Table of Contents
- 1 How does a very massive space rocket be able to fly up the space?
- 2 Is the space shuttle more like a rocket or a plane?
- 3 Could the space shuttle take off like a plane?
- 4 Can a space shuttle be launched from a plane?
- 5 What happens when a spacecraft comes near a large body?
- 6 What is the best way to launch a space rocket?
How does a very massive space rocket be able to fly up the space?
In rocket flight, forces become balanced and unbalanced all the time. A rocket on the launch pad is balanced. The surface of the pad pushes the rocket up while gravity tries to pull it down. As the engines are ignited, the thrust from the rocket unbalances the forces, and the rocket travels upward.
Why were space shuttles better than older spaceships?
NASA’s space shuttle was the world’s first reusable spacecraft. It launched like a rocket and returned to Earth like a glider, landing like an airplane on a long concrete runway. It was designed to carry large payloads — such as satellites — into orbit and bring them back, if necessary, for repairs.
Is the space shuttle more like a rocket or a plane?
The space shuttle launched like a rocket. But it landed like a glider airplane. The solid rocket boosters and the main engines on the orbiter helped the shuttle blast off from Earth like a rocket.
Can the space shuttle fly again?
7 Answers. Buran and the Space Shuttle will not fly again. Both projects have ended, and the orbiters have gone to museums (or have been destroyed). Reactivating these programs would be enormously expensive at this point.
Could the space shuttle take off like a plane?
It absolutely can not take off like a normal plane. It would require LARGE engines to do that. It does have a fuel tank for the reentry rockets and maneuvering jets. However, those do not provide anything close to takeoff speeds.
Can space shuttle fly like airplane?
The Space Shuttle flies as a glider during reentry and landing. During ascent, thrust is provided by the three Space Shuttle Main Engines (SSME’s) at the base of the orbiter and the two Solid Rocket Boosters (SRB’s) that are joined to the orange External Fuel Tank (ET).
Can a space shuttle be launched from a plane?
All in all, launching a space shuttle by making it take off from a runway like an airplane is not an entirely ridiculous idea, but the technical ramifications of such a launch are far too complex, and the costs associated are much, much higher than the conventional vertical launch.
Is there momentum in space?
Momentum is defined as the mass of an object times its velocity. In a similar manner, a rocket moves in space because the gases are given momentum as they are expelled by the rocket engine. Consider the rocket resting in space. There is no momentum in the system.
What happens when a spacecraft comes near a large body?
If the spacecraft comes near a large body in space, the gravity of that body will unbalance the forces and curve the path of the spacecraft. This happens, in particular, when a satellite is sent by a rocket on a path that is parallel to Earth’s surface. If the rocket shoots the spacecraft fast enough, the spacecraft will orbit Earth.
Why can’t we use balloons instead of rockets to get to orbit?
In the long run, it’s simply too expensive and risky to use balloons to overcome the initial liftoff. You probably could, but it wouldn’t help very much. The reason it’s hard to get to orbit isn’t that space is high up. It’s hard to get to orbit because you have to go so fast.
What is the best way to launch a space rocket?
There are several (commercial) organisations looking into alternative means to launch space-bound rockets. One commonly proposed method is to use a large airplane as the launch platform. This method should, theoretically, reduce the cost of sending rockets into space. Weather balloons can reach an altitude of 20 KM, or more.
What does a space-launch mothership look like?
What we see in the images themselves is a huge mothership aircraft that features at least two types of propulsion. Air-breathing jet engines set in large boxy nacelles and a rocket engine that sits below a high T-style tail. The belly of the launcher aircraft is designed to fit the exact mold-line of a space-launch parasite vehicle.