Function | Expendable launch system |
---|---|
Manufacturer |
|
Cost per launch | $50 million [1] |
Size | |
Height | 23.88 metres (78.3 ft) |
Diameter | 2.34 metres (7 ft 8 in) |
Mass | 86,300 kg |
Stages | 4 |
Capacity | |
Payload to LEO | |
Mass | 1735 kg (28.5°, 185 km) |
Associated rockets | |
Family | Minotaur |
Derivative work | Minotaur V |
Launch history | |
Status | Active |
Launch sites | Vandenberg AFB, SLC-8 MARS, LP-0B PSCA, LP-1 CCAFS, SLC-46 |
Total launches | 7 |
Success(es) | 7 |
First flight | 22 April 2010 |
Last flight | 15 July 2020 |
First stage – SR-118 | |
Powered by | 1 Solid |
Maximum thrust | 2,200 kilonewtons (490,000 lbf) |
Propellant | Solid |
Second stage – SR-119 | |
Powered by | 1 Solid |
Maximum thrust | 1,365 kilonewtons (307,000 lbf) |
Burn time | 54 seconds |
Propellant | Solid |
Third stage – SR-120 | |
Powered by | 1 Solid |
Maximum thrust | 329 kilonewtons (74,000 lbf) |
Burn time | 62 seconds |
Propellant | Solid |
Fourth stage (Baseline) – Orion 38 | |
Powered by | 1 Solid |
Maximum thrust | 32.2 kilonewtons (7,200 lbf) |
Burn time | 67.7 seconds |
Propellant | Solid |
Fourth stage (Optional) – Star-48V | |
Powered by | 1 Solid |
Maximum thrust | 68.6 kilonewtons (15,400 lbf) |
Burn time | 84.1 seconds |
Propellant | Solid |
Minotaur IV, also known as Peacekeeper SLV and OSP-2 PK is an active expendable launch system derived from the LGM-118 Peacekeeper ICBM. It is operated by Northrop Grumman Space Systems, and made its maiden flight on 22 April 2010, carrying the HTV-2a Hypersonic Test Vehicle.[2][3][4] The first orbital launch occurred on 26 September 2010 with the SBSS satellite for the United States Air Force.
The Minotaur IV vehicle consists of four stages and is capable of placing 1,735 kilograms (3,825 lb) of payload into a Low Earth orbit (LEO).[5][6] It uses the first three stages of the Peacekeeper missile, combined with a new upper stage. On the baseline version, the fourth stage is an Orion 38. However a higher performance variant, designated Minotaur IV+, uses a Star-48V instead. A three-stage configuration (no Orion 38), designated the Minotaur IV Lite, is available for suborbital trajectories. The Minotaur IV has also been flown with multiple upper stages. A five-stage derivative, the Minotaur V, made its maiden flight on 7 September 2013.
Minotaur IV launches are conducted from SLC-8 at Vandenberg Air Force Base, LP-0B at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, SLC-46 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and Pacific Spaceport Complex – Alaska Pad 1 of the Pacific Spaceport Complex – Alaska (PSCA).
© MMXXIII Rich X Search. We shall prevail. All rights reserved. Rich X Search