Pioneer v Press Kit

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I

NATIONAL

WASHINGTON 25, D. C.

HOLD FOR REIXASEUNTIL LAUNCHED

No. 1March 8, 1960

T h i s United Sta tes launching w i l l at tempt to p la c e a

90-pound ' 'p lanet ' ' i n or b i t a round t h e Sun between E a r t h and

i t s inboard planetary neighbor, Venus.I f t h e Thor-Able b oo st er perform s a s programmed, th e

sp he r ic a l 26-inch payload w i l l have a 295-day "y ear " i n i t s

journey around the Sun.

The bea chb all- size d aluminum package c a r r i e s f i v e

I

c,rime s c i e n t i f i c e xp er im en ts , among them a 150-watt output

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t r a n s m i t t e r des igned t o permit communications between E a r t h

and p ay lo ad a t d i s t a n c e s o f up to 50 m i l l i o n miles .

t r a n s m i t t e r i s be l i e ve d to be the most powerful ever flown i n

The

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'lt,

deep space -- r o u g h l y 3 t ime s more powe rful tha n a ny U. S. +?JA1%

'/xper imenta l space t ransmi t te r to d a t e ,

f

The same spacecraft had been scheduled f o r a mid-December $ ,

'4aunching but was ' 'scrubbed" 36 hours befo re lau nch time due t o

e lec t ron ic component f a i l u r e s , The trouble was t r a c e d t o con-

ve r t e r s , un i t s which ampli fy o r m o d i f y a given vol tage to make

i t a c c ep ta b le f o r a pay load c i r c u i t . S ince then t h e payload

. . . . . . . . ........ ... . . . . ." . " ._ . . ."



. .

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has undergone a thorough re-evaluation and has passed a

variety of additional vibration and space environment tests,

as well as extensive checkout procedures.

The launch is the third in a series of "paddlewheel"

payload flights. They include Expllorer VI, launched August

7, 1959, into a highly elliptical Earth orbit, and an Atlas-

Able space probe which failed 45 seconds after launch on

November 26, 1959, when its nose fairing broke away

prematurely.

NASA contracted f o r the series in November, 1958,

with the Air Force Ballistic Missile Division (ARDC). In

turn, AFBMD subcontracted with Space Technology Laboratories,

Inc., of Los Angeles, with STL providing overall system in-

tegration and payload packaging. In all, some 50 subcon-

tractors, including universities and companies, have had a

part in the series.

The Thor-Able booster in this launch is 90 feet tall,

the same three-stage rocket combination that powered Explorer

VI into a 26,400 by 157-mile Earth orbit. This time the

booster will have t o propel the payload 3,000 miles an hour

faster than Explorer VI -- or about 25,000 miles an hour at

third stage burnout -- if the probe is to get into its

planned orbit

The extra velocity will be obtained by regulating the

rocket engines to burn a few seconds longer than in the

Explorer VI launch and by reducing the payload weight.

. .- . - .- . - . . . . . . .- . - . . . . ..__I_. .".. . . . . .. .. , ... . .



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Explore r V I weighed 142 pounds; t h e probe, 90 pounds.

T h i s probe ca r r ie s no "k ick" rocke t or hydrazine

engine, 3 s d i d Exp lo rer V I and t h e Atlas-Able package,

res pe ct i ve ly . The reason i s t h e probe ' s m iss ion d oe sn ' t

r equi re any ve loc i ty s tep-ups or slow-downs; i f i t h a s t h e

i n i t i a l v e lo ci ty i t needs, th e probe w i l l do i t s job. The

probe exper iments ar e much th e same as those on th e e a r l i e r

two paddlewheel payloads only there are fewer of them because

o f t h e we ig ht l i m i t a t i o n .

The probe i s designed to describe a 506-rnill ion-mile

path around the Sun. Its t r a j e c t o r y s h o u l d c a r r y i t t o t h e

E a r t h ' s o r b i t a t a p he li on ( g r e a t e s t d i s t an c e from t h e Sun) .

A t p e r i he l i o n ( c l o s e s t d i st a n c e to t h e Sun) , i t s ho ul d b r i e f l y

in'cerse ct Venus o r b i t

Would i t impact Venus or Ea rth ? Not fo r more tha n a

m i l l io n ye a r s i n th e c a se o f Venus, t h e astronomers say, And

i n t he c a se o f Ear th , n o t fo r r ough ly 100,000 ye a r s . I f i t

e v e r d i d g e t c l o s e t o Ea rt h, t h e probe bJould be burned up on

r e -e n tr y j u s t a s a r e E a rt h s a t e l l i t e s which fall ba c k in to the

Earth's atmosphere.

The reason behind the longer odds o n a Venus impact i s

t h a t t he p robe ' s p l a ne would d i f f e r s l ig h t ly f rom th a t o f Venus.

A l s o the probe ' ? orb i ta l speed a round the Sun would be d i f fe ren t

f rom that o f both Venus and Earth: 71,500 m i l e s an hour for t h e

probe; 78,000 m i le s an hour for Venus and 66,000 miles an hour

from Ear th .

. ._. ... __ ". . . I .- . . .. .. ... . ,.. . . ..l_l__ . . . . . -. ' ..-- _.. . . . . .-



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But t h e s im p le s t re a, son ba r r in g a Venus o r Ear th i m -

pa c t i s t h e f ac t t h a t when t h e p ro be i n t e r s e c t s t h e p l a n e t s '

o r b i t a l pa ths , Venus and Ear th w i l l be e lsewhere i n t h e i r

e n d l e s s races a.round th e Sun. And v i c e v e r s a ,

T h i s probe ' s m is s ion d i f f e r s from pas t su cce ss fu l

Sun-orb i t ing probes -- bo th t h e So vi et Union's Lunik I

(Ja.nuary 2 , 1959) and t h e Unf ted S ta tes ' P ioneer I V (March

3, 1959) - - i n t ha t t h i s pa . c ka ge i s t o b e pu t i n s i d e t h e

Ea . r th ' s o rb i t . Lunik I a.nd Pioneer I V a.re i n o rb i t s between

th e E a r t h and i t s out bo ard neighb or, Ma.rs.

To g e t i n such an o r b i t , t h i s probe w i l l b e launched

i n t h e morning. A s t h e roc ke t ne a r s Ea r th e sc a pe ve loc i ty

(25,200 m i l e s an hour or , p rec ise ly , seven m i l e s per second) ,

it w i l l fo l low th e c u rve a.nd d i r e c t io na l sp in o f th e Ea r th .

When i t escapes, t h e probe immedia tely w i l l be swept i n t o a

Sun orb i t by t h e S un ' s g r a v i t a t io na l f o r c e and run coun ter -

clockwise around the Sun l i k e t h e r e s t o f t h e p l a n e t s.

Imagine viewing the launch from a s t a t i o n a r y p l a t -

form high above E a r t h and Venus. The sun would have j u s t

come up on Cape Ca na ve ra l. The pro be would pu l l away from

t h e Cape, t u r n and fol low t h e E a r t h ' s curve toward t h e Sun

as i t gai ned ve lo ci ty . On escap ing th e E a r t h ' s p u l l , t h e

probe would be pu l l ed o bl iq ue ly away f rom t he Ear th by t h e

Sun and i n t o i t s own orbit.

, .. - . . . . . . I.._I. . __ 3--.. . .- . , . - .. I......_.... . ...~



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Another example would be t o look down on two t rack

men running i n t h e same outside lane o f a c i r c u l a r banked

tr a c k , Then one of t h e runners cu t s t o an inner l ane -- i n

e f f e c t , what the probe does.

The probe should f i n d i t s e l f i n a 506-mill ion mile

t r ack , t ak ing 295 days. The E a r t h t r a c e s o ut a 5 8 4 - m i ~ i o n

mi le pa th i n 365 days while Venus covers a 422-mill ion mile

c i r c u i t i n a 225-day year .

The p r ob e 's p r e c i s e o r b i t w i l l be determined by i t s

burnout l aunch ve loc i ty . It must be going ne ar ly 25,200

m i les an hour t o get away from Earth. To g e t i n t o t h e p r o -

grammed orbit, it must be g oi ng s l i g h t l y f a s t e r . V e lo c it y

i n excess of t h a t programmed would make i t s o r b i t more

e l i p t i c a l , l e s s would make the o r b i t more ci rcular . S l i g h t l y

l e s s than escape ve loc i ty would produce an Ear th s a t e l l i t e i n

an Explorer V I - t y p e o r b i t .

The f a r t h e s t th e probe could ever be f r o m Ear th -- on

t h e p la nn ed t r a j e c t o r y -- would be some 186 m i l l i on m i l e s ,

The cl os es t could be several hundred thousand miles, w i t h i n

the next decade.

The powerful 150-watt UHF t r a n s m i t t e r aboard may per -

m i t Earth-probe contac t fo r th e f i r s t few months o f t h e f l i g h t ,

t o d i s t ances o f up t o 50 m i l l i o n miles , i t s STL des igners be-

l i e v e .

To g e t some i dea of t he g rea t d i s t ances i nvo lved , a

r a d i o s i g n a l t ransmi t ted over t h e 50-mill ion mile route would



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t a ke approximately f o u r and a h a l f minu tes t o m a k e t h e t r i p .

T h a t ' s b ec au se r a d i o s i g n a l s t r a v e l a t t h e speed o f l i g h t --

186,000 miles per second, At t h a t d is t ance , t he probe i t -

s e l f would have t r av el ed about 5,300 miles dur ing t he r ad io

s i g n a l t r a n s i t t ime. S imi lar ly , t h e Ea rt h would have cove red

about 4,900 miles .

I n o r d e r t o g e t as prec i se in format ion as p o s s i b l e o n

t h e o r b i t , t h e probe ' s s i g n a l s w i l l have t o be p lo t t e d most

e x a c t l y o n the e ar ly phase of th e f l i g h t . These ea r ly s i gna l s

w i l l come from a payload transponder which receives a signal

from E a r t h t rack ing s ta t ions and bounces i t r i gh t back by r e -

broadcas t ing i t .

Also i n t h e e a r l y p a r t of t h e f l i g h t , a 5-wat t t rans-

m i t t e r w i l l be used t o read out experiment d a t a , Afte r t he

probe g e t s more than sev era l mi l l io n miles from Ear th , t he

5-wat t t ransmi t te r w i l l be used to read out experiment data ,

After the probe g e t s more than se ve ra l m i l l i o n miles from

Ear th , the 5-watt u n i t w i l l become a "boos ter" ampl i f i e r f o r

th e l5O-watt t r an sm it te r which from t h a t point on w i l l be the

s o l e r a d i o c o n t a c t ,

There are seve ra l r easons f o r t h e powerful t ransmi t t e r

which has an o u t p u t g o t i m e s gr ea t e r than any t r ansm i t t e r t h e

Uni ted S t a t e s has f lo w n i n spac e exp erim ents . One re as on i sto demonstrate t h e f e a s i b i l i t y o f l o n g range space commun-

i c a t i o n s . Another inv olv es a new method o f measuring

as t ronomical d i s tances .



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To d a t e , t h e d i s t a n c e s w i t h i n the universe have been

computed thro ugh ba s i c laws of physics governing bodies i n

mot ion and p lo t t ing pos i t ions aga ins t seemingly s tab le , d i s -

t a n t stars. To ast ronomers , th e ba sic u n i t of measurement

i s t h e AU o r Astronomical U n i t -- the mean distance between

Ea rth and Sun o r approximately 93 m i l l i o n m i le s .

Most s c i e n t i s t s a gree t h a t t h i s measurement i s

accu ra t e t o only pl us o r minus 50,000 m i l e s , While t h i s

t o l e r a n c e may seem small when dealing w i t h m i l l i ons and

b i l l i o n s of miles, i t i s important t o fu tur e space miss ions

t o have more precise values.

c a t i o n w i t h t h i s payload w i l l s u r e l y add t o our s p a t i a l

measurement knowledge, The s c i e n t i s t s s ho uld be ab l e t o

t r i a ng u la t e between Ear th and seve ra l s i gn a l p lo t s from t h e

probe t o give us new values,

Successful long range comuni-

The t r a n s m i t t e r , a s so c ia t ed e l e c t r o n i c s , b a t t e r i e s and

s o l a r c e l l power supp ly make up more t h a n h a l f t h e p r o b e ' s

t o t a l w e i g h t , 50 of i t s o v e r a l l 90 pounds,

The power requirements o f t h e l5O-watt t r ansmi t te r

w i l l make i t p o s s i b l e t o communicate a t g r e a t d i s t an c e s wi th

t h e payload on ly f i v e minutes ou t of f i v e hours, Dur ing th e

i n t e rv e n i n g p er io d, s o l a r c e l l s w i l l recharge the pay load ' s n icke l -

cadmium batteries.P resen t l y t he d i s t anc e r eco rd fo r deep spae

communication i s h e l d by Pioneer I V . Tracking stations s tayed

i n con tac t w i th t h a t p robe ou t t o 407,000 miles before its

b a t t e r i e s w e n t dead more than 80 hours a f t e r launch, Pioneer

I V d i d n ot c o n ta in s o l a r c e l l s .



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The probe 's paddlewheels -- f o u r j u t t i n g f r o m t h e

s p h e r e ' s e q ua t or as i n t h e e a r l i e r f l i g h t s -- w i l l b e some-

what smaller, about 18 by 1 4 inches , and ca rr y fewer energy-

c on ve rt in g s i l i c o n s o l a r c e l l s -- 4,800 c e l l s as opposed t o

Explorer VIIS 8,000 c e l l s .

and weight l im i t a t i o n s . Ano th er f a c t o r i s t h a t the s o l a r

c e l l s s h o u l d get 30 'GO 40 per cen t more in tens e so la r energy

because the probe w i l l be f l y i n g c l o s e r t o t h e sun.

t o t i p , t h e "paddlespan" i s about fou r and a h a l f f e e t .

This i s p a r t l y because of des ign

From t i p

D ur ing launch, t h e p ad d l e s r i d e fo lded down about t h e

base o f sphe r ic a l pay load under an e i g h t -f o o t p l a s t i c nose

fa i r i n g co ve r ing p ayload and t h i r d s t ag e .

second s t ag e burns o u t , t h e f a i r i n g w i l l b e j e t t i s o n e d when

ex p lo s iv e f a s t en e r s are t r i g g e r ed . The f a i r i n g i s t h e same

as the one f lown su cce ss fu l ly i n the Exp lo re r V I launch.

Seconds before t h e

Seconds a f t e r t h e f a i r i n g blows away, a l i n e h ol di ng

down t h e paddles i s r e l ea s ed .

then fo rce the padd les upward un t i l they lock i n place, each

s l i g h t l y c a n t e d t o receive a maximum of sunlight.

Springs i n the padd le arms w i l l

Guidance also i s important t o the success o f any

space miss ion . I n t h e e a r l y p a r t of t h e f l i g h t , g uidance u n i t s

i n t h e f i r s t and second st ag es of t h e Thor-Able w i l l s t e e r t h e

v eh i c l e .

co rr ec ti on s. But ad di t i on a l commands can be radioe d t o t he

second stage guidance package t o t a k e c a r e o f more d i f f i c u l t

tu rns and course co r rec t ions .

Programmed autopilots w i l l t ak e care of r o ut i ne f l i g h t



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Course changes are accomplished by gimball ing the

thrust chambers which changes t h e d i r e c t i o n o f t h e t h r u s t .

T h e t h i r d s tage con tai ns no ac t i ve guidance but main-

t a i n s t h e course given i t by the second s tage. It does so by

having been "spun up" by s i x smal l sp in rock et s about th e base

o f t h e second stage. These s p i n r oc ke ts f i r e l a t e r a l l y and

make th e upper s ta g es s p i n a t t h e r a t e o f 120 r e v o l u t i o n s per

minute. The e f f e c t i s the same as t h e r i f l i n g g rooves i n a

gun b a r r e l l .

Payload and t h i r d s tage a r e separa ted by a t i m e r which

a c t u a t e s a s p r i n g , f o r c i n g th e two apar t .

Prec i se t rack ing in format ion on th e f l i g h t of t h e f i r s t

two stages as w e l l as the payload w i l l be furnished by l i g h t -

weight transponders.

The change i n t h e frequency o r tone of the t ransponder

s i g n a l can be c a l i b r a t e d w i t h high accuracy. T h i s t e l l s how

f a s t t h e s t a g e o r payload i s going. That informat ion i s run

through a computer on th e ground which produces, i n a matter

of seconds, the proper guidance commands.

The payload i s in s t rumen ted t o g e t some basic measure-

m e n t s : r a d i a t i o n r ead ings, m agneti c f i e ld s i n space , t h e ac t i on

o f gaseous "clouds" of plasma fl o a ti n g through space, micro-

m e t eo r i te a c t i v i t y and s o l a r f l a r e e f f e c t s ...The t empera ture con t ro l system i s based on the hea t

a b s o r b i n g a n d r e f l e c t i n g q u a l i t i e s o f l i g h t and dark sur faces .

T h i s accounts f o r t h e s p e c i a l p a i n t p a t t e r n on t h e s k i n of

th e payload. The in te rn a l payload temperature should s t ay

- . . . .. . . .. . . . . . . . ._ I . . .I . . - ._ . . ..



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between 30 degrees F. and 80 degrees F,

t u r e w i l l vary s ev er al hundred degrees above and below 0 degrees

The external tempera-

Unlike the e a r l i e r paddlewheel payloads , t h i s package

does no t car ry a TV-like scanning devic e. The reaso ns ar e,

a .gain, weight l im i t a t i o n p lu s t he f a c t t ha t t h e probe w i l l

never be close enough to any major body i n space t o photograph i t .

With in t h e sphere , th e exper iments and e l ec t r on ic s a r e

b o l t e d to a r e - in f or c e d p l a s t i c f l o o r i n g ac r o ss th e waist . The

experiments include:

High-Energy Radiation Counter

T h i s i s a f ive-pound ra di at io n device, developed by t h e

Univers i ty o f Chicago, which i s t o measure high-energy o r "hard"

r a d i a t i o n , p a r t i c u l a r l y t h o se h u r l e d i n t o s pa ce by the Sun.

Si nc e no probe has f l o w n so c l o s e t o the Sun, t h e s c i e n t i s t s

d on ' t know pre ci se ly what to expect -- which i s the pr imary

motivat ion behind a l l sc i e n t i f i c space experimen ts ,

The package consists of s i x a r g o n g a s - f i l l e d c y l i n d e r s

ranged around a seventh cy l inder . The t o t a l bundle, i nc lud ing

a t h i n lead shielding, measures about two inches square. I n -

bound par t i c les w i l l i on i ze t he gas i n t h e t i n y c y l i n d e r s to

c r e a t e a n e l e c t r i c a l b l i p a s t he y p e ne t r a t e one o r more

c y l i n d e r s -- depending on t h e i r potency. A similar ins t rument

i n E x pl or e r V I t e n t a t i v e l y l o c a t e d a band o f h i t h e r t o u n de te c te d

high-energy radiat ion n ea r t h e i n n e r edge o f th e e a r t h ' s G r e a t

R a d i a t i o n B e l t .

. - .. . . - . . .I - .- , . . --.I.. .. . . . .. . .. ._ ..._ . ..



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Tot al Ra.diation Flux

An io n i za t io n chamber and a Geiger-Mueller tube w i l l

be used t o measure t h e t o t a l r ad i a t i on f l ux encountered .

are p a . r t i c u la r l y s e n s i t i v e to medium energy ra d i a t io n . These

ins t ruments were suppl ied by th e Universi ty of Minnesota,

The g a s - f i l l e d ion chamber i s t o p r o v i d e p a r t i c l e

They

energy informat ion and t h e Geiger Mueller tube i s t o count t h e

number of medium energy e le c t ro ns and pro tons pa ss ing through.

Together th e ins tru men ts weigh about two pounds and r i d e i n a

four -inch squar e box.

Micrometeorite Counter

The micr omete ori te device, developed by th e A i r Force

Cambridge Research Center, i s t o measure the number and

momentum (mass t i m e s v e l o c i t y ) o f m eteo r i c d u s t p a r t i c l e s

s t r i k i n g the probe. The e n t i r e u n i t weighs l e s s than a

pound, I t c o n s i s t s of a diaphragm about twice t h e s i z e o f a

playing card, mounted on the payload s k i n and a microphone

i n s i d e the package. The no i se o f t h e impact i s t r a n s l a t e d

i n t o a n e lec t r i ca l impulse which i s r e l a y e d t o e a r t h .

Magnetometer

A one-pound s ea rc h c o i l magnetometer, developed by STL,

i s t h e l o n e magnetometer i n the payload. I t also was developed

by STL. It i s des igned to determine t h e s t r e n g t h a n d d i r e c t i o n

o f m agne t i c f i e ld s i n space. Magnetic f i e l d informat ion t i e s

i n c l o s e l y w it h r a d i a t i o n s t u d i e s .



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Aspect Ind ica tor

An e igh t-ounce pho toe lec t r i c c e l l ca l l ed an a.spect

in d i c a t o r , developed by STL, i s t o t r i g g e r a. s p e c i f i c

e l e c t r i c a l i m p u l s e when i t " looks" d i r e c t l y a t the sun.

These "f ixes" on the sun should make more meaningful in-

formation from the magnetometers and radiat ion counters.

Other Instruments

I n a d d i t i o n t o t h e prime s c i e n t i f i c e xp er im en ts l i s t e d ,

t h e payload conta ins a number o f ampl i f i e r s , " l og i c" u n i t s

which transform vario us ins trumen t s e ns i ng a c t i o n s i n t o t r a n s -

m i t t a b l e s igna l s and a command compartment capable of

i n i t i a t i n g some 10 payload funct io ns . Five t i n y t he rm i s to r s

w i l l record temperatures , two ou ts i de on th e paddles and t h r e e

w i t h i n the payload.

The overall payload weight breaks down into t w o major

head ings : s t ruc tu re s h e l l and experiments -- 40 pounds; trans-

m i t t e r , e l e c t r o n i c s and power supply -- 50 pounds.

Commands w i l l be t r a n s m i t t e d t o t h e payload i n a com-

p lex m u l t i -d ig i t code. A command radio receiver -- on a t a l l

t imes -- w i l l rou te the inbound s i g n a l t o a command box which

w i l l unscramble t h e s i g n a l and c l o s e c i r c u i t s t o execute t h e

d e s i r e d command.

The probe ca r r ie s one f ive-wat t u l t r a -h igh f requency

(UHF) t r ansmi t te r which, on command, becomes an a m p l i f i e r f o r

t h e 150-watt t r a n s m i t t e r . Both a re hooked t o a l l ins t rumen-

t a t i o n b u t o n ly one h a n s m i t s a t a t ime. The t r an sm it te rs

. . .. - ..._ . .. .I I- .. ...-. .. -. . , ._ _l__.l.. .-.. . .



- 13 -

will send on 378 MC.

'CJhen a t r a n s m i t t e r i s n o t o p e ra t i n g , a l l o f t h e ex-

periments aboard w i l l con t inue to func t ion and t h e i r f i n d i n g s

w i l l b e s t o r e d i n small e lec t ron ic accumula to rs o r memory

u n i t s .

a speedometer i n t h a t they record a g iven ex p e r im en t ' s t o t a l

ac ti on , When payload ra di o tr an sm it te r i s turned on, t he

t o t a l s are t r an s m i t t ed f i r s t , then t h e t r a n s m i t t e r s s t a r t

send ing experiment funct ions as they occur .

These work much l i k e the t o t a l mi leage r e g i s t e r o f

Tracking

A number o f United St a t e s t r ack in g o u tp o s t s a ro un d

the world w i l l t a k e p a r t i n t r a c k i n g t h i s s a t e l l i t e bu t

principal command and da ta r ecep t i o n p o in t s a r e :

Jodrel l Bank, a 250-foo t para bo l ic t ra ck in g d i s h p lu s

h e l i ca l an t en n ae a t Manchester, England, operated by t h e

Univers i ty o f Manchester. T h i s s t a t i o n has both payload

command and t e l em e t ry r ecep t io n cap ab i l i t y ,

Mi l l s tone H i l l , N, H., an 85-foot p a rab o l i c d i s h ,

b u i l t an d o p e ra t ed by the Lincoln Laborator ies o f t h e Massachuset ts

I n s t i t u t e of Technology, T h i s s t a t i o n w i l l be used for t e l e -

metry recep t ion and i n i t i a l l aunch rad ar " sk in - t rack ing , 11

South Point , H a w a i i , a 60-foot p a rab o l i c d i s h and

h e l i ca l ant en na , o p e ra t ed by STL.

f o r commands and tel em et ry re ce pt io n,

T h i s s t a t i o n w i l l be used



Singapore, Malaya, small antenna arrays , opera ted by

STL. It w i l l be used fo r te lemet ry recep t ion .

A t l a n t i c Missile Range, Cape Canaveral , Fla. a

variety of antennae which w i l l be used t o send s t e e r i n g

commands t o t h e second s tage during launch.

opera ted by STL, a l s o w i l l be used fo r ea r ly data r ecep t ion .

T h i s s t a t i o n ,

A l l of these s t a t i o n s w i l l be l i nked on a t e l e t y p e

c i r c u i t , t h e c o n t r ol p o in t of which i s STL's Space Navigation

Center i n Los Angeles.

... _ _ . . . I - ". ... -. . . - - .- .* .. . , . _.I *... . ~. . .. . ., _II_ ~ I__. . .



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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

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Cons is t ing o f t h r e e s t ages , t h e Thor-Able IV rocke t

s t ands 90 f e e t h igh and weighs more than lO5,OOO pounds.

E a r l i e r v e rs i on s o f th e v e h i c l e were used i n th ree

space probes i n 1958.

seconds because of malfunct ion i n t h e Thor f i r s t s t a g e

(August 17, 1958). The second, labeled Pioneer I , r o s e t o

70,700 miles and re tu rned va luab le data (October 11, 1958).

The t h i r d , Pioneer 11, f e l l back a f t e r reach ing 970 m i 3 . e s

a l t i t u d e when th e t h i r d s t a g e f a i l e d t o i g n i t e (November 8, 1958).

The f i r s t of them blew u p a f t e r 77

r

The f i r s t two s t a g e s of Thor-Able a l s o have been used

i n a number of 5500-mile nose cone re-entry t e s t f l i g h t s .

Here i s a breakdown of the stages and t he i r func t i ons :

F i r s t Stage:

Improved Thor, in te rmedia te range b a l l i s t i c missile,

minus I R B M guidance and m odi f ied t o r ece ive add i ti ona (1 stages.

Weight -- Over 100,000 l b s .

Thrust -- Approximately 165,000 l b s .

. .- . .. - .. ... . - . I . . . . ...-. ._. - . . .. .. .l_."_."I-..._ " ...... .. ..,



- 2 -

The l iquid-f’ueled Thor propel s t he veh ic le f o r more than

160 seconds a f t e r l aunch. Dur ing t h i s per iod of time, t h e

rocke t i s co nt ro ll ed by r o l l and p i t c h programmers. Upon

separa t i on , t h e Thor re-enters the a tmosphere and d i s i n t eg ra te s ,

Second Stage:

Powered by a l iqu id- fue led eng ine , the second s tage was

adapted and modified from e a r l i e r Vanguard and Thor-Able rocket

v e h i c l e s . S i x small sp in rocke t s are r inged around t h e o u t e r

s k i n of th e s tag e. The second s t ag e f i r e s immediately a f t e r

f i r s t s tage sepa ra t i on .

Weight -- Over 4,000 l b s .

Thrust -- Approximately 7,500 l b s ,

Stage two propels t h e v e h i c l e f o r a bo ut 100 seconds,

A t second-s tage burnout , a p l a s t i c n ose f a i r i n g co ve ri ng t h e

t h i r d s ta ge s a t e l l i t e i s j e t t i s o n e d and f a l l s away. Also a t

second s ta ge burnout , th e s p i n r o c k e ts i g n i t e c a us in g t h e

second and t h i r d stages and t h e payload t o r o t a t e a t t h e r a t e

of 120 r evo lu t i ons pe r m inut e. The sp in s t ab i l i z es t he

t r a j e c t o r y o f t h e t h i r d s tage and pay load. About a second and

a, h a l f a f t e r t h e s pi n rockets f i r e , s econd-s t age s epa ra t i on

occurs . The second s tage then f a l l s and burns up on entering

the ea r t h ’ s a tmosphere ,



- 3 -

Third Stage:

A solid-propellant rocket, the third stage was adapted

from the Vanguard and Able I rocket vehicles, It propels the

payload t o earth escape velocity, about 25,000 miles and hour

before separating.

Weight -- Over 500 lbs.

Thrust -- Approximately 3,000 lbs.

The third stage, which burns for about 40 seconds will

coast into a sun orbit behind the payload. Separation occurs

about 20 minutes after third-stage burnout when a set of

springs forces the third stage and payload apart,, Burned out,

the empty third-stage casing weighs about 50 pounds.




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CONTRACTORS

No, 3Ma.rch8, 1960

This probe is being conducted by NASA, with technical

assistance by AFBMD. Under contract to AFBMD, STL provided

overall system integration and payload packaging.

50 scientific and industrial organizations and universities

participated in the development of this program,

More than

Principal participants are:

Atlantic Research Corporation, Alexandria, Va.;

Engineered Magnetics, Hawthorne, Calif.;

Gilfillan Bros., Los Angeles, Calif,;

Hallamore Electronics Co., Anaheim, Calif.;

Hoffman Electronics Inc., Evanston, Ill.;

Motorola, Inc., Phoenix, Ariz,;

Radiation, Inc., Melbourne, Fla,;

Rantec, Inc., Calabasa, Calif.;

Air Forae Cambridge Research Center;

Space Electronics Corp,, Glendale, Calif,;

The University of Chicago, at Chicago, and the

University of Minnesota at Minneapolis,

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Here is a,breakdown of major contractor responsibility:

First Stage (Air Force Thor IRBM)

1. Propulsion systems -- Rocketdyne, Division ofNorth American Aviation.

2, Airframe, control, electrical, and instrumentationsystems -- Douglas Aircraft Company,

3. Assembly, integration, checkout, and launch --Douglas Aircraft

Second Stage

1,

2,

Propulsion system and tanks -- Aerojet-General

Corporation, a division of General Tire and Rubber Co.

Control, electrical, instrumentation, engine shutoff,and spin rocket systems -- STL.

3 , Assembly, integration, and checkout -- STL.

T h i r d Stage

1, Rocket motor -- Allegany Ballistics Laboratory ofHercules Powder C o o

2, Structure a.nd electrical -- STL,

3 . Assembly, integration, and checkout -- STL,Payload -- STL,

Launch Operations

1. Pad, test, checkout -- Douglas Aircraft

2. Launch crew -- Aerojet-GeneralDouglas AircraftRocketdyneSTL

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March 8, 1960

PROJECT O F F I C I A L S

Principal NASA officials involved in this program are

Dr, Abe Silverstein, director of Space Flight Development, and

Dr. John Lindsay, head of the solar physics program of the

Space Sciences Division,

Key AFBMD-STL personnel in the program are Major

General 0. J, Ritland, commander of the Air Force Ballistic

Missile Division; Dr, Ruben P, Mettler, STL executive vice

president and senior project advisor; Colonel Richard De

Curtin, AFBMD deputy commander for Mflitary Space Systems;

Dr. George E, Mueller, STL vice president, associate director

of the Research and Development Division, and senior project

advisor; Lt, Colonel Donald R e Latham, APBMD dlirectop of Space

Probe Projects; Dr. Adolph K, Thiel, STL dirPector of ad-

vanced Experimental Space Missions and project director; and

Major John E. Richards, AFBMD chief o f the Astro-Vehicles

Division within the Space Probes Directorate,

Documents

Pioneer v Press Kit