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X-43C Plans and StatusX-43C Project is a hypersonic flight demonstration being executed as a collaboration between the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the United States Air Force (USAF). X-43C will expand the hypersonic flight envelope for air breathing engines beyond the history making efforts of the Hyper-X Program (X-43A). X-43C will demonstrate sustained accelerating flight during three flight tests of expendable X-43C Demonstrator Vehicles (DVs). The approximately 16-foot long X-43C DV will be boosted to the starting test conditions, separate from the booster, and accelerate from Mach 5 to Mach 7 under its own power and autonomous control. The DVs are to be powered by a liquid hydrocarbon-fueled, fuel-cooled, dual-mode, airframe integrated scramjet engine system developed under the USAF HyTech Program. The Project is managed by NASA Langley Research Center as part of NASA s Next Generation Launch Technology Program. Flight tests will be conducted by NASA Dryden Flight Research Center over water off the coast of California in the Pacific Test Range. The NASA/USAF/industry project is a natural extension of the Hyper-X Program (X-43A), which will demonstrate short duration (~ 10 seconds) gaseous hydrogen-fueled scramjet powered flight at Mach 7 and Mach 10 using a heavyweight, largely heat sink construction, experimental engine. The X-43C Project will demonstrate sustained accelerating flight from Mach 5 to Mach 7 (~ 4 minutes) using a flight-weight, fuel-cooled, scramjet engine powered by much denser liquid hydrocarbon fuel. The X-43C DV design flows from integrating USAF HyTech developed engine technologies with a NASA Air Breathing Launch Vehicle accelerator-class configuration and Hyper-X heritage vehicle systems designs. This paper describes the X-43C Project and provides background for NASA s current hypersonic flight demonstration efforts.
Document ID
20040014996
Acquisition Source
Langley Research Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Moses, Paul L.
(NASA Langley Research Center Hampton, VA, United States)
Date Acquired
September 7, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 2003
Subject Category
Spacecraft Propulsion And Power
Report/Patent Number
AIAA Paper 2003-7084
Meeting Information
Meeting: AIAA 12th International Space Planes and Hypersonic Systems and Technologies Conference
Location: Norfolk, VA
Country: United States
Start Date: December 15, 2003
End Date: December 19, 2003
Sponsors: American Inst. of Aeronautics and Astronautics
Funding Number(s)
OTHER: 23-794-70-60
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
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