XS-1 envisions that a reusable first stage would fly to hypersonic speeds at a suborbital altitude.
At that point, one or more expendable upper stages would separate and deploy a satellite into Low Earth Orbit.
The reusable hypersonic vehicle would then return to earth, land and be prepared for the next flight.
Commercial, civilian and military satellites provide crucial real-time information essential to providing strategic national security advantages to the United States.
The current generation of satellite launch vehicles, however, is expensive to operate, often costing hundreds of millions of dollars per flight.
Moreover, U.S. launch vehicles fly only a few times each year and normally require scheduling years in advance, making it extremely difficult to deploy satellites without lengthy pre-planning.
Quick, affordable and routine access to space is increasingly critical for U.S. Defense Department operations.
To help address these challenges, DARPA has established the Experimental Spaceplane (XS-1) program. The program aims to develop a fully reusable unmanned vehicle that would provide aircraft-like access to space.
The vehicle is envisioned to operate from a "clean pad" with a small ground crew and no need for expensive specialized infrastructure.
This setup would enable routine daily operations and flights from a wide range of locations. XS-1 seeks to deploy small satellites faster and more affordably, while demonstrating technology for next-generation space and hypersonic flight for both government and commercial users.
"We want to build off of proven technologies to create a reliable, cost-effective space delivery system with one-day turnaround," said Jess Sponable, DARPA program manager heading XS-1.
"How it's configured, how it gets up and how it gets back are pretty much all on the table—we're looking for the most creative yet practical solutions possible."
DARPA seeks ideas and technical proposals for how to best develop and implement the XS-1 program. The agency has scheduled an XS-1 Proposers' Day for Monday, October 7, 2013.
The agency also plans to hold 1-on-1 discussions with potential proposers on the following day, October 8, 2013. Advance registration is required; more information is available at www.sa-meetings.com/
Registration closes on Tuesday, October 10 2013, at 12:00 PM EDT. For more information, please email DARPA-SN-14-01@darpa.mil.
The DARPA Special Notice describing the specific capabilities the program seeks is available at go.usa.gov/DNkF.
A Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) for XS-1 is forthcoming and will be posted on the Federal Business Opportunities website.
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