Hypersonic-vehicle navigation system from Draper gets nod from Stratolaunch
NewsOctober 15, 2020
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. Engineering firm Draper will design, develop, and deliver a guidance, navigation, and control system for the next-generation Stratolaunch reusable hypersonic flight-test vehicle.
According to company officials, Draper's flight software will be used on the Stratolaunch Talon-A, a fully reusable, autonomous, liquid rocket-powered Mach 6-class (capable of speeds of as much as 4,567 mph) hypersonic vehicle. The Talon-A is aimed at use by the U.S. government agencies -- including the U.S, Department of Defense -- the commercial sector, and academia, which will contract for payload capacity.
Neil Adams, Draper's principal director of space systems, said of the multiyear agreement: "Stratolaunch's vehicles will travel through the Earth's atmosphere at speeds of more than 3,800 miles per hour. Stratolaunch presents an opportunity to put Draper's flight software into a hypersonic flight envelope — one with a slender, low-drag form that can enable sustained maneuvering flight in the atmosphere."
