Saturn A-1

Saturn A-1
FunctionUncrewed launch vehicle
ManufacturerVon Braun
Country of originUnited States
Size
Height49.62 m (162.29 ft)
Diameter6.52 m (21.39 ft)
Mass524,484 kg
Stages3 (all used on various vehicles, now retired)
Capacity
Payload to low Earth orbit
Mass13,600 kg (30,000 lb)
for LEO
Launch history
StatusNever flown
Launch sitesN/A
First stage - S-I
Engines8 H-1
Thrust7,582 kN
Burn time150 seconds
PropellantRP-1/LOX
Second stage Titan I
Engines2 LR-87-3
Thrust1,467 kN
Burn time138 seconds
PropellantRP-1/LOX
Third stage - Centaur C
Engines2 RL-10A-1
Thrust133 kN
Burn time430 seconds
PropellantLH2 / LOX

Saturn A-1, studied in 1959, was projected to be the first version of Saturn I and was to be used if necessary before the S-IV liquid hydrogen second stage became available.[1] It was proposed as a launcher for Project Horizon, a scientific / military base on the Moon project, at a time when the U.S. Department of the Army, Department of the Navy, and Department of the Air Force had total responsibility for U.S. space program plans.[2][3][4]

The rocket was designed as a three stage vehicle.[5] The S-I first stage (initially proposed for the Juno V rocket and eventually used on Saturn I) with eight H-1 engines would propel the Saturn A-1 into space, continuing the flight with a Titan I[6]: 3–6  missile based second stage with two LR-87-3 engines. Finally a Centaur[6]: 3–6  C high-energy double RL-10A-1 engine third stage could send a payload into its final Earth orbit or to other planets.

The Saturn A-1 never flew, but all proposed stages were used on different launch vehicles. Today, they are all retired.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Saturn A-1". November 14, 2016. Archived from the original on November 14, 2016. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
  2. ↑ Ordway, Frederick I.; Sharpe, Mitchell R.; Wakeford, Ronald C. (October 1, 1988). "Project Horizon: An early study of a lunar outpost". Acta Astronautica. 17 (10): 1105–1121. Bibcode:1988AcAau..17.1105O. doi:10.1016/0094-5765(88)90194-4. ISSN 0094-5765.
  3. ↑ "Nearly 60 Years Ago, the U.S. Army Hatched a Plan to Put Soldiers on the Moon". Popular Mechanics. December 26, 2022. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Horizon Lunar Outpost". www.astronautix.com. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  5. ↑ Bilstein, Roger E. (1996). Stages to Saturn: a technological history of the Apollo/Saturn launch vehicles (PDF). The NASA history series. Washington, DC: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA History Office : For sale by the U.S. G.P.O., Supt. of Docs. p. 49. ISBN 978-0-16-048909-9.
  6. 1 2 Lunar Exploration with Saturn-Boosted Systems (PDF) (Technical report). Army Ballistic Missile Agency. October 1, 1959. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 31, 2023. Retrieved May 31, 2023.
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