View source for Portal:Spaceflight/Selected article/10

{{Portal:Spaceflight/Selected article/Layout
  |image=Skylon colour.svg
  |size=250px
  |caption=A draft sketch of the Skylon.
  |text='''[[Skylon (spacecraft)|Skylon]]''' is a series of designs for a [[single-stage-to-orbit]] [[spaceplane]] by the [[United Kingdom|British]] company [[Reaction Engines Limited]] (REL), using [[SABRE (rocket engine)|SABRE]], a combined-cycle, [[Air breathing engines|air-breathing]] [[rocket propulsion]] system.  The vehicle design is for a [[hydrogen-fuelled]] aircraft that would take off from a purpose-built [[runway]], and accelerate to [[Mach number|Mach]]&nbsp;5.4 at {{convert|26|km|ft}} altitude (compared to typical airliners' {{convert|9-13|km|ft|sigfig=1|disp=or}}) using the [[Atmosphere of Earth#Oxygen|atmosphere's oxygen]] before switching the engines to use the internal [[LOX|liquid oxygen]] (LOX) supply to take it into orbit. It could carry {{convert|17|tonnes|lb}} of cargo to an equatorial [[low Earth orbit]] (LEO); up to {{convert|11|tonnes|lb}} to the [[International Space Station]], almost 45% more than the capacity of the [[European Space Agency]]'s [[Automated Transfer Vehicle]]; or {{convert|16000|lb|t kg|order=flip}} to [[Geostationary transfer orbit|Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit]] (GTO), over 24% more than [[SpaceX]] [[Falcon 9]] launch vehicle in reusable mode ({{asof|2018}}.) The relatively light vehicle would then [[atmospheric entry|re-enter]] the atmosphere and land on a runway, being protected from the conditions of re-entry by a [[ceramic matrix composite|ceramic composite]] skin.  When on the ground, it would undergo inspection and necessary maintenance, with a turnaround time of approximately two days, and be able to complete at least 200 orbital flights per vehicle.
  |link=Skylon (spacecraft)
}}