Titan IV
Launch of a Titan IVB launch vehicle. (USAF)
|
|
| Function | Heavy expendable launch system |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Lockheed Martin |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Cost per launch | $432 million (USD) (1999) |
| Size | |
| Height | 50-62 m (164-207 ft) |
| Diameter | 3.05 m (10 ft) |
| Mass | 943,050 kg (2,079,060 lb) |
| Stages | 3-5 |
| Capacity | |
| Payload to LEO | 21,680 kg (47,790 lb) |
| Payload to Polar LEO | 17,600 kg (38,800 lb) |
| Payload to GSO | 5,760 kg (12,690 lb) |
| Payload to HCO | 5,660 kg (12,470 lb) |
| Associated rockets | |
| Family | Titan |
| Comparable | Atlas V, Delta IV-H |
| Launch history | |
| Status | Retired |
| Launch sites |
SLC-40/41, Cape Canaveral SLC-4E, Vandenberg AFB |
| Total launches | 39 (IVA: 22, IVB: 17) |
| Successes | 35 (IVA: 20, IVB: 15) |
| Failures | 4 (IVA: 2, IVB: 2) |
| First flight |
IV-A: 14 June 1989 IV-B: 23 February 1997 |
| Last flight |
IV-A: 12 August 1998 IV-B: 19 October 2005 |
| Notable payloads |
Lacrosse DSP Milstar Cassini-Huygens |
| Boosters (IV-A) - UA1207 | |
| No. boosters | 2 |
| Engines | United Technologies UA1207 |
| Thrust | 14.234 MN (3,200,000 lbf) |
| Specific impulse | 272 seconds (2667 N·s/kg) |
| Burn time | 120 seconds |
| Fuel | Solid |
| Boosters (IV-B) - USRM | |
| No. boosters | 2 |
| Engines | Hercules USRM |
| Thrust | 15.12 MN (3,400,000 lbf) |
| Specific impulse | 286 seconds (2805 N·s/kg) |
| Burn time | 140 seconds |
| Fuel | Solid |
| First stage | |
| Engines | LR87 |
| Thrust | 2,440 kN (548,000 lbf) |
| Specific impulse | 302 seconds (2962 N·s/kg) |
| Burn time | 164 seconds |
| Fuel | N2O4/A-50 |
| Second stage | |
| Engines | 1 LR91 |
| Thrust | 467 kN (105,000 lbf) |
| Specific impulse | 316 seconds (3100 N·s/kg) |
| Burn time | 223 seconds |
| Fuel | N2O4/A-50 |
| Third stage (Optional) - Centaur-T | |
| Engines | 2 RL10 |
| Thrust | 147 kN (33,100 lbf) |
| Specific impulse | 444 seconds (4354 N·s/kg) |
| Burn time | 625 seconds |
| Fuel | LH2/LOX |
The Titan IV family (including the IVA and IVB) of rockets were used by the U.S. Air Force. They were launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, and Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. At the time of its introduction, the Titan IV was the "largest unmanned space booster used by the Air Force."
As originally conceived in the mid-1980s, the Titan IV was only intended to complement the space shuttle and fly a mere ten times. However, the Challenger Disaster caused a renewed dependence on expendable launch vehicles so that the program was significantly expanded. Under the original plan, the Titan IV would only be paired with Centaur stages and fly exclusively from LC-40 at Cape Canaveral.
The post-Challenger program also involved flying IUS (Integrated Upper Stage) or even no upper stages. LC-41 at the Cape was also converted for Titan IV use along with SLC-4E and 4W at Vandenberg. The latter, a Titan II/IIIB pad, was completely rebuilt for Titan-Centaur launches. The end of the Cold War a few years later caused Department of Defense programs to be scaled back significantly so that one of the planned VABF Titan IV sites was cancelled. Even with the reduced schedule, almost forty Titan IVs were scheduled as of 1991 and a new, improved SRB casing using lightweight composite materials was introduced.
The Titan IV was the last of the Titan family of rockets. It was retired in 2005 due to its high cost of operation. The final launch (B-30) from Cape Canaveral AFS occurred on April 29, 2005, and the final launch from Vandenberg AFB occurred on October 19, 2005.
Lockheed Martin Space Systems built the Titan IVs near Denver, Colorado, under contract to the government.
The Titan IV was developed to provide assured capability to launch Space Shuttle–class payloads for the Air Force. The Titan IV could be launched with no upper stage, or either of two upper stages, the IUS (Inertial Upper Stage), and the Centaur rocket upper stage.
...
Wikipedia