Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 19

Last updated
Launch Complex 19
Gemini 10 launch time exposure - GPN-2006-000036.jpg
A multiple exposure photograph of the configuration of Pad 19 up until the launch of Gemini 10.
Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 19
Launch site Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
Location 28°30′24″N80°33′15″W / 28.50667°N 80.55417°W / 28.50667; -80.55417
Time zone UTC−05:00 (EST)
 Summer (DST)
UTC−04:00 (EDT)
Short nameLC-19
Operator United States Space Force
Total launches27
Launch pad(s)1
Orbital inclination
range
28° - 57°
Launch history
StatusInactive
First launchAugust 14, 1959
HGM-25A Titan I
Last launchNovember 11, 1966
Titan II GLV / Gemini XII [1]
Associated
rockets
HGM-25A Titan I
LGM-25C Titan II
Titan II GLV
Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 19
Invisible Square.svg
Invisible Square.svg
Mapscaleline.svg
5km
3miles
28
Invisible Square.svg
27
Invisible Square.svg
26
Invisible Square.svg
25
Invisible Square.svg
24
Invisible Square.svg
23
Invisible Square.svg
22
Invisible Square.svg
21
Invisible Square.svg
20
Invisible Square.svg
19
Invisible Square.svg
18
17
Invisible Square.svg
16
Invisible Square.svg
15
Invisible Square.svg
14
Invisible Square.svg
13
Invisible Square.svg
12
Invisible Square.svg
11
Invisible Square.svg
10
Invisible Square.svg
9
Invisible Square.svg
8
Invisible Square.svg
7
Invisible Square.svg
6
Invisible Square.svg
5
Invisible Square.svg
4
Invisible Square.svg
3
Invisible Square.svg
2
Invisible Square.svg

  Active pads
  Inactive leased pads
  Inactive unleased pads

1
LC-39B
2
LC-39A
3
LC-48
4
SLC-41
5
SLC-40
6
LC-47
7
SLC-37
8
LC-34
9
SLC-20
10
LC-19
11
LC-16
12
LC-15
13
LC-14
14
LC-13 (LZ-1 & LZ-2)
15
LC-12
16
LC-11
17
LC-36
18
LC-1, LC-2, LC-3, and LC-4
19
SLC-46
20
LC-21 and LC-22
21
LC-31 and LC-32
22
LC-18
23
SLC-17
24
LC-26
25
LC-5 and LC-6
26
LC-30
27
LC-25
28
LC-29

Launch Complex 19 (LC-19) is a deactivated launch site on Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida used by NASA to launch all of the Gemini crewed spaceflights. It was also used by uncrewed Titan I and Titan II missiles. [1]

Contents

One of the eight pads considered part of Missile Row, LC-19 was in use from 1959 to 1966, during which time it saw 27 launches, 10 of which were crewed. The first flight from LC-19 was on August 14, 1959 and ended in a pad explosion, extensively damaging the facility, which took a few months to repair. The first successful launch from LC-19 was also a Titan I, on February 2, 1960. After being converted for the Titan II ICBM program in 1962, LC-19 was later designated for the Gemini flights. After the program concluded in December 1966, LC-19 was closed down.

The Gemini white room from the top of the booster erector has been partially restored and is on display at the Air Force Space and Missile Museum located at Complex 26. [1]

Launch history

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
1959
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kennedy Space Center</span> United States space launch site in Florida

The John F. Kennedy Space Center, located on Merritt Island, Florida, is one of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) ten field centers. Since 1968, KSC has been NASA's primary launch center of American spaceflight, research, and technology. Launch operations for the Apollo, Skylab and Space Shuttle programs were carried out from Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39 and managed by KSC. Located on the east coast of Florida, KSC is adjacent to Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS). The management of the two entities work very closely together, share resources, and operate facilities on each other's property.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vandenberg Space Force Base</span> United States Space Force Base near Los Angeles

Vandenberg Space Force Base, previously Vandenberg Air Force Base, is a United States Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California. Established in 1941, Vandenberg Space Force Base is a space launch base, launching spacecraft from the Western Range, and also performs missile testing. The United States Space Force's Space Launch Delta 30 serves as the host delta for the base, equivalent to an Air Force air base wing. In addition to its military space launch mission, Vandenberg Space Force Base also hosts space launches for civil and commercial space entities, such as NASA and SpaceX.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Canaveral Space Force Station</span> Military rocket launch site in Florida

Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) is an installation of the United States Space Force's Space Launch Delta 45, located on Cape Canaveral in Brevard County, Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gemini 2</span> Second American Gemini program spaceflight

Gemini 2 was the second spaceflight of the American human spaceflight program Project Gemini, and was launched and recovered on January 19, 1965. Gemini 2, like Gemini 1, was an uncrewed mission intended as a test flight of the Gemini spacecraft. Unlike Gemini 1, which was placed into orbit, Gemini 2 made a suborbital flight, primarily intended to test the spacecraft's heat shield. It was launched on a Titan II GLV rocket. The spacecraft used for the Gemini 2 mission was later refurbished into the Gemini B configuration, and was subsequently launched on another suborbital flight, along with OPS 0855, as a test for the US Air Force Manned Orbital Laboratory. Gemini spacecraft no. 2 was the first craft to make more than one spaceflight since the X-15, and the only one until Space Shuttle Columbia flew its second mission in 1981; it would also be the only space capsule to be reused until Crew Dragon Endeavour was launched a second time in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Project Gemini</span> 1961–1966 US human spaceflight program

Project Gemini was the second United States human spaceflight program to fly. Conducted after the first American crewed space program, Project Mercury, while the Apollo program was still in early development, Gemini was conceived in 1961 and concluded in 1966. The Gemini spacecraft carried a two-astronaut crew. Ten Gemini crews and 16 individual astronauts flew low Earth orbit (LEO) missions during 1965 and 1966.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39</span> Historic Apollo Moonport

Launch Complex 39 (LC-39) is a rocket launch site at the John F. Kennedy Space Center on Merritt Island in Florida, United States. The site and its collection of facilities were originally built as the Apollo program's "Moonport" and later modified for the Space Shuttle program. Launch Complex 39 consists of three launch sub-complexes or "pads"—39A, 39B, and 39C—a Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), a Crawlerway used by crawler-transporters to carry mobile launcher platforms between the VAB and the pads, Orbiter Processing Facility buildings, a Launch Control Center which contains the firing rooms, a news facility famous for the iconic countdown clock seen in television coverage and photos, and various logistical and operational support buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 34</span> Launch site at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station

Launch Complex 34 (LC-34) is a deactivated launch site on Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. LC-34 and its companion LC-37 to the north were used by NASA from 1961 through 1968 to launch Saturn I and IB rockets as part of the Apollo program. It was the site of the Apollo 1 fire, which claimed the lives of astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee on January 27, 1967. The first crewed Apollo launch — Apollo 7 on October 11, 1968 — was the last time LC-34 was used.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex 41</span> American space launch site at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, USA

Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41), previously Launch Complex 41 (LC-41), is an active launch site at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. As of 2024, the site is used by United Launch Alliance (ULA) for Atlas V and Vulcan Centaur launches. Previously, it had been used by the United States Air Force for Titan IIIC, Titan IIIE, and Titan IV launches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 14</span> Launch site of manned Project Mercury flights

Launch Complex 14 (LC-14) is a launch site at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Part of the Missile Row lineup of launch sites in the region, LC-14 was used for various crewed and uncrewed Atlas launches, including the February 1962 Friendship 7 flight aboard which John Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 5</span> Former launch site at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida

Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 5 (LC-5) was a launch site at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida used for various Redstone and Jupiter launches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex 40</span> Rocket launch site in Florida, US

Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40), sometimes referred to as "Slick Forty," is a launch pad located at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Initially opened as Launch Complex 40 (LC-40) and used by the United States Air Force for 55 launches of rockets from the Titan family between 1965 and 2005. In 2007, SpaceX acquired a lease for SLC-40 and has since transformed the complex into a high-volume launch site for the Falcon 9 rocket. As of January 2025, the pad has hosted over 225 Falcon 9 launches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Missile Row</span> Nickname for eight launch pads at Cape Canaveral

Missile Row was a nickname given in the 1960s to the eight SM-65 Atlas and HGM-25A Titan I launch complexes at the middle area of Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, historically used by the United States Air Force and NASA. Operated by the 45th Space Wing since 1949, it was the site of all fourteen Mercury-Atlas and Gemini launches, as well as many other early missile tests, Department of Defense launches, and NASA launches. Missile Row and Cape Canaveral played a secondary role to Vandenberg Air Force Base in California for DoD launches, but it was used by many NASA launches of unmanned space probes, thanks to said spacecraft being typically launched on military vehicles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Canaveral Space Force Museum</span> Aerospace museum in Port Canaveral, Brevard County

The Cape Canaveral Space Force Museum is located at Launch Complex 26 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. It includes artifacts from the early American space program and includes an outdoor area displaying rockets, missiles, and space-related equipment chronicling the space and missile history of the US Air Force, the US Space Force and other military branches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vandenberg Space Launch Complex 2</span> Rocket launch site at Vandenberg Space Force Base in the USA

Space Launch Complex 2 (SLC-2) is an active rocket launch site at Vandenberg Space Force Base, in California, USA. It consists of two launch pads: Space Launch Complex 2 East, used by the PGM-17 Thor missile and several of its derivatives from 1958 to 1972; and Space Launch Complex 2 West, which has been in use since 1959 to launch the Thor-Delta family and Delta II, and is currently used by the Firefly Alpha.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 13</span> Former rocket launch site in Florida, USA

Launch Complex 13 (LC-13) was a launch complex at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCAS), the third-most southerly of the original launch complexes known as Missile Row, lying between LC-12 and LC-14. In 2015, the LC-13 site was leased by SpaceX and was renovated for use as Landing Zone 1 and Landing Zone 2, the company's East Coast landing location for returning Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch vehicle booster stages. It is leased by US Space Force to Phantom Space and Vaya Space who will operate this launch complex after the termination of SpaceX's lease in future.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 16</span> Launch site at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station

Launch Complex 16 (LC-16) is a launch pad site located at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) in Florida. Part of the Missile Row lineup of launch pads, it was built for use by LGM-25 Titan missiles, and later used for NASA operations before being transferred back to the US military and used for tests of MGM-31 Pershing missiles. Six Titan I missiles were launched from the complex between December 1959 and May 1960. These were followed by seven Titan II missiles, starting with the type's maiden flight on March 16, 1962. The last Titan II launch from LC-16 was conducted on May 29, 1963.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Titan II GLV</span> Expendable launch system

The Titan II GLV or Gemini-Titan II was an American expendable launch system derived from the Titan II missile, which was used to launch twelve Gemini missions for NASA between 1964 and 1966. Two uncrewed launches followed by ten crewed ones were conducted from Launch Complex 19 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, starting with Gemini 1 on April 8, 1964.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">6555th Aerospace Test Group</span> Military unit

The 6555th Aerospace Test Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the Eastern Space and Missile Center and stationed at Patrick Air Force Base, Florida. It was inactivated on 1 October 1990.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Cohort Program - Step Level 2" (PDF). NASA Safety Center. NASA. 20 February 2018. p. 3. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2021.

PD-icon.svg This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration .