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Path: utzoo!henry
From: henry@utzoo.UUCP (Henry Spencer)
Newsgroups: net.columbia
Subject: Re: SRB vs liquid
Message-ID: <6379@utzoo.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 8-Feb-86 20:35:45 EST
Article-I.D.: utzoo.6379
Posted: Sat Feb  8 20:35:45 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 8-Feb-86 20:35:45 EST
References: <615@uwvax.UUCP> <3045@umcp-cs.UUCP>, <471@ecn-pc.UUCP>
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
Lines: 18

>    What exactly is the configuration of Ariane?  I keep hearing that one
>    of the stages is solid fueled, but a drawing printed in the Chicago
>    Tribune shows three stages, all liquid fueled.

The newer Ariane versions have small solid-fuel strap-ons on the sides of
the first stage.  Otherwise it's all-liquid.

>     Additionally, is there anything new and novel about the Ariane?  From
>     what I have been able to gather, it seems to be pretty mundane rocket...

It *is* a pretty mundane rocket, actually.  The equatorial launch site is
nice, as is the fact that Ariane is designed to put payloads into a transfer
orbit directly rather than needing a separate upper stage for it, but as a
rocket it's quite ordinary.  The technology is a bit newer than that of the
US expendables, but not strikingly so.
-- 
				Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology
				{allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!henry