NASA?s Dryden Flight Research Center in cooperation with other research companies has conducted a series of tests of an unusual solid rocket code-named Aerospike.
The rocket is equipped with a new type of nozzle. It?s not a customary bell-shaped type. It?s a conical one featuring a thin circular orifice going around the sharp cone. It somewhat resembles a nozzle turned inside out. NASA engineers say that unlike the traditional design of a nozzle, the new one has shown good results while tested in a wide range of altitudes and speeds.
The regular bell-shaped nozzle is most effective only at a particular point of the trajectory whereas its efficiency is significantly reduced during low-altitude or high-altitude flights. In the past, Russian and American rocket engineers came up with a number of ideas for improving the design. For example, a dual-position nozzle capable of altering its geometry during the flight was brought for consideration.
However, the proposals haven?t yet been implemented due to technological complexities. Small-sized rockets (about 3 m long each) reached the speed of more than 1,5 M and the altitude of around 10 km during the tests. The figures apparently lag behind the ?space? characteristics yet they?re largely of secondary importance as opposed to a variety of test data on the new nozzle gathered during the tests. The data is sure to come in handy when larger engines of the above type are under construction.
ПРИ ИСПОЛЬЗОВАНИИ
МАТЕРИАЛОВ САЙТА ССЫЛКА НА САЙТ
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