Junkers RT-8 (Saenger I) Rail Launched Space Plane

Junkers RT-8 (Saenger I)
RT-8 Sled Launch:
Launch System: Sled-launched two-stage space plane
Sled Propulsion: Steam rocket
Launch Distance: 3 kilometers
Stage Separation: At 30km altitude
First Stage:
Power: Three airbreathing LH2 engines
Power Output: 150 tons at sea level
Stage Length: 80 meters
Wing Span: 40 meters (shoulder-mounted delta wing)
Stage Separation and Second Stage:
Separation Altitude: 30km
Second Stage Propulsion: Single Lox/LH2 engine
Second Stage Options:
Manned: Capable of carrying two astronauts (HORUS - Hypersonic Orbital Upper Stage)
Cargo: Unmanned cargo ship (CARGUS) without wings for a return trip
Second Stage (HORUS/CARGUS):
Length: 31 meters
Wing Span (Orbiter): 12 meters (low-mounted delta wing)
This craft was an ambitious early space shuttle design with innovative sled-launch technology, multiple stages for different purposes (manned, unmanned, cargo), and hybrid propulsion systems. The two-stage design allowed for versatility in missions, either for reaching orbit or suborbital flights, demonstrating the adaptability of its components for various space missions.

[@saschay2k]

Just "Ende" is more usual than "Das Ende" ... just in case you want to change this! Great Video!

[@tobiasfunke8990]

That moment when the sled goes past the camera on the ground got a certain Thunderbirds feel to it. :p

[@LDTV22OfficialChannel]

Actually, it's XL-5.

[@verum.est.sine.mendacio]

Your tireless hard work evokes sincere admiration! :)

[@thomasafb]

nice touch at the end (although it would just be ENDE in a German movie). I was under the impression that the names Horus and Cargus were only introduced in the 1980s when MBB proposed their Sänger II concept

[@BPJJohn]

Endut! Hoch Hech!

[@magnemoe1]

Agree, now Von Braun and the others in the 1930's, did not really see the most of the problems. So even very smart people get the Dunning-Kruger effect if none know much about the subject.

[@FancyPants43]

I hope Clara made it on board safety, instead of falling into Clayton Ravine. 😁

[@johnhughes2653]

Back in my day, this was called Fireball XL5

[@MultidimensionalBeing124]

FAB anf FJB

[@robinbrowne5419]

Yes it was 😅

[@michaelbruno1666]

Amazingly well done as always. It would be very neat to see a Buran/Falcon Heavy combo!

[@MichaelWinter-ss6lx]

Falcon Heavy too small. 🚀🏴‍☠️

[@randycampbell6307]

@@MichaelWinter-ss6lx Unless he's thinking the Buran "Stack" carries a Falcon Heavy into orbit? :)

[@iain1969]

You guys are SO good! Please never stop and thank you.

[@mcnudde]

I have the article (with the illustrations ) this came from: KW Gatland and P Bono, "Towards Ballistic Flight.," Science Journal, December 1967, p. 42

[@_RandomPea]

I don't know what's more impressive, the ability to do the visuals or find something to do a video on! Nice work 🎉

[@willymakeit5172]

Great video. It is reminiscent of Fireball XL-5 I watched at a 10 year old, except that it was a SSTO. Something like this could be made to work if the sled got the first stage going fast enough for RAM jets to lift the booster stage off and accelerate to Mach 5 at a very high altitude so that the orbital stage might only need vacuum engines. Unfortunately I’m no engineer, not super rich, and I’m 71. Oh well, Ad Astra you all.

[@peterweicker77]

These airframes look a little goofy but this is a perfectly sensible, fully reusable architecture. It could be properly investigated with smaller and fully automated flight systems then scaled up if everything shakes out okay.

[@Hurc7495]

im not clear on the advantage of not allowing the first stage to get off the ground!

[@jameswilson5165]

@@Hurc7495 Chooo Choooo Boom!

[@stainlesssteelfox1]

@@Hurc7495 The launch sled makes perfect sense. Firstly, since the sled and it's propulsion system stay on the track, it allows the spacecraft to get up to take-off speed without using any fuel on the first stage. The second reason is that the fully fueled vehicle is heavy, and requires an equally heavy duty undercarriage. Leaving that undercarriage behind on the ground reduces the mass that the first stage has to lift. When it comes back to land, it will have burned most of it's fuel and be only a fraction of it's initial mass, not to mention it is no longer carrying the mass of the orbital second stage. This means it can use much lighter landing gear, saving mass again.

[@randycampbell6307]

An issue is the sled track has to be able to handle something going supersonic, (IIRC this design does) on the ground. It can be done as the US and other nations have them but they are neither cheap nor easy to maintain and use.

[@stainlesssteelfox1]

@@randycampbell6307 Maybe a magnetic linear accelerator to reduce track erosion?

[@elareia]

Nice transition from sepia to color. Looks like the launch site was in Kazakhstan. Amazingly well done.

[@adonaisf]

Another amazing work 👏👏👏👏!!

[@homesimcockpit1954]

Wow! This is great! I mentioned a system like this on your boat launch video. I did not know there was actually plans for something like this. Way cool!

[@Gerhard_Schroeder]

German idea.

[@randycampbell6307]

@@Gerhard_Schroeder Dating from WWII and updated for the 60s :)

[@owenrichards1418]

I love your videos, but my heart aches for the future we could have had if just a few of these ideas you portray were actually built and flown.

[@nigelmoore957]

Remember a while aback there was the sea launch variant with the hydrofoils? How many people still think that was a safer and more efficient concept vs this?

[@PsyllyCymon]

Exceptional conservation of momentum!

[@urdrighten3489]

The German version of "Fireball XL-5" ! Very nice CGI.

[@gaelgauth8470]

With the capabilities of the time this would've been... Challenging but this seems much more feasible today. Wonder how much economical sense would it make compared to emerging rocket designs.

[@thisisnotajoke]

That was amazing! (The credits at the end where the icing on the cake ;))

[@andrew32155]

Ok.. hear me out, we build a rail line around Earth at the Equator. Full 360° so you can start/launch anywhere on the track, and hit any launch window you want. Pylons or floats & anchors as appropriate for the ocean parts. Maximizing equatorial rotation, and accelerating the train to 12.5 km/s so there's actually "upwards/outwards" lift from conservation of angular momentum when the booster is released. A series of hypersonic jet engines move the atmosphere eastward along the track over land, while artificial hurricane eye-walls created by cloud seeding move it along the ocean parts of the track.

[@michaelbruno1666]

I don't think anything could withstand the heat friction at 12.5 km/s created by steel in contact or ground atltitude atmospheric density unless in a vacuum tube and megnetic levitation is used.

[@robertevans6481]

Man that was one kick in the pants.....yes sign me up

[@superhakujin]

Nice anthem; they're _literally_ "über alles in der Welt" at that point!

[@zhengliheng]

Fuehrer is happy with this idea.

[@quitegonejim1125]

A bit more efficient than the hydrofoil!!!

[@RwingDsquad]

Big fan of what you do. Big fan.

[@Phase52012]

Ya! Fireball XL5 launch!

[@atptourfan]

I love your work!!

[@brettteeter3461]

Just awesome, as always!

[@MrSVAn777]

А без затрат на железную дорогу - никак? Просто с аэродрома? Фантазии... Картинки.. Красиво.

[@awddwa6544]

Great as always!

[@joansparky4439]

absolutely brilliant 🤣😂🥰

[@centaur1a]

Remember this type of rocket theory in high school books (way before computer punch cards) the German would use skipping in the atmosphere to get to America. Plus they knew they didn’t have the fuel or couldn’t build a runway long enough near shorelines or the enemy would blow up the project. Go ahead several years after the war. Armstrong would use the concept in the X-15 and arrive in Los Angeles, calif., in couple, less than the fastest commercial plane at the time.

[@chifurbr]

surprisingly simple for a german design

[@GerDik-df2gm]

Ganz toll!

[@robestey5628]

Very cool. Thank you

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

Great video...👍

[@morgan1719]

If NASA could have made a space shuttle concept video like this, they would have got 10x more funding

[@topsecret1837]

Why is there still engine sound after Max Q and it leaving the upper atmosphere, and more importantly at MECO?

[@pewterhacker]

Please do the horizontal launch system depicted in Isaac Arthur's Interplanetary Infrastructure video!

[@petersullivan5240]

Reminds me of the German WW2 "Silver Bird" hypersonic bomber.

[@MichaelWinter-ss6lx]

WTF!? During WWII, Germoney made the first jet fighter, Me262. That was not super sonic. Sound barrier was broken in 1947 with a rocket jet, X-1. 🚀🏴‍☠️

[@loungingabout9134]

@@MichaelWinter-ss6lx I think the Silbervogel "Silver Bird" hypersonic bomber was a concept designed by the Nazis during WW2. Perhaps a prototype was built however, I'm unsure.

[@petersullivan5240]

No vehicle was ever made.

[@randycampbell6307]

@@MichaelWinter-ss6lx The "Silver Bird" proposed sub-orbital bomber was researched and proposed by Eugen Sanger during WWII but (for rather obvious reasons) never built though they did do some testing of a high power engine proposed for the sled. This is an update of that design for the 60s.

[@Calilasseia]

So the Germans planned to build a real Fireball XL5? This would have been spectacular to watch on launch ...

[@andreaskoehler1167]

Cool

[@ccruler]

That landing sequence is a bit concerning. It demonstrated its instability with it looking like it could have easily lost control at some point with a quick rotation.

[@narconecr]

Germans fantastic unreacheble dreams. (:

[@railworksamerica]

cool

[@ZONNIEMcLean]

Wow

[@SimonEkendahl]

What talk is this? I want to see the whole thing!!

[@jameswilson5165]

Great! Now, do a remake of the takeoff scene in the old movie When Worlds Collide.

[@ptonpc]

If only!

[@damianousley8833]

No heat shield it would burn up upon reentry to Earth's atmosphere. The natonal anthem was being played at the astronauts funeral service.

[@fredamber8238]

Ende. The article "das" is not used in this case.

[@unusualsalesforce]

Is it real?

[@PeterBacon]

I wonder if we'll ever see maglev rockets in our lifetime.

[@codybaker7100]

That’s a really interesting idea. I wonder why it never materialized?

[@Madhuntr]

I wouldnt be surprised if germany just thought it not feasable at the time since you ahve to invest millions into a space program. And germany wasnt economically the best after the wars and also over the following decades.

[@enisra_bowman]

@@Madhuntr well, more the same Reason the Sowjet Moon Project failed: Sänger died 1964 and the Project with him

[@ollllj]

rockets ideally go up near vertically till the air friction is thinner. all else is way too inefficient. you do not just push a heavy train in front of a fast rocket on a rail. the rocket belongs under the plane. you do not launch reusable shuttles from the ground, unless you want to steal/capture military satellites in a cargo bay, because reusable shuttles (and rocket engines) are ridiculously inefficient. every launch is at least 1 non reusable stage for efficiency.

[@ptonpc]

In short, it was funded as part of a study by West Germany. The funding dried up in 1966. There were a couple of other attempts by Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm , but the project was stopped 1994 before a prototype was made. Source: hugojunkers_bplaced_ net (replace the _ with . ) or search for Junkers GmbH RT (Space Transporter, Saenger) - bplaced

[@randycampbell6307]

Cost mostly and the lack of a lot of the requirements. Germany in the 60s had a very constrained rocket industry and had issues keeping up with the Europa launcher let alone this. Also a distinct lack of large deserts to build in. The two 'major' players in Europe at the time were Britain and France and they both had ideas of their own they wanted to pursue.

[@ПурумПумпум-л5ф]

😊Danke!😊

[@msb7113]

Mais uns anitos e chegam lá.....

[@emmanuelgarcia2870]

👏

[@59day19]

silbervogel be like:

[@spitfirekid1]

😍

[@Estes705]

I'd kinda have a problem flying in a rocket called a "Junker". #JustSaying

[@cskandrsgyrgy]

RAUMFAHRZEUG-KONZEPTENTWICKLUNG!

[@g.f.martianshipyards9328]

To be honest, Raumfahrzeugkonzeptentwicklung would be better.

[@EuripedesBarsanulfo-r4g]

Ou leva eu👍💰

[@EkeneObiesie]

I feel like this is a space plane a developing country would attempt as a low cost space program to get human into space

[@mgoo5713]

👍

[@davidcastle7212]

Cute

[@williamdeferiaarmada2854]

eso no sube si aterida no despega ya mas

[@TMorgan-j1j]

Goodbye NYC 😅

[@416dl]

Ach du lieber!

[@maurizioscanferla7971]

ReichDreams

[@MultidimensionalBeing124]

The fastest thing is a manhole 15000 mph from nuclear test

[@fromnorway643]

15000 mph isn't even orbital speed and far less than escape velocity.

[@MultidimensionalBeing124]

@@fromnorway643 soz 150 thousand

[@fromnorway643]

@@MultidimensionalBeing124 I guess you were referring to this: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Plumbbob#Missing_steel_bore_cap If that steel plate covering the shaft moved as fast as estimated (66 km/sec), it would likely have been vapourised by the frictional heating within a fraction of a second and never made it to space. For comparison, re-entering space shuttles experienced their maximum heating 22 minutes before landing when moving at *_one tenth_* of that steel plate's speed at 70 km altitude where the atmospheric density is only 1/16,000 of that at sea level.

[@MultidimensionalBeing124]

FAB anf FJB

[@ollllj]

Main issue here is that the rocket pushes something heavy in front of it on a rail very fast.

[@MichaelWinter-ss6lx]

It is possible. Railrockets are an old achievement. 🚀🏴‍☠️

[@randycampbell6307]

Great, now I can't 'unsee' about half way down the track a giant "Achievement Unlocked" springing up... thanks :)

[@gexagen5168]

...ХМ...СТАРТЫлёгкихРеактивныхШАТЛОВсУправляемыхГЕЛИЙ-ВОДОРОДНО-ДЕРИЖАБЕЛЬНЫХстратосферныхПлатформПОКАЖИТЕ МНЕ...-тогдаЯбудуДумать-штоЕСТЬешшоЗачаткиЗДРАВАМꙎІСЛИѨздесь иСегодня...

[@AtomcFish]

Успокойся

[@alexeyn4748]

😂

[@UNKNOWN-mb2om]

First view...plzz pin❤

[@LegateMalpais]

Looks literally NOTHING like Sänger's space plane.

[@RadioNostalgia]

😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@ajds]

The landing sequence was amazing

[@FastSloth87]

That anthem man, I miss Schumacher era F1 so much!

[@simongeard4824]

I was thinking the same... recognised the music instantly, having heard it so often during the late 90's...

[@matveyglazachev4276]

Please, could you make an animation for german WW2 Silbervogel (eng. "Silver bird") semi-orbital bomber design? It was really inspirational for many engineers later, Soviet complex "Spiral" (rus. Спираль), American legendary Dyna-Soar X-20 and also for german post-war Zinger co. project, which is actually was kinda rebieth of Eugen Sänger's original project.

[@ryomichael]

(Deleted comment about the "orbital stage landing") An odd mix of "perfectly sensible" and batshit insane. The ending graphics, as it changes to a grainy, grey, streaked 75-year-old-looking Film effect betrays the type of fever dream this seems to be coming from.

[@randycampbell6307]

??? Didn't see that. The orbital stage appears to keep the same orientation from launch to orbit. Note the stage we see landing is NOT the orbital stage, (or at least doesn't look like it) but the booster stage. (No actual reason to change the orbital vehicle's wing configuration from low to high)

[@ryomichael]

Ah! You are right! I just got caught up in the visuals of the orbital stage with the payload bay doors open (and the bay empty) that I thought (of course the booster stage must've landed before that).

[@retrofan42]

One of the first drawings for a "shuttle/spaceplane" I saw in Frontiers of Space (By Bono and Gatland). Y'all did a great job with this. I have to ask if that is a real word at the bottom of the ending (or one of those exaggerated German phrases).

[@g.f.martianshipyards9328]

Actually those are two words at the bottom, but you could combine them into a single word and it would be perfectly viable. Actually I would do it that way.

[@randycampbell6307]

Several thing in some vague order: 1) Wonderful as always... You do realize that you now have to do the Astrorocket concept right? :) 2) Challenge to the community: Can we synch this up with "Flight of the Silverbird" by Two Steps From Hell? (Please? :) ) 3) Speaking of the Astrorocket the 'boost' has the same wing configuration but I never really understood how it reentered given that high mounted wings would create heat traps during reentry? I saw somewhere that it might be that the Astrorocket booster flipped onto it's back to reenter even though I'd think that was a really uncomfortable way for the astronauts to take. Again great stuff and thanks!

[@bat2293]

Another epic documentary film from Hazegrayart Lrd. BRAVO!

[@Einwetok]

Love the STOL landing, (or was it stall?)

[@Matthew_3WWWChannel]

Nice animation

[@N0GraviT]

Aerospace engineers resisting the urge to gain maybe 1% extra payload mass to orbit by making the design overcomplicated and economically infeasible (impossible)

[@WilliamDye-willdye]

If you really want to save fuel at the start, have the sled begin at the top of a hill.

[@ПурумПумпум-л5ф]

Everything ingenious is simple!

[@montigobear]

This video gets the George Pal seal-of-approval!

[@randycampbell6307]

Doesn't really help that much. Using a straight and level track is easier and safer.

[@jantjarks7946]

Maybe a slight elevation, but no turns, as that requires structural reinforcements adding weight. Besides the turn upwards would be minor, not adding too much stress on the structures.

[@henryharder3823]

Interesting concept , this launch vehicle was supposed to be multiple times reusable , correct ?😊

[@Chris.Davies]

Being a pilot and knowing a little about aerodynamics, I am quite confident the front end of this thing does not generate sufficient lift to fly at any speed. Without canards at the front, it could never ever work, no matter how fast you got it/them to go. This because neither vehicle are lifting bodies of any kind - and that is a fatal flaw in the design. You made it look good - but the design is bad.

[@randycampbell6307]

This was realized which is why it has a very prominent "nose up" attitude on the launch sled, which would cause it's own problems. Sanger II dispensed with the sled for a Mach-6 carrier aircraft and a lifting body orbiter.

[@scorpionbaez]

Hacerlo sobre rieles electromagnético y en pendiente de montaña se ahorran mucha energía inicial de la inercia del despegue

[@Philipwaltho]

Wel this method was considered by Von Bryan in the 60s to get a shuttle into orbit

[@memespeech]

even more silly than hydrofoil launch

[@montigobear]

Silver Bird's grand-kid

[@pricelessppp]

Booze powered space shuttle! 😂

[@boringusername792]

I can't imagine the sled reaching anywhere near the sound barrier. If so it's a lot of effort to give the stack 2-3% of its orbital velocity.

[@JWQweqOPDH]

IIRC supersonic rocket sleds are commonly used for running tests.

[@davisdf3064]

It's hard, but the US military (i think) already made a rocket sled that reaches mach 8. They do it through solid boosters, and sheer brute force.

[@MrHws5mp]

It also simplifies the design of the 2nd stage, relative to a runway take-off, because it's undercarriage doesn't need to support it's full maximum take-off weight or give it a positive angle of attack on the runway. Instead, it can be relatively light (like the STS) and have a short nosewheel, since a nose-down attitude on landing actually helps.

[@iain1969]

From Wikepedia: A world speed record of Mach 8.5 (6,416 mph / 10,325 km/h) was achieved by a four-stage rocket sled at Holloman Air Force Base on April 30, 2003, the highest speed ever attained by a land vehicle

[@randycampbell6307]

As noted it saves a lot on the vehicle itself by not having large and heavy take off gear and offloads your getting up to supersonic speed onto the sled. (Yes the US, Russia and China all have supersonic sled tracks as does a few other nations I think. Expensive to maintain and use but for the purpose worth it. Problem is few of them face the right {east} direction :) )

[@Relayer526-mi4wt]

Fireball XL-5

[@srecko.vladetic]

has du merhver schtojer betzalen no 1🎉😮😢😅😊😂