The Altair was a
solid-fuel rocket
A solid-propellant rocket or solid rocket is a rocket with a rocket engine that uses solid propellants (fuel/ oxidizer). The earliest rockets were solid-fuel rockets powered by gunpowder; they were used in warfare by the Arabs, Chinese, Persi ...
with a
fiberglass
Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass cl ...
casing, initially developed for use as the
third stage
''Third Stage'' is the third studio album by the American rock band Boston, released on September 26, 1986, on MCA Records. It was recorded at Boston co-founder Tom Scholz's Hideaway Studio over a long, strained, six-year period "between floods ...
of
Vanguard rockets in 1959.
It was manufactured by
Allegany Ballistics Laboratory (ABL) as the X-248. It was also sometimes called the
Burner 1.
Altair
The X-248 was one of two third-stage designs used during
Project Vanguard. Early launches used a stage developed by the
Grand Central Rocket Company, but later launches used the X-248 which enabled the Vanguard to launch more massive payloads.
The X-248 was used as the second stage of some early
Thor
Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing ...
flights. These vehicles were designated "
Thor-Burner".
Altairs were used as the third stage of early
Delta rockets.
The fourth stage of the
Scout
Scout may refer to:
Youth movement
* Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement
**Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom
** Scouts BSA, sect ...
rocket also used the "Altair" stage.
Altair 2
The Altair 2 (X-258)
Thiokol
Thiokol (variously Thiokol Chemical Corporation(/Company), Morton Thiokol Inc., Cordant Technologies Inc., Thiokol Propulsion, AIC Group, ATK Thiokol, ATK Launch Systems Group; finally Orbital ATK before becoming part of Northrop Grumman) was a ...
solid rocket engine first flew in 1963 and was the kick stage motor for
Delta D,
Scout A, Scout X-4, and
Orbiting Vehicle satellites. It was retired in 1973.
See also
*
Algol (rocket stage)
*
Castor (rocket stage)
References
Rocket stages
Solid-fuel rockets
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