Expandable External Payload Carrier for Existing Launch Vehicles

Numerous existing launch vehicles have excess performance that is not being optimized. By taking advantage of excess, unused, performance, additional NASA experiments and missions can be enhanced with this excess ELV performance. Designing an experimental platform for suborbital, hypersonic, and innovative payloads will bridge a technology gap in size and weight over current capabilities. Commercially, there are many customers that will be able to take advantage of the increase in size and weight for experimental research onboard the experimental platform. To minimize the launch vehicle integration efforts, the design of the experimental platform will mimic the current processing methods of auxiliary interfaces to the launch vehicle. During Phase I, SAS will be providing NASA with an adaptable cost effective experimental platform (expandable external payload carrier) design that may be used on a multitude of launch vehicles at a low risk and lower cost per pound then existing suborbital systems. This TRL 3 design will consist of a feasibility concept, detailed analysis and modeling, and a system requirements document. Path towards Phase II will be discussed, utilizing a hardware risk reduction approach. During Phase II, SAS will be providing NASA an expected TRL 5 of the design for one of the current launch vehicles.