TITAN IV... the central liquid core stage was airlit at SRM burnout, acting as a second stage... This vehicle wasn't studied in great depth due to the time limitations and funding limits of the study, but it was recommended for further research in future studies. The idea would return with very little change in the later proposal to pair the Saturn V's S-II second stage with a cluster of Titan III 120 inch SRMs hanging off its sides acting as a "stage zero" lifting it to altitude where the J-2's on the S-II stage would ignite at SRM burnout... an interesting arrangment...


Pic five is the 350,000 pound payload vehicle, a NOVA class rocket. Note it's so large it doesn't need first stage fins unlike the other proposals...


More to come! OL JR

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__________________
The X-87B Cruise Basselope-- THE Ultimate Weapon in the arsenal of Homeland Security and only $52 million per round!

Pic one is the front half of the NOVA class vehicle... enlarged from the last pic. Note that the liquid second stage diameter has grown to 33 feet (Saturn V size) and is powered by three "Y-1" engines. Given the thrust quoted in the study, these were probably what became the M-1 1.5 million pound thrust Liquid Hydrogen engines...


Pic two is the back half of the NOVA class vehicle... this one used larger SRMs than all the previous vehicles, to reduce the number of separate motors required in the first stage cluster. Boeing realized that clustering large numbers of smaller motors would present reliability problems and lower the vehicle safety margins substantially, unlike some of the other proposals that I've summarized that used massive numbers of motors in the first stage clusters, like the GCR report...


Pic three is the "lateral (parallel) staged" S-II/SRM booster from the later report... a Saturn V S-II stage flanked by four UA-1205 or 1207 Titan III SRM's...


Well, that's it for this one... Most of these would make excellent models for F/F scale...

Later! OL JR

Attached Thumbnails

     

__________________
The X-87B Cruise Basselope-- THE Ultimate Weapon in the arsenal of Homeland Security and only $52 million per round!