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| Airbus unveils 'Adeline' re-usable rocket concept | Airbus unveils 'Adeline' re-usable rocket concept |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Airbus, which leads the production of Europe's Ariane rocket, has developed a concept that could make future vehicles partially re-usable. | Airbus, which leads the production of Europe's Ariane rocket, has developed a concept that could make future vehicles partially re-usable. |
| Code-named "Adeline", the system would see a booster's main engines fly themselves back to Earth after a launch. | Code-named "Adeline", the system would see a booster's main engines fly themselves back to Earth after a launch. |
| The returned elements would then be refurbished and put on another mission. | The returned elements would then be refurbished and put on another mission. |
| Airbus says it has been working on the concept since 2010 and has even flight-tested demonstrators. | Airbus says it has been working on the concept since 2010 and has even flight-tested demonstrators. |
| The European aerospace giant is in a fierce battle to defend the market position of Ariane, which has launched roughly half of all the large telecommunication satellites in orbit today. | The European aerospace giant is in a fierce battle to defend the market position of Ariane, which has launched roughly half of all the large telecommunication satellites in orbit today. |
| Competitors such as America's SpaceX and United Launch Alliance (ULA) are both working towards making their rockets re-usable - an approach that is expected to drive down prices across the industry. | Competitors such as America's SpaceX and United Launch Alliance (ULA) are both working towards making their rockets re-usable - an approach that is expected to drive down prices across the industry. |
| Airbus has recently begun development of its next-generation Ariane, and, in the present design, the recovery of components is not envisaged. But the company says the Adeline concept could be grafted on to this vehicle in due course. | Airbus has recently begun development of its next-generation Ariane, and, in the present design, the recovery of components is not envisaged. But the company says the Adeline concept could be grafted on to this vehicle in due course. |
| Indeed, the firm's engineers believe the basic Adeline idea could be incorporated into any launcher, however big or small. | Indeed, the firm's engineers believe the basic Adeline idea could be incorporated into any launcher, however big or small. |
| It takes the form of a winged module that goes on the bottom of the rocket stack. | It takes the form of a winged module that goes on the bottom of the rocket stack. |
| Inside are the main engines and the avionics - the high-value parts on all rockets. | Inside are the main engines and the avionics - the high-value parts on all rockets. |
| The module would lift the mission off the pad in the normal way but then detach itself from the upper-stages of the rocket once the propellants in the tanks above it were exhausted. | The module would lift the mission off the pad in the normal way but then detach itself from the upper-stages of the rocket once the propellants in the tanks above it were exhausted. |
| The Adeline module's next step would be re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. For this, it would have a protective heat shield on its bulbous nose. | The Adeline module's next step would be re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. For this, it would have a protective heat shield on its bulbous nose. |
| At a certain point in the descent, Adeline would pull up using its small winglets, and steer itself towards a runway. | At a certain point in the descent, Adeline would pull up using its small winglets, and steer itself towards a runway. |
| Small deployable propellers would aid control as it essentially operated like a drone to find its way home. | Small deployable propellers would aid control as it essentially operated like a drone to find its way home. |
| Airbus is talking about having the Adeline system in service by 2025, five years after the planned maiden flight of its new Ariane 6. The ambition is that an evolution of Ariane 6 would use the system. | Airbus is talking about having the Adeline system in service by 2025, five years after the planned maiden flight of its new Ariane 6. The ambition is that an evolution of Ariane 6 would use the system. |
| If that were the case, early calculations suggest that a 30% saving in the cost of Ariane production could be achieved. | If that were the case, early calculations suggest that a 30% saving in the cost of Ariane production could be achieved. |
| California's SpaceX is currently trialling its rocket recovery system on its launches from Florida. Its methodology is slightly different from Airbus. It is looking to bring back the entire first-stage booster, propellant tanks and all. | California's SpaceX is currently trialling its rocket recovery system on its launches from Florida. Its methodology is slightly different from Airbus. It is looking to bring back the entire first-stage booster, propellant tanks and all. |
| In the past year, SpaceX has got the first-stage of its Falcon rocket very close to making a controlled, vertical return to a floating barge. | In the past year, SpaceX has got the first-stage of its Falcon rocket very close to making a controlled, vertical return to a floating barge. |
| ULA is going for an alternate model, too. The Boeing and Lockheed Martin joint venture, which launches America's military and spy satellites, as well as Nasa science missions, is working on a new rocket called Vulcan. | ULA is going for an alternate model, too. The Boeing and Lockheed Martin joint venture, which launches America's military and spy satellites, as well as Nasa science missions, is working on a new rocket called Vulcan. |
| This would detach its engines and protect them with a heat shield on re-entry, similar in that sense to Adeline. But ULA's idea is for a helicopter to catch the engines in mid-air as they are parachuted towards the Earth's surface. | This would detach its engines and protect them with a heat shield on re-entry, similar in that sense to Adeline. But ULA's idea is for a helicopter to catch the engines in mid-air as they are parachuted towards the Earth's surface. |
| Rocket companies have talked for years about making their traditionally expendable rockets wholly or partially re-usable. And people will remember that the space shuttle was designed so that many segments could be recycled. | |
| But the complexities of refurbishing the vehicle ready to fly again swamped any savings. The shuttle main engine - an engineering marvel - contained 50,000 parts. | |
| To realise significant economies, all the rocket players - Airbus, SpaceX and ULA - will have to avoid this trap. | To realise significant economies, all the rocket players - Airbus, SpaceX and ULA - will have to avoid this trap. |
| They will also have to get satellite operators comfortable with the idea of launching their precious hardware on what would essentially be second-hand systems. These operators will not embrace the developments if they think reliability is being compromised. | |
| Europe's next-generation rocket - the Ariane 6 | Europe's next-generation rocket - the Ariane 6 |
| Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos | Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos |