November 2015
Intermediate to advanced
647 pages
21h 38m
English
A discussion of the nature of flight through the atmosphere in order to gain access to space is presented. Various spaceplane projects aimed at human spaceflight that have been pursued in recent years are described. The nature of flight trajectories in the sensible atmosphere is described and vehicles that have successfully operated in the human flight design space are identified. The goal of reusable spaceplanes that operate like conventional airplanes is placed in perspective by addressing the design issues associated with such craft. The transatmospheric manned missions which are likely to develop in the near future are discussed.
Transatmospheric vehicles; manned flight ...