Rocketdyne S-3D

S-3D
S-3D engine at the National Air and Space Museum
Country of originUnited States
ManufacturerRocketdyne
ApplicationBooster
SuccessorH-1
StatusRetired
Liquid-fuel engine
PropellantLOX / RP-1
CycleGas Generator
Configuration
Chamber1
Performance
Thrust, sea-level134908 lbf (600.1 kN)
Specific impulse, sea-level247 seconds (2.42 km/s)
Used in
PGM-19 Jupiter, PGM-17 Thor, Juno II, Saturn A-2

The Rocketdyne S-3D (Air Force designation LR79)[1][2] is an American liquid rocket engine produced by Rocketdyne (a division of North American Aviation) between 1956 and 1961. It was a gas generator, pump-fed engine, using a liquid oxygen (LOX) and RP-1 (kerosene) propellant combination, capable of producing 134908 pounds of thrust (600.1 kN) at sea level.[3]

The S-3 was based on the Redstone engine,[4] and is part of LR79 family,[5][6][1][2] used on the PGM-19 Jupiter and PGM-17 Thor missiles,[7][4][8] and on the Juno II rocket.[3][9][10][11]

A second stage with four S-3 engines was considered for the Saturn A-2 study.[12]

Simplification of the S-3D engine, via the unillustrated X-1, to the Saturn I's H-1

Its design was used later as the basis for the H-1 rocket engine of the Saturn I,[13][1][7] and the Rolls-Royce RZ.2 of the Blue Streak.

  1. ^ a b c "S-3D/LR-79 Engine". heroicrelics.org. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
  2. ^ a b "Rocketdyne LR79 Rocket Engine". National Museum of the United States Air Force.
  3. ^ a b Wade, Mark. "S-3D". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on November 7, 2016.
  4. ^ a b "Jupiter S-3 Rocket Engine | National Air and Space Museum". airandspace.si.edu. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
  5. ^ Wade, Mark. "LR79". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Retrieved 2024-07-29.
  6. ^ "Rocketdyne LR79". National Museum of the U.S. Air Force.
  7. ^ a b Bilstein, Roger E. (1996). Stages to Saturn: A Technological History of the Apollo/Saturn Launch Vehicles. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA History Office. pp. 29, 142. ISBN 978-0-16-048909-9.
  8. ^ "Jupiter Family". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
  9. ^ Wade, Mark. "Jupiter". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on October 10, 2011.
  10. ^ "Rocket Engine, Liquid Fuel, S-3D for Jupiter Missile | National Air and Space Museum". airandspace.si.edu. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
  11. ^ "Juno-2". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
  12. ^ "Saturn A-2". 2016-12-28. Archived from the original on 2016-12-28. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
  13. ^ "S-3D Rocket Engine Overview". heroicrelics.org. Retrieved 2024-10-28.