An Update on SKYLON

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Alan Bond Managing Director & Chief Engineer

Reaction Engines Ltd.

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S K Y LO N O p e ra t i o n s

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S K Y LO N

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1990 The SKYLON spaceplane… the phoenix of HOTOL

1951 Skylon Sculpture Festival of Britain

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Length = 83m Take-off Mass = 325 t Payload to LEO = 15 t Payload to GTO = 6.4 – 8t

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S K Y LO N D 1

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Length = 83m Take-off Mass = 325 t Payload to LEO = 15 t Payload to GTO = 6.4 – 8t

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T h a l e s A l e n i a S p a c e S U S C o n c e p t D e s i g n

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Length = 83m Take-off Mass = 325 t Payload to LEO = 15 t Payload to GTO = 6.4 – 8t

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S K Y LO N & S U S M a x i m u m G e o s ta t i o n a r y Pe r fo r m a n c e

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SKYLON / SUS Mission

Maximum Mass of Satellite into

GTO (Tonnes)

Maximum Mass of Satellite into GEO

(With 320s SI apogee engine) (Tonnes)

300 km LEO deployment Reusable SUS, 7:1 resonance return transfer orbit (GTO)

5.58 (3.50)

185 km LEO deployment Reusable SUS, 9:1 resonance return transfer orbit

6.39 (4.0)

185 km deployment Expendable SUS, destructive re-entry

8.08 (5.07)

300 km LEO deployment Reusable SUS 5,900 km circular MEO EP satellite, 20 kW HE thruster, 157 day transit to GEO

N/A

(8.96 GTO equivalent)

5.61

Length = 83m Take-off Mass = 325 t Payload to LEO = 15 t Payload to GTO = 6.4 – 8t

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P r e f e r r e d S K Y L O N a n d C i v i l R u n w a y P o s i t i o n & O r i e n t a t i o n

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Length = 83m Take-off Mass = 325 t Payload to LEO = 15 t Payload to GTO = 6.4 – 8t

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S ta n d a r d G TO M i s s i o n ( 7 : 1 r e s o n a n c e )

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N 12

3

45

Perigee burn into GTO

Upper-stage LEO insertion and recovery

Skylon in 300km LEO, payload deployed1

Satellite serparates in GTOSatellite apogee burn into GEO

2345

Length = 83m Take-off Mass = 325 t Payload to LEO = 15 t Payload to GTO = 6.4 – 8t

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S K Y LO N / S U S Pe r fo r m a n c e i nto P l a n e ta r y Tra j e c to r i e s

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S A B R E E n g i n e

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T h e S A B R E E n g i n e

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Pre-Cooler

Turbine

Thrust Chambers

Bypass Duct

Air Intake

Compressor

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S A B R E / S K Y LO N D e v e l o p m e nt P r o g ra m m e

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P r e - c o o l e r P r o d u c t i o n

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P r e - c o o l e r Te s t i n g , B 9 C u l h a m S c i e n c e C e nt r e

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▪ Over 700 rig tests … over 300 engine pre-cooler tests ▪ -150°C cryogenic temperature ▪ Operation of pre-cooler & frost control system

▪ Steady state cryogenic cooling over a sustained period

▪ Thermo-mechanical & aerodynamic integrity

▪ Technical objectives of the ESA programme

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R E L E n g i n e Te c h n o l o g i e s

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Pre-cooler heat transfer augmentation 2009

Micro-channel high pressure Hx 2010

Silicon carbide high temperature Hx 2002

Air intake 2012

STILETTO staged combustion 2011

Contra-rotating turbine 2008

Advanced nozzles laboratory tests 2006

STERN E/D nozzle 2008

STRICT E/D nozzle 2010

Bell nozzle separation 2010

Air/hydrogen cooling 2010

LOX cooling 2010

STRIDENT nozzle 2012

Laboratory scale 1GW/m3 HX 1996

Wind tunnel Hx module 2002

First full scale pre-cooler module 2005

Pre-cooler frost control 2004

Complete pre-cooler 2012

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R E L Ve h i c l e Te c h n o l o g i e s

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Re-entry aerodynamics

CFRP truss structure

Ascent trajectory modelling

Mach 12 hypersonic shock tunnel

Avionics

Aeroshell TiSic truss structure

Subsonic wind tunnel

Mach 9 hypersonic wind tunnel

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S K Y LO N / S A B R E P r o g ra m m e

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S K Y LO N Sy s te m Re v i e w

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UK Space Agency independent review Sep 2010 • ESA providing technical support

• Almost 100 invitees attended two

day workshop

• Part of wider review including on site audit by ESA

Review Conclusions ‘no impediments or critical items have been identified for either the SKYLON vehicle or the SABRE engine that are a block to further developments’.

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P h a s e 3 S A B R E D e v e l o p m e nt

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SABRE

Phase 3

SKYLON

£10bn Programme

£6bn

£3.64bn

£0.36bn

• Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4

October 2023

3 ½ Years 9 ½ Years

October 2017

April 2014

January 2014

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U K G o v e r n m e nt G ra nt

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In July 2013 the UK government awarded REL £60M to develop the SABRE Engine

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Thank you

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