WHAT IS SPECIAL ABOUT THE X337?

The X-33 is a single-stage-to-orbit reusable launch vehicle designed by NASA. It is currently a sized-down prototype of a new rocket design called the Venturestar, which will be built if the X-33 is successful. The Venturestar will be able to travel into space and back in one piece, without jettisoning any boosters or fuel tanks, and will lower the cost of putting one pound of payload into orbit by more than 90%.

Currently under construction, X-33 is the subscale prototype of the VentureStar single-stage-to-orbit reusable launch vehicle (RLV). The project is a joint effort of NASA and the Lockheed Martin Skunk Works. VentureStar is a potential successor to the Space Shuttle, providing low-cost access to orbit for satellites and humans. The major document on this CD-ROM is our exclusive reproduction of the incredibly detailed Critical Design Review (CDR). It might sound boring, but it isn’t: it contains every imaginable fact and graphic for this exciting project! This is one of the most innovative vehicles in aerospace history, and the CDR provides the full details with thousands of beautiful color cutaway drawings, schematics, and photographs. The illustrations are simply spectacular! Topics covered include: VentureStar Concepts and Systems, Aerospike XRS-2000 Engine and Fluid Systems, Vehicle Systems, Main Propulsion System, Structural, Mechanical Systems, Avionics and ! Software, Thermal Protection System, Flight Control System, Flight Analysis, Facilities, Operations and Ground Systems, Flight Test Program, Launch Site and Launch Pad. In addition, the CD includes up-to-date news and program status reports, a gallery of images, and even a computer-animated movie clip depicting the countdown and launch. As another title in the World Spaceflight News American Space Encyclopedia CD-ROM series, it is truly an authoritative source for spaceflight enthusiasts!

First off the X-33/ Venturestar was a significant scientific achievement. The RLV concept is the basis for our ability as inhabitants of our plant to pursue space exploration efficiently and effectively in the future. NASA has critical information available from the lessons learned on this project. Each contributor to the program pushed the limits of advanced technology as far as humanly possible. This book when reviewed in detail provides documentation crediting human imagination and the shape of things to come. Design, engineering, manufacturing, business management all contributed to the awesome technological capabilities that would stem from this project had it been completed. New materials never considered in the past were placed on this vehicle to prove the technology was space worthy. In the near future we will all benefit from knowledge that can be traced back to the X-33.