Bumper (rocket)

Bumper

Bumper 5, launched February 24, 1949
Function	Sounding rocket
Manufacturer	Army Ballistic Missile Agency
Country of origin	Germany/United States
Size
Height	62 feet (19 m)
Diameter	5 feet 5 inches (1.65 m)
Launch history
Status	Retired
Launch sites	White Sands Proving Ground Cape Canaveral
Total launches	8
First flight	May 13, 1948
Last flight	July 29, 1950

The RTV-G-4 Bumper was a sounding rocket built by the United States. It was a combination of the German V-2 rocket and the WAC Corporal sounding rocket and was used to study problems pertaining to two-stage, high-speed rockets. Eight rockets were launched during the Bumper program between May 13, 1948 to July 29, 1950. While the first six flights were conducted at the White Sands Missile Range, the seventh launch, Bumper 8 on July 24, 1950, became the first ever rocket to be launched from Cape Canaveral.

The Bumper Program was conceived in July 1946 by Colonel Holger N. Toftoy. It was inaugurated on June 20, 1947 to do the following:

Overall responsibility for the Bumper program was given to the General Electric Company and was included in the Hermes project. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory was assigned responsibility for the theoretical investigations required, the design of the second stage, and basic design of the separation system. The Douglas Aircraft Company was assigned responsibility for fabrication of the second stage, and detail design and fabrication of the special V-2 rocket parts required.

Six Bumper launches, as well as other V-2 test launches, were from White Sands Proving Grounds. In 1949, the Joint Long Range Proving Ground was established at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on the east coast of Florida. The July 24, 1950 Bumper 8 launch became the first of hundreds of launches from "the Cape".