Photo: Sierra Space
All the wonderful things reusable rockets, meaning the ones that can land after being sent to Earth orbit, have done for space exploration, together with related technologies, might soon have huge implications for point-to-point transport here on Earth as well. We've known that’s bound to happen for a while now, but it seems the American Department of the Air Force wants to be the first one to actually do it.
Not long ago the department's Air Force Research Laboratory announced the start of a program called Rocket Cargo for Agile Global Logistics. Also known as the Rocket Experimentation for Global Agile Logistics, or REGAL, the effort aims no more no less to create a rocket-based space transportation system that's to be used in conjunction with air, sea, and land means.
What the military is looking for is a rocket capable of hauling up to 100 tons of supplies "anywhere on the planet within tactical timelines." The cargo can be anything from military equipment needed on some battlefield to disaster relief supplies.
The specifics of the rocket design were not announced, and that's owed to a very simple reason: the USAF plans to use commercial rocket capabilities, meaning the solutions already on the market. What that means is that such services will be leased, and the military will not actually invest anything in the development of new rockets.
What the effort needs are not only the launch services, but also loading and unloading technologies and procedures, a rapid launch clearance process, and schedulers.
Plans are to involve pretty much all companies that work in this field, and several contracts are expected to be handed over in the mid-term future. The first company to announce a collaboration in the REGAL program is Sierra Space, the name behind the Dream Chaser spaceplane and LIFE habitat that will go in the Blue Origin Orbital Reef space station.
The AFRL needs for the REGAL program access to a piece of hardware called Ghost. In essence a decelerator, the spacecraft was designed to allow the fast delivery of cargo (in under 90 minutes) by launching from one place, heading high into the atmosphere, and then descending upon its target.
The Ghost is technically a pre-staged supply system that can be launched very rapidly, and it comes with a five-year on-orbit lifespan. It was initially envisioned as a payload return system from Earth orbit complete with a thermal protection system.
To test the system over the next year, the company was awarded an undisclosed firm-fixed-price contract that will see the Ghost increase its payload capacity from the current 330 pounds (150 kg) to up to ten metric tons.
If it works, the AFRL idea should bring about faster and cheaper delivery of goods, at first for military needs, and later on for civilians as well. Sadly, there is no timetable on when the REGAL should deliver something tangible.
What the military is looking for is a rocket capable of hauling up to 100 tons of supplies "anywhere on the planet within tactical timelines." The cargo can be anything from military equipment needed on some battlefield to disaster relief supplies.
The specifics of the rocket design were not announced, and that's owed to a very simple reason: the USAF plans to use commercial rocket capabilities, meaning the solutions already on the market. What that means is that such services will be leased, and the military will not actually invest anything in the development of new rockets.
What the effort needs are not only the launch services, but also loading and unloading technologies and procedures, a rapid launch clearance process, and schedulers.
Plans are to involve pretty much all companies that work in this field, and several contracts are expected to be handed over in the mid-term future. The first company to announce a collaboration in the REGAL program is Sierra Space, the name behind the Dream Chaser spaceplane and LIFE habitat that will go in the Blue Origin Orbital Reef space station.
The AFRL needs for the REGAL program access to a piece of hardware called Ghost. In essence a decelerator, the spacecraft was designed to allow the fast delivery of cargo (in under 90 minutes) by launching from one place, heading high into the atmosphere, and then descending upon its target.
The Ghost is technically a pre-staged supply system that can be launched very rapidly, and it comes with a five-year on-orbit lifespan. It was initially envisioned as a payload return system from Earth orbit complete with a thermal protection system.
To test the system over the next year, the company was awarded an undisclosed firm-fixed-price contract that will see the Ghost increase its payload capacity from the current 330 pounds (150 kg) to up to ten metric tons.
If it works, the AFRL idea should bring about faster and cheaper delivery of goods, at first for military needs, and later on for civilians as well. Sadly, there is no timetable on when the REGAL should deliver something tangible.
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