Space Launch Now - Atlas Centaur

Atlas Centaur

In-active

Convair ()

May 8, 1962

Description

The Atlas-Centaur was a US expendable launch vehicle derived from the SM-65 Atlas D missile. Launches were conducted from Launch Complex 36 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Specifications

Stages
2
Length
33.0 m
Diameter
3.05 m
Fairing Diameter
3.05 m
Launch Mass
―
Thrust
1704.0 kN

Family

Name
Atlas Centaur
Family
―
Variant
Centaur
Alias
―
Full Name
Atlas LV-3C Centaur

Payload Capacity

Launch Cost
―
Low Earth Orbit
―
Geostationary Transfer Orbit
1800.0 kg
Direct Geostationary
―
Sun-Synchronous Capacity
―

Convair

Commercial

None

1943

Convair, previously Consolidated Vultee, was an American aircraft manufacturing company that later expanded into rockets and spacecraft. The company was formed in 1943 by the merger of Consolidated Aircraft and Vultee Aircraft. In 1953 it was purchased by General Dynamics, and operated as their Convair Division for most of its corporate history.

Previous Flights

flew on four previous launch(es).

Atlas Centaur | Surveyor-SD 1

Convair | United States of America
Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
March 2, 1965, 1:25 p.m.

Status: Launch Failure

Mission:

Surveyor-SD was a series of two simulated Surveyor-payloads launched during the development of the Atlas Centaur launch vehicle.

Elliptical Orbit

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Atlas Centaur | Surveyor Mass Model

Convair | United States of America
Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
Dec. 11, 1964, 2:25 p.m.

Status: Launch Successful

Mission:

Surveyor-Model was a dummy mass onbaord of Centaur AC-4, launched on 11 December 1964, which was to test the closed loop Honeywell guidance system and perform the first restart of cryogenic RL10A-3 engines in space.

Low Earth Orbit

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Atlas Centaur | AC-3 Instrumentation Ring

Convair | United States of America
Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
June 30, 1964, 2:04 p.m.

Status: Launch Failure

Mission:

Test flight of the cryogenic Centaur stage.

Low Earth Orbit

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Atlas Centaur | AC-2 Instrumentation Ring

Convair | United States of America
Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
Nov. 27, 1963, 7:03 p.m.

Status: Launch Successful

Mission:

Test flight of the cryogenic Centaur stage.

Low Earth Orbit

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