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Aviation History
1976
1976 - 0062.PDF
82 WORLD'S EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLES FLIGHT International, wje 10 lanuary 1976 Low-weight payloads are assigned to the long-serving Scout, a four-stage, solid-propellant rocket which cam place 4501b in low orbit or 901b in a 1,120 mile X 3,800-mile path. The Scout design* goes back to 1958, the first flight taking place in July 1960. Throughout the past 15 years this vehicle has built up a reputation for economic and reliable per formance and, at a cost of $5-2 million a launch, it con tinues to play an important role in orbiting small payloads. To date, 64 Scouts have successfully placed their payloads in orbit, among them Britain's Ariel satellites and many US and foreign craft. All four American rockets are expected to see service well into the 1980s, with Titan and Scout derivatives com plementing the Shuttle! for at least the next decade. While Russia is believed to be developing its own shuttle, that country's expendable launch vehicles may enjoy a more prolonged life than their US counterparts. Russia's shuttle will probably take the form of a recoverable upper stage supporting a reusable, winged, re-entry vehicle of fairly small size. First-stage impulse may be provided by an expendable booster. The smallest Russian launch vehicle currently in use is a derivative of the SS^t Sandal, a military rocket first noted by the West in the 1950s. It is used to launch Cosmos and Intercosmos satellites in the 1,0001b class to low orbit. The SS-6 Sapwood ICBM has enjoyed a varied and flexible application since its introduction in 1957; its initial capa bility of 4,4001b to low orbit (Sputniks 1-3) has been success fully upgraded by means of more powerful stages to reach its current capability of 16,5001b (Soyuz). Applied to lunar, planetary and manned space exploration, this vehicle has been the mainstay of Russian space activities, with more than 600 successful launches in the past 18 years. An intermediate vehicle, developed from the SS-5 Skean and so far used exclusively for military missions, is used for eccentric-orbit or multiple-payload missions; it can lift 2,2001b into low orbit. In 1965 a new and significantly larger rocket, the D type, was introduced to fly heavy Earth-orbit and interplanetary payloads. Alternatively known as the Proton rocket, and employed to date only for civil missions, it can place 48,5001b in low orbit or accelerate nearly 12,0001b to the inner planets. It was first used on a mission to Venus last year, when the Russians succeeded in putting spacecraft into orbit around that planet and landing capsules on the surface to take the first pictures from its surface. Largest of Russia's launch vehicles, the D type can lift about 25 per cent more than the West's Titan HIE/Centaur and is finding increased application for lunar and planetary flights. An uprated version of the SS-9 Scarp is used for purely military space activities and seems capable of orbiting up The sole European operational launch vehicle to date, following the cancellation of the Europa 2 programme, has been France's Diamant (BP-4, left, has three flights to its credit). Russia's standard man- carrying rocket is Soyuz, centre. This one carried the Soviet crew to meet the Americans in orbit during the ASTP mission last July. Japan's satellite launcher, the N rocket (right), made its first flight on September 9 last year. Uprated versions of this Delta-based vehicle are being planned to 10,0001b on inspection-and-destroy flights. Russia may soon complete its heavy-rocket fleet with the so-called G- type rocket, capable of lifting possibly 300,0001b and with perhaps ten years of development behind it. This massive vehicle will probably be used to launch second-generation space stations and sophisticated planetary explorers. Next door to Russia, China is actively developing its own launch vehicles to replace the SS-4 Sandal derivative and has launched five satellites, three of them last year. Japan, too, is proceeding with work on its own rocket designs. Several agreements with the USA have introduced Delta launch-vehicle technology to Japan and that country's plans are centred on the N rocket, which will be capable of putting 2861b into stationary orbit. THE MARKET AT A GLANCE Country Europe France India Japan USA USA USA USA USA USA USA USSR USSR USSR USSR USSR USSR Vehicle Ariane Diamant BP-4 SLV-3 N rocket Scout Delta Atlas/Centaur Titan IMC Titan IIIE/Centaur Shuttle Large Lift Shuttle B (SS-4) C (SS-5) A (SS-6) F (SS-9) D G-1 No of stages 3 4 4 3 4 3 2 4 4 2 2 2 2 2 3 4 ? Launch thrust (lb) 650,000 77,000 c.50,000 330,600 108,000 517,000 503,000 2,350,000 2,350,000 6,300,000 6,300,000 165,000 9 1,100,000 ? 3,300,000 ? Payload to low orbit (lb) 13,000 300 88 450 450 4,500 11,000 25,000 30,000 65,000 140,000 1,000 2,200 16,500 10,000 48,000 300,000? Payload to synchronous orbit (lb) 1,160 — — 286 — 900 4,000 3,200 7,800 3,500 140,000 — — — — — ? Payload to escape velocity (lb) 1,800 ,— — — : 1,000 2,500 — 8,800 5,000 140,000 — — 3,000 — 12,000 ? Launch cost ($) 16 million — ? 1 5-2 million 9-2 million 18-7 million 23-2 million 29-3 million 12-15 million 12-15 million ? ? ? ? 9 9 First flight 1979 1970 1978 1975 1960 1960 1962 1965 1974 1979 1985? 1962 1964 1957 1966 1965 1976? Data for Soviet rocket vehicles is taken from Congressional hearings. Most of the Russian vehicles are built in several versions, depending on the mission requirements, and the figures given are applicable to the most powerful variants.
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