Is a rocket dragon possible?

So, just read a good number of the answers over at Is a jet dragon possible?, and it seems that a jet dragon doesn't make much sense due to supersonic flight pre-jet engine being required.

Rocket engines function differently from jet engines, in that they don't require external airflow (i.e., are not necessarily air-breathing). Given that, what would be required for a rocket powered dragon to exist?

The bombardier beetle seems to be an example of a very small scale type of rocket engine, albeit a very short lived one. What inherent difficulties exist in attempting to scale that design up, as well as what might be some possible evolutionary paths for a rocket-propelled dragon?

As for some parameters, lets try a scale of 6-foot nose to tail length minimum (below which, I'm not sure it qualifies as a "dragon"), and 1000-foot nose to tail length maximum (I'm not interested in a planetary scale rocket spaceship creature). It must be able to fly it's own weight (passengers not required), and must be able to travel for at least 6 seconds of active thrust.

posted almost 10 years ago

Shishire‭

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