This is my first post so I would just like to say hello to everyone. I played SimpleRockets and SimplePlanes back in the day, but I mostly found it too complex to get into. I've always been more interested in the engineering and design aspect of creating spacecraft rather than the actual orbital mechanics and execution of interplanetary travel. One concept that caught my attention was a SSTO or space plane type of design. Furthermore, I would like to see how high it is possible to go using only jet engines. I don't have any experience actually designing complex optimized planes in SimpleRockets2, but using the default Wasp2.0 plane I was able to reach a maximum altitude of 45km. The maximum cruising altitude of the wasp is only about 15km. But, by diving and rapidly pulling up to generate upwards velocities of nearly Mach 3, I could set the plane on a parabolic trajectory that peaked at over 45 kilometers. In SimpleRockets2, the atmosphere is considered to end at 60km from the surface of Droo. Using a more specialized plane, I think it would be possible to far exceed this altitude. I would like to pose this as a challenge to the community, how high can we get a craft using only jet engines?
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10.1k Insanity5.0 years ago
@AverageHuman i just buildt a rocket type craft with jet engines that goes straight vertical and was able to leave the athmosphere but i guess its more fun to get a plane up to high altitudes.
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12 AverageHuman5.0 years ago
@PlanesofJundroo Yeah if you get something significantly better than what can be achieved using most high power jet aircraft, I would like to see what design you used. As I said in the original post, I was able to get to 45km using only the default Wasp 2.0, so with a specialized craft I think it would be possible to exceed 60km.
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12 AverageHuman5.0 years ago
@Insanity The only restriction is that you can’t use rocket engines of any kind, only air breathing jet engines. However I don’t really see how you could get anywhere without using wings.
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12 AverageHuman5.0 years ago
@SupremeDorian As my other comment said, after trying again, I was able to cruise at 30km in the Wasp 2.0. I did some research and the maneuver I was describing that got me to 45km is called a zoom climb. It is slightly different than a regular zoom climb though, because at 30km the wings don’t generate enough lift to convert the horizontal velocity of the plane to vertical velocity. In order to build up enough vertical velocity you have to dive to where the atmosphere is thick enough to effectively steer the plane.
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Mod SupremeDorian+1 5.0 years ago
I made an SR-71 a few months ago using only Jet Engines and could get pretty easily get it to 30km, without doing any nosedives to gain speed. With nosedives, it could probably go higher, but I haven't tried that.
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12 AverageHuman5.0 years ago
My previous number for the maximum cruising altitude of the Wasp 2.0 was incorrect. I think the first time I was testing it I ascended too steeply and stalled. After testing it again I was able to cruise at an altitude of 30 kilometers.
@AverageHuman here you go