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Low-Cost Propellant Launch to LEO from a Tethered Balloon - 'Propulsion Depots' Not 'Propellant Depots'As we have previously reported, it may be possible to launch payloads into low-Earth orbit (LEO) at a per-kilogram cost that is one to two orders of magnitude lower than current launch systems, using only a relatively small capital investment (comparable to a single large present-day launch). An attractive payload would be large quantities of high-performance chemical rocket propellant (e.g. Liquid Oxygen/Liquid Hydrogen (LO2/LH2)) that would greatly facilitate, if not enable, extensive exploration of the moon, Mars, and beyond.
Document ID
20150008558
Acquisition Source
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Document Type
Conference Paper
External Source(s)
Authors
Wilcox, Brian H.
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Schneider, Evan G.
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Vaughan, David A.
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Hall, Jeffrey L.
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Yu, Chi Yau
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Date Acquired
May 20, 2015
Publication Date
March 5, 2011
Subject Category
Spacecraft Propulsion And Power
Launch Vehicles And Launch Operations
Meeting Information
Meeting: 2011 IEEE Aerospace Conference
Location: Big Sky, MT
Country: United States
Start Date: March 5, 2011
End Date: March 12, 2011
Sponsors: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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