 A Transtage | |
| Manufacturer | Martin Marietta |
|---|---|
| Country of origin | United States |
| Used on | Titan III |
| General characteristics | |
| Height | 4.57 meters (15.0 ft) |
| Diameter | 3.05 meters (10.0 ft) |
| Gross mass | 12,247 kilograms (27,000 lb) |
| Engine details | |
| Powered by | 2 AJ10-138 |
| Maximum thrust | 8,000 lbf (36 kN) each [1] |
| Specific impulse | 311 seconds (3.05 km/s) |
| Burn time | 440 seconds |
| Propellant | Aerozine 50 / N2O4 |
Transtage, given the United States Air Force designation SSB-10A, was an American upper stage used on Titan III rockets, developed by Martin Marietta and Aerojet.
History
Transtage was developed in anticipation of a requirement to launch military payloads to geostationary orbit; a contract for development of the stage was issued on 20 August 1962. [2] Transtage used a pressure-fed two-chamber configuration, using Aerozine 50 fuel and nitrogen tetroxide as oxidizer; the thrust chambers were gimbaled for steering and each produced 8,000 lbf (36 kN) of thrust. The design specification required up to three restarts during the first six hours of a mission. [3]
Forty-seven Titan III launches are known to have used Transtage upper stages; of those, three are known to have suffered launch failures. [4] The first launch, boosted by a Titan IIIA, occurred on 1 September 1964; the Transtage failed to pressurize, resulting in premature engine cutoff, and a failure to reach orbit. [4] The second launch, on 10 December, was successful, and all ensuing launches used the Titan IIIC launch vehicle. The last launch of a Transtage was on 4 September 1989, boosted by a Titan 34D rocket. [4]
See also
References
Citations
- ^ Wade, Mark. "AJ10-138". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on December 28, 2016. Retrieved 2019-07-24.
- ^ Foradori, Giacomoello and Pascolini 2017, pp.56-57
- ^ Hunley 2007, p. 168.
- ^ a b c Heyman 2003
Bibliography
- Foradori, Paolo; Giampiero Giacomello; Alessandro Pascolini (2017). Arms Control and Disarmament: 50 Years of Experience in Nuclear Education. London: Palgrage Macmillan. ISBN 978-3-319-62258-3.
- Heyman, Jos (17 March 2003). "Martin Marietta SSB-10 Transtage". Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missilesm Appendix 3: Space Vehicles. Designation-Systems. Retrieved 2017-12-17.
- Hunley, J.D. (2007). The Development of Propulsion Technology for U.S. Space-Launch Vehicles, 1926-1991. College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press. ISBN 978-1-58544-588-2.
External links
- Transtage at Encyclopedia Astronautica
- Transtage at Gunter's Space Page