FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1962
1962 - 0955.PDF
FLIGHT International, 14 June 1962 953 to continue space research in accordance with the programme an nounced by Tass on March 16 this year. In addition, the satellite carries a multi-channel radio telemetric system and radio technical installations to measure the trajectory. The satellite carries a short wave transmitter working on the frequency 20.008Mc/s. "Radio telemetric information received from the satellite shows that all its systems are functioning normally. The co-ordination and computing centre is receiving telemetric information and also data on the receiving of radio signals from the 'Mayak' trans mitter." FRANCE'S SPACE PROGRAMME IN our issue dated November 2, 1961, we discussed the plans of the European Space Research Organization (ESRO), which is envisaged as the principal international organization to co-ordinate European research in this field. ESRO will not concern itself with the development of launch vehicles, which are to be the prerogative of the European Launcher Development Organization (ELDO), which is expected to be formally established today, June 14, at a meeting of ministers and scientific advisers in Paris. It is significant that—as our second leading article last week made clear—the per manent headquarters of ESRO and ELDO will both be located in the French capital. On May 30 official news was given of France's own aspirations in the field of space research, and it is appropriate that in this issue we should attempt to set forth her aims. We say "attempt" ad visedly, for in a matter which so acutely affects French pride and status the strictest security is at present being observed. In the past French rocket experience has been limited to the sort of work which has been accomplished by the United Kingdom: ballistic firings of the Veronique liquid-propellant rocket; the estab lishment of fully instrumented ranges (chiefly for military R&D purposes) at Colomb-Bechar and Hammaguir, Algeria; simple tests of a postal delivery system using a guided rocket vehicle by Soc Latecoere; the development by Sud-Aviation of a related family of upper-atmosphere sounding rockets; and the production of a vast pile of paper, partly describing projected hardware and partly minuting the meetings of numerous committees. But, under Gen de Gaulle's pressure to make the nation great, the future for France in space appears at present to be more dynamic and purposeful than the outlook for Britain. France is adopting a triple-pronged approach. First, she is collaborating with the United States, and has already shared in test firings from Wallops and plans to use American boosters to place her instruments in space. Second, she is one of the principal members of all the European space organizations, and is going to commit herself to bearing 25 per cent of the cost of the projected ELDO three-stage launch vehicle. Third, she is embarking upon a serious and large-scale space research programme of her own; and it is in this last respect that the French scene differs so markedly from that in Britain. As far as co-operation with the US is concerned, this is restricted by American laws to purely non-military undertakings, although obviously any large-scale rocket experience is bound to brush off on to the SEREB team responsible for the design of the French strategic ballistic missile. Next year the first French instruments are scheduled to be launched by NASA, probably from Cape Canaveral or Wallops, and the two nations are also believed to be jointly investigating VLF (very low frequency) satellite communi cation, with a US-equipped station at Lannion, Brittany. Co-operation within the European framework of ELDO is very extensive, and accounts for more than one-third of her current appropriations in the whole space field. France and Britain were partners in promoting the scheme for a "European" three-stage heavy launcher based on Blue Streak as the first stage, and it has always been taken for granted that France will supply the second stage. Originally this second stage was envisaged as a modi fied Veronique, with a single thrust chamber burning UDMH (unsymmetrical dimethyl hydrazine) and nitrogen tetroxide. This design of second stage was illustrated in detail for the first time publicly in this journal's cutaway drawing of the proposed three- stage vehicle last August 17. Now, however, there is considerable doubt that this second stage will materialize. French results with both solid propellants and hybrid solid/liquid rockets (see news-item, page 953) have been very encouraging, and are confirming the belief that the SSBS ballistic missile will not have liquid propulsion. Several unofficial First illustration of Shillelagh, the surface-to-surface guided weapon under development by Ford Motor Company's Aeronutronic Division at Newport Beach, Calif, for the US Army Ordnance Missile Command. Clearly rocket-propelled from a gun-like launcher, the missile has flip- out fins and microwave guidance governing the motor thrust vector reports are now claiming that the French are anxious to put a new, solid-propellant second stage, named Diamant 3, into the ELDO vehicle. For news of the French national programme one must first turn to a debate in the National Assembly in Paris on May 4. The sub ject under discussion was the proposed five-year plan for space research, covering the period 1963-68. Over this period a vote of NF600m (£44m) has been agreed for purely peaceful research into space, while NF770m has been voted for the SSBS missile pro gramme. French space organizations are now being co-ordinated by CNES, the national centre for space studies, established last October. Director of CNES is M Pierre Auger, who is also expected to become the chairman of ESRO (Sir Harrie Massey is president of the preparatory commission charged with establishing ESRO). The Minister for Scientific Affairs is M Gaston Palewski, and it was he who gave the first announcement of France's actual plans for satellite launchings, as noted below. A third government spokes man is M Guillaumat, the Minister for Public Functions. On May 4 M Guillaumat announced categorically that "a French launcher" could place a 2001b payload in Earth orbit, and that France was interested in international co-operation only in order to handle heavier payloads. The first task, he suggested, was to launch a "heavy satellite equipped for astronomical observation." Within seven years it would be possible to launch a "heavy lunar satellite," using a rocket "not yet available." A striking scene at the Edwards AFB rocket test site on May 26 when the Rocketdyne F-l engine was run at full thrust and duration for the first time (see news item overleaf)
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
