The spacecraft also carried a 94-pound (42.6-kilogram) capsule that would separate at about 13 miles (21.4 kilometers) in altitude and then independently impact on the Moon. The Block 2 Ranger spacecraft carried a TV camera that used an optical telescope that would allow imaging during its descent down to about 15 miles (24 kilometers) above the surface. attempt to impact a probe on the surface of the Moon. 28, 1962: Mission end date In Depth: Ranger 3 ![]() Ranger 3 eventually entered heliocentric orbit.Ītlas Agena B (Atlas Agena B no. A series of malfunctions sent the spacecraft hurtling past the Moon, but it did take the first measurements of interplanetary gamma ray flux. It carried a TV camera and an instrument capsule. Air Force, or the Department of Defense, of the external website, or the information, products or services contained therein.Ranger 3 was NASA's first attempt to put a probe on the Moon. ![]() Note: The appearance of hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement by the National Museum of the USAF, the U.S. * In 2005 Rocketdyne became Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne.Ĭlick here to return to the Missile Gallery. propellant)Įngine: Bell XLR81-BA-5 of 15,500 lbs. The aircraft that recovered the payload, C-119J (S/N 51-8037) is on display at the museum.Įngine: Rocketdyne* LR-79-7 of 150,000 lbs. reconnaissance satellite to finally return intelligence imagery after successful recovery from orbit. 19, 1960, following several earlier attempts, Discoverer XIV was the first U.S. Not only did the boosters have to place satellites in precise orbits, the satellites' cameras had to function perfectly and the film had to be recovered after the satellites successfully re-entered the atmosphere. Unlike reconnaissance aircraft, an orbiting satellite placed no crew members in harm's way and was immune to enemy air defenses.ĭeveloping dependable satellite imaging systems, though, was difficult. As boosters like Thor Agena became operational, satellites gave the United States a new capability to see from space what the USSR and other communist nations were doing. The Discoverer satellites' secret identity as Corona intelligence imaging platforms was closely guarded. satellite launch vehicles of the Cold War era. Like Thor, Agena underwent several changes over its lifetime, and it proved to be one of the most successful U.S. The Thor-Agena combination was able to put Corona satellites into elliptical orbits that ranged as far as 1,049 miles and as close as 61 miles to the earth. ![]() The Thor first stage launched the Agena and its satellite payload into a low orbit, then the Agena boosted the satellite into its final, higher orbit. Thor and Agena vehicles worked together to put satellites into orbit. The long-lived Delta rocket series, based on refinements of the original Thor design, operated through the end of the Cold War and beyond. Though Thor was created quickly as an interim nuclear deterrent, it later became a very successful satellite launch vehicle. It borrowed engine and guidance technology from the developing Atlas program, and Thor IRBMs were operational in Great Britain from 1959 to 1963. Originally, Thor was designed as an intermediate-range nuclear ballistic missile (IRBM) in 1956. Thor was the first vehicle available to carry Agenas. At first, the Agena vehicle was meant to be launched by Atlas boosters, but the 1957 Soviet launch of Sputnik - the first satellite - sped up the U.S. The Thor Agena A launch vehicle combined a Thor ballistic missile (similar to the nuclear-armed version on display in the museum's Missile & Space Gallery, but designated SLV-2 or Space Launch Vehicle-2) with an Agena upper stage. The USAF and the Central Intelligence Agency jointly managed Corona, which was known to the public as the Discoverer research satellite program. These satellites, secretly code-named Corona, took pictures of the Soviet Union's bomber and missile bases during the Cold War. ![]() Air Force launched the world's first space photo reconnaissance satellites using a rocket like the Thor Agena A on display.
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