![]() At the time, the smallest atomic warheads were all larger than the maximum theoretical payloads of the planned long range missiles, so the contract was canceled in 1947, but the Army Air Forces allowed Convair to launch the three almost-completed research vehicles using the remaining contract funds. This MX-774 project was named for the Atlas of Greek mythology and the contractor's parent Atlas Corporation. As such, its early development was quite chaotic, with plans changing rapidly as flight tests revealed issues.Ītlas got its start in 1946 with the award of an Army Air Forces research contract to Consolidated Vultee Aircraft (later Convair) for the study of a 1,500-to-5,000-mile (2,400 to 8,000 km) range missile that might at some future date carry a nuclear warhead. Until 2001, many of the retired Atlas ICBMs were refurbished and combined with upper stages to launch satellites.Ītlas was the first US ICBM and one of the first large liquid-fueled rockets. Today ULA supports the larger Atlas V, which combines the unique and highly efficient Centaur upper stage with a new booster. Mergers led to the acquisition of the Atlas Centaur line by the United Launch Alliance. However, this was not a requirement for planned space launches, and so Atlas-derived launch vehicles served a long history as space launchers.Įven before its ICBM use ended in 1965, Atlas had placed four Project Mercury astronauts in orbit and was becoming the foundation for a family of successful space launch vehicles, most notably Atlas Agena and Atlas Centaur. The Atlas required extremely long preparation times which made it unsuitable for a quick launch ICBM. Atlas became operational as an ICBM in October 1959 and was quickly obsoleted by new development, being retired as a missile by 1965. Air Force by the Convair Division of General Dynamics at an assembly plant located in Kearny Mesa, San Diego). The SM-65 Atlas was the first operational intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) developed by the United States and the first member of the Atlas rocket family. Variants: Atlas A, B/C, D, E/F (ICBMs) SLV-3/3A/3C (NASA use).Peak deployment level of 129: (30 D, 27 E, 72 F).It does not store any personal data.[Convair SM-65 "Atlas 2E" ICBM at the San Diego Aerospace Museum, Gillespie Field, CA (John Shupek photos) The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Should you see an error, please notify us.Įditor’s note: This article was originally posted on Apand edited on April 26, 2019. EDN strives to be historically accurate with these postings. NASA: Revealing the unknown to benefit all humankindįor more moments in tech history, see this blog.Slideshow: NASA says “Hands off our stuff on the Moon!”.Project Diana bounces radio waves off Moon, January 10, 1946.Apollo 11 makes 1st manned landing on the Moon, July 20, 1969.Ranger 9 launches for lunar impact, March 21, 1965.Ranger 8 sent to photograph lunar surface, February 17, 1965.Luna 2 reaches the Moon, September 14, 1959.In total, the Ranger program launched nine spacecraft to explore the Moon, costing $170 million in research, development, and support. NASA finally succeeded in getting close images of the lunar surface from Ranger 7. Ranger 3 previously attempted the same mission but missed the Moon by 22,000 miles after a series of malfunctions.
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