Yep. T-shirt sale funded private space program...

rthorvald · Post #1by **rthorvald** » 13.07.2006, 14:00

These guys are going to orbit via airships and balloons. Paid for by T-shirt advertising...:
http://www.jpaerospace.com/

- rthorvald

Telepath · Post #2by **Telepath** » 13.07.2006, 14:17

More like the "edge of space" rather than orbit. :wink:

This is more like upper atmosphere, , don't you think?

To get to orbit, you need to be doing something like 28,000 km/h don't ya?
I somehow doubt their balloons are rated for those kinds of speeds.

"What goes up, must come down." :lol:

rthorvald · Post #3by **rthorvald** » 13.07.2006, 17:08

Telepath wrote:More like the "edge of space" rather than orbit.

I was referring to the "Airship to orbit" banner they show on their homepage, hence the smiley.

They talk about flying an enormous airship to orbit from a sort of aeroport in the upper atmosphere via some sort of electric propulsion... It looks like a boomerang, and is a mile long. I have no idea how feasible that is, but it is definitely thinking out of the box

-rthorvald :mrgreen:

Telepath · Post #4by **Telepath** » 13.07.2006, 19:06

rthorvald wrote:
Telepath wrote:More like the "edge of space" rather than orbit.
I was referring to the "Airship to orbit" banner they show on their homepage, hence the smiley.

They talk about flying an enormous airship to orbit from a sort of aeroport in the upper atmosphere via some sort of electric propulsion... It looks like a boomerang, and is a mile long. I have no idea how feasible that is, but it is definitely thinking out of the box

-rthorvald

I think the idea is that the airship is designed to transport a rocket to the upper atmosphere and then act as a launch platform. EDIT: After reading more I see I was wrong: they DO plan to do all stages with airships !!!

Good luck to them! :lol: