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NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competencies and with regard for appropriate balance.
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COMMITTEE ON REVIEW AND EVALUATION OF THE AIR FORCE HYPERSONIC TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM
A.RICHARD SEEBASS, chair,
University of Colorado, Boulder
JOHN J.BERTIN,
U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado
LANA M.COUCH,
National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Langley, Virginia
WILLIAM H.HEISER,
U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado
JOHN E.JAQUISH,
U.S. Air Force (retired), Alexandria, Virginia
WILLIAM E.KEICHER,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory, Lexington, Massachusetts
RONALD M.LATANISION,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
JOHN J.LEWANDOWSKI,
Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
DIGBY D.MACDONALD,
SRI International, Menlo Park, California
CARL H.MUCH,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory, Lexington, Massachusetts
SHERMAN N.MULLIN,
consultant, Glendale, California
WILLIAM E.RAMSEY,
U.S. Navy (retired), Pensacola, Florida
ROBERT E.SMITH,
JR., consultant, Manchester, Tennessee
DAVID VAN WIE,
The Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, Maryland
National Research Council Staff
BRUCE A.BRAUN, Director,
Air Force Science and Technology Board
MICHAEL A.CLARKE, Associate Director
ALVERA V.WILSON, Financial Associate
MARGO L.FRANCESCO, Administrative Associate
DELPHINE D.GLAZE, Project Assistant (1997)
CECELIA L.RAY, Project Assistant (1998)
NORMAN M.HALLER, Technical Consultant
Air Force Science and Technology Board Liaisons
ALAN H.EPSTEIN,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
JOHN MICHAEL LOH,
U.S. Air Force (retired), Williamsburg, Virginia
AIR FORCE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY BOARD
ROBERT A.FUHRMAN, chair,
Lockheed Corporation (retired), Pebble Beach, California
ARDEN L.BEMENT,
Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana
ANTHONY J.BURSHNICK,
U.S. Air Force (retired), Springfield, Virginia
WILLIAM H.CRABTREE,
U.S. Air Force (retired), Cincinnati, Ohio
JULIAN DAVIDSON,
Davidson Enterprises, LLC, Huntsville, Alabama
ALAN H.EPSTEIN,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
NANCY A.FORBES,
PRC, Incorporated, Arlington, Virginia
ALFRED B.GSCHWENDTNER,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory, Lexington, Massachusetts
ROBERT G.LOEWY,
Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta
JOHN M.LOH,
U.S. Air Force (retired), Williamsburg, Virginia
JOHN S.PUSTAY,
PRIMARK Corporation, McLean, Virginia
ALTON D.ROMIG,
Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Staff
BRUCE A.BRAUN, Director
MICHAEL A.CLARKE, Associate Director
ALVERA V.WILSON, Financial Associate
MARGO L.FRANCESCO, Administrative Associate
DEANNA SPARGER, Project Assistant
NORMAN M.HALLER, Technical Consultant
Commission on Engineering and Technical Systems Liaisons
RONALD YATES,
U.S. Air Force (retired), Monument, Colorado
BRADFORD PARKINSON,
Stanford University, Stanford, California
Acknowledgment
This report has been reviewed by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Research Council’s Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the authors and the National Research Council in making the published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The content of the review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their participation in the review of this report:
Donald W.Bahr, General Electric Aircraft Engines (retired)
Daniel B.DeBra, Stanford University
Alan C.Brown, Lockheed Corporation (retired)
Hans G.Hornung, California Institute of Technology
Bernard L.Koff, Pratt & Whitney (retired)
Alton D.Romig, Sandia National Laboratories
Richard E.Tressler, The Pennsylvania State University
While the individuals listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, responsibility for the final content of this report rests solely with the authoring committee and the National Research Council.
Preface
The U.S. Air Force has been investigating the enabling technologies for hypersonic systems for decades but has not produced an operational, air-breathing, hypersonic aircraft or cruise missile system. The National Research Council (NRC) was asked to examine the question of whether the technologies that are required for a hypersonic, air-breathing, hydrocarbon-fueled missile can be demonstrated in time to achieve an initial operational capability by 2015 (see the Statement of Task in Chapter 1 for the official charge to the NRC).
The members of the NRC study committee that I had the privilege to lead are experts in hypersonics and related technologies that are germane to the development of air-breathing hypersonic vehicles, and to aerospace management. The report deals directly with the questions asked by the Air Force and is as objective as possible. For this display of professionalism on the part of the committee, I am very grateful. The remarkable talents of the committee members made serving as their chair a special pleasure.
I also want to recognize the important contributions of the NRC staff, whose support of this study, which was often taken for granted, was monumental. Their behind-the-scenes efforts ensured a quality product. For their hard work and advice, I and the committee thank them.
A. Richard Seebass, chair
Committee on Review and Evaluation of the Air Force Hypersonic Technology Program
Figures, Tables, and Boxes
FIGURES
1-1 |
Altitude and range profiles for Mach 8 and Mach 6 missiles, |
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1-2 |
Altitude and Mach number profiles, |
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2-1 |
Airframe structural temperature requirements, |
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2-2 |
Structural temperature requirements of the engine hot section, |
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2-3 |
Structural temperature requirements of the engine cold section, |
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2-4 |
Comparison of moderately integrated axisymmetric design and highly integrated asymmetric design, |
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2-5 |
Block diagram of a guidance and control system of a nominal air-breathing hypersonic missile, |
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2-6 |
A six-phase road map to achieve initial operational capability of a Mach 6 to Mach 8 hypersonic missile system by 2015, |
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B-1 |
Overview of HyTech Program, |
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B-2 |
Road map for the development of hydrocarbon-fueled scramjet missile propulsion, |
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C-1 |
Maximum potential interception range as a function of the target’s radar cross section, |
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C-2 |
Time from maximum intercept point until missile could pass over defense site, as a function of radar cross section, |
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C-3 |
Maximum lethal range of a hypothetical surface-to-air missile system against a nonmaneuvering missile, |
TABLES
1-1 |
Engine Parameters for Two Nominal Missiles, |
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2-1 |
Summary of Parameters of Various DOD Hypersonic Programs, |
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C-1 |
Hypothetical Command-Guided, Surface-to-Air Missile System, |
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C-2 |
Estimates of the Lethal Radius of Surface-to-Air Missiles from the Open Literature, |
BOX
2-1 |
Summary of the HyTech Program, |