 The launch of the Vanguard TV-1 rocket | |
| Names | Vanguard Test Vehicle-1 Vanguard Test Vehicle-One |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Vanguard test flight |
| Operator | Naval Research Laboratory |
| Mission duration | Suborbital flight |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 1 May 1957, 06:09 GMT |
| Rocket | Vanguard TV-1 |
| Launch site | Cape Canaveral, LC-18A |
| Contractor | Glenn L. Martin Company |
| End of mission | |
| Decay date | Suborbital flight |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Altitude | 203.6 km (126.5 mi) |
Vanguard TV-1, also called Vanguard Test Vehicle-One, was the second sub-orbital test flight of a Vanguard rocket as part of the Project Vanguard. Vanguard TV-1 followed the successful launch of Vanguard TV-0 a one-stage rocket launched in December 1956.
Project Vanguard was a program managed by the United States Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), and designed and built by the Glenn L. Martin Company (now Lockheed-Martin), which intended to launch the first artificial satellite into Earth orbit using a Vanguard rocket[1] as the launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Missile Annex, Florida.
Vanguard TV-1 arrived at Cape Canaveral in February 1957. TV-1 was a two-stage rocket. Vanguard TV-1 used a liquid rocket from a modified Viking rocket for the first stage. The second stage was made by Grand Central Rocket Company. The second stage was a prototype solid-propellant rocket. This solid-propellant second stage later became the third stage of the final three-stage Vanguard vehicle. Three stages are needed to put a satellite in orbit, the goal of Vanguard.
Vanguard TV-1 lifted off on 1 May 1957 at 01:29local time (06:29 GMT) from Cape Canaveral from launch pad LC-18A. Launch pad 18A was an older Viking launch stand that was shipped from White Sands Missile Range for use at the Cape Canaveral. Pad 18A was also used on Vanguard Test Vehicle-Zero (Vanguard TV-0).
The main goal of Vanguard TV-1 was to test the solid-propellant rocket. The solid-propellant rocket needed to spin-up, separate from the first-stage booster, ignite, provide a proper propulsion and trajectory. Another goal was to test the techniques and equipment used to launch and track the rocket. The telemetry received during flight would record the proper propulsion and trajectory. The telemetry was picked up at the Air Force Missile Test Center's (AFMTC) tracking station. Vanguard TV-1 was successful, the two stage rocket achieved an altitude of 195 km (121 mi) and a down range of 726 km (451 mi), landing in the Atlantic Ocean.[2][3][4][5][6]
With Vanguard TV-0 and Vanguard TV-1 success, the next sub-orbital test flight, Vanguard TV-2, was launched in October 1957.
- ^ "The Vanguard Satellite Launching Vehicle — An Engineering Summary", B. Klawans, April 1960, 212 pages Martin Company Engineering Report No 11022
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "NASA History, Chapter 10". history.nasa.gov. NASA. Retrieved 24 December 2015. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ Vanguard: A History, By Constance McLaughlin Green and Milton Lomask This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "U.S. space-rocket liquid propellant engines". b14643.de. Archived from the original on 1 November 2015. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
- ^ Winter, Frank H. (1990). "Chapter 3 — Rockets Enter the Space Age". Rockets Into Space. Harvard University Press. p. 66. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
- ^ Vanguard: A History, page 282, By Constance McLaughlin Green and Milton Lomask This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
