Saturn V

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Saturn V
American human-rated launch vehicle
The Saturn V rocket carrying the Apollo 11's three people into space.
Has use
Manufacturer
Country of originUnited States
Project cost$6.417 billion in 1964–1973 dollars (~$42 billion in 2018 dollars)
Cost per launch$185 million in 1969–1971 dollars[1] ($1.16 billion in 2016 value), of which $110 million was for vehicle.[2]
Size
Height363.0 ft (110.6 m)
Diameter33.0 ft (10.1 m)
Mass6,540,000 lb (2,970,000 kg)[3]
Stages2-3
Capacity
Payload to LEO (90 nmi (170 km), 30° inclination)
Mass310,000 lb (140,000 kg)[4][5][note 1]
Payload to TLI
Mass107,100 lb (48,600 kg)[3]
Associated rockets
FamilySaturn
Derivative workSaturn INT-21
Comparable
Launch history
StatusRetired
Launch sitesKennedy LC-39
Total launches13
Success(es)12
Failure(s)0
Partial failure(s)1 (Apollo 6)
First flightNovember 9, 1967 (AS-501 Apollo 4)
Last flightMay 14, 1973 (AS-513 Skylab)
First stage – S-IC
Height138.0 ft (42.1 m)
Diameter33.0 ft (10.1 m)
Empty mass287,000 lb (130,000 kg)
Gross mass5,040,000 lb (2,290,000 kg)
Powered by5 Rocketdyne F-1
Maximum thrust7,891,000 lbf (35,100 kN) sea level
Specific impulse263 seconds (2.58 km/s) sea level
Burn time168 seconds
PropellantRP-1/LOX
Second stage – S-II
Height81.5 ft (24.8 m)
Diameter33.0 ft (10.1 m)
Empty mass88,400 lb (40,100 kg)[note 2]
Gross mass1,093,900 lb (496,200 kg)[note 2]
Powered by5 Rocketdyne J-2
Maximum thrust1,155,800 lbf (5,141 kN) vacuum
Specific impulse421 seconds (4.13 km/s) vacuum
Burn time360 seconds
PropellantLH2/LOX
Third stage – S-IVB
Height61.7 ft (18.8 m)
Diameter21.7 ft (6.6 m)
Empty mass29,700 lb (13,500 kg)[3][note 3]
Gross mass271,000 lb (123,000 kg)[note 3]
Powered by1 Rocketdyne J-2
Maximum thrust232,250 lbf (1,033.1 kN) vacuum
Specific impulse421 seconds (4.13 km/s) vacuum
Burn time165 + 335 seconds (2 burns)
PropellantLH2/LOX

Saturn V was the launch vehicle used by NASA in the Apollo program. The Saturn V carried Apollo 11 to the Moon in 1969, after years of trial, study, and research into its design. Much of the rocket was designed by German engineer and scientist Wernher von Braun, who had previously created the V2 rocket under Nazi Germany. 32 Saturn-model rockets were sent up into space in total, with the launches split between the smaller Saturn I, and its bigger sibling, the Saturn V.[6] 15 Saturn V rockets were made, and 13 were sent up to space for missions.[6] There were two Saturn V's launched with no people in them, used as 'dress rehearsals', with the first manned Apollo flight using a Saturn V being Apollo 8, which was sent around the Moon on December 21, 1968.[7]

Wernher von Braun standing by the five very big engines of the Saturn V in 1961

The Saturn V rocket was a three-part machine. It stood 111 metres (363 feet) high and weighed 2,903,020 kilograms (6,400,060 pounds). The first rockets were able to carry 44,600 kilograms (98,300 pounds), which went up to 46,800 kilograms (103,200 pounds) for the later Apollo flights.[6] The first and second stages gave the power needed to lift the rocket off of Earth, intended to break through the atmosphere, so that the weaker third stage could go the rest of the way. The first and second stages each had five engines. The first stage burned kerosene and liquid oxygen together, with the other stages burning a mixture of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen.[6]

The first stage engines burned for 168 seconds and was able to lift Apollo about 93 kilometres (58 miles) off of from the launch pad. The second stage burned for about 8 minutes, in order to take Apollo through the upper atmosphere. By this time, it was traveling at 25,182 kilometres per hour (15,647 miles per hour).

The third stage was used for 2 minutes and 30 seconds to put Apollo into an Earth orbit. This was at a height of 191.2 kilometres (118.8 miles) above the Earth. The third stage was started again and burned for 6 minutes to make the speed go up to 40,320 kilometres per hour (25,050 miles per hour) needed to send Apollo off to the Moon.[7]

Related pages[change | change source]

Notes[change | change source]

  1. Includes mass of Apollo Command/Service Modules, Apollo Lunar Module, Spacecraft/LM Adapter, Saturn V Instrument Unit, S-IVB stage, and propellant for translunar injection
  2. 2.0 2.1 Includes S-II/S-IVB interstage
  3. 3.0 3.1 Includes Instrument Unit

References[change | change source]

  1. "SP-4221 The Space Shuttle Decision- Chapter 6: Economics and the Shuttle". NASA. Retrieved 2011-01-15.
  2. "sp4206".
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Ground Ignition Weights". NASA.gov. Retrieved November 8, 2014.
  4. Alternatives for Future U.S. Space-Launch Capabilities (PDF), The Congress of the United States. Congressional Budget Office, October 2006, pp. X, 1, 4, 9
  5. Thomas P. Stafford (1991), America at the Threshold – Report of the Synthesis Group on America's Space Exploration Initiative, p. 31
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "Saturn V: America's Moon Rocket". airandspace.si.edu. 2007. Archived from the original on 29 August 2012. Retrieved 12 August 2012.
  7. 7.0 7.1 Furniss, Tim (2001). The History of Space Vehicles. London: Grange Books. ISBN 1-84013-370-8.

Other websites[change | change source]

NASA sites[change | change source]

Other websites[change | change source]