Atlas I
Encyclopedia
The Atlas I was an American
expendable launch system
, used in the 1990s to launch a variety of different satellites. The "I" in "Atlas I" can cause confusion, as all previous Atlas rockets were designated using letters, ending with the Atlas H, however subsequent rockets were designated using roman numerals, starting with the Atlas II
. Officially, the "I" is the roman numeral "1".
The first stage of the Atlas I was derived from Atlas G
, and the second stage was a Centaur
. The first stage had an improved MA-5A propulsion system, consisting of the LR-89 booster engine with dual thrust chambers and a more powerful RS-27 replacing the traditional LR-105 sustainer engine. With the new RS-27 sustainer engine, all three of the large Atlas thrust chambers produced equal thrust. Booster engine jettison occurred prior to sustainer engine cut-off for stage-and-a-half staging of the Atlas. (Used in conjunction with the Centaur, this gave the Atlas I 2.5 stages
).
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
expendable launch system
Expendable launch system
An expendable launch system is a launch system that uses an expendable launch vehicle to carry a payload into space. The vehicles used in expendable launch systems are designed to be used only once , and their components are not recovered for re-use after launch...
, used in the 1990s to launch a variety of different satellites. The "I" in "Atlas I" can cause confusion, as all previous Atlas rockets were designated using letters, ending with the Atlas H, however subsequent rockets were designated using roman numerals, starting with the Atlas II
Atlas II
Atlas II was a member of the Atlas family of launch vehicles, which evolved from the successful Atlas missile program of the 1950s. Atlas II was the last Atlas to use a three engine, "stage-and-a-half" design: two of its three engines were jettisoned during ascent, but its fuel tanks and other...
. Officially, the "I" is the roman numeral "1".
The first stage of the Atlas I was derived from Atlas G
Atlas G
The Atlas G, also known as Atlas G Centaur-D1AR was an American expendable launch system derived from the Atlas-Centaur. It was a member of the Atlas family of rockets, and was used to launch seven communication satellites during the mid to late 1980s...
, and the second stage was a Centaur
Centaur (rocket stage)
Centaur is a rocket stage designed for use as the upper stage of space launch vehicles. Centaur boosts its satellite payload to geosynchronous orbit or, in the case of an interplanetary space probe, to or near to escape velocity...
. The first stage had an improved MA-5A propulsion system, consisting of the LR-89 booster engine with dual thrust chambers and a more powerful RS-27 replacing the traditional LR-105 sustainer engine. With the new RS-27 sustainer engine, all three of the large Atlas thrust chambers produced equal thrust. Booster engine jettison occurred prior to sustainer engine cut-off for stage-and-a-half staging of the Atlas. (Used in conjunction with the Centaur, this gave the Atlas I 2.5 stages
Multistage rocket
A multistage rocket is a rocket that usestwo or more stages, each of which contains its own engines and propellant. A tandem or serial stage is mounted on top of another stage; a parallel stage is attached alongside another stage. The result is effectively two or more rockets stacked on top of or...
).
Launch history
| Date/Time (GMT) | Serial Number | Payload | Outcome | Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlas | Centaur | ||||
| 25 July 1990, 19:21 | AC-69 | 5049 | CRRES CRRES The Combined Release and Radiation Effects Satellite was launched on July 25, 1990 into a geosynchronous transfer orbit for a nominal three-year mission to investigate fields, plasmas, and energetic particles inside the Earth's magnetosphere... |
Successful | Maiden flight of Atlas I, spacecraft later failed |
| 18 April 1991, 23:30 | AC-70 | Unknown | Yuri 3H | Failure | Centaur turbopump malfunction |
| 14 March 1992, 00:00 | AC-72 | 5052 | Galaxy 5 | Successful | |
| 22 August 1992, 22:40 | AC-71 | 5051 | Galaxy 1R | Failure | Centaur turbopump failed to start |
| 25 March 1993, 21:38 | AC-74 | 5054 | UHF F-1 | Failure | Atlas engine failure, satellite placed in unusable orbit |
| 3 September 1993, 11:17 | AC-75 | 5055 | UHF F-2 (USA-95) | Successful | |
| 13 April 1994, 06:04 | AC-73 | 5053 | GOES-8 Goes Goes is a municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands in Zuid-Beveland, in the province Zeeland. The city of Goes has approximately 27,000 residents.-History of Goes:... (GOES-I) |
Successful | |
| 24 June 1994, 13:50 | AC-76 | 5056 | UHF F-3 (USA-104) | Successful | |
| 23 May 1995, 05:52 | AC-77 | 5057 | GOES-9 Goes Goes is a municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands in Zuid-Beveland, in the province Zeeland. The city of Goes has approximately 27,000 residents.-History of Goes:... (GOES-J) |
Successful | |
| 30 April 1996, 04:31 | AC-78 | 5058 | BeppoSAX BeppoSAX BeppoSAX was an Italian–Dutch satellite for X-ray astronomy which played a crucial role in resolving the origin of gamma-ray bursts , the most energetic events known in the universe... |
Successful | |
| 25 April 1997, 05:49 | AC-79 | Unknown | GOES-10 Goes Goes is a municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands in Zuid-Beveland, in the province Zeeland. The city of Goes has approximately 27,000 residents.-History of Goes:... (GOES-K) |
Successful | Final flight of Atlas I |