Rocket Engines

Abstract

Unlike air-breathing engines, to be treated separately, rocket engines carry all of the needed propellant. They generate thrust by imparting momentum to the propellant before it is expelled from the engine. They are fundamental for space flight and also have many applications in atmospheric propulsion, including many of military nature. They are the oldest propulsion technology. The short presentation given below focuses on chemical rockets, which are schematically shown in Fig. 1.