New (old) Satellite Launch Technique

Ever since I have been a “rocket scientist,” the satellite industry has been trying to find a way to avoid the extremely energy inefficient first stage booster. An enormous fraction of the onboard structural weight and fuel in a launcher is burned just getting the whole assembly from zero speed on the pad, through the atmosphere, and into a place where the big empty tanks and rocket engines can be jettisoned and the second stage motors ignited.

Numerous ideas have been funded and studied, including surface-mounted “rail guns” which propelled a mass along a track using electrically powered magnets. Disneyland uses these to get folks to the top of their biggest rollercoasters.

The idea of winding up an enormous machine and simply throwing the satellite into the sky has always appealed to folks.

Well, there is today some serious funding for just such a facility. SpinLaunch, Inc is working with NASA. Attached is their really compelling video animation. It is worth watching just for the high production value science fiction video.