EARL
Launch vehicle · Germany
Original archive entry. The text, images and links below are kept as they were written.
Credit: Mark Lindroos
German winged orbital launch vehicle. Vertical takeoff / horizontal landing two-stage launch vehicle study from the 1980s.
Subtopics
EARL I German winged orbital launch vehicle. A larger Earl 14 configuration was studied, but the study centered on the Earl 5 / 18 / 7 configurations. The second stage was mounted on top of the booster. Earl 5 and 7 had winged second stages, with payloads to low earth orbit of 5380 kg to 7180 kg. Earl 14 featured an expendable upper stage which increased payload to 18,000 kg.
EARL II German winged orbital launch vehicle. Later EARL version from 1990. Parallel staging, both stages winged and recoverable. Expendable upper stage for heavy-lift missions.
Related
- Family
- orbital launch vehicle, Winged
- Country
- Germany
- Agency
- ESA