Cape Canaveral AFS Launch Complex 17
CCAFS LC-17 | |
---|---|
View of launch site 17B | |
Coordinates | 28 ° 26 '47 " N , 80 ° 33' 55" W |
Type | Orbital Launch Site |
operator | US Air Force / NASA |
start of building | 1956 |
Launch pads | 2 (17A, 17B) |
Min. Inclination | 28 ° |
Max. Inclination | 57 ° |
Missiles | Thor , Delta |
First start | January 26, 1957 |
Last start | September 10, 2011 |
status | rededicated |
Cape Canaveral AFS Launch Complex 17 ( LC-17 ) is an inactive launch complex of Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on Merritt Island , Cape Canaveral in Florida , USA and consists of the two launch pads LC-17A and LC-17B.
With over 300 rocket launches since the late 1950s, LC-17 was by far the most widely used launch complex on Cape Canaveral.
The site now serves as a development and test center for the planned lunar probes of Moon Express .
history
Originally this number was 1,956 for the testing program of Thor - medium-range missile built. The first launch was from Pad 17B in 1957 and failed.
Various Thor versions of Launch Complex 17 were launched until the 1960s. In addition, the civil Delta rocket , derived from the Thor, was added in the 1960s . In 1965 the USAF handed over the launch site to NASA as it was almost exclusively used for civilian purposes. In 1988, however, launch position 17 was returned to the US Air Force , probably because of the beginning of the large number of delta launches with military GPS navigation satellites. In 1996 the assembly and launch towers, which had previously been painted red, were painted gray.
After that, launch complex 17 was used for the launch of Delta II rockets . On August 17, 2009 it was announced that only launch site 17B would be used for the Delta II missiles in Cape Canaveral. The last start so far took place on September 10, 2011.
The complex
The complex consists of two launch ramps: 17A and 17B. Both are concrete launch tables with a flame deflection channel on which a metal launch tower is located. The launch sites each include a mobile metal frame, the assembly tower, which is used to assemble the rockets on the launch table. Once the rocket is mounted, he moves away from the launch table and the rocket is launched. Starting position 17B has since been rebuilt and (in contrast to starting position 17A) the Delta II Heavy and Delta III with their larger solid fuel boosters could also start.
Start list
Individual evidence
- ↑ Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. (Sept. 10, 2011). September 10, 2011, accessed January 12, 2014 .
- ↑ Moon Express raises $ 12.5 million. In: Spacenews. October 1, 2018, accessed April 2, 2019 .
- ↑ http://www.spaceflightnow.com/delta/d343/
- ^ William Graham: Delta II launches with moon-bound GRAIL spacecraft. In: NASASpaceFlight.com. September 10, 2011, accessed January 12, 2014 .
- ↑ Staff Writers: United Launch Alliance Launches GRAIL Spacecrafts To Moon. In: moondaily. September 12, 2011, accessed January 12, 2014 .
- ↑ http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/launch_differences.html
Web links
- Cape Canaveral LC17A in the Encyclopedia Astronautica (English)
- LC-17 in the CCAFS tour (English)
- Spaceflight Now: Space Launch Complex 17 Fact Sheet (English)