Are SSTO (Single Stage To Orbit) vehicles cost effective?
I've been experimenting with building rockets that can make it into orbit with a single stage, decouple and then land/splash the booster section with a probe core in control (or sometimes Jeb in a command chair).
They work rather well and I can get about half of the booster cost back but I find that my expendable asparagus booster designs are still cheaper to deliver the same payload to orbit.
Is there some payload amount or specific design that makes SSTO boosters more cost effective?
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What are the drawbacks of single stage rocket?
A slight miscalculation and the single-stage rocket winds up with no payload. To get any at all, technology needs to be stretched to the limit. Squeezing out the last drop of specific impulse, and shaving off the last pound, costs money and/or reduces reliability.Why are multiple stages better than a single rocket?
Optimizing the structure of each stage decreases the weight of the total vehicle and provides further advantage. The advantage of staging comes at the cost of the lower stages lifting engines which are not yet being used, as well as making the entire rocket more complex and harder to build than a single stage.How much is a single stage rocket?
New Mexico-based ARCA Space Corporation has announced that it is developing the world's first Single Stage to Orbit (SSTO) launch vehicle that can deliver both a small payload and itself into low Earth orbit, at a cost of about US$1 million per launch.Why Single Stage to Orbit rockets SUCK. The wacky history and future maybes of SSTOs
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