Hypersoar - Space Hopping Hyperplane

Because HyperSoar spends nearly two-thirds of its time out of the atmosphere, it can radiate the heat into space. Carter and colleagues at the University of Maryland have analyzed HyperSoar, compared it to other concepts, and found that - thanks to its trajectory and shape - HyperSoar has less heat load on its airframe and consumes less fuel.

From express mail to satellites
"The way HyperSoar blends flight and space access is revolutionary, opening up a world of potential applications," says Carter. Possibilities include using HyperSoar as a freighter, military aircraft, low-cost launcher, and, eventually, a passenger aircraft. According to Carter, HyperSoar would be capable of carrying more weight over longer distances than other planes of similar size and mass.

As a freighter, it could make four round-trips to Tokyo daily, as compared to one or less for today's aircraft. This speed would be a boon to the $4-billion-per-year commercial intercontinental package delivery market. "The speed of today's aircraft has limited the growth of this market," says Carter. "The express delivery industry requires central intracontinental hubs that are about two hours' flying time apart. Current technology allows express mail, for instance, to move between these hubs in close to that time. Now, imagine the possibilities if you could fly between Memphis and Singapore in close to two hours." Carter estimates that a HyperSoar aircraft flying express mail between Los Angeles and Tokyo could generate ten times the daily revenue of a similar-size subsonic cargo plane.

As a military aircraft, a HyperSoar bomber the size of an F-22 could take off from the U.S. and deliver its payload from an altitude and at a speed that would defy all current defensive measures. It could then return directly to the continental U.S. without refueling and without the need to land at forward bases on foreign soil.

For reaching space, HyperSoar could be employed as the first stage of a two-stage-to-orbit launch system. At the high point of its skip, HyperSoar would eject an upper-stage vehicle and its payload into low-Earth orbit. For a given takeoff weight, this approach would deliver approximately twice the payload to orbit as any of today's expendable rockets.

A larger HyperSoar vehicle, the size of a Boeing 777 for example, could handle a 13.7 metric ton payload in addition to the weight of a typical second-stage launcher. At take-off, this version of the HyperSoar would weigh 255 metric tons, about half as much as the largest Ariane 4 rocket - but it would carry about 40 percent more payload. Because most satellites are smaller than this, in reality the HyperSoar vehicles will not need to be built as large vehicles but rather as smaller, less expensive ones.