The Jupiter-C was an American research and development vehicle developed from the Jupiter-A. Jupiter-C was used for three uncrewed sub-orbital spaceflights in 1956 and 1957 to test re-entry nosecones that were later to be deployed on the more advanced PGM-19 Jupiter mobile missile. The recovered nosecone was displayed in the Oval Office as part of President Dwight D. Eisenhower's televised speech on November 7,1957.
Vanguard TV-3,was the first attempt of the United States to launch a satellite into orbit around the Earth,after the successful Soviet launches of Sputnik 1 and Sputnik 2. Vanguard TV-3 was a small satellite designed to test the launch capabilities of the three-stage Vanguard and study the effects of the environment on a satellite and its systems in Earth orbit. It was also to be used to obtain geodetic measurements through orbit analysis. Solar cells on Vanguard TV-3 were manufactured by Bell Laboratories.
Project Vanguard was a program managed by the United States Navy Naval Research Laboratory (NRL),which intended to launch the first artificial satellite into low Earth orbit using a Vanguard rocket. as the launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Missile Annex,Florida.
The Saturn family of American rockets was developed by a team of mostly Nazi rocket engineers and scientists led by Wernher von Braun to launch heavy payloads to Earth orbit and beyond. The Saturn family used liquid hydrogen as fuel in the upper stages. Originally proposed as a military satellite launcher,they were adopted as the launch vehicles for the Apollo Moon program. Three versions were built and flown:the medium-lift Saturn I,the heavy-lift Saturn IB,and the super heavy-lift Saturn V.
The Titan IIIC was an expendable launch system used by the United States Air Force from 1965 until 1982. It was the first Titan booster to feature large solid rocket motors and was planned to be used as a launcher for the Dyna-Soar,though the spaceplane was cancelled before it could fly. The majority of the launcher's payloads were DoD satellites,for military communications and early warning,though one flight (ATS-6) was performed by NASA. The Titan IIIC was launched exclusively from Cape Canaveral while its sibling,the Titan IIID,was launched only from Vandenberg AFB.
Explorer 3 was an American artificial satellite launched into medium Earth orbit in 1958. It was the second successful launch in the Explorer program,and was nearly identical to the first U.S. satellite Explorer 1 in its design and mission.
Thor was a US space launch vehicle derived from the PGM-17 Thor intermediate-range ballistic missile. The Thor rocket was the first member of the Delta rocket family of space launch vehicles. The last launch of a direct derivative of the Thor missile occurred in 2018 as the first stage of the final Delta II.
The Thor-Burner was an American expendable launch system,a member of the Thor rocket family. It consisted of a Thor missile,with one or two Burner upper stages. It was used between 1965 and 1976 to orbit a number of satellites,most commonly Defense Meteorological Satellite Program weather satellites. Twenty-four were launched,of which two failed. It weighed 51,810 kg and was 24 metres tall.
The Sputnik rocket was an uncrewed orbital carrier rocket designed by Sergei Korolev in the Soviet Union,derived from the R-7 Semyorka ICBM. On 4 October 1957,it was used to perform the world's first satellite launch,placing Sputnik 1 into a low Earth orbit.
The Atlas E/F was an American expendable launch system and sounding rocket built using parts of decommissioned SM-65 Atlas missiles. It was a member of the Atlas family of rockets.
Vanguard TV-3BU,also called Vanguard Test Vehicle-Three Backup,was the second flight of the American Vanguard rocket. An unsuccessful attempt to place an unnamed satellite,Vanguard 1B,into orbit,the rocket was launched on 5 February 1958. It was launched from LC-18A at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Fifty-seven seconds after launch,control of the vehicle was lost,and it failed to achieve orbit. At 57 seconds,the booster suddenly pitched down. The skinny second stage broke in half from aerodynamic stress,causing the Vanguard to tumble end-over-end before a range safety officer sent the destruct command. The cause of the failure was attributed to a spurious guidance signal that caused the first stage to perform unintended pitch maneuvers. Vanguard TV-3BU only reached an altitude of 6.1 km (3.8 mi),the goal was 3,840 km (2,390 mi).
Vanguard TV-1,also called Vanguard Test Vehicle-One,was the second sub-orbital test flight of a Vanguard rocket as part of the Project Vanguard. Vanguard TV-1 followed the successful launch of Vanguard TV-0 a one-stage rocket launched in December 1956.
Vanguard TV-2,also called Vanguard Test Vehicle-Two,was the third suborbital test flight of a Vanguard rocket as part of Project Vanguard. Successful TV-2 followed the successful launch of Vanguard TV-0 a one-stage rocket launched in December 1956 and Vanguard TV-1 a two-stage rocket launched in May 1957.
Vanguard TV-5,also called Vanguard Test Vehicle-Five,was a failed flight of the American Vanguard rocket following the successful launch of Vanguard 1 on Vanguard TV-4. Vanguard TV-5 launched on 29 April 1958 at 02:53:00 GMT,from Launch Complex 18A at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The rocket was unsuccessful in its attempt to place an unnamed satellite into orbit.
Vanguard SLV-1,also called Vanguard Satellite Launch Vehicle-1 was hoped to be the second successful flight of the American Vanguard rocket following the successful launch of the Vanguard 1 satellite on rocket Vanguard TV-4 in March 1958.
Vanguard SLV-2,also called Vanguard Satellite Launch Vehicle-2 hoped to be the second successful flight of the American Vanguard rocket following successful Vanguard 1 satellite on rocket Vanguard TV-4.
Vanguard SLV-3,also called Vanguard Satellite Launch Vehicle-3 hoped to be the second successful flight of the American Vanguard rocket following successful Vanguard 1 satellite on rocket Vanguard TV-4.
Vanguard SLV-5,also called Vanguard Satellite Launch Vehicle-Five hoped to be the third successful flight of the American Vanguard rocket following the successful Vanguard 2 satellite on rocket Vanguard SLV-4.
Vanguard SLV-6,also called Vanguard Satellite Launch Vehicle-Six,hoped to be the third successful flight of the American Vanguard rocket following the successful Vanguard 2 satellite on rocket Vanguard SLV-4. Vanguard Satellite Launch Vehicle-6 (SLV-6) was designed to carry a small spherical satellite into Earth orbit to study solar heating of Earth and the heat balance. A faulty second stage pressure valve caused a mission failure.
The Able rocket stage was a rocket stage manufactured in the United States by Aerojet as the second of three stages of the Vanguard rocket used in the Vanguard project from 1957 to 1959. The rocket engine used nitric acid and UDMH as rocket propellants. The Able rocket stage was discontinued in 1960. The improved Ablestar version was used as the upper stage of the Thor-Ablestar two stage launcher. The Ablestar second stage was an enlarged version of the Able rocket stage,which gave the Thor-Ablestar a greater payload capacity compared to the earlier Thor-Able. It also incorporated restart capabilities,allowing a multiple-burn trajectory to be flown,further increasing payload,or allowing the rocket to reach different orbits. It was the first rocket to be developed with such a capability and development of the stage took a mere eight months.
