Space News by Jeff Foust May 20, 2023
Three U.S. government agencies are undertaking studies to examine the safety issues associated with a new generation of launch vehicles that use liquid oxygen and methane propellants.
At a May 15 meeting of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Group (COMSTAC), FAA officials described efforts that are underway to understand the explosive effects of that propellant combination in the event of a launch accident.
That propellant combination has been used on two launches of American vehicles to date: Relativity Space’s Terran 1 on March 22 and SpaceX’s Starship April 20. It will also be used on engines that will power Relativity’s larger Terran R as well as Blue Origin’s New Glenn, Rocket Lab’s Neutron and United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan Centaur.
Companies are attracted to liquid oxygen (LOX) and methane since it offers a higher specific impulse, a measure of efficiency, and burns cleaner than LOX and kerosene, noted Brian Rushforth, the manager of the innovation division in the FAA’s commercial space transportation office. But, there’s little information about the explosive potential of that propellant combination.
More:
https://spacenews.com/agencies-studying-safety-issues-of-lox-methane-launch-vehicles/
