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Waverider Should you wish to contact the
society or require general information please contact ASTRA
using the following Email address: Should you encounter any problems
with this Web
Page please
email: HOTOL
(Horizontal
Take-Off
and Landing)
is the British shuttle proposal. The unmanned British HOTOL is because
of its complex technology , a single-stage, complete
reusable transport system. Hotol's propulsion is realised as
a Liquid Air Cycle Engine (LACE). This type of engine cools
the breathed air using hydrogen. Afterwards the cooled air
will be burned with hydrogen. During take-off HOTOL is
situated on a mobile stand which accelerates the shuttle to
a speed of 500km per hour. Mission Profile
for HOTOL: For the launch-phase and the
transatmospheric-flight, the transporter is equipped with
liquid oxygen which is substituted through air in an
altitude off 26km (Mach 5) to 32km (Mach 7). HOTOL has a
length of 62m, its start mass amounts to 196 t and can
transport 7 t payload to space. But in 1992 the original single-stage
version was rejected because a construction of HOTOL became
too expensive. So the British developers were searching for
an alternative and they found an easier model to realize
their shuttle projects. HOTOL should now be transported with
the huge Russian aeroplane Antonow An-225 to an altitude of
9 km where HOTOL should be separated from the Antonow and
fly to orbit. Also the design of HOTOL was changed. Now
HOTOL is more compact and only 36.45 metres long.
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