How many seconds fly "Petrel" and "Zircon"
Prologue
3 January 2018 of the year, winter storm.
In the murky waters of the Channel, the valuable cargo of the Nikifor Begichev ship is getting wet. The party of anti-aircraft missiles 40H6, designed for C-400 complexes, which are in service with the PRC.
A year later, in February, 2019, the details of the unfortunate incident are becoming known from the words of the head of Rostec, Sergei Chemezov, during a speech at the IDEX-2019 exhibition. A batch of damaged missiles must be destroyed entirely. The missiles will be made anew, and therefore the fulfillment of the “Chinese” contract has been delayed for three years and must now be completed before the end of 2020.
Bad thing, someone else's negligence ... However story with wet rockets it acquires completely unexpected shades, if you look at the situation in a logical way:
1. How could the rockets in hermetic transport and launch containers get wet?
2. For what climatic conditions is the S-400 air defense system designed? How stable is the anti-aircraft complex against precipitation in the form of rain and sleet? Is it possible to use it effectively in conditions different from those of the Atacama desert — the driest place on the planet, where the norm of precipitation does not exceed 50 mm per year.
3. How high are the risks when transporting goods by sea? If any winter storm so easily destroys ultra-protected military equipment, then how is the mass delivery of other, relatively fragile cargoes by sea. Cars, household and computer equipment, production equipment lines?
4. Why did it take rocket shipments from Russia to China across the Atlantic?
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Missiles in a sealed transport and launch container (TLC) can not get wet in the domestic circumstances. This is the purpose of the WPK. Protected to the highest standards "packaging" with a filled, sealed in the factory and ready to launch with a rocket that does not require maintenance for decades. Relatively speaking, a WPK with a rocket can be dipped into a swamp, then removed and used for its intended purpose.
TPK provides the maximum level of protection against all kinds of shocks, vibrations, precipitation, etc., and adverse environmental conditions, inevitable when transporting multi-ton rocket in combat conditions. Including over rough terrain. Such a construction is extremely difficult to crush with the help of incompetence, negligence and improvised means. To do this, you need to hook the TPK with a crane and how to “attach” it to the launcher from a height. Wet the container, just doused it with sea water - this does not fit into the framework of decency. In this case, not one rocket got wet in any defective container, but the entire party.
The extra-long-range anti-aircraft missile 40H6 is a key component of the C-400 system. It is she who should provide the complex with the declared range of interception of 400 km with the possibility of providing missile defense in near space. According to the data presented, the two-stage rocket is capable of reaching a maximum speed of up to 3 kilometers per second in flight, and has a combined aiming at the target, incl. using its own active homing head.
The development and adoption of the 40H6 air defense system was somewhat delayed by 10 years. Last time news Testing this missile sounded in March 2017, when Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced at a conference call about reviewing the results of state tests of “long-range advanced missile defense”. Earlier, in 2012, the commander of the air defense forces-PRO, Major General Andrei Dyomin, reported on the successful tests of the “long-range missile for the C-400”.
Given all the paradoxes and difficulties in the development of 40H6, the strange incident in the English Channel, the strange choice of supply route and the strange consequences of the accident, in which everyone involved pretend that nothing much happened, we can draw a single conclusion. There were no missiles on the ship.
It is possible that the time will come, and my favorites - “Zircon” with “Petrel” - will also “get wet”.
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For months now, passions have been raging around the "hypersonic RCC" and "nuclear-powered cruise missiles." The sensation is that official media at the highest level talked about the readiness to adopt equipment that only a couple of years ago featured in works of science fiction.
Read comments on the latest topics. weapons and you feel that many simply do not represent all the paradoxes and values of this moment. For many, the Zircon and the Petrel are simply the newest rockets that fly faster and farther than their predecessors.
However, these are not just rockets. We have reached a new, revolutionary milestone in the development of science and progress. This happens for the first time in history. two developed countrieswho were still yesterday on the same technical levelthe next morning were separated by an impassable technological abyss. So that yesterday both sides used bows and arrows, and today, some continue to run with bows, while others have a machine gun.
Sorry, some create a subsonic LRASM rocket, and here we have a hypersonic 9-flywheel "Zircon".
The sudden appearance of super technologies raises questions. Simply put, no one imagines how this has become possible.
The emergence of any technology is always preceded by discussions in scientific circles, as well as intermediate results. German "V-2" did not appear on an empty place. The first working sample of the LRE was built by the American R. Goddard in 1926, the legendary GIRD dealt with this topic, and the basis was based on the reactive motion formulas obtained by N. Zhukovsky and K. Tsiolkovsky.
Aviation The Dagger complex is based on the use of ammunition from the proven Iskander OTRK, and air-based ballistic missiles themselves have been known for at least half a century (for example, the Soviet X-15).
The hypersonic glider Avangard is another successful attempt to maneuver at space speeds in the upper atmosphere. Prior to this, there were "Spiral", "BOR", "Buran". Acceleration to speed 27 Makhov using ICBMs also raises no questions. The usual speed of warheads in the over-atmospheric phase of flight.
They often cite the example of the Squall torpedo, which, according to foreign experts, allegedly violated physical laws and as a result proved that the impossible is possible. This is just a beautiful legend. The phenomenon of supercavitation has been studied on both sides of the ocean. In the US, the greatest authority on this topic in 1960. enjoyed the work of Marshall Tulin (this is the name, not the title); tests were conducted speed submarine ammunition (RAMICS). However, the military was not interested in unguided underwater weapons - neither slow nor high-speed.
And here we come to the creation of the 9 flywheel "Zircon". Absolute record. None of the RCCs that existed before him could even develop the 1 / 3 of the specified speed.
In the case of the "Petrel" we are talking about the creation of a nuclear installation, which is 25 times more thermal power than all known small-sized nuclear reactors. We are talking about reactors for spacecraft ("Topaz" and BES-5 "Buk"), the closest in weight and size "analogues" of the power plant "Burevestnik".
A subsonic rocket retaining the dimensions of the Caliber and flying at a speed of 270 m / s, according to the laws of nature, will require an engine of at least 4 MW. In reserve, the designers have only about half a ton left for the installation of the NRE (instead of the usual TRD and fuel reserves).
The most powerful and perfect small-sized reactors (“Topaz”) that were created in practice with their own weight of 320 kg had a thermal capacity of 150 kW. This is all that could be achieved at the current level of technical development.
The 25 multiple power difference translates further conversation into a frivolous plane. It's like trying to build a truck without having anything more powerful than a lawnmower engine.
There are still a lot of fun moments. For example, heat transfer methods in a nuclear jet engine. Passing an air stream through the hot zone of the reactor is useless. With a flight speed of 270, m / s air will conduct in the working chamber thousands of fractions of a second, for which it simply does not have time to heat up. Its thermal conductivity is too low. To be convinced of what has been said, it is enough to hold your hand over the switched on plate for a second.
In conventional TRD, fuel particles are mixed with the working fluid — air. When the mixture ignites, hot exhaust gases are generated, creating jet thrust. In the case of a turbojet, spend a significant part of the engine mass on an evaporating ablative coating working area. Hot particles in the form of a suspension (or vapor) must be mixed with the air flow and heated to temperatures of a thousand degrees, forming jet thrust. Due to the presence of radioactive particles, the exhaust will be deadly. Those who launch such a rocket risk dying before it reaches the enemy.
Is it possible to do without evaporation by providing heat transfer directly - when the walls of the core are in contact with air? Can. However, this requires completely different conditions.
American projects began 60's. solved the problem due to speed 3Mthat allowed to literally "push through" the air between the fuel assemblies of a nuclear ramjet heated to 1600 ° C. At lower speeds, the working fluid (air) could not overcome the resulting resistance with this engine design.
Due to a different principle of operation and colossal energy costs, the SLAM rocket (the “Pluto” project, “Tori-IIC”) turned out to be a genuine monster with a starting mass of 27 tons. it other area of technology, nothing in common with the displayed shots of the "Petrel", which show subsonic rockets with the dimensions of the usual "Caliber".
So far, no official explanations have been made about how the problem with the flight tests of a "disposable" nuclear reactor was solved at the time of the inevitable fall of the rocket.
Subsonic KRs are a threat due to massive use. In other conditions, a single super-expensive nuclear-powered KR, circling in the air for hours, will become easy prey for the enemy. The idea of a subsonic nuclear missile is devoid of any practical and military sense. Of the achieved benefits - only turtle speed and increased vulnerability in comparison with existing ICBMs.
These are all trivialities, the main problem is in creating a compact nuclear installation with an 25 power greater than that of Topaz, and sufficient reserves of evaporating core coverage for long hours of flight.
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Supporters of the “Petrel” appeal to the achievements of technical progress, believing that modern technology is ten times greater than the results of the developments of the last century. And this, unfortunately, is not so.
In the science fiction novels of that era, astronauts called Earth from Mars, twirling a telephone disk. Like Belyaev: "Erg Noor sat at the levers of the counting machine." Alas, none of the science fiction writers have guessed the direction of progress, which has turned to the path of improving microelectronics. As for nuclear power, aviation and space technology, we are actually at the same technological level. Only marginally increasing efficiency and safety, while seeking to reduce the cost of structures.
Above, the radioisotope thermoelectric generator of the Apollo 14 mission; in the bottom illustration, the RTG of the New Horizons probe (launch of 2006), one of the most powerful and sophisticated RTGs ever created in practice. NASA with its stations and rovers in this regard - great entertainers. On the contrary, the direction with RTGs was not a priority, for reconnaissance satellites with radars, completely different capacities were required, so the rate was on reactors. Hence the results, such as Topaz.
What is the essence of these illustrations?
The first RTG had an electrical power of 63 W, a modern one that already produces 240 W. Not because it is four times more perfect, but simply corny larger and contains 11 kg of plutonium, versus 3,7 kg of plutonium in portable SNAP-27 come from distant 60's.
This requires a little explanation. Thermal power - the amount of heat generated by the reactor itself. Electric power - how much heat as a result is converted into electricity. energy. For RTGs, both values are very small.
RTG, despite its compactness, is completely unsuitable for the role of a nuclear jet engine. In contrast to the controlled chain reaction, the “nuclear battery” uses the energy of the natural decay of isotopes. Hence, the scanty thermal power is quite small: at the “New Horizons” RTG - only about 4 kW, 35 times less than that of the Topaz space reactor.
The second point is the relatively low temperature of the surface of the RTG active elements heated to only a few hundred ° C. For comparison, the active sample of the Thori-IIC SSWARD has the core temperature 1600 ° С. Another thing is that the "Tori" was barely placed on the railway platform.
Due to its simplicity, RTGs are widely distributed. Now you can create a microscopic "nuclear batteries." In past discussions, I was cited as an example of RTG Angel as an obvious achievement of progress. The RTG is cylinder-shaped with a diameter of 40 mm and a height of 60 mm; and contains all 17 grams of plutonium dioxide at an electrical power of about 0,15 watts. Another thing is how does this example compare with a cruise missile 4-megawatt nuclear engine?
The weak energy of the RTGs is redeemed by their simplicity, reliability and the absence of moving parts. The benefit of the existing spacecraft does not require much energy. The power of the Voyager transmitter is 18 W (like a light bulb in a refrigerator), but this is enough for communication sessions from a distance of 18 billion km.
Domestic and foreign scientists are working to increase the electrical efficiency of the “batteries”, instead of introducing a thermocouple with the 3% efficiency, a more efficient Stirling engine (Kilopower, 2017 year) is being introduced. But no one has yet managed to increase the heat output without increasing the size. Modern science has not yet learned how to change the half-life of plutonium.
As for these small-sized reactors, Topaz has demonstrated the capabilities of such systems at the current level. At best, one and a half to two hundred kilowatts - with a mass of installation in the 300 area of kg.
* * *
It is time to pay attention to the second hero of this review. PKR "Zircon".
The project of a hypersonic cruise missile was initially of real interest at first, until an abrupt increase in speed began. From the original 5-6, Mach to 8, now 9! The project has become a regular exhibition of the absurd.
Do such statements at least understand what a catastrophic difference lies with these values when flying in the atmosphere? Hypersonic aircraft at speed 9M should be radically different on design and energy from the original 5 flywheel, and the dependency is far from linear.
How aircraft designs differ with increasing speed, even at much more modest values (from Mach alone to 2,6M), is clearly seen in the examples of ZM14 Caliber and 3М55 "Onyx" cruise missiles.
The diameter of the subsonic "Caliber" is 0,514 m, the starting mass is ≈2300 kg, the mass of the warhead is ≈500 kg. “Dry” mass of the engine 82 kg, max. 0,45 tons of tons.
The diameter of the supersonic "Onyx" - 0,67 meters, the starting weight 3000 kg, the weight of the warhead 300 kg (-40% compared to "Caliber"). The dry weight of the engine 200 kg (more in 2,4 times). Max. 4 tons of tons (higher 8,8 times), with the corresponding fuel consumption.
Flight distance of these missiles at low altitude differ somewhere in 15 times.
None of the known technical solutions do not allow any closer to the stated characteristics of the "Zircon". The speed is up to 9М, the flight range, according to various data, is from 500 to 1000 km. With limited dimensions, allowing the placement of "Zircon" in the vertical shaft of the ship shooting complex 3С14, intended for "Onyxes" and "Caliber".
This fully explains the reluctance to share any details about the "Zircon", there is not even approximate information about its appearance (despite the fact that the "Dagger" and "Peresvet" "shine" in all details). The publication of any specifics will immediately raise questions from specialists who cannot be given a clear answer. It is impossible to explain all this with existing technologies.
It must be a UFO on some completely new physical principles.
Hypersonic studies in practice, the results of which were made publicly available, showed the following. The X-51 “Waverider” with a hypersonic ramjet accelerated to 5,1M and overcame 400 km at this speed. It is worth noting that the Americans dispersed the 1,8-ton "pig", the bulk of the mass of which were spent on thermal protection. Without any hint of a warhead, folding console or homing head, which are in combat missiles. The launch was made onboard the B-52 at a speed of 900 km / h in rarefied atmospheric layers, which significantly reduced the requirements for the mass and size of the starting accelerator. Based on the analysis of various types of rocket weapons, only a ton of less was saved on the booster.
The latest news came from China - the test of the hypersonic Star Sky-2 glider. As it turned out, not “Wavewider”. This is a hypersonic glider-airship, gaining speed 5,5M with the help of a ballistic missile and, further, planning by inertia, gradually slowing down in dense layers of the atmosphere. "The younger brother" of the domestic "Avangard". Our eastern neighbors were able to provide the necessary thermal protection and the operation of control elements in hypersound, but the creation of a scramjet does not even speak. The glider has no engine.
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Explanation of the paradox? I can’t even imagine how the story with super rockets will end. In principle, it will end in the most obvious way, like the "wet" anti-aircraft missiles from the Chinese contract. Another thing is how it will be explained to the public, who piously believed in the existence of such weapons. Everything will be easier with NI's foreign experts, they are still not able to distinguish the airframe from the aircraft with a scramjet, for them all the “threat” that you do not show.
“Zircon” with “Petrel” overcame all reasonable barriers and continue to navigate intersonic space. Most likely, they will repeat the path of the legends of the beginning of the zero - the plasma "stealth generator" and the X-90 Koala rocket - the heroes of the publication of those years. However, from the "Koala", going to the goal at an altitude of 90 km, at least some calculations and even a mock-up remained.
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