Hypersoar - Space Hopping Hyperplane

From the doodlings of Leonardo da Vinci and the penned fantasies of Jules Verne to the tangible accomplishments of the Wright brothers and other aviation pioneers, mechanized flight has captured the imagination of humanity through the centuries. Even today, with atmospheric and space flight a reality, there are still aviation realms to dream about and conquer.

Hypersonic flight at speeds 5 to 12 times the speed of sound (Mach 5 to Mach 12) is one such area of interest to the commercial and defense communities. At Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, aerospace engineer Preston Carter has invented a concept for a next-generation hypersonic aircraft, dubbed HyperSoar, that would fly efficiently, economically and cleanly.

Flying at Mach 10 (3 kilometers per second), HyperSoar could reach any point on the globe within two hours. For comparison, the fastest military plane, the SR-71, flies between Mach 3 and Mach 4, while the commercial Concorde reaches only Mach 2. HyperSoar would also have twice the fuel efficiency of commercial airliners, be three to five times more efficient in putting satellites in space than today's launch systems, and use liquid hydrogen fuel, which produces simple water vapor when burned.

HyperSoar - a concept-development project funded through Livermore's Physics Directorate and the Laboratory Directed Research and Development Program - could transport people or cargo, strike enemy targets, or help put satellites into space.

"The fact that HyperSoar has many potential uses is key," says Carter. "Developing an entirely new aircraft is expensive. However, if there is a large market for such an aircraft, the cost per plane goes down. It's like the difference between a 747 and the Stealth bomber. There are hundreds of Boeing 747s being used by commercial airline companies, airfreight companies, and so on. But the only market for the Stealth is the military, which only needs a few. That's why you'll never see a Stealth being built for much less than they cost today."

Skipping on the atmosphere
A 25-meter-long HyperSoar aircraft (about as long as the wingspan of a large business jet) could make a conventional takeoff from a standard runway. Using special combined-cycle engines that are air-breathing but based on rocket technology, it would ascend to 40 kilometers. Here - at the outer limit of Earth's atmosphere - its engines would be turned off. HyperSoar would then coast up to a high point of 60 kilometers, before beginning to fall back down to about 35 kilometers, well inside the upper levels of the atmosphere.