Atlas III

The Atlas III (known as the Atlas II-AR (R for Russian) early in development[2]) was an American orbital launch vehicle, used in the years between 2000 and 2005.[3] It was the first member of the Atlas family since the Atlas A to feature a "normal" staging method, compared to the previous Atlas family members, which were equipped with two jettisonable outboard engines on the first (booster) stage (with a single center engine serving as the sustainer).

Atlas III
The maiden flight of the Atlas III
FunctionMedium expendable Launch vehicle
ManufacturerLockheed Martin
Country of originUnited States
Size
Height52.8 m (173 ft)
Diameter3.05 m (10.0 ft)
Mass214,338 kg (472,534 lb)
Stages2
Capacity
Payload to LEO
MassIIIA: 8,640 kg (19,040 lb)
IIIB: 10,218 kg (23,630 lb)
Payload to GTO
MassIIIA: 4,055 kg (8,939 lb)
IIIB: 4,500 kg (9,900 lb)
Associated rockets
FamilyAtlas
Launch history
StatusRetired
Launch sitesSLC-36B, CCAFS
Total launches6
(IIIA: 2, IIIB: 4)
Success(es)6
(IIIA: 2, IIIB: 4)[1]
First flightIIIA: May 24, 2000
IIIB: February 21, 2002
Last flightIIIA: March 13, 2004
IIIB: February 3, 2005
First stage
Engines1 RD-180
Thrust4,148.7 kN (932,700 lbf)
Specific impulse311 seconds (3.05 km/s)
Burn time132 seconds
FuelRP-1 / LOX
Second stage (Atlas IIIA) – Centaur (SEC)
Engines1 RL-10A
Thrust99.2 kN (22,300 lbf)
Specific impulse451 seconds (4.42 km/s)
Burn time738 seconds
FuelLH2 / LOX
Second stage (Atlas IIIB) – Centaur (DEC)
Engines2 RL-10A
Thrust147 kN (33,000 lbf)
Specific impulse449 seconds (4.40 km/s)
Burn time392 seconds
FuelLH2 / LOX

Description

The Atlas III consisted of two stages. The first stage was new, but the upper stage was the Centaur, which is still in use today on the Atlas V EELV. The first stage engines were Russian RD-180s, which are also used by the Atlas V. The Atlas III was produced in two versions. The baseline was the Atlas IIIA, but the Atlas IIIB, featuring a twin-engine version of the Centaur upper stage, was also produced.[1]

Launches

The first flight of the Atlas III occurred on 24 May 2000, launching the Eutelsat W4 communications satellite into a geosynchronous orbit.[4] All Atlas III launches were made from Space Launch Complex 36B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The Atlas III made its sixth and last flight on 3 February 2005, with a classified payload for the United States National Reconnaissance Office.[5][6]

GX
Main article: GX (rocket)

The GX rocket, formerly under development by Galaxy Express Corporation, was originally intended to use the boost stage of the Atlas III, provided by Lockheed-Martin, and a newly designed upper stage. It would have launched from the Tanegashima Space Center, south of Kyūshū, Japan. In December 2009 the Japanese government decided to cancel the GX project.[7]

See also

References
  1. Space Launch Report: Atlas III Data Sheet (accessed September 24, 2014)
  2. "Lockheed Martin Selects RD-180 to Power Atlas IIAR". International Launch Services. January 17, 1996. Retrieved March 9, 2013.
  3. "Atlas IIIA". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on July 1, 2013. Retrieved March 8, 2007.
  4. "Atlas-3A (Atlas-IIIA)". space.skyrocket.de. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  5. Ray, Justin (February 3, 2015). "Last Atlas 3 rocket launches a pair of spy satellites". spaceflightnow.com. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  6. Plain, Charlie. "NASA – Out With a Bang!". www.nasa.gov. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  7. "Japan scraps GX rocket development project". iStockAnalyst. December 16, 2009. Archived from the original on March 6, 2014. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
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