Paul G. Allen, one of the richest men in the world and co-founder of Microsoft, plans to announce that he is entering the rocket business by building the biggest airplane ever. This plane is not only going to be bigger than the double-decker airbus A380, it is also going to launch a rocket to orbit at 30,000 feet. They hope this plane will begin flying in five years, first taking satellites, and eventually people into orbit. Space Exploration Technologies Corp. will be building the rockets that Stratolaunch will be launching. The plane’s wings will stretch 385 feet, which is longer than a football field. Scaled Composites, which is the company building the airplane is only designing and building its frame. Other components like engines will be searched from second-hand 747s. Mr. Wentz said that he predicts that there is going to be a clear opportunity for 8 – 10 launches a year.
I found this article very interesting. For me, the double-decker Airbus A380 is already huge and it is hard for me to imagine something bigger. Also the fact that in about 5 years people will have the opportunity to orbit around the world amazes me. I think this was the main reason why I chose this article. It astonishes me that people just keep on coming with bigger airplanes. Except, this one will also launch rockets like no other.
The information in the article is very fascinating to read, but I found it hard to understand the article completely. I didn’t like that the article included a lot of names because I got confused at certain times as to who achieved what and to who built what. I also felt that the article got repetitive at times. I think they focused too much on the airplane’s mass instead of its use and purpose to science and us.
I found Joanna’s article interesting because Paul G. Allen, the man who is building this airplane that can carry a rocket all the way to an altitude of 30,000 feet and then launch the rocket into space that will allow satellites and eventually humans to enter space. I thought Joanna did a good job at describing the enormity of the airplane Paul Allen hopes to build by comparing it to the A380, the biggest aircraft in the world and stating that the wingspan of the plane will be 385 feet, which is longer than a football field. Also Joanna described the main purpose of the this planned airplane which is to carry a rocket that can carry satellites or people 30,000 feet into the sky and then launch it into space. Finally Joanna talked about how Paul Allen’s company plans to save money by only designing the plane and instead of producing the parts, acquiring them from second-hand planes.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the article Joanna wrote about, I thought she could have better explained what the aircraft is going to look like and how it will work. The aircraft is a six-engine behemoth that is meant to carry a massive rocket in the middle. The reason the plane is built to carry the rocket 30,000 feet into the sky is to eliminate the need for a launch pad, which is expensive to build, maintain and can prevent the launch of the rocket due to bad weather. The airplane simply has to fly to an area with good weather to launch the rocket allowing the pilots to choose the ideal launch weather.
After reading Joanna’s blog and the article, it appears that civilian space travel could possibly be beginning. Through people like Paul Allen and other private businesses, space travel could be practical and profitable. By cutting the costs of space travel and by having a demand for it whether through satellites or tourism, maybe space travel could become a regular activity in the coming years.
I thought that Joanna summarized her article well. I thought she described the future of the plane well, as it will be able to bring people into space at one time in the future. I also thought it was interesting that she compared the plane to the current world’s largest plane, the A380. A third and final thing I thought was interesting was how she included that people will be able to orbit the earth in only 5 years.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I thought could have been better was that Joanna didn’t include any specifics about the plane other than its wingspan. Joanna only included that the plane will be 385 feet wide and nothing else. Another aspect I thought could have been improved was that it was stated that the plane would be able to fire rockets into space. Joanna says that the plane will be able to fire rockets, but there is no information about why it needs to or why the technology was developed.
One thing that astonished me when I read this article review was that the engines were taken from second-hand 747 planes. I would have thought that a new plane with advanced technology would have a more advanced engine, but the fact that a 747 engine works is great as a money and time saver.