And to add something more about military efforts that seem to have been going on high up there somewhere and not so long ago. Anyone who heard of the NSMV below? Has it been seen flying around somewhere?
19 September 2003 Janes Defence
US Air Force eyes 'near space' vehicle
By Michael Sirak, JDW Staff Reporter,
Washington DC
The US Air Force is examining the merits of a semi-autonomous, lighter-than-air unmanned aircraft that would operate in the uppermost reaches of the atmosphere for extended periods. There it would serve as a communications-relay and surveillance platform for tactical applications, said service officials.
The air force's Space Battlelab, along with the Space Warfare Center, both located at Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado, are pursuing the concept called the 'Near-Space Maneuvering Vehicle' (NSMV).
Unlike other airships and semi-rigid inflatable designs being developed for the US military, the idea is for the NSMV to loiter at significantly higher altitudes - between 100,000ft and 120,000ft - in the region known as 'near space'. Here, in a seldom-exploited niche above the operating ceilings of fixed-wing aircraft and below low-earth-orbit satellites, the air vehicle would be protected from surface-to-air missile attack, hostile aircraft and inclement weather, said the officials.
"That spectrum of 'not-used' space is what we want to see if we can take advantage of," Col Pat Rhodes, commander of the Space Battlelab, told Jane's Defence Weekly.
It is envisaged that the NSMV would support theatre commanders, he said. "It will bring a much more responsive and dedicated communications and [intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance] suite to the warfighter," said Col Rhodes. It would be an affordable complement - not a replacement - to existing unmanned surveillance aircraft.
The laboratory intends to validate the concept starting in October during a two-part flight demonstration of a V-shaped prototype air vehicle called 'Ascender', manufactured by JP Aerospace of Sacramento, California.
JP Aerospace and the Battlelab then expect to begin activities with a 175ft- (53m)-long Ascender model, having already performed successful flight exercises inside a hangar with a 93ft-long variant. The lab wants to send the vehicle to 100,000ft, have it navigate between two points, loiter over the second point for a short period of time and return safely to base, said Col Rhodes.
The Ascender is a lightweight design that has global positioning system-based navigation. It uses helium for lift. The aircraft has two propellers powered by fuel cells. However, it is a company-designed onboard control system that transfers helium between the chambers within each wing to give the aircraft its agility and make it more manoeuvrable than traditional lighter-than-air designs, company president John Powell told JDW. Converted vans serve as ground control stations, he said.
The 93ft-long V-shaped prototype Ascender has performed flight tests in a hangar. Exercises with a 175ft-long variant will follow (Source: JP Aerospace)
