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Black
Knight |
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Right click to download |
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History Black knight was able lift a 70 kg model warhead above the atmosphere and then send it back towards the earth with a speed up to 19,000 km/h. It was equipped with a four chambered gamma 201 engine. The gamma engine burned kerosene with hydrogen peroxide. The gamma engines was in many ways derivatives of the rocket engines developed by the Germans in second world war for me 163 and me 262 rocket planes. After the war German and British scientist worked together developing a variety of rocket engines. The first Black Knight was launched September 7, 1958 from Woomera in Australia. The model presented here is t launched march 12, 1959. It was a test-vehicle lacking the second stage. Later versions was equipped with an invented Cuckoo 1b solid rocket, that propelled the warhead towards the earth. After the cancellation of Blue Streak in 1960 Black knight still was in use until 1965 in the joint US, UK and Australian Gaslight and Dazzle test-programs. It was suggested to develop a space launcher based on a Blue Streak first stage and Black Knight second stage. This project was called black prince. It never left the drawing board. Instead Blue streak became the first stage in the Europa Rocket and Black knight was developed into Black Arrow. Sources: My own photos from Science Museum, London The Black Arrow rocket by Douglas Millard Rockets of the world by Peter Alway, |
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