Black Prince (rocket)

Black Prince was a proposed British-led satellite launch vehicle, based on the Blue Streak missile and the Black Knight test rocket.

Original design

The proposed design was put forward by Desmond King-Hele and Doreen Gilmour of the Royal Aircraft Establishment in 1957,^[1] and was later championed by the Blue Streak project manager, Dr Geoffrey Pardoe.

It was to be formed of a Blue Streak first stage, a Black Knight (or Black Arrow) second stage, and a military solid rocket as a third stage.^[2]

Payloads were estimated to be around 1,034 kg (2,280 lb) to a 370 km (200 nmi) orbit and 960 kg (2,117 lb) to a 740 km (400 nmi) orbit. However, the design was considered to be inefficient and difficult because of the large differences in the diameters of the 3 metre (10 ft) wide Blue Streak and the metre-wide (3 ft) Black Knight. Fitting satellites into a three foot payload fairing could also have been a challenge.^[3] Nevertheless, these difficulties were also encountered with successful American rockets including the Thor and Atlas.^[4]

Government-backed programme

On 13 April 1960, the Defence Minister Harold Watkinson announced the cancellation of Blue Streak as a military programme, and went on to state, "the Government will now consider with the firms and other interests concerned, as a matter of urgency, whether the Blue Streak programme could be adapted for the development of a launcher for space satellites."^[5] The 1957 design was put forward once again, and the project was given the rainbow code of Black Prince.

The development of Black Prince was driven by the Royal Aircraft Establishment and two private firms, Saunders Roe Ltd and Bristol Siddeley Ltd.^[6]

Several different third stages would be available, depending on the required payload and orbit. Examples of orbits suggested by Saunders Roe and the RAE were a 556 km (300 nmi) orbit for 'experiments in stellar UV spectroscopy', a 556-1,296 km (300-700 nmi (1,300 km)i) orbit for 'enabling investigations of the Earth's radiation belts,' and a 556-185,200 km (300-100,000 nmi (190,000 km)i) orbit for a 'Space probe.'^[7]

There were some problems with the design, however. The relative power of the rocket reduced with altitude.^[8] The solution requested by the government and provided by Saunders Roe was to use a high-energy cryogenic upper stage which would increase the payload to 408 kg (900 lb) to a 9,260 km (5,0 nmi (0 km)i) orbit, and 272 kg (600 lb) to a 16,670 km (9,0 nmi (0 km)i) orbit. The cost of developing the upper stage was estimated to be £5-7 million.^[9]

Cancellation

By late 1960, it was clear that no UK Government department would fully fund the programme, and its British Commonwealth allies would not meet the shortfall. An overture to the French Government by the Aviation Minister Peter Thorneycroft led to the formation of the European ELDO organisation, and Black Prince was cancelled in favour of British participation in the Europa Rocket project.

References