PGM-19 Jupiter

SM-78/PGM-19 Jupiter
Jupiter missile emplacement showing ground support equipment. The bottom third of the missile is encased in a "flower petal shelter" of wedge-shaped metal panels allowing crews to service the missile in all weather conditions.
TypeMedium-range ballistic missile (MRBM)
Place of originUnited States
Service history
Used byUnited States Air Force
Italian Air Force
Turkish Air Force
Production history
Designed1954
ManufacturerChrysler
Produced1956–1961
No. builtapprox. 100 (45 deployed)
VariantsJuno II
Specifications
Mass49,800 kg (110,000 lb)
Length18.3 m (60 ft)
Diameter2.67 m (8 ft 9 in)
WarheadW38 warhead 3.75 Mt or W49 1.44 Mt
Blast yield3.75 Mt or 1.44 Mt

EngineRocketdyne LR79-NA (Model S-3D) liquid LRE
150,000 lbf (667 kN)
Propellantkerosene and liquid oxygen
Operational
range
1,500–1,700 mi (2,400–2,700 km)
Flight ceiling610 km (380 mi)

The PGM-19 Jupiter was the first nuclear armed, medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM) of the United States Air Force (USAF). It was a liquid-propellant rocket using RP-1 fuel and LOX oxidizer, with a single Rocketdyne LR79-NA (model S-3D) rocket engine producing 667 kilonewtons (150,000 lbf) of thrust. It was armed with the 1.44 megatons of TNT (6.0 PJ) W49 nuclear warhead. The prime contractor was the Chrysler Corporation.

The Jupiter was originally designed by the US Army, which was looking for a highly accurate missile designed to strike enemy states such as China and the Soviet Union. The US Navy also expressed an interest in the design as an SLBM but left the collaboration to work on their solid-fuel Polaris. Jupiter retained the short, squat shape intended to fit in submarines.


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