Photo: Hypersonix Launch Systems
Hypersonic speeds, 3D-printed components, and emissions-free propulsion systems are three major trends in the aerospace industry. Add reusability for increased cost-effectiveness, and you’ve got the recipe for a new-generation spaceplane that’s gearing up to make waves in just a couple of years. And it’s coming from Australia.
Named Delta Velos, the hypersonic spaceplane that’s being developed by the Australian startup Hypersonix Launch Systems is a trailblazer in many ways. It’s a launch vehicle meant to deploy small satellites into low Earth orbit (LEO), which can accelerate to a top speed of Mach 12 and land easily, like an airplane.
It will be powered by four Spartan engines, claiming to be the greenest, most sustainable scramjet engines in the world. They feature a unique 3D-printed structure with a fixed architecture (no moving parts), and they are self-igniting and fuel-efficient, powered only by hydrogen. The Spartan is also fully reusable, which makes it cost-effective.
The Delta Velos vehicle itself will be manufactured using innovative high-temperature composites. The startup has recently launched a collaboration with the prestigious University of Sydney, for developing its groundbreaking components, at the institution’s Sydney Manufacturing Hub. The hub was inaugurated at the end of 2021 and will be developing the spaceplane’s fuselage and launch system, as well as advancing its scramjet engine.
Experts in additive manufacturing will be working with the Hypersonix engineering team to accelerate the Delta Velos project. This hydrogen-powered launch vehicle is expected to have a range of over 1,550 miles (2,500 km), but until then, a prototype version will be built. The Dart AE will be powered by a single Spartan engine and boast a 310-mile (500 km) range.
Hypersonix intends to build several of these prototypes together with the University of Sydney and demonstrate them by 2023.
It will take a while for the Aussie Delta Velos to take-off but when it does, it will surely make an impression.
It will be powered by four Spartan engines, claiming to be the greenest, most sustainable scramjet engines in the world. They feature a unique 3D-printed structure with a fixed architecture (no moving parts), and they are self-igniting and fuel-efficient, powered only by hydrogen. The Spartan is also fully reusable, which makes it cost-effective.
The Delta Velos vehicle itself will be manufactured using innovative high-temperature composites. The startup has recently launched a collaboration with the prestigious University of Sydney, for developing its groundbreaking components, at the institution’s Sydney Manufacturing Hub. The hub was inaugurated at the end of 2021 and will be developing the spaceplane’s fuselage and launch system, as well as advancing its scramjet engine.
Experts in additive manufacturing will be working with the Hypersonix engineering team to accelerate the Delta Velos project. This hydrogen-powered launch vehicle is expected to have a range of over 1,550 miles (2,500 km), but until then, a prototype version will be built. The Dart AE will be powered by a single Spartan engine and boast a 310-mile (500 km) range.
Hypersonix intends to build several of these prototypes together with the University of Sydney and demonstrate them by 2023.
It will take a while for the Aussie Delta Velos to take-off but when it does, it will surely make an impression.
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