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FAR n.e.V. Forschungsgruppe Alternative Raumfahrtkonzepte (Research Group on AlternaTive Space Flight Concepts - RATS ?) A "No Frills for Fast Load" Page * To enjoy these pages is one small click for you - one gigant job for us ! *

FAR on the Cost of Space Travel . We about ourselfs Alternative Space Flight Concepts - now what the hell is that about ? Health food for astronauts ? Ride your bike to Mars ? Meditate your way through the universe ? Hardly ..... FAR on the cost of space access Space travel is costly. But could it be cheaper? If so, how cheap? How would it compare, for ex. to an air flight ticket to New York? Here you will find some surprising opinions ...... Big Dumb Rockets The history of cheap rockets, experiments, concepts etc. Includs the history of the biggest rocket ever, huge as a ship, take-off weight around 20,000 tons ..... Big Dumb Boosters - can we build them ? A mathematical screening approach - by Tom Stinnesbeck . Letters & Comments Investor Disinterest Prompts Rotary Rocket Leader To Step Down (Space News July 10th, 2000) .

Practical Work at FAR

Current Test Series Spring 2000 . Some Realtime Videos (will need player): TEST6REA.RM - TEST7REA.RM - TEST8REA.RM . Test 7 is also available as MPEG Video: TEST7.MPG (Caution: 5 MB!) This test really falls into the "Ups..." category. The video shows very nicely the intrinsic safety of hybrids. We are definitely in the unbloody part of rocketry. . Earlier Contributions .. FAR ready to test again FAR has readied two more hybrid engines for testing. One of them is (to our knowledge) the biggest such engine that was ever built in Germany (with pictures). And here are some pictures and first results (10/98) . Turbo Pump "home-grown" Can we build cheap and simple, part-reduced turbo pumps. Well, it's too early to tell, but too late to stop: we are doing a low-key hardware level study (w. pictures) . Some pictures of our eqipment and experiments We build hybrid rockets. With very modest means and progress is slow. But we are progressing .... (1997)

Space Tourism

The FAR ALLTRA M1 X-Price candidate . Space tourism - some thoughts Who would like to fly? Big travel agencies are already planning ..... . X-Price - 10 M $ for a horror trip This is the first price ever for rocket pioneers. Just as the famous aviation prices early this century the X price is ment to be an incentive for the promotion of rocket technology outside big institutions. $ 10.000.000 are yours to take if you are the first to fly to 100 km altitude in a self-built rocket. Is that at all possible ?

Discussion forum New things can only grow out of controversial ideas. If all think the same you will always get only more of the same. Is there anything you haven't understood. Is there anything you want clarified? Do you have questions of general interest or do you even have your own oppinion (beware !). Or did we perhaps provoke you with our opinions. Then, for heaven's sake, send us an e-mail (will be published). How ? Just click here .

Some interesting space links Not the usual NASA type links everybody else has ...... .

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