Titan IV

Titan IV
A Titan IV-B rocket carrying the Cassini-Huygens space research mission before takeoff from Launch Complex 40 on Cape Canaveral, 12 October 1997 (NASA)
FunctionHeavy-lift launch vehicle
ManufacturerLockheed Martin
Country of originUnited States
Cost per launch$432 million (USD)
Size
Height50-62 m (164-207 ft)
Diameter3.05 m (10 ft)
Mass943,050 kg (2,079,060 lb)
Stages3-5
Capacity
Payload to LEO
Mass21,680 kg(47,790 lb)
Payload to Polar LEO
Mass17,600 kg(38,800 lb)
Payload to GSO
Mass5,760 kg(12,690 lb)
Payload to HCO
Mass5,660 kg(12,470 lb)
Associated rockets
FamilyTitan
ComparableAtlas V, Delta IV Heavy, Falcon 9
Launch history
StatusRetired
Launch sitesSLC-40/41, Cape Canaveral
SLC-4E, Vandenberg AFB
Total launches39[1]
(IVA: 22, IVB: 17)
Success(es)35
(IVA: 20, IVB: 15)
Failure(s)4 (IVA: 2, IVB: 2)
First flightIV-A: 14 June 1989
IV-B: 23 February 1997
Last flightIV-A: 12 August 1998
IV-B: 19 October 2005
Type of passengers/cargoLacrosse
DSP
Milstar
Cassini-Huygens
Boosters (IV-A) – UA1207
No. boosters2
Powered byUnited Technologies UA1207
Maximum thrust14.234 MN (3,200,000 lbf)
Specific impulse272 seconds (2667 N·s/kg)
Burn time120 seconds
PropellantPBAN
Boosters (IV-B) – SRMU
No. boosters2
Powered byHercules USRM[2]
Maximum thrust15.12 MN (3,400,000 lbf)
Specific impulse286 seconds (2805 N·s/kg)
Burn time140 seconds
PropellantHTPB
First stage
Powered by2 LR87[3]
Maximum thrust2,440 kN (548,000 lbf)
Specific impulse302 seconds (2962 N·s/kg)
Burn time164 seconds
PropellantN2O4 / Aerozine 50
Second stage
Powered by1 LR91
Maximum thrust467 kN (105,000 lbf)
Specific impulse316 seconds (3100 N·s/kg)
Burn time223 seconds
PropellantN2O4 / Aerozine 50
Third stage (Optional) – Centaur-T
Powered by2 RL10
Maximum thrust147 kN (33,100 lbf)
Specific impulse444 seconds (4354 N·s/kg)
Burn time625 seconds
PropellantLH2/LOX
[edit on Wikidata]

Titan IV was a family of heavy-lift space launch vehicles developed by Martin Marietta and operated by the United States Air Force from 1989 to 2005.[4] Launches were conducted from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida[5] and Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.[6]

The Titan IV was the last of the Titan family of rockets, originally developed by the Glenn L. Martin Company in 1958. It was retired in 2005 due to their high cost of operation and concerns over its toxic hypergolic propellants, and replaced with the Atlas V and Delta IV launch vehicles under the EELV program. The final launch (B-30) from Cape Canaveral occurred on 29 April 2005, and the final launch from Vandenberg AFB occurred on 19 October 2005.[7] Lockheed Martin Space Systems built the Titan IVs near Denver, Colorado, under contract to the US government.[1]

Two Titan IV vehicles are currently on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio and the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon.

  1. ^ a b "Lockheed Martin's Last Titan IV Successfully Delivers National Security Payload to Space". October 19, 2005. Archived from the original on January 14, 2008.
  2. ^ "USRM". www.astronautix.com. Archived from the original on December 27, 2016.
  3. ^ "Analysis of Titan IV Launch Responsiveness" (PDF). Analysis of Titan IV Launch Responsiveness (pg. 28). Retrieved February 26, 2024.
  4. ^ "Space and Missile System Center Mission and Organization" (PDF). Space and Missile Systems Center's History Office. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 11, 2008. Retrieved September 20, 2008.
  5. ^ "Titan 4B and Cape Canaveral". Space.com. Archived from the original on 2001-10-31. Retrieved 2008-05-21.
  6. ^ "Spaceflight Now | Titan Launch Report | Titan 4 rocket expected to launch Lacrosse spy satellite". spaceflightnow.com.
  7. ^ Nemiroff, R.; Bonnell, J., eds. (27 October 2005). "The Last Titan". Astronomy Picture of the Day. NASA. Retrieved 2008-09-20.