Flight times from London to Sydney could be 80% shorter by the 2030s, should a hypersonic rocket engine being developed in the UK get off the ground.
The UK Space Agency announced Tuesday at the UK Space Conference 2019 that it would be working more closely with the Australian Space Agency in an agreement dubbed a “world-first Space Bridge.”
The Synergetic Air-Breathing Rocket Engine (SABRE) engine, from Oxfordshire-based Reaction Engines, looks to be the jewel in the crown of this new enterprise.
“When we have brought the SABRE rocket engine to fruition, that may enable us to get to Australia in perhaps as little as four hours,” said Graham Turnock, head of the UK Space Agency.
“This is technology that could definitely deliver that. We’re talking the 2030s for operational service, and the work is already very advanced.”
I – Word Understanding
Hypersonic – very fast ( 5 or more times faster than the speed of sound in air)
Fruition – a plan or project being realized (successfully put into action)\
II – Have Your Say
1. What was the longest flight you’ve ever experienced? How did you cope?
2. What do you think are the challenges of hypersonic flights?
a. Safety
b. Cost
c. Sound and other effects human body
d. Environmental issues
2. When it comes to air transport, which technologies are you looking forward to?
a. Air taxi
b. Drones
c. Electric aircrafts
d. Others
693 Hypersonic ‘space plane’ promises four-hour London to Sydney flights by 2030s
