3 ms·
How are they going to fly 25 missions with 24 engines? It's not just one engine per launch either.
by phkahler 5y ago
How are they going to fly 25 missions with 24 engines? It's not just one engine per launch either.
- causi 5y agoThat's Rogozin saying ULA only has 24 engines, not ULA. As far as I know ULA took the last delivery of RD-180s in April of last year and hasn't ordered any more.
- dr_orpheus 5y agoFor the Atlas V it is just one RD-180 engine per launch "The Atlas V first stage...is powered by one Energomash RD180 main engine..." [0]. There are additional solid rocket boosters (supplied by Northrup) on the first stage. And Aerojet Rocketdyne provides the engines for the upper stage. Something about the math still doesn't quite add up though. I wonder if the 24 engines are still the ones sitting on the shelf, while others have already been integrated in to the first stage of the rockets. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlas_V#Vehicle_description https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlas_V#Vehicle_description Edit: It's also a bit odd because one RD-180 engine actually has two nozzles.
- loeg 5y agoMight just be rounding to a human number.
- gameswithgo 5y agoThe RD180 looks like 2 engines, but it is 1 engine with two combustion chambers. A clever trick to simplify the problem of combustion instability in large combustion chambers! Rocketdyne's F1 engine which powered the Saturn V spent years solving this problem, and they were never totally confident it would not blow up. I wonder if this would have been a workable solution for apollo!