there are some helpful links throughout the document (click here as well) LOL

FOR PEOPLE WHO KEEP POPPING IN TO CHECK IF ITS DONE, COME BACK
TOMORROW.( after noon) (Things in Bold Red still need to be completed)
Also Need people to Post the better performed quizzes
(USE CTRL+F during the test to look things up quickly) (this guide assumes you have
a book or a pdf with you)
High Score Midterm attached at very end with questions.
(Note: Use Tab (I. -> A.) and Shift+Tab ( A -> I.) to move in and out of the sub Levels)
Click here for more information

I.

(click for a pdf version)

A. Uninstalled thrust, S , TSFC (pg17), Thermal Efficiency

1. SFC = describe the fuel efficiency of an engine design with
respect to thrust output. TSFC may also be thought of as fuel consumption
(grams/second) per unit of thrust (kilonewtons, or kN). It is thus thrust-specific, meaning
that the fuel consumption is divided by the thrust. LOW TSFC = High efficiency
2. TSFC = commonly used for jet engines

Thermal Efficiency:

||||
Propulsive efficiency:

|||||

when m_dot of fuel is very low:

Overall Efficiency of a propulsion engine:

(note the T/mf = 1/TSFC)

|||

For a single inlet/single exhaust jet engine:

Specific thrust =

Propulsive efficiency:

S= TSFC here:

B. Isp:
exhaust velocity:

1. Relevant Equations:
Static Thrust of rocket:

Isp:

;
;
Note on units: Isp can be written in m/s and in seconds
If the "amount" of propellant is given in terms of mass (such as in kilograms), then specific impulse has units
of velocity. If it is given in terms of weight (such as in kiloponds or newtons), then specific impulse has units of
time. The conversion constant between the two versions of specific impulse is g.- wikipedia

2. What does it mean? is a way to describe the efficiency of

rocket and jet engines. It represents the force with respect to the amount of propellant
used per unit time
3. Why doesnt Isp change across planets (why can
we assume its same on earth, Jupiter, Mars etc. why?)
2

when Isp is used in units of time, then it is gravity independent, and can be used
universally. ( if it has the units of velocity, then this isnt true.)

C. Figures of Merit (FOM)

Thrust , Bypass ratio, Overall pressure ratio, Isp, etc.
D. Free Body Diagrams
1. Steady flight

;
Check Page 30 ( p.83 of pdf) for more lift/drag/ cl/cd info
2. Rocket

In the absence of Drag and gravity (in space and away from planets) (p.55 (p.109
pdf)):

|||||||

|||||||||

E. Onion Skins (peel back layers for improvements i think?)

turbojets---> turbofans---> high bypass turbofans
F. Exponential Decay equation (know how to use and manipulate
this in general)
1. The related questions:
Compare the rocket equation to the exponential decay equation how would one
loosely compare this to high/low Isp fuels?
Consider the radioactive decay of 137-Cs with a decay constant of 0.0231yr-1 - If
3

Mi=1kg, how much is left in 30, 50 yrs?

If the half-life of 123-I is 13.22hrs, find the decay constant - and how much 123-I
remains after 2 years.
The equation:
Use Mf/Mi = e^(-L*t) where Mf = final mass, Mi = initial mass, L = decay constant, t =
time (consistent units).
G. Chemistry
1. Haber Process (N2+ 3*H2 -> 2*NH3 =
Ammonia)
Fritz Haber got a Nobel Prize for this. It allowed for fertilizer, but more
importantly it allowed for explosives ammonia oxidizes explosively. it can make
for a rocket fuel. The X-15 used an anhydrous version of it with LOX oxidizer.
2. Le Chatelier (Equilibrium Law)
N2s triple bonds make it unreactive and slows down the Haber Process.
Increasing the temperature disrupts the equilibrium by Le Chateliers
Principle of the system so catalysts and pressure are used to hasten the
process.
3. Devils Venom
Soviet Rocket Fuel. Nitric Acid (HNO3) and Hydrazine.

<<<double bond between the Ns

4. Extremely corrosive and toxic. Devils venom is

hypergolic, not requiring an external ignition source. Both products have
high boiling points, allowing rockets to be stored and ready to launch
without fuel or oxidizer boiling off.
H. The Breguet Range Equation ( Use for most range problems;
understand this well)
( start around p. 39 (p93 pdf)...it leads up to the Breguet formula)

1. Nuclear/Electric propulsion , TSFC is 0. unlimited

range
4

2. The Wf/Wi is the change-in-weight term. This

equation relies on dynamic fuel consumption, so when you have nuclear
or electric propulsion, nothing is consumed, so the RF (range factor)
approaches infinity if TSFC approaches 0.
I. The Rocket equation ( will be on the exam in some form)

II.

J. Geometria
1. C/4 of the Earth = 10000 km
K. running out of dinosaurs , whats dinosaur?
T-Rex,Oil, fossil fuels
Fundamentals
A. Equations of State
;

Enthalpy:

Speed of Sound and Mach:

(a is above)
One dimensional steady mass flow (m_in= m_out):

(note: gc is 1 in metric, 32.3 in english; T in kelvin or rankine)

B. Steady Flow equations(e.g.: c.v. -> sigma)

a) Inlet and nozzle:

=>
b)Compressor and turbine ( note: these eqns assume the turbine runs the
compressor, hence turbine power = compressor power)(p. 72 (pdf p.126))

=> compressor power:

turbine power:

c) Combustion chamber ( note: cpT cannot be used to compute enthalpy

difference here)
... (just hope he asks nothing about combustion
chambers is much more complicated than this...)
C. Gibbs Equation (p.84 / pdf 138)
1. Derive from 1st and 2nd Law

(from )2nd law

2. How to use it? plug and chug

3. Isentropic Chain equations (page 85 ; pdf 139)

|||||||||>
D. h-s, T-s diagrams.
1. Mollier( T-s)

2. Brayton

3. Lenoir (V1)

E. thermal efficiency
F. Nozzle Flow (pg. 131)

1. Underexpanded ( Pe > Pa) ( generally runs a risk

of explosion..)

2. Over expanded (pe<pa) ( not ideal thrust)

3. Ideally expanded (pe=pa) (ideal thrust)

Its perfect/amazing. Nothing else to say about this
4. Normal shock and mach reflection

G. Pressure Ratio

H. 4+2 flows
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Isentropic
Normal shocks
Oblique shocks
Prandtl-Meyer expansion waves
Fanno ( friction injection)

6. Rayleigh (heat injection)

10

Isentropic

Normal Shock

Oblique

Expansion

Fanno

Rayleigh

III.

Air Breathing (Equations for All of the following (and more!):

A. Ramjet
pg 266
B. Turbojet
pg 278
C. Turbojet+AB
pg 291
1. Talk about supercruise: what made it possible?
talk about compression ratio (Pi_c)
Supercruise : Going supersonic without the need of an afterburner
D. Turbofan
pg 302
The fan increases the propellant mass flow rate with an accompanying decrease
in the required propellant exit velocity for a given thrust. Because the rate of
production of "wasted" kinetic energy in the exit propellant gases varies as the
first power with mass flow rate and as the square of the exit velocity, the net effect
of increasing the mass flow rate and decreasing the exit velocity is to reduce the
wasted kinetic energy production and to improve the propulsive efficiency
The ratio of the fan flow to the core flow is defined as the bypass ratio and given
the symbol alpha.
1. Talk about: Pi_c , Pi_f,

E. Scramjet
The basic concept of the scramjet is that the flow must remain supersonic throughout to
avoid the high static temperatures that reduce performance by causing chemical
dissociation of the combustion products, as well as the high static pressures that cause
structural problems. Consequently, in practical terms, when the freestream Mach number
exceeds 5-6, the flow is designed to enter the combustor at supersonic speeds, and the
device is known as the supersonic combustion ramjet, or scramjet.
more on pg 120
11

F.
1. why shouldnt the pressure within the engine be
dissipated by too much?
IV.

Rocket
A. ISP and effective exhaust velocity for rocket

g_o = gravity

12

B. Equations of Motion
1. V orbit (? 9.5km/s ?)

( someone explain when the V is (-) or (+) )

2. Rocket equation

3. Earth Mars transition ; TMI (Trans Mars

Injection)?
Murbachs Lecture
C. Why LOR (Lunar Orbit Rendezvous) vs. EOR (Earth Orbit
Rendezvous)
First mention of LOR dates back to 1916. It was proposed by Yuri Kondratyuk, a Ukrainian engineer, who
calculated that LOR was the most economical way of landing a human on the Moon.When NASA was
looking to land astronauts on the Moon by the late 1960s, the idea was controversial, and after NASA's
administrator, James Webb announced that Apollo would utilize this method, he was publicly criticized by
President Kennedy's National Science Policy Advisor,Jerome Wiesner.As history has shown, the method
worked, and allowed NASA to use only one Saturn V per lunar landing mission, something other landing
options did not offer.

Earth orbit rendezvous (EOR) is a potential methodology for conducting round trip human flights to the
Moon, involving the use of space rendezvous to assemble, and possibly fuel, components of a translunar
vehicle in low Earth orbit. It was considered and ultimately rejected in favor of lunar orbit rendezvous
(LOR) for NASA's Apollo Program of the 1960s and 1970s. Three decades later, it was planned to be used
for Project Constellation, until that programs cancellation in October 2010.

13

D. 3 Generations of ICBM
1. First generation
a) what were they? general design
and models
USSR - R-7, R-8, R-16 (Nedalin disaster), R-9
USA - Atlas I - Parallel Staging -Boosters jettisoned.
Titan - Two Stage Rocket
2. Second generation
a) what were they? general design
and models
USSR - R-20, R-22 , R-26
USA - Titan II- Two Stage Rocket
3. Third generation
a) what were they? general design
and models
USSR - R-36M - (NATO name: Satan) . R-37 , R-38
USA - Minuteman-Solid Rocket (faster launch than liquid fuel)
E. The Stoff
A-Stoff: liquid oxygen (LOX)
B-Stoff: hydrazine or ethanol / water (used in the V-2)
Br-Stoff: Ligroin extracted from crude gasoline
C-Stoff: 57% methanol / 30% hydrazine/ 13% water
K-Stoff: methyl chloroformate
M-Stoff: methanol
N-Stoff: chlorine trifluoride
R-Stoff or Tonka: 57% monoxylidene oxide / 43% triethylamine

S-Stoff: 90% nitric acid / 10% sulfuric acid or nitric acid / ferric chloride
SV-Stoff or Salbei (sage): 94% nitric acid / dinitrogen tetroxide
T-Stoff: 80% concentrated hydrogen peroxide used as hypergolic oxidizer with C-Stoff, or as
monopropellant or power source with Z-Stoff
Z-Stoff: calcium permanganate / sodium permanganate / water

What was used in what?

a) V2
A stoff, B stoff, T stoff, Z stoff
b) ME-163
C stoff, T stoff
c) R7
Kerosene T-1 fuel + Liquid Oxygen(LO2) Oxidiser.
d) R16
Z stoff (Hydrazine) + N2O4
e) Titan I/II etc.
Titan I: RP-1 (Rocket Propellant-1 or Refined Petroleum-1)/LOX
Titan II: A-50 Hydrazine/dinitrogen tetroxide
14

F. Rocket Engine Cycles

1. V2 cycle ( also a turbomachinery cycle)
a) Diagram
b) key points
used 75% ethanol/water mix for fuel, and LOX as oxidizer. The
fuel and oxidizer pumps were steam turbines, with the steam
produced by hydrogen peroxide and sodium permanganate
catalyst. Cooling system heated the fuel while cooling the
combustion chamber.
2. Pressure Fed

a) Diagram
b) key points (mention
monopropellant vs. biprop. , what were the propellants?)
(Examples?)
(1) lowest Pc
(2) no pumps to
increase mdot
3. Gas Generator (Chevy)

15

a) Diagram
b) key points ( and list examples)
(1) Mid Pc
(2) $$ ($ symbols
illustrate price)
4. Staged Combustion (Ferrari)

a) Diagram
b) key points ( and list examples)
(1) Highest Pc
(2) Space Shuttle Main
Engine (SSME)
(3) $$$
(4) NK-33
5. Expander Cycle ( budget)

16

V.

a) Diagram
b) key points ( and list examples)
(1) low Pc
(2) $$
(3) RL-10
Does not require a separate gas generator combustion chamber and uses all the
propellants in the main combustion chamber. (RL-10)
Compressible Flow
A. Theta-Beta-Mach diagram ( know how to use it, know its for
2D flow only; use the sheet from AE 164))

B. H-k plots

17

more on pg 109 in book

C. Know about Shocks in general , know how to use the thetabeta-mach diagram
D. Edney Shocks
1. talk about reproducible shocks
2. talk about type 4 shocks -> shock -shock
interactions
3. The significance of Edney Type IV interactions, or
shockwave interference heating as it was first labelled was seen in a flight
test of the X-15 hypersonic research aircraft. A hypersonic research engine
model was attached to the underside of the aircraft, and the oblique shock
generated by the wing of the X-15 interacted with the bow shock of the
engine support pylon [1]. This resulted in catastrophic damage to the
pylon and incineration of part of the protective skin. This damage was due
to an increase in the peak heat transfer and pressure at the surface of the
pylon.

18

E. Nozzles
1. Conical (most simple/basic)
The conical nozzle represents a compromise of the length, thrust, and ease of
manufacturing design criteria weighted somewhat in favor of the last factor. A
conical nozzle consists of two truncated cones (Fig. 3.16), joined top to top along
their axis by a suitable radius to form the nozzle throat. The combustion chamber
is similarly faired into the convergent nozzle section. The converging contour of
the nozzle is not critical as regards the flow, and a rather rapid change in cross
section is permissible here with a conical apex half-angle on the order of 400
commonly used. The divergence angle of the supersonic portion of the nozzle,
however, is limited by flow separation considerations and must not exceed a value
of about 150. For divergence angles too much greater than 15 deg, the flow will
separate from the nozzle walls short of the exit even though the nozzle is
operating at design altitude P, = Pe.
More on Pg 189 in the book

19

2. Bell ( 20% shorter)

The bell-shaped nozzle of the Atlas sustainer engine is designed to reduce the
thrust and length disadvantages of a conical nozzle. To reduce length, a bellshaped nozzle employs a high divergence angle at the throat with a very rapid
expansion of the gases from the throat. The flow is then turned rather abruptly
back toward the axial direction. The comparative lengths of a bell-shaped and a
conical nozzle having the same expansion ratio.
l-more on pg 191

3. Aerospike ( - self correcting -> why?) *Answered

in 5*

20

4. Expansion/deflection
5. Free- Expansion (plug) nozzle
To avoid such losses at off-design operation, a rocket nozzle with an adjustable
area ratio that provides optimum expansion at each ascending altitude is needed.
In such free-expansion nozzles the expanding flow is bound by a solid surface and
a free-to-move slip-line expansion surface. The adjustable slip-line boundary, in
effect, produces a variable area ratio nozzle that accommodates itself to changing
nozzle pressure ratios. Free-expansion nozzles, therefore, tend to operate at
optimum expansion, with the ratio of thrust-to-optimum-thrust being quite
insensitive to altitude variations
-more on pg 192 in book.
F. - Pn diagram

more on pg 131
VI.

Nuclear
A. The Hanns Strausmann development
1. Draw the series of Noble prize winning
discoveries that led to the basic fission discovery

21

2. Germans WunderWaffen (wonder weapons)

B. WWII -> war of energetics -> why was atomic energy
disruptive in this context?
It was the one technology of WWII that could potentially turn the tides of war. It
was a disruptive technology that could be used as a source of energy or a source
of destruction (A-Bombs).
C. Nuclear Aircraft
a) Clean engine (Pratt and Whitney):
Indirect cycling involves thermal exchange outside of the core.
The compressor air would be sent to a heat exchanger. The nuclear
reactor core would heat up pressurized water or liquid metal and
send it to the heat exchanger as well. That hot liquid would be
cooled by the air; the air would be heated by the liquid and sent to
the turbine. The turbine would send the air out the exhaust,
providing thrust.
b) Dirty engine (GE): Direct cycling
involves thermal exchange inside of the core. The air gained
from the compressor section would be sent to a plenum that directs
the air into the nuclear reactor core. An exchange takes place
where the reactor is cooled, but it then heats up the same air and
sends it to another plenum. The second plenum directs the air into
a turbine, which sends it out the exhaust. The end result is that
instead of using jet fuel, an aircraft could rely on nuclear reactions
for power.
D. Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactor (LFTR)
1. what? how?
A reactor that can obtain high operating temperatures suitable for energy
generation that doesnt require high pressures that make nuclear energy risky.
Uses the abundant element Thorium as opposed to the rare Uranium. Liquid
molten salts are used to cool the reactor which then heats up the fission chambers
to power a turbine.
2. why?
Cheap, safe, and it has a higher efficiency than Uranium based nuclear plants.
Uranium only uses a tiny fraction of the potential energy whereas the majority of
thoriums potential energy is used, causing less nuclear waste. Also a politically
friendly source of energy since it is near impossible to weaponize Thorium. The
half-life of thorium is roughly 300 years and produces Alpha Particles where
Uranium is 10,000+ years and produces gamma particles (more harmful than
alpha).
E. Kuzkas Mother
22

VII.

1. what does it mean , why did krushchev say it

Russian idiom for threat. Expression for Well show you. The dropping
of the Tsar Bomba showed America that they were behind in the nuclear
arms race. A true Cold War stance that Krushchev took to put them on the
same level or above America.
2. = 57 megatons = 57 million V2 warheads (1MT
each)
F. Reactor Health
1. Sub critical is not good enough
Cannot sustain chain reaction, thus requiring additional neutrons from an
outside source. K < 1
2. Critical is good
A critical mass is the smallest amount of fissile material needed for a
sustained nuclear chain reaction. Dependent on nuclear properties (fission
cross section), density, shape, enrichment, purity, temperature, and
surroundings.
3. supercritical requires neutron absorbers ( need
to leave the room)
When the reactors neutron production exceeds losses, characterized by
increasing power level. K > 1 requires neutron absorbers to absorb excess
neutrons.
Movies, History, and People
A. History:
1. Rocket evolution
a) V2 (its history, origin, and what
ended up with soviets and americans)
The V-2 was a German WWII ballistic missile. First human
invention to enter outer space. Designed by Von Braun. Used A, B,
T, and Z stoff. Over 3,000 bombe Belgium and London from
Germany. After the war, the U.S. took Germanys rocket scientists,
while the USSR captured leftover V-2s and scientists. The Soviets
built the R-1, a duplicate of the V-2. The Americans built the
PGM-11 Redstone, modeled after the V-2.
b) Soviet: V2-> R7 -> N1 (mention
R16) (mention engines and significance, and propellants)
R7 derived from R-1, itself a copy of the V-2.
(1) 1st stage: 4x jettisonable
four-chamber RD-107 booster engines each with 2x vernier rocket
engines plus 1x four-chamber RD-108 core engine with 4x vernier
rocket engines.
(2) 2nd stage: 1x fourchamber RD-108 core engine with 4x vernier rocket engines.
(3) Propellant: Kerosene T-1
fuel + LOX
N-1 Rocket: NK-15, NK 21, NK-19 engines. All used RP-1/LOX. RP-1 is rocket
propellant-1, highly refined kerosene. Cycle is staged combustion w/ turbopumps. Some
of the propellant is burned in a pre-burner, and the resulting hot gas is used to power the

23

engine's turbines and pumps. The exhausted gas is then injected into the main
combustion chamber, along with the rest of the propellant, and combustion is completed.
c) American: V2-> Redstone (mention

the viking) -> Saturn I, V (mention fuel and engines)

Viking Rocket program, conducted by US Navy, was designed
by the U.S. based on experiments with captured V-2s. They
were actively guided rockets and used the Reaction Motors
XLR10 rocket, ran on alcohol and LOX. It had the same cycle
as the V-2, with hydrogen peroxide used to drive the
turbopumps.
Redstone is direct descendant of V-2 Rocket. It was designed by
German crew, including Von Braun. Saturn rocket family, I and IB,
were derived from the Redstone. They used Redstone and Jupiter
propellant tanks clustered together w/8 jupiter engines to form 1st
stage.
d) Suicide Squad
(1) Development of
JPL/Aerojet
Jack Parsons, Edward Forman, and Frank Malina. Became
founders of Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Aerojet
Engineering Corporation. JPL is a federally funded
research center for NASA. Aerojet is a rocket and missile
propulsion manufacturer. Aerojet merged with Pratt &
Whitney Rocketdyne to form Aerojet Rocketdyne.
e) LR-87 , and other aerojet rockets ,
vs. NK-33 engines ( what are they used in now? what are they
called now?)
(1) The NK33 engines
used on the N-1 were updated and acquired by the
Aerojet company, which named them as the AJ2658/AJ26-59. They are used on the new Antares rockets.
2. Aircraft Evolution
a) Special mentions
(1) Me - 262
First Production Jet fighter (not the first jet warplane, that
was the He-178). Had the Jumo Turbojet engine, the first
production Turbojet engine.
(2) Me-163 Komet
( what stoffs? why important)
One of the first rocket powered airplanes designed to
intercept allied bombers. The rocket fuels used to power
this (c-stoff and t-stoff) would later be used to fuel very
important rockets. Also one of the first planes with swept
back wings.
(3) DH-108 swallow
24

(who died? - it copied the komet)

The De Havilland Swallow was modelled after the Me-163
Komet. Was the first jet with axial compressors. Had an
accident prone testing due to structural weaknesses. De
Havillands son died in this plane. It may have broken the
sound barrier if it werent for structural weakness.
(4) Bell X-1 ( what
engine? what fuel?)
1 Reaction Motors XLR-11-RM3 liquid fuel rocket; liquid oxygen,
ethyl alcohol, nitrogen
Broke the Sound barrier with Chuck Yeager as pilot.
.something about him wanting to steal Ridleys gum

(5) X-15 ( what records?

Anhydrous ammonia + LOX)
Highest speed ever reached by a manned aircraft (Mach 6.72)
suffered structural damage from Edney shocks during early scramjet
testing. XLR99 twin rocket engines.

(6) F-104 ( altitude

record, test pilot plane)
Mach 2 aircraft, J79 turbojet engine. 17 stage compressor,
17,800 lbf with afterburner.
(7) SR-71
Turbojet inside ramjet. Air is compressed and heated by the
shock cones, and is slowed to subsonic speeds for ignition.
Mach 3+ with afterburners
(8) 747 -> JT9D engine (
why important?)
First high bypass ratio turbofan. Bypass Ratio: 5.0 Thrust:
48,000 lbf.
(9) Concorde
First Supersonic Airliner to enter R&D and then enter
production. Flew long distance flights for 27 years before ebing
retired due to environmental backlash. Olympus engines could
keep it at sustained supercruise at around Mach 2. (TurboJet + AB)
b) Jet
(1) Who invented it?
(Hans von Ohain and Whittle, independently)
Frank Whittle designs jet engine with two axial compressor
stages and one centrifugal. Von Ohain designs an engine
with centrifugal fan as turbine and compressor.
(2) Me-262
First jet powered aircraft. 2 axial compressor jet engines,
1,980 lbf each.
(3) Axial vs. Centrifugal
(a) when
was first Axial?
rotating, airfoil based compressor. air flows parallel
25

to the axis of rotation. like the jet engine in 164

(b) war of
the centrifugal compressors: Korean War
looks like turbo in car. Used in MiG-15, and light
enough so that it had high performance.
3. Cuban Missile Crisis
a) What happened? who was
involved? who said what?
Soviet missiles in Cuba. U.S. angry. Peaceful resolution, with
missiles removed from Cuba and Turkey. JFK, McNamara, Lemay
vs. Khruschev, Fidel and Raul Castro. JFKs obsession with the
Guns of August and its description of nuclear arms race policies.
b) What missiles were involved on
both sides.
USA - Jupiter (In Turkey)
USSR - R-12 and R-14 (in Cuba)
B. Movies
1. The Right Stuff
U.S. test pilots during the 1940's and 1950's were characterized as the
cockiest young men in society. Their training was intense and risky leaving
many dead and forcing many others to quit. The pilots that were able to
remain determined and overcome the obstacles set in front of them began to
live by an unspoken code of guidelines associated with having the right stuff.
Their main goal was to be one of the few selected to test airplanes at Muroc
(renamed to Edwards) Air Base. This was the pinnacle of the food chain and
home to Chuck Yeager, the most decorated test pilot of the time. Wolfe
analyzes the famous flight Yeager made in the Bell X-1 Rocket in which he
broke the sound barrier for the first time in recorded history. It was an
achievement that was kept secret from the rest of the world because of Cold
War paranoia.
The Soviet Union's launch of the world's first orbiting satellite
(Sputnik I) occurred just a few months later. This event heightened the
tension and fear felt by the U.S. and convinced President Eisenhower to
develop the Mercury Project in order to send a man into space as quickly as
possible. Out of the sixty-nine test pilots invited to participate in the
program, fifty-seven accepted the offer. This came as a great surprise to the
leaders of the program because the pilots would basically be test subjects
having little to no control of the capsule they were to be shot up in. Wolfe
makes it clear that the reason for the great interest in the program is because
the pilots have a desire to experience the dangers of the unknown and to
26

show the world in the process that they have the right stuff.
The pilots were put through a series of intense medical and physical
tests in order to determine who were the most worthy to be chosen. The
seven that were selected are: Alan Shepard, "Gus" Grissom, John Glenn,
"Deke" Slayton, Scott Carpenter, Wally Schirra, and Gordon Cooper. The
right stuff persona each of these men possessed instigated a competition for
the coveted first flight and what the astronauts felt was all of the glory. Even
though Shepard won in a peer vote to make the first flight, it was John
Glenn's mission that proved to be the most popular with the crowd because
he was the first American to orbit the Earth. By the time the Mercury
program made its sixth and last launch, the atmosphere of the nation had
drastically shifted. The Soviet Union was on the brink of collapse and the
Cold War scare was essentially over. The fame surrounding the "Mercury
Seven" quickly vanished because they were not considered war heroes
risking their lives for the safety of the United States anymore. Wolfe ends the
book with the arrival of the new space programs Gemini and Apollo.

2. The BBC space race series

Episode one: Race For Rockets (19441949)

We see the results of Wernher von Braun's work on the V-2 for the Nazis at Mittelwerk and Peenemnde, and his
final activities within Germany during the last years of the Second World War, as both American and Soviet
forces race to capture German rocket technology. When the Americans gain the upper hand by recovering von
Braun and most of his senior staff, along with all their technical documents and much other material, we see
Sergei Korolev's release from the Gulag to act as the Soviets' rocketry expert alongside former colleague Valentin
Glushko, and how he is set to work bringing Soviet rocket technology up to date with that of von Braun, working
with what material and personnel are left after von Braun's escape to the US.

Episode two: Race For Satellites (19531958)

As the Cold War intensifies, Korolev is asked to build a rocket capable of carrying a five-ton
warhead to America - he designs and constructs the R-7 Semyorka, the first ICBM, and is later
allowed to use it to launch the first satellite, Sputnik 1, quickly following up with the rushed
Sputnik 2. Meanwhile, von Braun struggles to persuade the US government to allow him to launch
his own satellite - after Sputnik's launch and the failure of the US Navy to launch a Vanguard
satellite, he is finally allowed to launch the first American satellite,Explorer 1. Korolev

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announces that the Americans have evened the score and that they are in a space race which
they intend to win. At the end of the episode we see the silhouettes of two men walking down a
corridor, one appears to be in a space-suit. This could be Yuri Gagarin.

Episode three: Race For Survival (19591961)

Both the Americans and Soviets are planning manned space flight, and we see both sides preparing to do so with
the development of the Vostok programme (USSR) and Project Mercury (USA). As well as basic details about the
capsules and their delivery vehicles, we also see some of the selection and training of the Russian cosmonauts,
and rather less of that of their counterparts in the US. After difficulties and failures on both sides, including a
side story about a catastrophic failure of one of the first Russian ballistic missiles, the Soviets succeed in putting
Yuri Gagarin into space first, with the Americans putting Alan Shepard up shortly afterwards.

Episode four: Race For The Moon (19641969)

Both sides now plan to put a man on the Moon - the Americans pull ahead in the space race with Project Gemini,
but then suffer a disaster with the Apollo 1 fire. Meanwhile, despite a few notable successes such as the first
space walk by Alexei Leonov, the Soviet space programme struggles to keep up amid internal strife. Glushko and
Korolev permanently fall out in an argument about fuel; Korolev turns to Nikolai Kuznetsov to develop engines
instead. Kuznetsov delivers the NK-33, very efficient but much less powerful than the Americans' F-1. The Soviet
program suffers further blows when Korolev dies during surgery, Gagarin dies in a jet crash, Soyuz 1 crashes
and kills Vladimir Komarov, and the prototype booster for the moon shot, the N-1 rocket, fails to successfully
launch. In America, von Braun has continuing difficulties with the Saturn V, especially combustion instability in
the large F-1 engine, but these are ultimately overcome almost by brute force at great expense, and the rocket
successfully launches the first manned lunar mission, Apollo 8, and the first manned lunar landing, Apollo 11.
The final episode finishes with brief textual summaries of the remaining careers of the various people involved.

3. 13 Days (cuban missile crisis movie)

In the early days of October 1962, U.S. spy planes photograph the impending
installation of Soviet missile sites in Cuba. While there is widespread
agreement that the missiles must not be allowed, there is no clear way to
ensure that. The military feels that their destruction followed by the invasion
of Cuba is likely the only option. President Kennedy realizes however that to
do so, would lead the Soviet Union to invade West Berlin with the result being
an all out war. He pushes his subordinates, coordinated by brother Bobby, to
come up with an alternative solution. Secretary of Defence Robert McNamara
proposes a naval blockade of Cuba which the U.S. initiates with the backing
of the Organization of American States. Throughout the 13 day crisis, the
President and his inner circle struggle to rein those who would take unilateral
action and through back channels, tries to communicate with the Soviet
leadership and provide them with a face-saving solution to their mutual
dilemma.

4. Fatman and Lil jon and the eastside boyz (click

on name for a better summary)
In September 1943, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers General Leslie Groves (Paul Newman) who oversaw
construction of the Pentagon is assigned to head the ultra-secret Manhattan Project, to beat the Germans in
building an atomic bomb.

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Groves picks University of California, Berkeley physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer (Dwight Schultz) to head the team
of the project. Oppenheimer was familiar with northern New Mexico from his boyhood days when his family owned
a cabin in the area. For the new research facility, he selects a remote location on top of a mesa adjacent to a valley
called Los Alamos Canyon, northwest of Santa Fe.
The different personalities of the military man Groves and the scientist Oppenheimer often clash in keeping the
project on track. Oppenheimer in turn clashes with the other scientists, who debate whether their personal
consciences should enter into the project or whether they should remain purely researchers without personal
feelings.
Nurse Kathleen Robinson (Laura Dern) and the young physicist Michael Merriman (John Cusack) question what
they are doing. Working with little protection from radiation during an experiment, Michael drops a radioactive
component during an experiment dubbed Tickling the Dragon's Tail and retrieves it by hand in order to avoid
disaster, but is exposed to a terminal dose of radiation. In the base hospital nurse Kathleen can only watch as he
develops massive swelling and deformation before dying a miserable death days later.
While the technical problems are being solved, military investigations are undertaken in order to thwart foreign
espionage, especially from 'communist sympathizers' who might be associated with socialist organizations. The
snooping reveals that Oppenheimer has had a young mistress, Jean Tatlock (Natasha Richardson), and he is ordered
by the military to stop seeing her. After he breaks off their relationship without being able to reveal the secret
reasons why, she is unable to cope with the heartache and is later found dead.
As the project continues in multiple sites across America, technical problems and delays cause tensions and strife.
To avoid a single-point-of-failure plan, two separate bomb designs are implemented: a large, heavy plutonium bomb
imploded using shaped charges ("Fat Man"), and an alternate design for a thin, less heavy uranium bomb triggered
in a shotgun design ("Little Boy"). The bomb development culminates in a live detonation in south-central New
Mexico at the Trinity Site in the Alamogordo Desert (05:29:45 on July 16, 1945), where everyone watches in awe at
the spectacle of the first mushroom cloud with roaring winds, miles away.
During Oppenheimer's victory parade through the base camp, Klaus Fuchs can be seen in the background watching
Oppenheimer pass.
In the end, both bombs, Fat Man and Little Boy, were successful.

5. From the Earth to the moon : Spider

The Spider episode of From the Earth to the Moon catalogues the development of the
Lunar Excursion Module (LEM), that was used to land on and take off from the moon. The
concept of a Lunar Orbit Rendezvous is first thought of by an engineer named Tom Dolan. This
concept serves as a weight saving alternative to an Earth Orbit Rendezvous since the module for
the moon would only need to perform an exit launch back to the moons orbit, instead of going all
the way back to the earths orbit. While his idea was initially rejected, a NASA engineer named
John Houboult picked up on the idea, and fought to have it considered by the project management.
The idea is eventually accepted, and the Grumman Aircraft company is chosen as the contract
recipient. The original concept for the lunar lander goes through several iterations of weight
saving modifications. The first 3 iterations were much larger, and included features like large bay
windows and circular hatches. The windows were drastically reduced in size (glass weighs a lot),
and the hatches were changed to square shapes to accommodate the astronaut backpacks. The
show demonstrates the remaining modifications and challenges, up until the module was
successfully tested in the missions Apollo 8 and 9. The First LM to be tested in space was named
the Spider, the first to land on the moon was named the Eagle.

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Von Braun was resistant to a non-EOR configuration, because most alternatives involved massive
fuel costs, either because of the number of trips involved or because of the payload per launch.
Lunar Orbit Rendezvous was also challenges initially due to the uncertainties surrounding lunar
gravity fields.
Saturn IV was a large liquid hydrogen/LOX rocket stage used in early Apollo test flights. The
Saturn V was the final human rated rocket used in all main Apollo missions.
It took some time to troubleshoot and fine tune the LH2 engines, and the process ended up being
long and very costly.
A free return trajectory is a trajectory of a spacecraft moving away from a primary body where the
gravity due to a secondary body causes the craft to return to the primary body without any need
for propulsion.

C. People:
1. Ohain: German Engineer, Designed the first
operational Jet engine simultaneously with Whittle. But did not work
together. Used centrifugal compressor
2. Whittle: Invented the Turbojet (jet) engine
simultaneously with Ohain. Used Axial compressor
3. Von Braun aka Mac Daddy of rocket science:
Ex-Nazi German rocket scientist turned American badass. Designed the V2, Saturn V. etc.
4. Korolev: was the lead Soviet rocket engineer and spacecraft
designer in the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union during the
1950s and 1960s. He is considered by many as the father of practical astronautics.Made
the R7 and N1.
a) Mishin: Mishin was a Soviet rocket
scientist and one of the first Soviet specialists to see Nazi Germanys V-2
facilities at the end of World War II. He worked with Sergey Korolev as his
deputy in the development of the first Soviet ICBM as well in the Sputnik and
Vostok programs.Mishin was a very competent engineer who had served as
Korolev's deputy and right-hand man.

b) Glushko: USSR rocket designer of

R7 engines. Denounced Korolev who sent him to the Gulag. USSR
premier propulsion scientist who designed the RD-1, first Russian
liquid propellant engine, and the ED-140 for the R-7.
c) Kuznetsov: Russian chief
designer. Chief Designer and General Designer 19491994 When Glushko refused to design cryogenic
rockets to Korolev's specifications for the R-9 and N1
rockets, Korolev turned to Kuznetsov. Designed the
NK33 and Nk43 engine. Engines are still used today.
5. Oppenheimer (lil boy) American Physicist:
one of the Father(s) of the Atomic bomb. worked on the Manhattan
Project. Became chief of U.S. Atomic Energy Commision and attempted to
lobby for international control of nuclear power to prevent atomic war.
6. General Groves (fatman) U.S. Army General:
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directed the Manhattan Project. Characteristically opposite of J.R.

Oppenheimer.
7. Leo Szilard- Hungarian-American physicist:
He invented the nuclear chain reaction in 1933, and patented the idea of a
nuclear reactor with Enrico Fermi. Drafted secret letter to FDR,
explaining possibility of nuclear weapons, and warning of the Nazis work
on nukes. Convinced Einstein to sign letter to add credibility to idea. The
letter resulted in the U.S. government beginning research in nuclear
fission and the Manhattan Project. Szilard often argued with General
Fatman Groves, and feared the military is taking control of research.
Szilard petitioned to use atomic bomb as show of force to scare Japan
into surrender.
8. Enrico Fermi:
one of the father(s) of the atomic bomb. held several patents for
nuclear power, won Nobel Prize in physics for work on induced
radioactivity by neutron bombardment. Fermi worked on the Manhattan
Project, but believed the human toll from the bombs would be too large.
9. Heisenberg (-> D20): Heisenberg was awarded
the Nobel Prize in Physics for 1932 "for the creation of quantum
mechanics".
10. Vasili Arkhipov- Soviet Navy Officer:
Prevented the launch of a nuclear torpedo during the Cuban Missile Crisis,
thereby preventing a nuclear war. Arkhipov argued against the other two
officers onboard, which prevented the torpedo launch.
11. Krushchev (sausages):
Led Soviet Union during the Cold War. Backed the early Soviet space
program. Claimed to produce missiles like sausages.
12. Curtis LeMay:
USAF General. During the Cuban Missile Crisis, he clashed with JFK and
Defense Secretary McNamara. He wanted to bomb the nuclear missile
sites in Cuba, as well as wanting to invade Cuba even after the Russians
agreed to withdraw its missiles. LeMay called the peaceful resolution the
greatest defeat in our history.
13. ODonnell ( why did he drink himself to death):
JFKs chief of staff. After the assassination of his 2 best friends he was
driven to higher levels of alcoholism and was hospitalized 9/11/77 for a
gastrointestinal ailment caused by his alcohol abuse, he died 10/9/77 a few
months after his wife died.
14. Jack parsons suicide squad:
American rocket propulsion researcher. Along with Edward Forman and
Frank Malina, they founded the GALCIT (Guggenheim Aeronautical
Laboratory- Caltech) Rocket Research group. They experimented a liquid
propellant rocket motor. Arnold and Tsien joined GALCIT rocket research,
and became known as the suicide squad. They got that nickname from a
1937 test misfire where a nitrogen dioxide/ alcohol cloud caused a thin
layer of rust on all the lab equipment. They were commissioned by the
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VIII.

National Academy of Science Committee on Army Air Corps research

expressed interest in JATO. (Jet assisted takeoff). The Suicide Squad
received a gov contract to use rockets to boost propeller aircraft
performance. Eventually founded Aerojet and Jet Propulsion Laboratory
(NASA research lab)
15. Nedelin: Was a soviet officer who didnt care about
sending shit to other planets. He just wanted missiles. Also died in the
Nedelin disaster.
16. Tom Kelly: Head of the grumman design team for
the lunar module. He kept throwing tennis balls on the side of the wall.
17. Tom Dolan : He was the first engineer to be first
think of the lunar orbit rendezvous.
18. John Houboult :Was a NASA engineer who picked
this idea (LOR)^^^^^^ and defended it.
Constants for various equations in SI and English

English units
g_c = 32.174 in english units
g_0 = 32.2 ft/s^2 in english (gravity)
g_0 =386.4 in/s^2 in english (gravity)
g_0= .0000000039 in/micros^2
g_0= 0.00609848485 miles/(1/3600)hr^2
SI Units
g_c = 1 in SI units
g_0 = 9.81 m/s^2 in SI (gravity)
R = 287 in SI
Drake Equation

N = the number of civilizations in our galaxy with which radio-communication might be possible (i.e. which are
on our current past light cone)
R* = the average rate of star formation in our galaxy
fp = the fraction of those stars that have planets

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ne = the average number of planets that can potentially support life per star that has planets
fl = the fraction of planets that could support life that actually develop life at some point
fi = the fraction of planets with life that actually go on to develop intelligent life (civilizations)
fc = the fraction of civilizations that develop a technology that releases detectable signs of their existence into
space
L = the length of time for which such civilizations release detectable signals into space [8]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drake_equation

Rare Earth Equation

N* is the number of stars in the Milky Way. This number is not well-estimated, because
the Milky Way's mass is not well estimated. Moreover, there is little information about the number of
very small stars. N* is at least 100 billion, and may be as high as 500 billion, if there are many low
visibility stars.

is the average number of planets in a star's habitable zone. This zone is fairly
narrow, because constrained by the requirement that the average planetary temperature be consistent

with water remaining liquid throughout the time required for complex life to evolve. Thus
is a likely upper bound.

We assume

=1

is the fraction of stars in the galactic habitable zone (Ward, Brownlee, and
Gonzalez estimate this factor as 0.1[10]).

is the fraction of stars in the Milky Way with planets.

is the fraction of planets that are rocky ("metallic") rather than gaseous.

is the fraction of habitable planets where microbial life arises. Ward and
Brownlee believe this fraction is unlikely to be small.

is the fraction of planets where complex life evolves. For 80% of the time since
microbial life first appeared on the Earth, there was only bacterial life. Hence Ward and Brownlee

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argue that this fraction may be very small.

is the fraction of the total lifespan of a planet during which complex life is
present. Complex life cannot endure indefinitely, because the energy put out by the sort of star that
allows complex life to emerge gradually rises, and the central star eventually becomes a red giant,
engulfing all planets in the planetary habitable zone. Also, given enough time, a catastrophic extinction
of all complex life becomes ever more likely.

is the fraction of habitable planets with a large moon. If the giant impact theory
of the Moon's origin is correct, this fraction is small.

be large.

is the fraction of planetary systems with large Jovian planets. This fraction could

is the fraction of planets with a sufficiently low number of extinction events.

Ward and Brownlee argue that the low number of such events the Earth has experienced since the
Cambrian explosion may be unusual, in which case this fraction would be small.
The Rare Earth equation, unlike the Drake equation, does not factor the probability that complex life evolves into
intelligent life that discovers technology (Ward and Brownlee are not evolutionary biologists).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rare_Earth_hypothesis

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