AAS 97-131

AN OVERALL TRAJECTORY AND PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS FOR A LONG- RANGE HYPERSONIC TRANSPORT USING EXO-ATMOSPHERIC COAST

D. G. Tuckness, Jr. and T. McGaha, The University of Texas at Arlington

Abstract

This paper examines the use of an exo-atmospheric coast trajectory for a long-range hypersonic transport. It addresses both the minimum energy ballistic trajectory, as well as a fractional orbit trajectory for the coast phase. A method of finding the pull-up Mach number that minimizes the takeoff gross weight will be presented. This paper also addresses the matching conditions at the entry and exit of the coasting phase, integrating this into the overall trajectory. Finally, a performance comparison between the ballistic coast, fractional orbit coast, and conventional high-atmosphere cruise trajectories will be considered.