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Atlas-Able

American expendable launch system

Summary

American expendable launch system

Field	Value
name	Atlas-Able
image	Atlas-D Able - Pioneer P-3.jpg
caption	The Atlas-D Able rocket carrying Pioneer P-3, sitting on Cape Canaveral's Launch Complex 14.
manufacturer	Convair Division of General Dynamics
country-origin	United States
status	Retired
sites	LC-12, 13 & 14, Cape Canaveral
fail	3
launches	3
first	26 November 1959
last	15 December 1960
height	28 m (91 ft)
diameter	3.05 m (10 ft)
stages	3.5
type	stage
stageno	Booster
number	1
name	Half Stage
length
diameter
width
empty
gross
engines	2
thrust	300000 lbf
Atlas D
total	360000 lbf
Atlas D
SI
burntime
fuel	RP-1/LOX
type	stage
stageno	First
name	Sustainer
length
diameter
empty
gross
engines	1
thrust	60000 lbf
Atlas D
SI
burntime
fuel	RP-1/LOX
type	stage
stageno	Second
name	Able
engines	1 AJ10-37
thrust	7800 lbf
SI	270
burntime	115
fuel	Nitric Acid / UDMH
type	stage
stageno	Third
name	Altair
engines	1
fuel	solid
location	Trans-lunar injection
kilos	168 kg

|country-origin = United States Atlas D Atlas D Atlas D The Atlas-Able was an American expendable launch system derived from the SM-65 Atlas missile. It was a member of the Atlas family of rockets, and was used to launch several Pioneer spacecraft towards the Moon. Of the five Atlas-Able rockets built, two failed during static firings, and the other three failed to reach orbit.

The Atlas-Able was a three-and-a-half-stage rocket, with a stage-and-a-half Atlas missile as the first stage, an Able second stage, and an Altair third stage.

The first Atlas-Able used an Atlas C as the first stage, and was intended to carry Pioneer P-1, but exploded during a static fire test on 24 September 1959.

The remaining Pioneer launches used Atlas D missiles. Launches were conducted from Launch Complexes 12 and 14 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. One launch was planned from Launch Complex 13; this became the second Atlas-Able to be destroyed during a static firing, and hence never launched.

Launches

Date	Serial No.	Mission	Launch Site	Outcome	Photo
-	Atlas 9C	Pioneer P-1	LC-12	Failure. Explosion during a static fire test.	[[File:Atlas C Able.JPG	100x100px]]
26 November 1959	Atlas 20D	Pioneer P-3	LC-14	24}}	[[File:Atlas Able 1959 Nov 26.JPG	100x100px]]
25 September 1960	Atlas 80D	Pioneer P-30	LC-12	Failure. A propellant feed on the second stage had a malfunction.	[[File:Atlas-Able.jpg	frameless	106x106px]]
15 December 1960	Atlas 91D	Pioneer P-31	LC-12	Failure. Vibration and/or debris from the Able adapter section ruptured the liquid oxygen tank of Atlas, causing an explosion.	[[File:Atlas Able 1960 Dec 15.jpg	100x100px]]

References

Wade. (2008-08-14). "Atlas".
Krebs, Gunter D.. "Atlas-D Able".
Krebs, Gunter D.. "Atlas-C Able".
LePage, Andrew. (December 13, 2010). "The Pioneer lunar orbiters: a forgotten failure".
(September 24, 1959). "U.S. Moon Rocket Blows Up in Static Test". Tulare Advance-Register.
(September 26, 1960). "U.S. Fails In Pioneer Shot". Standard-Speaker.
Siddiqi, A.A.. (2002). "Deep Space Chronicle (SP-2002-4524)". NASA.
Finney, John W.. (December 17, 1960). "Reach of U.S. Scientists Into Space Still Exceeds Grasp Of Their Rockets". The Bangor Daily News.

Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

rockets-and-missiles atlas-(rocket-family)

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