Saturn-Shuttle
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| Saturn-Shuttle | |
| Fact sheet | |
|---|---|
| Function | Manned LEO launch vehicle |
| Manufacturer | Boeing (S-IC) Martin Marietta (External Tank) Rockwell International (Space Shuttle Orbiter) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Size | |
| Height | 85 m (281 ft) |
| Diameter | 10 m (33 ft) |
| Mass | 2,304,000 kg (5,070,000 lb) |
| Stages | 2 |
| Capacity | |
| Payload to LEO | max 60,500 kg |
| Launch History | |
| Status | Cancelled |
| Launch sites | LC-39, Kennedy Space Center |
| First Stage - S-IC | |
| Engines | 5 Rocketdyne F-1 or F-1A |
| Thrust | max 34.02 MN (max 7,648,000 lbf) |
| Burn time | 212 seconds |
| Fuel | RP-1/LOX |
| Second Stage - Shuttle Orbiter & External Tank | |
| Engines | 3 Rocketdyne SSMEs |
| Thrust | 6,834.3 kN (1,536,312 lbf) |
| Burn time | ~475 seconds |
| Fuel | LH2/LOX |
The Saturn-Shuttle was a proposed interface of the Space Shuttle orbiter and external tank with the S-IC stage on the Saturn V rocket. An interstage would be fitted on top of the S-IC stage to support the external tank, formerly occupied by the S-II stage, so that NASA would have been able to steer completely away from solid rockets. The addition of wings on the S-IC stage would allow the booster to fly back to the Kennedy Space Center in which the technicians would then refurbish the booster (by replacing only the five F-1 engines and reusing the tanks and other hardware for later flights.
[edit] Performance
Because the Shuttle orbiter would be riding piggyback on the External Tank, and the need to prevent damage to the delicate thermal protection tiles, the five-engine variant of the Saturn-Shuttle would require the center engine to be shut down 45 to 50 seconds after launch, while two of the outboard engines would have to be shut down prior to staging. Once the S-IC was jettisoned, the three onboard high-energy SSMEs would then propel the Orbiter into LEO, shutting down 6½ minutes after ignition. The external tank would then be jettisoned, as like that on the current Shuttle configuration and the Orbiter will then perform its mission.
But because of the need to keep costs down and to allow President Richard Nixon to approve the Shuttle program in 1972, NASA decided to utilize segmented Solid Rocket Boosters similar to those used on the Titan III rocket instead of the S-IC, thus killing the Saturn program after the initial Saturn V order was completed. If the Saturn-Shuttle configuration was used, it would have kept Saturn V, Saturn INT-20, and Saturn INT-21 in production, thus preventing the Challenger Disaster (caused by an O-ring failure) and launching a Skylab or Mir version of the International Space Station, or a realization of Space Station Freedom, by the mid-1980's. In addition, improvements to the F-1 engines would have allowed a throttlable, and possible reusable version, allowing the Shuttle to carry more payload into orbit.
[edit] References
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