AFRL - HSSW (High Speed Strike Weapon)
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Re: DARPA/ATK High-Speed Strike Weapon (HSSW)
Hypersonic High-Speed Strike Weapon (HSSW)
ATK is developing a Hypersonic High-Speed Strike Weapon (HSSW) in response to the Department of Defense’s need for a rapid strike weapon.
The design for the HSSW uses ATK’s solid rocket motor capabilities to boost the weapon to Mach 4, where a scramjet engine engages to accelerate to speeds approaching Mach 5. The HSSW can be launched from bombers, fighter jets, submarines, and surface ships.
The scramjet acceleration capability of the HSSW builds on ATK’s success with the X-43A Scramjet, which owns the world speed record for air-breathing powered flight at Mach 10 or nearly 7,000 miles per hour. Flying at half that speed, the HSSW can fly 400 miles in eight minutes. In comparison, a cruise missile flying at a top speed of Mach 0.8 will take an hour to reach the same target.
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Although the picture on ATK's website looks different it has a similar configuration, like solid rocket boosted with air breathing powered flight after separation of the booster.
Hypersonic High-Speed Strike Weapon (HSSW)
ATK is developing a Hypersonic High-Speed Strike Weapon (HSSW) in response to the Department of Defense’s need for a rapid strike weapon.
The design for the HSSW uses ATK’s solid rocket motor capabilities to boost the weapon to Mach 4, where a scramjet engine engages to accelerate to speeds approaching Mach 5. The HSSW can be launched from bombers, fighter jets, submarines, and surface ships.
The scramjet acceleration capability of the HSSW builds on ATK’s success with the X-43A Scramjet, which owns the world speed record for air-breathing powered flight at Mach 10 or nearly 7,000 miles per hour. Flying at half that speed, the HSSW can fly 400 miles in eight minutes. In comparison, a cruise missile flying at a top speed of Mach 0.8 will take an hour to reach the same target.
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Although the picture on ATK's website looks different it has a similar configuration, like solid rocket boosted with air breathing powered flight after separation of the booster.
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Colonial-Marine
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Re: DARPA/ATK High-Speed Strike Weapon (HSSW)
What size warhead are they looking at for this missile?
What size warhead are they looking at for this missile?
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Ah, they're screwed. From the BAA:
The propulsion system for the S&T technology demonstrator weapon must include an air-breathing engine capable of supersonic combustion.
And they want the demo to be "evolvable to TRL 7+". Good luck with that. I'm mystified as to why they specified a specific technology for the propulsion system. It would have been easier to specify performance targets and let the contractors demo whatever works.
The propulsion system for the S&T technology demonstrator weapon must include an air-breathing engine capable of supersonic combustion.
And they want the demo to be "evolvable to TRL 7+". Good luck with that. I'm mystified as to why they specified a specific technology for the propulsion system. It would have been easier to specify performance targets and let the contractors demo whatever works.
dark sidius
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Yes the same for a hypersonic plane a rocket plane instead airbreather like the new Darpa HX projects I think hypersonic airbreathing téchnology are not ready now.
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DSE said:
Well doesn't the X-51 have a big ATACMS solid rocket boosting it to Mach 3 or so? So why not a SRAM II type system maybe with a higher speed as an interim weapon system for high speed strike? Then we can develop a air breather as a follow on system.
sferrin - what is that high speed ram jet/rocket from the 60's or 70's my memory fails me. I read a story that during a test the throttle control malfunctioned and it reached a speed of Mach 5
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bobbymike said:sferrin - what is that high speed ram jet/rocket from the 60's or 70's my memory fails me. I read a story that during a test the throttle control malfunctioned and it reached a speed of Mach 5
ASALM. They were going to make a go of it again in LRASM-B (same configuration and literally the same motors used in the old program- after the blew the dust off them anyway). Cancelled. "Too risky." i.e. "it would cost to much to relearn everything we'd need to to make it work." I expect this will become a recurring theme going forward.
dark sidius
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Very sadly another hypersonic who start and stop in this way no hypersonic weapon in near futur very risky in the world we live today
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Re: DARPA/ATK High-Speed Strike Weapon (HSSW)
Lockheed Martin HSSW
http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/products/high-speed-strike-weapon--hssw--.html
Lockheed Martin HSSW
http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/products/high-speed-strike-weapon--hssw--.html
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shockonlip
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sferrin said:
Jeez!
What turned you into such a cynic?
Yea, I think it counts. Without even thinking I can see that this statement is true.
Who else has done more? Just look at all the stuff in the A-12/SR-71 unmanned D-21.
M3+ production airframes, fuel tech, M3+ ejection, completely autonomous 90,000 ft alt.
drone aircraft, mixed compression inlets and ejector nozzles, integrating the only
bleed/bypass turbojet in existence into a production M3+ airframe, consulted on
the Space Shuttle, Hydrogen fuel tech, large scale titanium use and fabrication in
high speed production airframes, the X-7 PTV work from the 1950's, the first successful
Mach 3+ interceptor prototypes, and who knows what consultation they've done say for
Lockheed Missiles and Space. And we're not even seeing the classified stuff - for example
hints (in public tech literature) of Mach 5 Penetrator Aircraft studies. Public tests of Mach 5
inlets (cover of AW&ST). Jeez I believe it! What a legacy the young engineers there have
to live up to! And the retired guys who can still be called on to help when needed!
shockonlip said:
I disagree. Why? Simple: the *people* who developed the D-21 are retired or *dead.* What "experience" can a company claim if all the people involved are no longer involved? Lockheed probably can't even make a valid claim about the data generated during D-21 development... they've probably chucked most of it, and don't know what to do with the rest.
shockonlip
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Orionblamblam said:
This is not my experience!
I worked on restoration of 60-6940 and the D-21B on its back at SMOF.
There's two BIG pieces right there! Free to check out! Data that isn't chucked.
How do you think we found out how to mount that D-21B!
Believe me, we didn't just glue it in place!
The help that retired guys gave us, the video we were presented with,
discussions with team members (some retired , some not) from Lockheed,
Marquardt, Honeywell, USAF, and others at the exhibit intro parties, and discussions
with Ben Rich before his passing, and knowledge of parts we couldn't have
but still existed (being held in reserve for a potential D-21B test/eval) indicate
that there is knowledge left, and that there has been exchanges between the old
guard and the young. Plus say you have no knowledge, and you need to know,
what do you do? Go to a museum and reverse engineer it if necessary. And you
can do that!
I can remember Ben telling me how he was describing how electric lines and
hydraulic lines are seperated and placed on an airframe and how they have been
teaching the young guys this old knowledge. It was neat to me because when
we took off the leading edge panels on our D-21B, I could see first hand what
Ben was talking about! Very cool! So Ben taught me that one!
Remember they all didn't retire/die at once and there has been time for information
to pass.
I also recall Bob Widmer telling me of Kingfish models that no longer existed, and
printed FISH program reviews that no longer existed. I was all dejected and sad by
this news. But! Now all these things have started to show up here on this web site
even! And look at the stuff posted in the past few years on Super Hustler, FISH,
and KINGFISH, and future derivatives at Code One. Some of the pages out of a
1958 or so FISH program review are even showing up on UFO web sites!
Also look at some of the books that have come out recently on these programs,
You may not agree on the legacy aspects Scott. But to me these things matter.
If you are a skunk works engineer, you know about that legacy and that you
are continuing from where these legendary guys left off! From the higher supersonic
realm into the hypersonic one! You have a lot to live up to. And it pushes you
forward! You study harder. Think outside the box better. Work as a team better.
Same with engineers at the other aerospace firms from the past. Or it would with me!
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ISP said:
Holy cow, that must be some kind of record. Wasn't it just a week or so ago I was being told how they're going to build on X-51 experience and use it for HSSW?
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In fact on the very day it was cancelled (see date above) we see this in an AvWeek article:
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"Now, as the business of data analysis begins, hypersonic planners are turning to what comes next. Although
the X-51A success marks a first step to the potential use of hypersonic propulsion for long-range
reconnaissance, transport and even the first air-breathing stage of a space-access system, the near-term
application will be a missile. Initial follow-on steps will therefore be guided primarily by the requirements of
the Air Force's high-speed weapon development road map and support of the High Speed Strike Weapon
(HSSW), which is expected to be demonstrated at a baseline level around 2020. Theoretically, given this
timescale, such a weapon could be available by the mid-2020s."
http://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,7406.msg188535.html#msg188535
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To which I indicated a large degree of skepticism here:
http://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,7406.msg188559.html#msg188559
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and accused of being a cynic here:
http://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,10296.msg188769.html#msg188769
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Well, now you know why.
airrocket
Dreams To Reality
I can do M4.5 airbreather for around $120K. Really cool stuff out there just not putting the bucks in right the place. And the scrap yards are full of great parts. Really sad what is being wasted and what some of our major aero companies are charging for delivering nothing more than desk models and CGI. You will not find this stuff at LM or Boeing etc.... The really cool stuff is in garages and shops. Land speed racers are a good example of the a lean innovative team funded by someone with little extra change and a real burning interest.....to go fast
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In a somewhat confusing article, the Boston Business Journal is reporting that DARPA has given Raytheon a $1 million contract for an HSSW study, apparently within the last month.
http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/techflash/2013/09/raytheon-hypersonic-cruise-missile.html?page=all
http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/techflash/2013/09/raytheon-hypersonic-cruise-missile.html?page=all
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https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=0f30adcfc405b3064bd97afe6394df87&tab=core&_cview=0
"Advanced Seeker Hardware and Software Research for High Speed Strike Weapon (HSSW)"
Sonic Seeker
The Air Force Research Laboratory's munitions directorate is seeking industry proposals to "study, model and assess" seeker subsystems capable of being integrated on a precision-guided hypersonic weapon, according to a July 23 broad agency announcement. The technical research effort, although presently unfunded, would contribute to the Air Force's High Speed Strike Weapon program, which aims to demonstrate a terminally-guided hypersonic weapons system in 2020." Specifically, this BAA effort is to model the seeker subsystems that are most affected by a hypersonic flight profile, and must consider sensing through hypersonic flow and shock," the notice states.
"Advanced Seeker Hardware and Software Research for High Speed Strike Weapon (HSSW)"
Sonic Seeker
The Air Force Research Laboratory's munitions directorate is seeking industry proposals to "study, model and assess" seeker subsystems capable of being integrated on a precision-guided hypersonic weapon, according to a July 23 broad agency announcement. The technical research effort, although presently unfunded, would contribute to the Air Force's High Speed Strike Weapon program, which aims to demonstrate a terminally-guided hypersonic weapons system in 2020." Specifically, this BAA effort is to model the seeker subsystems that are most affected by a hypersonic flight profile, and must consider sensing through hypersonic flow and shock," the notice states.
I do not know if this is HSSW-related or Prompt Global Strike related, but Raytheon seems to suddenly need a lot of hypersonic experts.
Hypersonic opportunities in Tucson, Arizona
Mechanical Engineers • System Engineers • Electrical Engineers • Aerospace Engineers
CLICK HERE TO SEE CURRENT HYPERSONIC OPPORTUNITIES ▶
http://jobs.raytheon.com/search/?campusOnly=-1&talentArea=-1&businessArea=55925&jobType=-1&clearance=-1&country=1&state=-1&city=-1&distance=-1&zipcode=Zip%20Code&daterange=-1&keyword=hypersonic&codes=RMSH
Raytheon Missile Systems designs, develops and produces missile systems for critical requirements. RMS is investing in hypersonic research, aggressively pursuing key technologies required to operate successfully in the hypersonic environment, and meeting stressing requirements.
Raytheon is seeking to hire or contract with key technical experts in thermal, aerodynamic performance, materials, propulsion, airframe and testing methods to assist in conducting this research and execute contract tasking. We will focus on harvesting these critical hypersonic domain technologies for insertion into ongoing hypersonic programs.
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Beyond the Hyper
—John A. Tirpak1/22/2015
The Air Force and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency hope to start flying follow-ons to the X-51 hypersonic testbed circa 2018, Maj. Gen. Thomas Masiello, head of Air Force Research Laboratory, told Air Force Magazine in a Wednesday interview. "We've each invested about $300 million" in a project AFRL is calling the High Speed Strike Weapon, Masiello said. Two hypersonic vehicles are being explored: one is a waverider using technology like that of the X-51, which achieved 209 seconds of hypersonic flying in 2013. The other is called tactical boost-glide technology, "where there's no scramjet power; you're just basically taking a booster, accelerating it to hypersonic speed, then it glides to the target," Masiello explained. If all goes well, he said, by 2020, "we could have the technology matured to the point of a program of record," applying hypersonics to a cruise missile-type of weapon "with an acceptable level of risk." Beyond that, by 2030, Masiello envisions a reusable platform that could be used for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance work, which could be turned within days between missions. By "2040-plus" AFRL expects "a no-kidding, re-usable, persistent, penetrating hypersonic vehicle that could be manned or unmanned."
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A little bit depressing 2040 timeframe I might not be around to see it.
—John A. Tirpak1/22/2015
The Air Force and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency hope to start flying follow-ons to the X-51 hypersonic testbed circa 2018, Maj. Gen. Thomas Masiello, head of Air Force Research Laboratory, told Air Force Magazine in a Wednesday interview. "We've each invested about $300 million" in a project AFRL is calling the High Speed Strike Weapon, Masiello said. Two hypersonic vehicles are being explored: one is a waverider using technology like that of the X-51, which achieved 209 seconds of hypersonic flying in 2013. The other is called tactical boost-glide technology, "where there's no scramjet power; you're just basically taking a booster, accelerating it to hypersonic speed, then it glides to the target," Masiello explained. If all goes well, he said, by 2020, "we could have the technology matured to the point of a program of record," applying hypersonics to a cruise missile-type of weapon "with an acceptable level of risk." Beyond that, by 2030, Masiello envisions a reusable platform that could be used for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance work, which could be turned within days between missions. By "2040-plus" AFRL expects "a no-kidding, re-usable, persistent, penetrating hypersonic vehicle that could be manned or unmanned."
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A little bit depressing 2040 timeframe I might not be around to see it.
dark sidius
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Sure, hypersonic go very slowly since the start of the X-51 and Falcon program.
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