General characteristics and principles of operation
The rocket differs from the
turbojet
and other “air-breathing”
engines
in that all of the exhaust jet consists of the gaseous
combustion
products of “
propellants
” carried on board. Like the turbojet engine, the rocket develops thrust by the rearward ejection of mass at very high velocity.
The fundamental physical principle involved in rocket propulsion was formulated by
Sir Isaac Newton
. According to his third
law of motion
, the rocket experiences an increase in
momentum
proportional to the momentum carried away in the exhaust,
where
M
is the rocket mass, Δ
v
R
is the increase in
velocity
of the rocket in a short time interval, Δ
t
,
m
° is the rate of mass
discharge
in the exhaust,
v
e
is the
effective exhaust velocity (nearly equal to the jet velocity and taken relative to the rocket), and
F
is
force
. The quantity
m
°
v
e
is the propulsive force, or thrust, produced on the rocket by exhausting the
propellant
,
![Equation.](https://cdn.britannica.com/92/15992-004-B805BDEF/Equation.jpg)
Evidently thrust can be made large by using a high mass discharge rate or high exhaust velocity. Employing high
m
° uses up the propellant supply quickly (or requires a large supply), and so it is preferable to seek high values of
v
e
. The value of
v
e
is limited by practical considerations, determined by how the exhaust is
accelerated
in the supersonic nozzle and what energy supply is available for the propellant heating.
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Most rockets derive their energy in thermal form by combustion of condensed-phase propellants at elevated
pressure
. The gaseous combustion products are exhausted through the nozzle that converts most of the
thermal energy
to
kinetic energy
. The maximum amount of energy available is limited to that provided by combustion or by practical considerations imposed by the high
temperature
involved. Higher energies are possible if other energy sources (e.g., electric or
microwave
heating) are used in conjunction with the chemical propellants on board the rockets, and extremely high energies are achievable when the exhaust is accelerated by
electromagnetic
means.
The effective exhaust velocity is the figure of merit for rocket propulsion because it is a measure of thrust per unit mass of propellant consumed?i.e.,
![Equation.](https://cdn.britannica.com/91/15991-004-2329B097/Equation.jpg)
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Values
of
v
e
are in the range 2,000?5,000 metres (6,500?16,400 feet) per second for chemical propellants, while values two or three times that are claimed for electrically heated propellants. Values beyond 40,000 metres (131,000 feet) per second are predicted for systems using electromagnetic
acceleration
. In engineering circles, notably in the
United States
, the effective exhaust velocity is widely expressed in units of seconds, which is referred to as
specific impulse. Values in seconds are obtained by dividing the effective exhaust velocities by the constant factor 9.81 metres per second squared (32.2 feet per second squared).
In a typical chemical-rocket mission, anywhere from 50 to 95 percent or more of the takeoff mass is propellant. This can be put in perspective by the equation for
burnout
velocity (assuming
gravity
-free and
drag
-free flight),
![Equations.](https://cdn.britannica.com/90/15990-004-A3915310/Equations.jpg)
In this expression,
M
s
/
M
p
is the ratio of propulsion system and structure mass to propellant mass, with a typical value of 0.09 (the symbol ln represents natural
logarithm
).
M
p
/
M
o
is the ratio of propellant mass to all-up takeoff mass, with a typical value of 0.90. A typical value for
v
e
for a
hydrogen
?
oxygen
system is 3,536 metres (11,601 feet) per second. From the above equation, the ratio of payload mass to takeoff mass (
M
pay
/
M
o
) can be calculated. For a low
Earth
orbit
,
v
b
is about 7,544 metres (24,751 feet) per second, which would require
M
pay
/
M
o
to be 0.0374. In other words, it would take a 1,337,000-kg (2,948,000-pound) takeoff system to put 50,000 kg (110,000 pounds) in a low orbit around Earth. This is an
optimistic
calculation because equation (
4
) does not take into account the effect of gravity, drag, or directional corrections during ascent, which would noticeably increase the takeoff mass. From equation (
4
) it is evident that there is a direct trade-off between
M
s
and
M
pay
, so that every effort is made to design for low structural mass, and
M
s
/
M
p
is a second figure of merit for the propulsion system. While the various mass ratios chosen depend strongly on the mission, rocket payloads generally represent a small part of the takeoff mass.
Pegasus XL rocket
The second stage (right) of the Orbital Sciences Pegasus XL rocket ready to be mated to the first stage (left) for the launch of NASA's Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere (AIM) spacecraft.
A technique called
multiple staging
is used in many missions to minimize the size of the takeoff vehicle. A launch vehicle carries a second rocket as its
payload
, to be fired after burnout of the first stage (which is left behind). In this way, the inert components of the first stage are not carried to final velocity, with the second-stage thrust being more effectively applied to the payload. Most spaceflights use at least two stages. The strategy is extended to more stages in missions calling for very high velocities. The U.S.
Apollo
manned lunar missions used a total of six stages.
The unique features of rockets that make them useful include the following:
1. Rockets can operate in space as well as in the
atmosphere
of Earth.
2. They can be built to deliver very high thrust (a modern heavy space booster has a takeoff thrust of 3,800 kilonewtons (850,000 pounds).
3. The propulsion system can be relatively simple.
4. The propulsion system can be kept in a ready-to-fire state (important in military systems).
5. Small rockets can be fired from a variety of launch platforms, ranging from packing crates to shoulder launchers to aircraft (there is no recoil).
These features explain not only why all speed and distance records are set by rocket systems (air, land, space) but also why rockets are the
exclusive
choice for spaceflight. They also have led to a transformation of warfare, both strategic and tactical. Indeed, the emergence and advancement of modern rocket
technology
can be traced to
weapon
developments during and since
World War II
, with a substantial portion being funded through “space agency”
initiatives
such as the
Ariane
, Apollo, and
space shuttle
programs.