Atlas Able

Atlas with upper stage based on Vanguard second stage.

Six additional Able stages were delivered in parallel with the first production contract for the Thor-Able, and these were modified for use on Atlas, but this was not a good match, and only five were flown. There were problems with the main missile structure while passing through the regime of maximum dynamic pressure, and damage to the second stage during separation.

Manufacturer: Convair. Launches: 5. Failures: 5. Success Rate: 0.00%. First Launch Date: 1959-09-24. Last Launch Date: 1960-12-15. Launch data is: complete. Payload: 170 kg (370 lb). to a: translunar trajectory. Associated Spacecraft: Pioneer P 3. Liftoff Thrust: 1,587.200 kN (356,817 lbf). Total Mass: 120,051 kg (264,667 lb). Core Diameter: 3.05 m (10.00 ft). Total Length: 35.00 m (114.00 ft). Flyaway Unit Cost $: 18.810 million. in: 1985 unit dollars.

Version with Atlas C first stage, Able AJ10-101A second stage, Altair solid third stage.

Apogee: 400,000 km (240,000 mi). Liftoff Thrust: 1,615.000 kN (363,066 lbf). Total Mass: 120,000 kg (260,000 lb). Total Length: 28.00 m (91.00 ft).

Version with Atlas D first stage, Able AJ10-101A second stage, Altair solid third stage.

• Stage Number: 0. 1 x Stage: Atlas MA-2. Gross Mass: 3,050 kg (6,720 lb). Empty Mass: 3,050 kg (6,720 lb). Thrust (vac): 1,517.422 kN (341,130 lbf). Isp: 282 sec. Burn time: 135 sec. Isp(sl): 248 sec. Diameter: 4.90 m (16.00 ft). Span: 4.90 m (16.00 ft). Length: 0.00 m ( ft). Propellants: Lox/Kerosene. No Engines: 2. Engine: XLR-89-5.

• Stage Number: 1. 1 x Stage: Atlas Able. Gross Mass: 114,495 kg (252,418 lb). Empty Mass: 4,200 kg (9,200 lb). Thrust (vac): 363.218 kN (81,655 lbf). Isp: 309 sec. Burn time: 275 sec. Isp(sl): 215 sec. Diameter: 3.05 m (10.00 ft). Span: 4.90 m (16.00 ft). Length: 20.64 m (67.71 ft). Propellants: Lox/Kerosene. No Engines: 1. Engine: XLR-105-5.

• Stage Number: 2. 1 x Stage: Able. Gross Mass: 2,268 kg (5,000 lb). Empty Mass: 816 kg (1,798 lb). Thrust (vac): 34.300 kN (7,711 lbf). Isp: 270 sec. Burn time: 115 sec. Isp(sl): 240 sec. Diameter: 0.84 m (2.75 ft). Span: 0.84 m (2.75 ft). Length: 6.57 m (21.55 ft). Propellants: Nitric acid/UDMH. No Engines: 1. Engine: AJ10-101. The minor modification of the Vanguard aluminum tube thrust chamber to meet the Able requirements was accomplished in the record time of only three months. The major effort during this time was the testing of six aluminum tube thrust chambers for durations longer than the full burn time. This was done to develop confidence that the expected burn-through failure in the throat would occur at least 30% beyond the nominal duration, that it would be repeatable, and that the total impulse would be within specification limits. This was accomplished, and it provided the first opportunity for Aerojet's aluminum tube bundle engine to perform successfully in space.

• Stage Number: 3. 1 x Stage: Altair 1. Gross Mass: 238 kg (524 lb). Empty Mass: 30 kg (66 lb). Thrust (vac): 12.450 kN (2,799 lbf). Isp: 256 sec. Burn time: 38 sec. Isp(sl): 233 sec. Diameter: 0.46 m (1.50 ft). Span: 0.46 m (1.50 ft). Length: 1.83 m (6.00 ft). Propellants: Solid. No Engines: 1. Engine: X-248.

1956 May 28 - Launch Vehicle: Atlas Able.

• RAND lunar instrument carrier based on the Atlas booster Nation: USA. The RAND Corporation issued the first of a series of reports on the feasibility of a lunar instrument carrier, based on the use of an Atlas booster. A braking rocket would decelerate the vehicle before lunar landing, and a penetration spike on the forward point of the instrument package would help to absorb the 500 feet per second impact velocity. Instruments would then transmit information on the lunar surface to earth.References: 16.

• Atlas C Able explodes on pad during static test. Nation: USA. Program: Pioneer. Agency: USAF. A participant remembers:

  I live near the Cape on Merritt Island and have been here for about 41 years. I worked for the ARMA Corp that developed the Atlas Inertial Guidance System. I was in the Blockhouse at Complex 11 while a static test was performed on an Atlas Able on Complex 12. It did explode. Did it ever! After a couple of hours the six of us were allowed out of the blockhouse and saw all the damage to our complex...I had a tiny piece of that missile for a long time that somehow wound up on my person...labeled 9C.

  The next Atlas Able would not fly until over a year later, using the Atlas D as the booster stage.References: 567.

• Pioneer (P 3) Nation: USA. Program: Pioneer. Payload: Pioneer P 3 / Able IVB. Mass: 168 kg (370 lb). Class: Planetary. Type: Lunar. Spacecraft: Pioneer P 3. Agency: NASA. Apogee: 1,000 km (600 mi). COSPAR: F591126A. Decay Date: 1959-11-26. An intended lunar probe launched from the Atlantic Missile Range by an Atlas-Able booster disintegrated about 45 seconds later when the protective sheath covering the payload detached prematurely. The probe was sponsored by NASA, developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and launched by the Air Force Ballistic Missile Division.References: 5, 126, 278.

• Pioneer (P 31) Nation: USA. Program: Pioneer. Payload: Pioneer P 31. Class: Planetary. Type: Lunar. Spacecraft: Pioneer P 3. COSPAR: F600215A. Decay Date: 1960-02-15. References: 5, 126, 278.

• Pioneer (P 30) Nation: USA. Program: Pioneer. Payload: Pioneer P 30 / Able VA. Mass: 175 kg (385 lb). Class: Planetary. Type: Lunar. Spacecraft: Pioneer P 3. Agency: NASA. Apogee: 1,290 km (800 mi). COSPAR: F600925A. Decay Date: 1960-09-25. An attempt to launch a Pioneer satellite into lunar orbit failed when one of the upper stages of the Atlas- Able rocket malfunctioned. References: 5, 16, 126, 278.

• Pioneer (P 31) Nation: USA. Program: Pioneer. Payload: Pioneer P 31 / Able VB. Mass: 175 kg (385 lb). Class: Planetary. Type: Lunar. Spacecraft: Pioneer P 3. Agency: NASA. Apogee: 13 km (8 mi). COSPAR: F601215A. Decay Date: 1960-12-15. The final launch in the Pioneer lunar probe program was unsuccessful; the Atlas-Able booster rocket went out of control and exploded at an altitude of 12,200 m off Cape Canaveral. References: 5, 126, 278.

• McDowell, Jonathan, Jonathan's Space Home Page, Harvard University, 1997-present. Jonathan McDowell's complete on-line listing of all objects orbited and over 20,000 rocket launches Accessed at: http://www.planet4589.org/jsr.html.

• Koelle, Heinz Hermann,, Handbook of Astronautical Engineering, McGraw-Hill,New York, 1961. The only such comprehensive handbook ever produced, and at the dawn of the space age.

• Walker, Chuck, with Powell, Joel, Atlas - The Ultimate Weapon, Apogee Books, Canada, 2005. ISBN: 1894959183. Another excellent Apogee Book, the only in-depth account of the design, development, and production of the rocket that was America's first ICBM, pioneered US spaceflight, and continued to take payloads into orbit into the next millenium. More at amazon.com...