Goodyear Meteor Junior
Encyclopedia
The Goodyear Meteor Junior was a 1954 concept for a reusable spacecraft designed by Darrell C. Romick and two of his colleagues employed by Goodyear Aerospace
, a subsidiary of the American Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company
. Darrell Romick originally estimated that the craft would cost about the same as an intercontinental B-52 bomber.
, to be displayed at the annual conference of the American Rocket Society
. The design called for a winged spacecraft piloted by a crew of three. The craft was to contain three stages
, of which only the uppermost, containing the crew, would ultimately be propelled to orbit
around Earth. All three of these stages were to contain landing gear, allowing the stages to glide to a landing to be reused in a future launch.
The craft would have been 142 ft (43.3 m) long, and would weigh 500 tons. The craft itself would have been impractically massive for the time period; however, the design ignited public interest in that it was an early concept for a reusable vehicle to transport crew and cargo to space and back, and was the subject of an article in the December 1957 issue of Popular Science
magazine.
The original concept envisioned the craft launching from the White Sands Missile Range
. At a downrange
distance of 300 mi (482.8 km) and an altitude of 24 mi (38.6 km), the first stage would separate from the craft. At 1000 mi (1,609.3 km) downrange, the second stage would separate at an altitude of 41 mi (66 km). After launch was completed, the third stage/crew compartment would orbit the Earth at an altitude of 500 mi (804.7 km) at a velocity of 16660 miles per hour (7,447.7 m/s), where it would stay for approximately two months before returning to Earth.
Goodyear Aerospace
Goodyear Aerospace Corporation was the aerospace and defense subsidiary of Goodyear.-Early Years:The company began as Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.’s Aeronautics Department and renamed in 1917 as the Goodyear Zeppelin Corporation set up to construct dirigibles for the US military...
, a subsidiary of the American Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company
Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company was founded in 1898 by Frank Seiberling. Goodyear manufactures tires for automobiles, commercial trucks, light trucks, SUVs, race cars, airplanes, farm equipment and heavy earth-mover machinery....
. Darrell Romick originally estimated that the craft would cost about the same as an intercontinental B-52 bomber.
Concept
The concept was introduced in 1954, before the dawn of human spaceflightHuman spaceflight
Human spaceflight is spaceflight with humans on the spacecraft. When a spacecraft is manned, it can be piloted directly, as opposed to machine or robotic space probes and remotely-controlled satellites....
, to be displayed at the annual conference of the American Rocket Society
American Rocket Society
The American Rocket Society began its existence on April 4, 1930, under the name of the American Interplanetary Society. It was founded by science fiction writers G. Edward Pendray, David Lasser, Laurence Manning and others. The members originally conducted their own rocket experiments in New York...
. The design called for a winged spacecraft piloted by a crew of three. The craft was to contain three stages
Multistage rocket
A multistage rocket is a rocket that usestwo or more stages, each of which contains its own engines and propellant. A tandem or serial stage is mounted on top of another stage; a parallel stage is attached alongside another stage. The result is effectively two or more rockets stacked on top of or...
, of which only the uppermost, containing the crew, would ultimately be propelled to orbit
Orbit
In physics, an orbit is the gravitationally curved path of an object around a point in space, for example the orbit of a planet around the center of a star system, such as the Solar System...
around Earth. All three of these stages were to contain landing gear, allowing the stages to glide to a landing to be reused in a future launch.
The craft would have been 142 ft (43.3 m) long, and would weigh 500 tons. The craft itself would have been impractically massive for the time period; however, the design ignited public interest in that it was an early concept for a reusable vehicle to transport crew and cargo to space and back, and was the subject of an article in the December 1957 issue of Popular Science
Popular Science
Popular Science is an American monthly magazine founded in 1872 carrying articles for the general reader on science and technology subjects. Popular Science has won over 58 awards, including the ASME awards for its journalistic excellence in both 2003 and 2004...
magazine.
The original concept envisioned the craft launching from the White Sands Missile Range
White Sands Missile Range
White Sands Missile Range is a rocket range of almost in parts of five counties in southern New Mexico. The largest military installation in the United States, WSMR includes the and the WSMR Otera Mesa bombing range...
. At a downrange
Downrange
Downrange is the horizontal distance traveled by a spacecraft, or the spacecraft's horizontal distance from the launch site. More often, it is used as an adverb or adjective specifying the direction of that travel being measured in a horizontal direction....
distance of 300 mi (482.8 km) and an altitude of 24 mi (38.6 km), the first stage would separate from the craft. At 1000 mi (1,609.3 km) downrange, the second stage would separate at an altitude of 41 mi (66 km). After launch was completed, the third stage/crew compartment would orbit the Earth at an altitude of 500 mi (804.7 km) at a velocity of 16660 miles per hour (7,447.7 m/s), where it would stay for approximately two months before returning to Earth.