What is the blue/red flare at the Delta IV Heavy launchpad
Clash Royale CLAN TAG#URR8PPP
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I was watching the (eventually scrubbed) launch of Delta IV Heavy with the Parker Solar Probe. I noticed a fairly large blue/red flare near the launch pad. I'm guessing it's LH/LOX, but I thought hydrogen burns more yellowish.
This Reddit question may address the same topic, but I couldn't find the flare in their screenshot.
Below is a screenshot (literally a photo of TV screen... sorry) with the flare in the bottom left.
lox delta4-heavy
asked Aug 11 at 9:46
Ludo
1383
add a comment |Â
up vote
7
down vote
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I was watching the (eventually scrubbed) launch of Delta IV Heavy with the Parker Solar Probe. I noticed a fairly large blue/red flare near the launch pad. I'm guessing it's LH/LOX, but I thought hydrogen burns more yellowish.
This Reddit question may address the same topic, but I couldn't find the flare in their screenshot.
Below is a screenshot (literally a photo of TV screen... sorry) with the flare in the bottom left.
lox delta4-heavy
asked Aug 11 at 9:46
Ludo
1383
Hydrogen flame is faint bluish, almost invisible. It is possible that a colorant is added to the waste gas for safety reasons (visibility of the flame, or visible deflagration in case of leak and fire). See h2tools.org/bestpractices/hydrogen-flames
– kkm
Aug 11 at 12:27
add a comment |Â
up vote
7
down vote
favorite
up vote
7
down vote
favorite
I was watching the (eventually scrubbed) launch of Delta IV Heavy with the Parker Solar Probe. I noticed a fairly large blue/red flare near the launch pad. I'm guessing it's LH/LOX, but I thought hydrogen burns more yellowish.
This Reddit question may address the same topic, but I couldn't find the flare in their screenshot.
Below is a screenshot (literally a photo of TV screen... sorry) with the flare in the bottom left.
lox delta4-heavy
asked Aug 11 at 9:46
Ludo
1383
I was watching the (eventually scrubbed) launch of Delta IV Heavy with the Parker Solar Probe. I noticed a fairly large blue/red flare near the launch pad. I'm guessing it's LH/LOX, but I thought hydrogen burns more yellowish.
This Reddit question may address the same topic, but I couldn't find the flare in their screenshot.
Below is a screenshot (literally a photo of TV screen... sorry) with the flare in the bottom left.
lox delta4-heavy
lox delta4-heavy
asked Aug 11 at 9:46
Ludo
1383
asked Aug 11 at 9:46
Ludo
1383
asked Aug 11 at 9:46
Ludo
1383
asked Aug 11 at 9:46
Ludo
1383
asked Aug 11 at 9:46
Ludo
1383
1383
Hydrogen flame is faint bluish, almost invisible. It is possible that a colorant is added to the waste gas for safety reasons (visibility of the flame, or visible deflagration in case of leak and fire). See h2tools.org/bestpractices/hydrogen-flames
– kkm
Aug 11 at 12:27
add a comment |Â
Hydrogen flame is faint bluish, almost invisible. It is possible that a colorant is added to the waste gas for safety reasons (visibility of the flame, or visible deflagration in case of leak and fire). See h2tools.org/bestpractices/hydrogen-flames
– kkm
Aug 11 at 12:27
Hydrogen flame is faint bluish, almost invisible. It is possible that a colorant is added to the waste gas for safety reasons (visibility of the flame, or visible deflagration in case of leak and fire). See h2tools.org/bestpractices/hydrogen-flames
– kkm
Aug 11 at 12:27
Hydrogen flame is faint bluish, almost invisible. It is possible that a colorant is added to the waste gas for safety reasons (visibility of the flame, or visible deflagration in case of leak and fire). See h2tools.org/bestpractices/hydrogen-flames
– kkm
Aug 11 at 12:27
add a comment |Â
1 Answer
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oldest
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5
down vote
accepted
The answers on the reddit thread you linked are essentially correct. The camera angle is the only difference between the two images, making the flare appear further away.
As you mention, Delta IV and Heavy use cryogenic hydrogen and oxygen as propellants at approximately -255°C and -185°C respectively. As these are loaded into the tanks in the lead up to launch they continuously boil off, producing their gaseous equivalents. To mitigate pressure build-up inside the tanks, they are vented:
The venting oxygen can be seen as white clouds around the vehicle before launch.
The venting hydrogen is piped a short distance away from the launchpad and burnt in a controlled manner.
Once the loading is complete, a small amount of propellant is continually fed into the tanks to keep them topped up.
See the User Guide for more detail, here for a thorough description of the vehicle and this short description of the venting process.
answered Aug 11 at 10:24
Jack
5,90112848
The red color of the flame is then probably due to the lighting conditions. The blue /red almost made it look like acetylene, but that didn't make sense.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:38
@Ludo probably yes - see here for an example. I've also heard that some other gas it burnt at the vent to keep the flame going, but I'm not sure what - presumably something cheaper to produce like propane.
– Jack
Aug 11 at 10:40
The picture there, burning at night, looks quite similar! A bit smaller.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:47
add a comment |Â
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
5
down vote
accepted
The answers on the reddit thread you linked are essentially correct. The camera angle is the only difference between the two images, making the flare appear further away.
As you mention, Delta IV and Heavy use cryogenic hydrogen and oxygen as propellants at approximately -255°C and -185°C respectively. As these are loaded into the tanks in the lead up to launch they continuously boil off, producing their gaseous equivalents. To mitigate pressure build-up inside the tanks, they are vented:
The venting oxygen can be seen as white clouds around the vehicle before launch.
The venting hydrogen is piped a short distance away from the launchpad and burnt in a controlled manner.
Once the loading is complete, a small amount of propellant is continually fed into the tanks to keep them topped up.
See the User Guide for more detail, here for a thorough description of the vehicle and this short description of the venting process.
answered Aug 11 at 10:24
Jack
5,90112848
The red color of the flame is then probably due to the lighting conditions. The blue /red almost made it look like acetylene, but that didn't make sense.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:38
@Ludo probably yes - see here for an example. I've also heard that some other gas it burnt at the vent to keep the flame going, but I'm not sure what - presumably something cheaper to produce like propane.
– Jack
Aug 11 at 10:40
The picture there, burning at night, looks quite similar! A bit smaller.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:47
add a comment |Â
up vote
5
down vote
accepted
The answers on the reddit thread you linked are essentially correct. The camera angle is the only difference between the two images, making the flare appear further away.
As you mention, Delta IV and Heavy use cryogenic hydrogen and oxygen as propellants at approximately -255°C and -185°C respectively. As these are loaded into the tanks in the lead up to launch they continuously boil off, producing their gaseous equivalents. To mitigate pressure build-up inside the tanks, they are vented:
The venting oxygen can be seen as white clouds around the vehicle before launch.
The venting hydrogen is piped a short distance away from the launchpad and burnt in a controlled manner.
Once the loading is complete, a small amount of propellant is continually fed into the tanks to keep them topped up.
See the User Guide for more detail, here for a thorough description of the vehicle and this short description of the venting process.
answered Aug 11 at 10:24
Jack
5,90112848
The red color of the flame is then probably due to the lighting conditions. The blue /red almost made it look like acetylene, but that didn't make sense.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:38
@Ludo probably yes - see here for an example. I've also heard that some other gas it burnt at the vent to keep the flame going, but I'm not sure what - presumably something cheaper to produce like propane.
– Jack
Aug 11 at 10:40
The picture there, burning at night, looks quite similar! A bit smaller.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:47
add a comment |Â
up vote
5
down vote
accepted
up vote
5
down vote
accepted
The answers on the reddit thread you linked are essentially correct. The camera angle is the only difference between the two images, making the flare appear further away.
As you mention, Delta IV and Heavy use cryogenic hydrogen and oxygen as propellants at approximately -255°C and -185°C respectively. As these are loaded into the tanks in the lead up to launch they continuously boil off, producing their gaseous equivalents. To mitigate pressure build-up inside the tanks, they are vented:
The venting oxygen can be seen as white clouds around the vehicle before launch.
The venting hydrogen is piped a short distance away from the launchpad and burnt in a controlled manner.
Once the loading is complete, a small amount of propellant is continually fed into the tanks to keep them topped up.
See the User Guide for more detail, here for a thorough description of the vehicle and this short description of the venting process.
answered Aug 11 at 10:24
Jack
5,90112848
The answers on the reddit thread you linked are essentially correct. The camera angle is the only difference between the two images, making the flare appear further away.
As you mention, Delta IV and Heavy use cryogenic hydrogen and oxygen as propellants at approximately -255°C and -185°C respectively. As these are loaded into the tanks in the lead up to launch they continuously boil off, producing their gaseous equivalents. To mitigate pressure build-up inside the tanks, they are vented:
The venting oxygen can be seen as white clouds around the vehicle before launch.
The venting hydrogen is piped a short distance away from the launchpad and burnt in a controlled manner.
Once the loading is complete, a small amount of propellant is continually fed into the tanks to keep them topped up.
See the User Guide for more detail, here for a thorough description of the vehicle and this short description of the venting process.
answered Aug 11 at 10:24
Jack
5,90112848
edited Aug 11 at 10:36
answered Aug 11 at 10:24
Jack
5,90112848
answered Aug 11 at 10:24
Jack
5,90112848
answered Aug 11 at 10:24
Jack
5,90112848
5,90112848
The red color of the flame is then probably due to the lighting conditions. The blue /red almost made it look like acetylene, but that didn't make sense.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:38
@Ludo probably yes - see here for an example. I've also heard that some other gas it burnt at the vent to keep the flame going, but I'm not sure what - presumably something cheaper to produce like propane.
– Jack
Aug 11 at 10:40
The picture there, burning at night, looks quite similar! A bit smaller.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:47
add a comment |Â
The red color of the flame is then probably due to the lighting conditions. The blue /red almost made it look like acetylene, but that didn't make sense.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:38
@Ludo probably yes - see here for an example. I've also heard that some other gas it burnt at the vent to keep the flame going, but I'm not sure what - presumably something cheaper to produce like propane.
– Jack
Aug 11 at 10:40
The picture there, burning at night, looks quite similar! A bit smaller.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:47
The red color of the flame is then probably due to the lighting conditions. The blue /red almost made it look like acetylene, but that didn't make sense.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:38
The red color of the flame is then probably due to the lighting conditions. The blue /red almost made it look like acetylene, but that didn't make sense.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:38
@Ludo probably yes - see here for an example. I've also heard that some other gas it burnt at the vent to keep the flame going, but I'm not sure what - presumably something cheaper to produce like propane.
– Jack
Aug 11 at 10:40
@Ludo probably yes - see here for an example. I've also heard that some other gas it burnt at the vent to keep the flame going, but I'm not sure what - presumably something cheaper to produce like propane.
– Jack
Aug 11 at 10:40
The picture there, burning at night, looks quite similar! A bit smaller.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:47
The picture there, burning at night, looks quite similar! A bit smaller.
– Ludo
Aug 11 at 10:47
add a comment |Â
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Hydrogen flame is faint bluish, almost invisible. It is possible that a colorant is added to the waste gas for safety reasons (visibility of the flame, or visible deflagration in case of leak and fire). See h2tools.org/bestpractices/hydrogen-flames
– kkm
Aug 11 at 12:27