Ares V
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- This article is about the Ares V launch vehicle. For other uses, see Ares (disambiguation).
| Ares V | |
.jpg/270px-Ares-V_(Feb_2008).jpg) Artist's impression of an Ares V during SRB separation |
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| Fact sheet | |
|---|---|
| Function | Cargo Launch Vehicle |
| Manufacturer | Alliant Techsystems (stage I) TBD (stage II) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Size | |
| Height | 109.2 m (358 ft) |
| Diameter | 8.40 m |
| Stages | 2 |
| Capacity | |
| Payload to LEO | 130,000 kg |
| Payload to Lunar orbit |
65,000 kg |
| Launch History | |
| Status | In Development |
| Launch sites | Kennedy Space Center, LC-39A |
| Total launches | 0 |
| Maiden flight | Scheduled for 2018 |
| Boosters (Stage 0) - 5-segment Shuttle-derived SRB |
|
| No boosters | 2 |
| Engines | 1 solid |
| Thrust | 2,800,000 lbf sea-level - 3,300,000 lbf (14,700 kN) max |
| Burn time | 150 seconds |
| Fuel | APCP (solid) |
| First Stage | |
| Engines | 5 RS-68 (663,000 lbf sea-level - 751,000 lbf (3,340 kN) in vacuum, each) |
| Thrust | ~8.9 million pounds |
| Burn time | 510 seconds |
| Fuel | LH2/LOX |
| Second Stage - Earth Departure Stage | |
| Engines | 1 J-2X |
| Thrust | |
| Burn time | |
| Fuel | LH2/LOX |
The Ares V (formerly known as the Cargo Launch Vehicle or CaLV) is the cargo launch component of Project Constellation. Ares V will launch the Earth Departure Stage and Altair lunar lander when NASA returns to the Moon, which is currently planned for 2019.[1] The Ares V will complement the Ares I, which is being designed as a crew launch vehicle. The Ares V will be able to carry about 130 tonnes (287,000 lb) to Low Earth orbit (LEO) and 65 tonnes (143,300 lb) to the Moon.[2] Ares V, Ares IV, and Ares I are named after Ares, the Greek deity.
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[edit] Design
The Ares V is being designed as a heavy-launch vehicle capable of sending large-scale hardware and materials to the Moon and supplying needed staples to sustain a human presence beyond Earth orbit.[2] Ares V is a two-stage rocket: the first stage utilizes both solid and liquid propulsion with the second stage using a single J-2X rocket engine.
The first stage has two separate types of engines. Like the Space Shuttle, the Ares V will use both liquid-fueled and solid-fueled engines simultaneously. The solid rockets will use two Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster-derived rockets, which will have five segments instead of the four currently used on the Space Shuttle.[2] Additionally, the Ares V will use five RS-68 liquid-fueled engines attached to a "larger version" of the Space Shuttle External Tank.[2] Originally, NASA intended to use five Space Shuttle Main Engines instead of the RS-68s. NASA made the change to the RS-68 due to its simplicity in design and construction, higher thrust, and reduced cost.
The second stage, based on the S-IVB upper stage used on the Saturn IB and Saturn V rockets, is known as the Earth Departure Stage (EDS). The EDS would feature a single J-2X rocket engine (also used as the second-stage engine for the Ares I) that will maneuver the Altair lunar lander or any large-sized payload into a circular orbit.[2] On lunar missions, the EDS will then fire its engine for a second time to place the combined Orion spacecraft and LSAM onto a trajectory to the Moon.
The Ares V capacity (approximately 130 tonnes) would be in the same class as the American Saturn V and Soviet/Russian Energia rocket and would be capable of supporting manned expansion to the Moon as well as to Mars.[2] It can, with the addition of an LSAM-based "kick motor" (or even a Centaur upper stage), even launch planetary probes at the same weight class as that of both the Galileo and Cassini-Huygens directly to the outer Solar System.[citation needed]
[edit] Ares V's role in Project Constellation
Ares V will be the cargo launch component of Project Constellation. Unlike the Saturn V and Space Shuttle, where the crew and cargo were launched simultaneously on the same rocket, the plans for Project Constellation outline having two separate launch vehicles, the Ares I and the Ares V, for crew and cargo, respectively. Having two separate launch vehicles will allow for more specialized designs for the different purposes the rockets will fulfill.
The Ares V rocket is NASA's new heavy-lift launch vehicle. It is being designed to launch the Earth Departure Stage and Altair lunar lander as well as being the platform to launch new modules for the International Space Station, NASA's proposed lunar outpost and any human missions to Mars in the future.[2]
Development of the rocket and its Earth departure stage will be lead by the Marshall Space Flight Center. The Ames Research Center is responsible for the Ares V integrated health management system supports in developing its payload shroud. Glenn Research Center leads the development of the lunar lander ascent stage as well as Ares V power system, thrust vector control system and payload shroud. Langley Research Center as a lead role on Ares V aerodynamics. [3]
[edit] Further roles
Although the Ares V is a medium to long term project, NASA is planning to deploy its lift capability in a range of projects[4], along the lines of the now defunct Apollo Applications Program.
One proposal is to build a new 8+ meters wide optical telescope to be placed in the Sun/Earth L2 point. It would be a significant increase in dimension and performance over the Hubble Space Telescope and the Ares V vehicle will be able to carry this to its destination in a single shot.
[edit] Early concepts
While the Ares V is a quite new proposal from NASA, a similar vehicle has been proposed for years to replace the Saturn V heavy launcher.
In the book The Case for Mars, Robert Zubrin discussed a possible future heavy launch vehicle named Ares.[5] In the book the rocket would have consisted of the Space Shuttle's External Tank powered by three SSME and a second stage powered by RL-10 engine.
[edit] See also
- Ares I
- Ares IV
- Comparison of heavy lift launch systems
- Shuttle-Derived Launch Vehicle
- Direct Launch Vehicle
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ Handlin, Daniel. "NASA sets Orion 13 for Moon Return", NASA SpaceFlight.com, 2006-10-11. Retrieved on 2007-01-12.
- ^ a b c d e f g Constellation Program: America's Fleet of Next-Generation Launch Vehicles The Ares V Cargo Launch Vehicle. NASA.
- ^ SPACE.com - NASA Assigns Field Center Roles for Ares 5, Lunar Lander
- ^ Thinking Big About Space Telescopes. NASA.
- ^ Zubrin, Robert & Wagner, Richard. 1997. The Case for Mars. Page 61ss
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