Atlas V

Atlas V

Launch of an Atlas V 401 carrying the LRO and LCROSS
Function EELV/Medium-heavy launch vehicle
Manufacturer United Launch Alliance
Country of origin United States
Size
Height 58.3 m (191.2 ft)
Diameter 3.81 m (12.49 ft)
Mass 334,500 kg (737,400 lb)
Stages 2
Capacity
Payload to LEO 9,750–29,420 kg [1] (21,490–64,860 lb)
Payload to
GTO		 4,750–13,000 kg [1] (10,470–28,660 lb)
Launch history
Status Active
Launch sites SLC-41, Cape Canaveral
SLC-3E, Vandenberg AFB
Total launches 28
(401: 11, 411: 3, 421: 3, 431: 2)
(501: 3, 521: 2, 531: 1, 541: 1, 551: 2)
Successes 27
(401: 10, 411: 3, 421: 3, 431: 2)
(501: 3, 521: 2, 531: 1, 541: 1, 551: 2)
Partial failures 1 (401)[2]
Maiden flight 401: 21 August 2002
411: 20 April 2006
421: 10 October 2007
431: 11 March 2005
501: 22 April 2010
521: 17 July 2003
531: 14 August 2010
541: 26 November 2011
551: 19 January 2006
Notable payloads Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
New Horizons
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
Solar Dynamics Observatory
Boeing X-37B
Juno
Mars Science Laboratory
Boosters (Not Heavy) - Aerojet
No. boosters 1 to 5 (see text)
Engines 1 Solid
Thrust 1,270 kN (285,500 lbf)
Specific impulse 275 seconds
Burn time 94 seconds
Fuel Solid
Boosters (Atlas V Heavy (5HX)) - Atlas CCB
No boosters 2
Engines 1 RD-180
Thrust 4,152 kN (933,406 lbf)
Specific impulse 311 seconds
Burn time 253 seconds
Fuel RP-1/LOX
First stage - Atlas CCB
Engines 1 RD-180
Thrust 4,152 kN (933,400 lbf)
Specific impulse 311 seconds
Burn time 253 seconds
Fuel RP-1/LOX
Second stage (Atlas V XX1) - Centaur
Engines 1 RL10A
Thrust 99.2 kN (22,300 lbf)
Specific impulse 451 seconds
Burn time 842 seconds
Fuel LH2/LOX
Second stage (Atlas V XX2) - Centaur
Engines 2 RL10A
Thrust 147 kN (41,600 lbf)
Specific impulse 449 seconds
Burn time 421 seconds
Fuel LH2/LOX

Atlas V is an active expendable launch system in the Atlas rocket family. Atlas V was formerly operated by Lockheed Martin, and is now operated by the Lockheed Martin-Boeing joint venture United Launch Alliance. Each Atlas V rocket uses a Russian-built RD-180 engine burning kerosene and liquid oxygen to power its first stage and an American-built RL10 engine burning liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen to power its Centaur upper stage. The RD-180 engines are provided by RD AMROSS and the RL10 engines by Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne. Some configurations also use strap-on booster rockets made by Aerojet. The standard payload fairing sizes are 4 or 5 meters in diameter and of various lengths, are made by RUAG Space. Fairings sizes as large as 7.2m in diameter and up to 32.3m in length have been considered.[3] The rocket is assembled in Decatur, Alabama; Harlingen, Texas; San Diego, California; and at United Launch Alliance's headquarters near Denver, Colorado.[4]

In its more than two dozen launches, starting with its maiden launch in August 2002, Atlas V has had a near-perfect success rate. One flight on June 15, 2007, NRO L-30, experienced an upper-stage anomaly when the engine in the vehicle's Centaur upper stage shut down early, leaving the payload—a pair of ocean surveillance satellites—in a lower than intended orbit.[5] However, the customer, the National Reconnaissance Office, categorized the mission as a success.[6][7]

Contents

History

The Atlas V is the newest member of the Atlas family. Compared to the Atlas III vehicle, there are numerous changes. Compared to the Atlas II, it is a near-redesign. There was no Atlas IV.

  1. The "1.5 staging" technique was dropped on the Atlas III, in favor of a more-advanced RD-180 engine.[8]
  2. The main-stage diameter increased from 10 feet to 12.5 feet. As with the Atlas III, the different mixture ratio of the engine called for a larger oxygen tank (relative to the fuel tank) compared to western engines and stages.
  3. First-stage tanks no longer use stainless steel monocoque "balloon" construction. The tanks are isogrid aluminum and are stable when unpressurized.[8]
  4. Use of aluminum, with a higher thermal conductivity than stainless steel, requires insulation for the liquid oxygen. The tanks are covered in a polyurethane-based layer.
  5. Accommodation points for parallel stages, both smaller solids and identical liquids, are built into first-stage structures.[8]

The Atlas V was developed by Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services as part of the US Air Force Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program. The term expendable launch vehicle means each vehicle is only used once. Launches are from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and Space Launch Complex 3-E at Vandenberg Air Force Base. Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services continues to market the Atlas V to commercial customers worldwide.[9]

The first Atlas V was launched on August 21, 2002, and all subsequent launches have been successful except for the 2007 anomaly. The Atlas V family uses a single-stage Atlas main engine, the Russian RD-180 and the newly developed Common Core Booster (CCB) with up to five Aerojet made strap-on solid rocket boosters. The CCB is 12.5 ft (3.8 m) in diameter by 106.6 ft (32.5 m) long and uses 627,105 lb (284,450 kg) of liquid oxygen and RP-1 rocket fuel propellants. The booster operates for about four minutes, providing about 4 meganewtons (860,000 lbf) of thrust at start, the major part of this thrust, 4.152 meganewtons being provided by Russian RD-180 engine.[8]

The Centaur upper stage uses a pressure stabilized propellant tank design and cryogenic propellants. The Centaur stage for Atlas V is stretched 5.5 ft (1.68 m) and is powered by either one or two Pratt & Whitney RL10A-4-2 engines, each engine developing a thrust of 99.2 kN (22,300 lbf). Operational and reliability upgrades are enabled with the RL10A-4-2 engine configuration. The inertial navigation unit (INU) located on the Centaur provides guidance and navigation for both Atlas and Centaur, and controls both Atlas and Centaur tank pressures and propellant use. The Centaur engines are capable of multiple in-space starts, making possible insertion into low-earth parking orbit, followed by a coast period and then insertion into GTO. A subsequent third burn following a multi-hour coast can permit direct injection of payloads into geostationary orbit.[10] As of 2006, the Centaur vehicle had the highest proportion of burnable propellant relative to total mass of any modern hydrogen upper stage and hence can deliver substantial payloads to a high energy state.[11]

Many systems on the Atlas V have been the subject of upgrade and enhancement both prior to the first Atlas V flight and since that time. Work on a new Fault Tolerant Inertial Navigation Unit (FTINU) started in 2001 to enhance mission reliability for Atlas vehicles by replacing the existing non-redundant navigation and computing equipment with a fault tolerant unit.[12] The upgraded FTINU first flew in 2005,[13] and in 2010 a follow-on order for more FTINU units was awarded.[14]

On April 14, 2008, Atlas V lifted its heaviest payload to date into orbit—a 14,625-pound (6,634 kg) telecommunications satellite built by Space Systems/Loral.[15]

2007 valve anomaly

The only anomalous event in the use of the Atlas V launch system occurred June 15, 2007, when the engine in the Centaur upper stage of an Atlas V shut down early, leaving its payload–a pair of NRO L-30 ocean surveillance satellites–in a lower-than-intended orbit.[5] The cause of the anomaly was traced to a leaky valve. Replacing the valve led to a delay in the next Atlas V launch.[16]

GX rocket

The Atlas V Common Core Booster was to have been used as the first stage of the joint US-Japanese GX rocket, which was scheduled to make its maiden flight in 2012.[17] GX launches would have been from the Atlas V launch complex at Vandenberg AFB, SLC-3E.

In December 2009, Japanese government decided to cancel the GX project.[18]

Future developments

Crewed Atlas V

As early as 2006, ULA's predecessor company Lockheed Martin was looking at a human-rated version of the Atlas V. An agreement between Lockheed and Bigelow Aerospace that year was reported that could lead to commercial private trips to low-Earth orbit (LEO).[19]

Beginning in 2010, ULA did design and simulation work to human-rate the Atlas V for carrying passengers. ULA won a 2010 small contract of US$6.7 million in the first phase of the NASA Commercial Crew Development Program (CCDev) to develop an Emergency Detection System (EDS) for human-rating the Atlas V launch vehicle.[20] As of February 2011, ULA "is still finishing up work on its $6.7-million award... In December ULA carried out a demonstration of its Emergency Detection System ... The company said it received an extension from NASA until April 2011 'to enable us to finish critical timing analyses tasks' for [the] fault coverage analysis work."[21]

NASA solicited proposals for CCDev phase 2 in October 2010, under which ULA made a proposal for funding to "finish designing a key safety system for potential commercial crew launches on its Atlas and Delta rocket fleet." While NASA's goal is get astronauts to orbit by 2015, ULA President and CEO Michael Gass has stated "I think we need to stretch our goals to have commercial crew service operating by 2014" and has committed ULA to meet that schedule.[22] Other than the addition of the Emergency Detection System, no major changes are expected to the Atlas V rocket, but ground infrastructure modifications are planned. The most likely candidate for the human-rating is the 402 configuration, with dual RL10 engines on the Centaur upper stage and no solid rocket boosters.[22]

On July 18, 2011 NASA and ULA announced an agreement on the possibility of certifying the Atlas V to NASA's "human-rating" standards.[23] ULA will provide NASA with data on the Atlas V, while NASA will provide ULA with draft human certification requirements.[23] As of July 2011 Bigelow Aerospace is still considering the use of a human-rated Atlas V for carrying spaceflight participants to its private space station.[24] Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) picked the Atlas V to be the booster for its still in development Dream Chaser crewed spacecraft.[25] The Dream Chaser is designed to be a crewed vertical-takeoff, horizontal-landing (VTHL) lifting-body spaceplane that will be placed into LEO by an Atlas V, and is a proposed CCDev ISS crew transport vehicle.[25]

On August 4, 2011 Boeing announced it would use the Atlas V as the initial launch vehicle for its CST-100 crewed spaceship, intended for both NASA-funded trips to the International Space Station, as well as private trips to the proposed Bigelow Commercial Space Station.[26][27] A three-flight test program is projected to be completed by 2015, and potentially will certify the Atlas V/CTS-100 combination for human-spaceflight operations.[27] The first flight is expected to include an Atlas 5 rocket integrated with an unpiloted CST-100 capsule, to launch from Cape Canaveral's LC-41 in early 2015 into LEO.[26] The second flight is scheduled to be an in-flight launch abort system demonstration in the middle of that year.[27] The test-flight phase is expected to culminate with a crewed mission at the end of 2015, carrying two Boeing test-pilot astronauts into LEO and returning them safely.[27]

Atlas V HLV

The Atlas V HLV (Heavy Lift Vehicle) would use three Common Core Booster (CCB) stages strapped together to provide the capability necessary to lift 25 tonne payload to low Earth orbit. Approximately 95% of the hardware required for the Atlas HLV has already been flown on the Atlas V single core vehicles.

A report, prepared by RAND Corporation for the Office of the Secretary of Defense in 2006, stated that Lockheed Martin had decided not to develop an Atlas V heavy-lift vehicle (HLV).[28] The report recommended for the Air Force and the National Reconnaissance Office to "determine the necessity of an EELV heavy-lift variant, including development of an Atlas V Heavy", and to "resolve the RD-180 issue, including coproduction, Stockpile, or U.S. development of an RD-180 replacement."[29]

The lifting capability of the Atlas V HLV is roughly equivalent to the Delta IV Heavy. The latter utilizes RS-68 engines developed and produced domestically by Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne.

As of February 2008, the Atlas V HLV configuration was available to customers 30 months from date of order.[30]

Atlas Phase 2

With the merger of Boeing and Lockheed-Martin space operations into United Launch Alliance, the Atlas V program gained access to the tooling and processes for 5-meter-diameter stages, used on Delta IV. At 5 meters, a stage can accept dual RD-180 engines. The proposed heavy-lift vehicle is "Atlas Phase 2" or "PH2". An Atlas V PH2-Heavy (three 5 m stages in parallel; six RD-180s) along with Shuttle-derived, Ares V and Ares V Lite, was considered as a possible heavy lifter for use in future space missions in the Augustine Report.[31] The Atlas PH2 HLV would launch a payload mass of approximately 70 metric tons into an orbit of 28.5 degree-inclination.[31]

Versions

Each Atlas V booster configuration has a three-digit designation, that indicates the features of that configuration. The first digit shows the diameter (in meters) of the payload fairing, and always has a value of '4' or '5'. The second digit indicates the number of solid rocket boosters attached to the base of the rocket, and can range from '0' through '3' with the 4-meter fairing, and '0' through '5' with the 5-meter fairing. The third digit represents the number of engines on the Centaur stage, either '1' or '2'. As of 2009, only the single-engine Centaur (SEC) has been used, and no launches using a dual-engine Centaur (DEC) are currently planned. For example, an Atlas V 552 has a 5-meter fairing, five solid rocket boosters, and two Centaur engines. An Atlas V 431 has a 4-meter fairing, three solid rocket boosters, and a single Centaur engine.[32]

The 4-meter fairing, originally designed for the Atlas II booster, comes in three different lengths, the original 9-meter high version, as well as fairings 10-meters (first flown on the AV-008/Astra 1KR launch) and 11-meters (seen on the AV-004/Inmarsat-4 F1 launch) high. Lockheed Martin had the 5.4-meter (4.57 meters usable) payload fairing for the Atlas V developed and built by RUAG Space (former Oerlikon Space[33]) in Switzerland. The RUAG fairing uses carbon fiber composite construction, based on flight proven hardware from the Ariane 5. Three configurations will be manufactured to support Atlas V. The short (10-meter long) and medium (13-meter long) configurations will be used on the Atlas V 500 series. The 16-meter long configuration will be used on the Atlas V-Heavy. The classic fairing covers only the payload, leaving the Centaur stage exposed to open air. The RUAG fairing encloses the Centaur stage as well as the payload.[34]

Versions: List Date: May 7, 2011.[35] Mass to LEO numbers are at an inclination of 28.5 degrees.

Version Fairing CCBs SRBs Upper stage Payload to LEO Payload to GTO Launches to date
401 4 m 1 – SEC 9,797 kg[36] 4,750 kg[36] 11
402 4 m 1 – DEC 12,500 kg[37] – 0
411 4 m 1 1 SEC 12,150 kg[36] 5,950 kg[36] 3
412 4 m 1 1 DEC - - 0
421 4 m 1 2 SEC 14,067 kg[36] 6,890 kg[36] 3
431 4 m 1 3 SEC 15,718 kg[36] 7,700 kg[36] 2
501 5.4 m 1 – SEC 8,123 kg[36] 3,775 kg[36] 3
502 5.4 m 1 – DEC – – 0
511 5.4 m 1 1 SEC 10,986 kg[36] 5,250 kg[36] 0
512 5.4 m 1 1 DEC – – 0
521 5.4 m 1 2 SEC 13,490 kg[36] 6,475 kg[36] 2
522 5.4 m 1 2 DEC – – 0
531 5.4 m 1 3 SEC 15,575 kg[36] 7,475 kg[36] 1
532 5.4 m 1 3 DEC – – 0
541 5.4 m 1 4 SEC 17,443 kg[36] 8,290 kg[36] 1
542 5.4 m 1 4 DEC – – 0
551 5.4 m 1 5 SEC 18,814 kg[36] 8,900 kg[36] 2
552 5.4 m 1 5 DEC 20,520 kg[37] – 0
Heavy (HLV/5H1)) 5.4 m 3 – SEC – – 0
Heavy (HLV DEC/5H2)) 5.4 m 3 – DEC 29,400 kg[36] – 0

Atlas V launches

For more details on this topic, see List of Atlas V launches.

List Date: November 26, 2011

# Date and Time(UTC) Type Serial-no. Startplace Payload Type of payload Orbit Outcome Remarks
1 August 21, 2002, 22:05 401 AV-001 CC LC41 Hot Bird 6 Commercial communications satellite GSO Success First Atlas V launch
2 May 13, 2003, 22:10 401 AV-002 CC LC41 Hellas Sat 2 Commercial communications satellite GSO Success First satellite for Greece and Cyprus
3 July 17, 2003, 23:45 521 AV-003 CC LC41 Rainbow 1 Commercial communications satellite GSO Success First Atlas V 500 launch
First Atlas V launch with SRBs
4 December 17, 2004, 12:07 521 AV-005 CC LC41 AMC 16 Commercial communications satellite GSO Success[38]
5 March 11, 2005, 21:42 431 AV-004 CC LC41 Inmarsat 4-F1 Commercial communications satellite GSO Success First Atlas V 400 launch with SRBs
6 August 12, 2005, 11:43 401 AV-007 CC LC41 Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mars orbiter Areocentric Success[39] First Atlas V launch for NASA
7 January 19, 2006, 19:00 551 AV-010 CC LC41 New Horizons Pluto and Kuiper Belt probe Hyperbolic Success[40] Boeing Star 48B third stage used, first Atlas V launch with a third stage
8 April 20, 2006, 20:27 411 AV-008 CC LC41 Astra 1KR Commercial communications satellite GSO Success[41]
9 March 8, 2007, 03:10 401 AV-013 CC LC41 Space Test Program-1 6 military research satellites LEO Success[42]
  • First ULA Atlas launch
  • First Atlas V night launch
  • First three-burn Atlas V mission
  • FalconSAT-3
10 June 15, 2007, 15:11 401 AV-009 CC LC41 USA-194 (NRO L-30/NOSS-4-3A & B) Two NRO Reconnaissance satellites LEO Partial launch failure (Lower than intended orbit) First Atlas V flight for the National Reconnaissance Office
11 October 11, 2007, 00:22 421 AV-011 CC LC41 USA-195 (WGS SV-1) Military communications satellite GTO Success[43] Valve replacement[16]
12 December 10, 2007, 22:05 401 AV-015 CCAFS SLC-41 USA-198 (NRO L-24) NRO reconnaissance satellite Molniya Success[44]
13 March 13, 2008, 10:02 411 AV-006 VAFB SLC-3E USA-200 (NRO L-28) NRO reconnaissance satellite Molniya Success[45] First Atlas V launch from Vandenberg[45]
14 April 14, 2008, 20:12 421 AV-014 CC LC-41 ICO G1 Commercial communications satellite GTO Success[46]
  • Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services launch
  • Heaviest payload launched by an Atlas.
    Largest comsat in the world at time of launch until the launch of TerreStar-1 in 2009.
15 April 4, 2009, 00:31 421 AV-016 CC LC-41 USA-204 (WGS SV2) Military communications satellite GTO Success[47]
16 June 18, 2009, 21:32 401 AV-020 CC SLC-41 LRO/LCROSS Lunar exploration HEO Success[48] First Centaur stage to impact on the Moon.
17 September 8, 2009, 21:35 401 AV-018 CCAFS SLC-41 USA-207 (PAN) Military communications satellite[49] GTO[49] Success[50]
18 October 18, 2009, 16:12 401 AV-017 VAFB SLC-3E USA-210 (DMSP 5D3-F18) Military weather satellite LEO/S Success[51]
19 November 23, 2009, 06:55 431 AV-024 CCAFS SLC-41 Intelsat 14 Commercial communications satellite GTO Success[52] LMCLS launch
20 February 11, 2010, 15:23 401 AV-021 CCAFS SLC-41 SDO Solar Observatory GTO Success[53]
21 April 22, 2010, 23:52 501 AV-012 CCAFS SLC-41 USA-212 (X-37B OTV-1) Military orbital test vehicle LEO Success[54] A piece of the external fairing did not break up on impact, but washed up on Hilton Head Island.[55]
22 August 14, 2010, 11:07 531 AV-019 CCAFS SLC-41 USA-214 (AEHF-1) Military communications satellite GTO Success[56]
23 September 21, 2010, 04:03 501 AV-025 VAFB SLC-3E USA-215 (NRO L-41) NRO reconnaissance satellite LEO (SSO) Success[57]
24 March 5, 2011, 22:46 501 AV-026 CCAFS SLC-41 USA-226 (X-37B OTV-2) Military orbital test vehicle LEO Success[58]
25 April 15, 2011, 04:24 411 AV-027 VAFB SLC-3E USA-228 (NRO L-34) NRO reconnaissance satellite LEO Success[59]
26 May 7, 2011, 18:10 401 AV-022 CCAFS SLC-41 USA-230 (SBIRS-GEO-1) Missile Warning satellite GTO Success[60]
27 August 5, 2011, 16:25 551 AV-029 CCAFS SLC-41 Juno Jupiter orbiter Jovicentric Success[61]
28 November 26, 2011, 15:02 541 AV-028 CCAFS SLC-41 Mars Science Laboratory Mars Rover Hyperbolic Success[62] Centaur stage to enter orbit around the sun
For planned launches, see:
List of Atlas launches (2010–2019)

Photo gallery

See also

Comparable rockets: Delta IV — Proton — Ariane 5 — Chang Zheng 5 — GSLV Mk.III — Angara — Falcon 9 — H-IIA — H-IIB — Zenit —

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RD-170 rocket engine family
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