US to launch secret 'space warplane'
Mon, 19 Apr 2010 23:33:02 GMT
An artist's conception of the X-37The United States Air Force has announced that it will launch a secret space plane that has sparked speculation about the militarization of space.
The Pentagon has set April 21 as the date for the launch of the robotic space plane known as the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV), which is a reusable unmanned plane capable of long outer space missions at low orbits.
Since the nature of the project is shrouded in mystery, defense analysts allege that the US military is building the first generation of US 'space Predator drones' that will build up the United States' space armada, the Christian Science Monitor wrote in a recent article.
Military experts argue that the US Department of Defense would not have saved NASA's costly X-37B project, which had been scrapped, if it did not have a military application.
They say the US wants to maintain a leading role in space via the development of the new 'space weapon' at a time when other countries like China are expanding their space programs.
However, US military officials maintain that the X-37B will only be used for transporting payloads and facilitating space experiments.
The OTV is capable of supporting a range of tests, the Air Force spokesperson for the project said earlier at the 26th National Space Symposium.
"The first mission will emphasize proving technologies necessary for long duration reusable space vehicles with autonomous reentry and landing capabilities," Angie Blair added.
She went on to say that the "specific details of the OTV capabilities, limitations and vulnerabilities" remain classified.
The X-37B can stay at an orbit between 200 and 800 kilometers for around 270 days before landing automatically at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, reports say.
The location of the mission control center for the Boeing-made space vehicle is also a classified secret, but Blair says that Air Force Space Command's 3rd Space Experimentation Squadron (AFSPC) will run the operation.
Military space specialist Professor Roger Handberg, who is the chair of the Department of Political Science at the University of Central Florida in Orlando, told Space.com that the X-37B project may signify continued U.S. Air Force interest in a rapid response vehicle along the lines of the long-proposed space maneuver vehicle.
He added that the project could be viewed "as the logical extension of the push into unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) where vehicles used for observation have moved into weapon carriers and various other missions, many classified."
"From the perspective of international observers, especially in space-aspiring states such as China, the X-37B program just reinforces their view that the U.S. is pushing to gain first mover advantage in rapid response, including possible weaponization of space using this vehicle or a derivative," Handberg noted.
Political analysts say that the X-37B project could be interpreted as a violation of the Outer Space Treaty of 1967 if the space plane is used for military purposes.
The Outer Space Treaty of 1967, officially known as the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, states that the exploration and use of outer space shall be carried out for the benefit and in the interests of all countries and shall be the province of all mankind; states shall not place nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction in orbit or on celestial bodies or station them in outer space in any other manner; the Moon and other celestial bodies shall be used exclusively for peaceful purposes; astronauts shall be regarded as the envoys of mankind; states shall be liable for damage caused by their space objects; and states shall avoid harmful contamination of space and celestial bodies.
Article IX of the Outer Space Treaty states: "A State Party to the Treaty which has reason to believe that an activity or experiment planned by another State Party in outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, would cause potentially harmful interference with activities in the peaceful exploration and use of outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, may request consultation concerning the activity or experiment."
In addition, a proposal has been put forward for a Space Preservation Treaty that would ban all space weapons, but no country has signed the treaty so far.
GHN/HGL
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=123813§ionid=3510203
美下周發射太空飛機 2小時飛抵地球任何地點
2010年04月19日08:58
美國X-37B太空飛機擬4月發射測試北京時間4月17日消息，據美國《大眾機械》雜志報道，美國空軍准備在下周發射太空飛機X-37B，與此同時，美國海軍陸戰隊也在加緊活動四處游說，希望早日擁有自己的太空作戰平台。
兩小時到達世界任何角落
2002年，當美海軍陸戰隊中校羅斯福-拉方坦特(Roosevelt Lafontant)最早提出研制適於海軍陸戰隊使用的太空飛機的構想時，質疑者甚至不能自已，當場笑出聲來。如今，隨著“作戰概念”(CONOPS，即提出如何使用特定武器系統的正式軍事文件)以及已經完成、但尚未公布的五角大樓相關技術路線圖浮出水面，人們開始注意到“小分隊太空運輸和插入”(簡稱SUSTAIN)這一海軍陸戰隊太空飛機概念。
現供職於美國軍事技術咨詢機構——謝弗公司(Schafer Corporation)的拉方坦特說：“后來，質疑聲減少，人們開始談論這一概念，再后來，他們的態度變得嚴肅起來。最終，我們確定了作戰概念﹔質疑者再也笑不出來了，人們開始激烈討論該計劃在技術上的可行性。”經過數十年屢遭失敗的研制工作，美國軍用太空飛機終於贏得一些尊重。美空軍計劃在4月19日發射X-37B太空飛機。
X-37B是一款無人駕駛太空飛機，在自動著陸前將繞地球飛行數圈(具體圈數屬機密)。彈出式偵察平台的構想是美空軍太空飛機計劃的基本組成部分。美海軍陸戰隊的太空飛機旨在將這支部隊的口號“先發制人”(first to fight)發揮至極致：這種作戰平台可以在兩小時內將海軍陸戰隊隊員運往世界任何地方，並在完成任務后再將他們送到安全地點。
素有推動革命性構想傳統
雖然海軍陸戰隊的目標頗具吸引力——想象一下，裝備精良的海軍陸戰隊隊員以高超音速的速度被運往“基地”組織頭目本-拉登的藏身地或遭到團團圍困的美國駐外使館——但這一概念最早提出時，許多人聽上去覺得很奇怪。或許，與將海軍陸戰隊隊員送上太空同樣奇怪的是，海軍陸戰隊成功推動一款看似不可能的先進飛機並非首次。
例如，海軍陸戰隊提出的V-22“魚鷹”傾轉旋翼飛機雖遭到質疑者的堅決反對，即便時任美國國防部長的迪克-切尼也試圖取消這個項目，但它仍幸存下來。V-22“魚鷹”傾轉旋翼飛機能像直升機一樣起飛，能像固定翼飛機一樣降落。海軍陸戰隊太空飛機概念類似V-22“魚鷹”傾轉旋翼飛機，一直由熱心支持者積極推動，盡管從始至終未獲上級部門的全力支持。
海軍陸戰隊科學技術顧問弗朗茲-蓋爾(Franz Gayl)是拉方坦特以外，太空飛機概念的另一位推動者。雖說這不屬於他管轄的范圍，蓋爾仍將所有業余時間用來推動實現這一概念。功夫不負有心人。五角大樓國家太空安全辦公室(NSSO)目前正在對太空飛機路線圖做最后的評審。SUSTAIN計劃與波音建造的X-37B太空飛機有一些相似之處，不過前者主要吸引“新太空”公司的參與。
2009年，在國家太空安全辦公室與空軍安全力量中心(Security Forces Center)在得克薩斯州拉克蘭德空軍基地聯合召開的會議上，美國政府官員和私營企業家紛紛提出有助於SUSTAIN開發的新技術。參加會議的XCOR宇航公司首席執行官杰夫-格裡森(Jeff Greason)說：“我們反復討論過各種創意。這是一個有趣的挑戰，我一直在從技術上思考這種太空飛機的工作原理。”
依舊面臨重重障礙
格裡森表示，他們的思路不是將SUSTAIN作為能從事各類任務的單一飛行器，相反，這種作戰平台的性能將遠超XCOR宇航公司的Lynx亞軌道飛行器或其他任何私人太空飛行器。當前一代的私人太空飛機或許能承擔亞軌道任務，但至少在眼下，到達低地軌道(這是SUSTAIN的另一個目標)則超出了它們的能力范圍，即便對最雄心勃勃的私營公司也是如此。
美國縮尺復合體公司(Scaled Composites)創始人伯特-魯坦指出，“太空船一號”和“太空船二號”的飛行速度目前無法達到進入軌道所需的25馬赫。若要達到這一速度，技術人員隻能給兩架私人飛行器綁上助推器，可它們又無法承受重返地球大氣層時產生的熱負荷。魯坦說：“他們不善於將衛星送入軌道。設計人員或許更善於從零開始。”
由於政府機構的官僚作風，SUSTAIN概念還在這方面面臨重重障礙。五角大樓明確表示，不會給SUSTAIN的開發提供一分錢，甚至沒有給這種太空飛機提出正式標准，而這是任何一個研發計劃獲取經費的重要前提。制訂SUSTAIN太空飛機路線圖的國家太空安全辦公室迄今也未在SUSTAIN概念的正式文件上簽字。然而，對於拉方坦特來說，SUSTAIN計劃走到今天這一步，已經算是不小的成就。
這一計劃可能只是使其他太空飛機加入美空軍X-37B行列的一個跳板。蓋爾表示，SUSTAIN概念醉翁之意不在酒，主要目的不是讓海軍陸戰隊擁有太空飛機，而是開發可重復使用運載火箭。他說：“海軍陸戰隊碰巧成了第一個正式証明這種需要的軍種。特種作戰司令部(SOCOM)和空軍安全力量中心均對此表達了興趣﹔這兩個部門對SUSTAIN概念的應用有著不同的想法。”(孝文)
來源：新浪科技
（責任編輯：趙竹青）
http://scitech.people.com.cn/BIG5/11398316.html
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