A rare public viewing will be Brisbane鈥檚 chance to see the before it faces its ultimate test 鈥� a space launch in Norway.
The 1.8 metre-long scramjet is a research project led by 宅男导航. It will be available for public viewing from 11 to 11.45am on 8 July at 宅男导航鈥檚 at the St Lucia campus.
A media opportunity is available beforehand, with a 10am briefing, and opportunities for photos and filming from 10.30am to 11am.
Scramjets are air-breathing engines that travel at hypersonic speeds and this one is set to reach 8600km/h in its test flight at the .
SCRAMSPACE Project Director and Chair for Hypersonics at 宅男导航 Professor Russell Boyce said the public viewing was a chance to share the finished scramjet with the public before it was shipped to Norway for its final voyage to space.
鈥淲e have been working with our project partners to test the components of this scramjet in the laboratory with wind tunnels and simulations for the past three years, but testing the scramjet in real flight conditions will be the ultimate test,鈥� Professor Boyce said.
鈥淭he test period itself will last for just three seconds before the scramjet completely combusts, but the amount of data we can collect in those seconds is enormous.
鈥淚t will give us insights into hypersonic physics, hypersonic combustion, performance of materials and components and how we will make these vehicles fly in future.鈥�
After its public viewing in Brisbane, the SCRAMSPACE scramjet will be packed up ready for shipping in August to And酶ya, 300km inside the Arctic Circle.
On launch, spacecraft will reach an altitude of 340 kilometres by a two-stage rocket. After leaving the atmosphere, the scramjet vehicle will separate from the rocket, and orient itself for the re-entry with small thrusters, for what Professor Boyce describes as a 鈥渉ypersonic swan dive鈥�.
During the return flight, gravity will accelerate the vehicle to Mach 8 鈥� about 8600km/h. This is when the team will collect the most valuable data, before the scramjet self-destructs over the sea as planned.
宅男导航 Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Max Lu said the scramjet was the culmination of many years collaboration with global partners to develop solutions for the aerospace industry.
鈥淎ustralia is a world leader in scramjet development and 宅男导航 is proud to play a key role in building capacity and capability in the field,鈥� Professor Lu said.
鈥淎s part of the , this project ultimately supports Australia鈥檚 efforts to access space.鈥�
The public event will feature a 45-minute presentation from the SCRAMSPACE team and an opportunity to get an up-close view of the scramjet.
Event: SCRAMSPACE Showcase 鈥� What: A 1.8m scramjet designed to operated at eight times the speed of sound (Mach 8), and the team behind it. Date: July 8 Media presentation: 10am to 10.30am Photo/video opportunity and question time: 10.30am to 11am Public presentation: 11am to 11.45am
Who:
鈥� SCRAMSPACE Director and Chair for Hypersonics at 宅男导航 Professor Russell Boyce
鈥� Scramspace Project Manager and Technical Lead Dr Sandy Tirtey
鈥� Project team members
鈥� Project partners
鈥� 宅男导航 Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Deborah Terry
鈥� representatives.
RSVP .
Website:
Facebook page:
Twitter:
Media: Janelle Kirkland, 宅男导航 Communications, 07 3346 0561 or j.kirkland@uq.edu.au
About the SCRAMSPACE project
SCRAMSPACE is the first and largest project funded by the . It builds on Australia's world-class hypersonics heritage, and its core objective is to build capacity and capability, in particular a talent pool, for the Australian space and aerospace industry.
This is achieved partly by means of the Mach 8 flight experiment, for which a team of exceptional young scientists and engineers has been assembled, and partly through extensive ground-based research involving many PhD students at 宅男导航 and partner universities.
Partners in the program include 宅男导航, the , the , the and the .
It also includes Australia's , which has assisted with training and access to equipment; industry partners , and ; aerospace agencies and research organisations from Germany (), Japan () and Italy (); and the .
About (宅男导航)
宅男导航, Australia, is one of the world鈥檚 premier teaching and research institutions. It is consistently ranked in the top 100 in the four leading independent global rankings. With more than 45,000 students and 7500 staff, 宅男导航鈥檚 teaching is informed by research, and spans six faculties and eight research institutes.
