Delta II was an
expendable launch system
An expendable launch system (or expendable launch vehicle/ELV) is a launch vehicle that can be launched only once, after which its components are either destroyed during reentry or discarded in space. ELVs typically consist of several rocket sta ...
, originally designed and built by
McDonnell Douglas
McDonnell Douglas was a major American aerospace manufacturing corporation and defense contractor, formed by the merger of McDonnell Aircraft and the Douglas Aircraft Company in 1967. Between then and its own merger with Boeing in 1997, it produ ...
. Delta II was part of the
Delta rocket
Delta is an American versatile family of expendable launch systems that has provided space launch capability in the United States since 1960. Japan also launched license-built derivatives ( N-I, N-II, and H-I) from 1975 to 1992. More than 300 ...
family and entered service in 1989. Delta II vehicles included the Delta 6000, and the two later Delta 7000 variants ("Light" and "Heavy"). The rocket flew its final mission
ICESat-2
ICESat-2 (Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite 2), part of NASA's Earth Observing System, is a satellite mission for measuring ice sheet elevation and sea ice thickness, as well as land topography, vegetation characteristics, and clouds. ICES ...
on 15 September 2018, earning the launch vehicle a streak of 100 successful missions in a row, with the last failure being
GPS IIR-1
GPS IIR-1 or GPS SVN-42 was the first Block IIR GPS satellite to be launched. It was to have been operated as part of the United States Air Force Global Positioning System. It was launched on 17 January 1997, and was destroyed 13 seconds into ...
in 1997.
History
In the early 1980s, all United States
expendable launch vehicles
An expendable launch system (or expendable launch vehicle/ELV) is a launch vehicle that can be launched only once, after which its components are either destroyed during reentry or discarded in space. ELVs typically consist of several rocket sta ...
were planned to be phased out in favor of the
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program na ...
, which would be responsible for all government and commercial launches. Production of Delta,
Atlas-Centaur
The Atlas-Centaur was a United States expendable launch vehicle derived from the SM-65 Atlas D missile. Launches were conducted from Launch Complex 36 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) in Florida.
Early development
Convair, ...
, and
Titan 34D
The Titan 34D was a United States expendable launch vehicle used to launch a number of satellites for military applications.
Service history
Derived from the Titan III, the Titan 34D featured Stage 1 and Stage 2 stretched with more powerful U ...
had ended. The
''Challenger'' disaster of 1986 and the subsequent halt of Shuttle operations changed this policy, and President
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
announced in December 1986 that the Space Shuttle would no longer launch commercial payloads, and
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.
NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...
would seek to purchase launches on expendable vehicles for missions that did not require crew or Shuttle support.
McDonnell Douglas, at that time the manufacturer of the Delta family, signed a contract with the
U.S. Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...
in 1987 to provide seven Delta II. These were intended to launch a series of
Global Positioning System
The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of the global navigation satellite sy ...
(GPS)
Block II
Block or blocked may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting
* Block programming, the result of a programming strategy in broadcasting
* W242BX, a radio station licensed to Greenville, South Carolina, United States known as ''96.3 ...
satellites, which had previously been manifested for the
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program na ...
. The Air Force exercised additional contract options in 1988, expanding this order to 20 vehicles, and NASA purchased its first Delta II in 1990 for the launch of three Earth-observing satellites.
[ ] The first Delta II launch occurred on 14 February 1989, with a Delta 6925 boosting the first GPS Block II satellite (
USA-35
USA-35, also known as Navstar 2-01, GPS II-1 and GPS SVN-14, was an American navigation satellite which formed part of the Global Positioning System. It was the first of nine Block II GPS satellites to be launched, which were the first operation ...
) from
Launch Complex 17A (SLC-17A) at
Cape Canaveral
, image = cape canaveral.jpg
, image_size = 300
, caption = View of Cape Canaveral from space in 1991
, map = Florida#USA
, map_width = 300
, type =Cape
, map_caption = Location in Florida
, location ...
into a high
medium Earth orbit
A medium Earth orbit (MEO) is an geocentric orbit, Earth-centered orbit with an altitude above a low Earth orbit (LEO) and below a high Earth orbit (HEO) – between above sea level. .
The first Delta II 7000-series flew on November 26, 1990, replacing the
RS-27
The RS-27 was a liquid-propellant rocket engine developed in 1974 by Rocketdyne to replace the aging MB-3 in the Delta. Incorporating components of the venerable MB-3 and the H-1 designs, the RS-27 was a modernized version of the basic design ...
engine of the 6000-series with the more powerful
RS-27A
The RS-27A is a liquid-fuel rocket engine developed in 1980s by Rocketdyne for use on the first stage of the Delta II and Delta III launch vehicles. It provides of thrust burning RP-1 and LOX in a gas-generator cycle. The engine is a modified v ...
engine. Additionally, the steel-cased
Castor 4A solid boosters of the 6000 series were replaced with the composite-cased
GEM-40. All further Delta II launches except three were of this upgraded configuration, and the 6000-series was retired in 1992 with the last launch being on July 24.
McDonnell Douglas began
Delta III
Delta III was an expendable launch vehicle made by Boeing. The vehicle was developed from the highly-successful Delta II to help meet the launch demand of larger satellites. The first Delta III launch was on August 26, 1998. Of its three flights ...
development in the mid-1990s as increasing satellite mass required more powerful launch vehicles.
Delta III, with its liquid hydrogen second stage and more powerful
GEM-46 boosters, could bring twice as much mass as Delta II to
geostationary transfer orbit
A geosynchronous transfer orbit or geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) is a type of geocentric orbit. Satellite, Satellites that are destined for geosynchronous orbit, geosynchronous (GSO) or geostationary orbit (GEO) are (almost) always put into ...
, but a string of two failures and one partial failure, along with the development of the much more powerful
Delta IV
Delta IV is a group of five expendable launch systems in the Delta (rocket family), Delta rocket family introduced in the early 2000s. Originally designed by Boeing's Defense, Space and Security division for the National Security Space Launch, ...
, led to the cancellation of the Delta III program. The upgraded boosters would still find use on the Delta II, leading to the Delta II Heavy.
On 28 March 2003, the Air Force Space Command began the process of deactivating the Delta II launch facilities and infrastructure at Cape Canaveral once the last of the second-generation GPS satellites were launched. However, in 2008, it instead announced that it would transfer all the Delta II facilities and infrastructure to NASA to support the launch of the
Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory
The Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) was an American lunar science mission in NASA's Discovery Program which used high-quality gravitational field mapping of the Moon to determine its interior structure. The two small spacecraf ...
(GRAIL) in 2011.
On 14 December 2006, with the launch of
USA-193
USA-193, also known as NRO Launch 21 (NROL-21 or simply L-21), was a United States military reconnaissance satellite (radar imaging) launched on 14 December 2006. It was the first launch conducted by the United Launch Alliance (ULA). Owned by ...
, was the first launch of the Delta II operated by
United Launch Alliance
United Launch Alliance (ULA), legally United Launch Alliance, LLC, is an American spacecraft launch service provider that manufactures and operates a number of rocket vehicles that are capable of launching spacecraft into orbits around Earth, a ...
.
The last GPS launch aboard a Delta II, and the final launch from SLC-17A at Cape Canaveral was in 2009. The GRAIL Launch in 2011 marked the last Delta II Heavy launch and the last from Florida. The final five launches would all be from
Vandenberg Air Force Base Vandenberg may refer to:
* Vandenberg (surname), including a list of people with the name
* USS General Harry Taylor (AP-145), USNS ''General Hoyt S. Vandenberg'' (T-AGM-10), transport ship in the United States Navy, sank as an artificial reef in K ...
in
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
.
On 16 July 2012, NASA selected the Delta II to support the
Orbiting Carbon Observatory
The Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) is a NASA satellite mission intended to provide global space-based observations of atmospheric carbon dioxide (). The original spacecraft was lost in a launch failure on 24 February 2009, when the payload f ...
(OCO-2),
Soil Moisture Active Passive
Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) is a NASA environmental monitoring satellite that measures soil moisture across the planet. It is designed to collect a global 'snapshot' of soil moister every 2 to 3 days. With this frequency, changes from spe ...
(SMAP), and
Joint Polar Satellite System
The Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) is the latest generation of U.S. polar-orbiting, non-geosynchronous, environmental satellites. JPSS will provide the global environmental data used in numerical weather prediction models for forecasts, and ...
(JPSS-1 - NOAA-20) missions. This marked the final purchase of Delta II. OCO-2 was launched on 2 July 2014,
Soil Moisture Active Passive
Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) is a NASA environmental monitoring satellite that measures soil moisture across the planet. It is designed to collect a global 'snapshot' of soil moister every 2 to 3 days. With this frequency, changes from spe ...
(SMAP) was launched on 31 January 2015, and
JPSS-1
NOAA-20, designated JPSS-1 prior to launch, is the first of the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's latest generation of U.S. polar-orbiting, non-geosynchronous, environmental satellites called the Joint Polar Sate ...
was launched on 18 November 2017. All three of these launches were placed into orbit from
SLC-2 at Vandenberg.
The Delta II family launched 155 times. Its only unsuccessful launches were
Koreasat 1
Koreasat 1 was a South Korean communications satellite launched by a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, United States. Owned by KT Corporation.
One of the boosters of the Delta II rocket failed to separate from the fi ...
in 1995, and
GPS IIR-1
GPS IIR-1 or GPS SVN-42 was the first Block IIR GPS satellite to be launched. It was to have been operated as part of the United States Air Force Global Positioning System. It was launched on 17 January 1997, and was destroyed 13 seconds into ...
in 1997. The Koreasat 1 launch was a partial failure caused by one booster not separating from the first stage, which resulted in the satellite being placed in a lower than intended orbit. By using reserve fuel, it was able to achieve its proper
geosynchronous orbit
A geosynchronous orbit (sometimes abbreviated GSO) is an Earth-centered orbit with an orbital period that matches Earth's rotation on its axis, 23 hours, 56 minutes, and 4 seconds (one sidereal day). The synchronization of rotation and orbital ...
and operated for 10 years. The GPS IIR-1 was a total loss as the Delta II exploded 13 seconds after launch. The explosion occurred when a damaged
solid rocket booster
A solid rocket booster (SRB) is a large solid propellant motor used to provide thrust in spacecraft launches from initial launch through the first ascent. Many launch vehicles, including the Atlas V, SLS and space shuttle, have used SRBs to give ...
casing ruptured and triggered the vehicle's flight termination system. No one was injured, and the launch pad itself was not seriously impacted, though several cars were destroyed and a few buildings were damaged.
In 2007, Delta II completed its 75th consecutive successful launch, surpassing the 74 consecutive successful launches of the
Ariane 4
The Ariane 4 was a European expendable space launch system, developed by the '' Centre national d'études spatiales'' (CNES), the French space agency, for the European Space Agency (ESA). It was manufactured by ArianeGroup and marketed by Ari ...
. With the launch of
ICESat-2
ICESat-2 (Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite 2), part of NASA's Earth Observing System, is a satellite mission for measuring ice sheet elevation and sea ice thickness, as well as land topography, vegetation characteristics, and clouds. ICES ...
in 2018, Delta II reached 100 consecutive successful launches.
While all completed Delta II rockets have launched, many flight-qualified spare parts remain. These spare parts were assembled to create a nearly-complete Delta II, for exhibition in its 7420-3 configuration. The rocket is displayed vertically at the
Kennedy Space Center Visitors Complex, and bears its popular "shark teeth" livery on its fairing, which was painted on past Delta II rockets for the GPS launches.
Vehicle description
![Delta II second stage](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Delta_II_second_stage.jpg)
The first stage of the Delta II was propelled by a Rocketdyne
RS-27
The RS-27 was a liquid-propellant rocket engine developed in 1974 by Rocketdyne to replace the aging MB-3 in the Delta. Incorporating components of the venerable MB-3 and the H-1 designs, the RS-27 was a modernized version of the basic design ...
main engine burning
RP-1
RP-1 (alternatively, Rocket Propellant-1 or Refined Petroleum-1) is a highly refined form of kerosene outwardly similar to jet fuel, used as rocket fuel. RP-1 provides a lower specific impulse than liquid hydrogen (LH2), but is cheaper, is st ...
and
liquid oxygen
Liquid oxygen—abbreviated LOx, LOX or Lox in the aerospace, submarine and gas industries—is the liquid form of molecular oxygen. It was used as the oxidizer in the first liquid-fueled rocket invented in 1926 by Robert H. Goddard, an applica ...
. This stage was technically referred to as the "Extra-Extended Long Tank Thor", a derivative of the
Thor
Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding æsir, god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred trees and groves in Germanic paganism and mythology, sacred groves ...
ballistic missile as were all Delta rockets until the
Delta IV
Delta IV is a group of five expendable launch systems in the Delta (rocket family), Delta rocket family introduced in the early 2000s. Originally designed by Boeing's Defense, Space and Security division for the National Security Space Launch, ...
. The RS-27 used on the 6000-series Delta II produced , while the upgraded RS-27A used by the 7000-series produced . The stage was long and wide, weighted over when fueled, and burned for 260 seconds.
In addition, two LR101-NA-11 vernier engines provided guidance for the first stage.
For additional thrust during launch, the Delta II used solid boosters. For the 6000-series, Delta II used Castor 4A boosters, while the 7000-series used
Graphite-Epoxy Motor
The Graphite-Epoxy Motor (GEM) is a family of solid rocket boosters first developed in the late 1980s and used from 1990 to the present day. GEM motors are manufactured with carbon-fibre-reinforced polymer casings and a fuel consisting of HTPB-b ...
s manufactured by
ATK. The vehicle could be flown with three, four, or, most commonly, nine boosters. When three or four boosters were used, all ignited on the ground at launch, while models that used nine boosters would ignite six on the ground, then the remaining three in flight after the burnout and jettison of the first six.
[
The second stage of Delta II was the ]Delta-K
The Delta-K was an American rocket stage, developed by McDonnell Douglas and Aerojet. It was first used on 27 August 1989 as the second stage for the Delta 4000 series.
It continued to serve as the second stage for subsequent variants of the De ...
, powered by a restartable Aerojet
Aerojet was an American rocket and missile propulsion manufacturer based primarily in Rancho Cordova, California, with divisions in Redmond, Washington, Orange and Gainesville in Virginia, and Camden, Arkansas. Aerojet was owned by GenCorp. ...
AJ10
The AJ10 is a hypergolic rocket engine manufactured by Aerojet Rocketdyne (previously Aerojet). It has been used to propel the upper stages of several launch vehicles, including the Delta II and Titan III. Variants were and are used as the servic ...
-118K engine burning hypergolic
A hypergolic propellant is a rocket propellant combination used in a rocket engine, whose components spontaneously ignite when they come into contact with each other.
The two propellant components usually consist of a fuel and an oxidizer. The ...
Aerozine-50
__NOTOC__
Aerozine 50 is a 50:50 mix by weight of hydrazine and unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine (UDMH), originally developed in the late 1950s by Aerojet General Corporation as a storable, high-energy, hypergolic fuel for the Titan II ICBM rocket e ...
and . These propellants are highly toxic and corrosive, and once loaded the launch had to occur within approximately 37 days or the stage would have to be refurbished or replaced. This stage also contained a combined inertial platform and guidance system
A guidance system is a virtual or physical device, or a group of devices implementing a controlling the movement of a ship, aircraft, missile, rocket, satellite, or any other moving object. Guidance is the process of calculating the changes in po ...
that controlled all flight events. The Delta-K stage was long and wide, containing up to of propellant, and burned for up to 430 seconds.[
For low Earth orbit, Delta II was not equipped with a third stage. Payloads bound for higher energy orbits such as GTO or to reach Earth escape velocity for ]trans-Mars injection
A heliocentric orbit (also called circumsolar orbit) is an orbit around the Barycentric coordinates (astronomy), barycenter of the Solar System, which is usually located within or very near the surface of the Sun. All planets, comets, and asteroi ...
or other destinations beyond Earth used a solid propellant third stage. This stage was spin-stabilized and depended on the second stage for proper orientation prior to stage separation, but was sometimes equipped with a nutation control system to maintain proper spin axis. It also included a yo-weight system to induce tumbling in the third stage after payload separation to prevent recontact, or a yo-yo de-spin
A yo-yo de-spin mechanism is a device used to reduce the spin of satellites, typically soon after launch. It consists of two lengths of cable with weights on the ends. The cables are wrapped around the final stage and/or satellite, in the manne ...
mechanism to slow the rotation before payload release.
Naming system
The Delta II family used a four-digit system to generate its technical names:
* The first digit was either 6 or 7, denoting the 6000- or 7000-series Delta.
* The second digit indicated the number of boosters. Most Delta II rockets flew with 9 boosters, but some flew with 3 or 4.
* The third digit was always 2, denoting a second stage with an Aerojet AJ10 engine. Only Deltas prior to the 6000-series used a different engine, the TR-201
The TR-201 or TR201 is a hypergolic pressure-fed rocket engine used to propel the upper stage of the Delta rocket, referred to as Delta-P, from 1972 to 1988.
The rocket engine uses Aerozine 50 as fuel, and as oxidizer. It was developed in the ...
.
* The last digit denoted the third stage. 0 denoted no third stage, 5 indicated a Payload Assist Module
The Payload Assist Module (PAM) is a modular upper stage designed and built by McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing), using Thiokol Star-series solid propellant rocket motors. The PAM was used with the Space Shuttle, Delta, and Titan launchers and carri ...
(PAM) stage with Star 48B solid motor, and 6 indicated a Star 37FM motor.
* An H following the four digits denoted that the vehicle used the larger Delta III GEM-46 boosters. The Heavy variant could be launched only from Cape Canaveral (as Vandenberg's pad wasn't modified to handle the larger SRBs), and was retired with the closure of that launch site in 2011.
* Numbers and letters following those indicate the type of fairing. -9.5 means that the vehicle had a diameter fairing, -10 means a diameter fairing, and -10L indicates a lengthened diameter fairing. In a few rare circumstances, an 8-foot diameter fairing (from older Delta rockets) was flown, and those vehicles had a -8 designation.
For example, a Delta 7925H-10L used an RS-27A, nine GEM-46 boosters, a PAM third stage, and a lengthened diameter fairing. A Delta 6320–9.5 is a two-stage vehicle with an RS-27 first stage engine, three Castor 4A boosters, a diameter fairing, and no third stage.
Launch profile
; Launch vehicle
A launch vehicle or carrier rocket is a rocket designed to carry a payload (spacecraft or satellites) from the Earth's surface to outer space. Most launch vehicles operate from a launch pad, launch pads, supported by a missile launch contro ...
build-up: A Delta II launch vehicle was assembled vertically on the launch pad. Assembly starts by hoisting the first stage into position. The solid rocket boosters are then hoisted into position and mated with the first stage. Launch vehicle build-up then continues with the second stage being hoisted atop the first stage.
; Fueling: It took approximately 20 minutes to load the first stage with of fuel.
: At T-45 minutes, fueling completion is confirmed. At T-20 minutes, the FTS pyros are armed. At T-20 minutes and T-4 minutes, there are built in holds. During these holds, final checkouts are performed. At T-11 seconds SRB igniters are armed. Ignition is at T-0.4 seconds. The ascent profile varies between missions.
; SRB staging: If 9 solid rocket boosters were used, only six were ignited at launch. Once the first six were depleted, three air-start motors would ignite and the ground-start motors would separate. The air-start motors had nozzles optimized for high-altitude as they operated mostly in a near-vacuum during the flight profile.
: If 3 or 4 boosters were used, all were ignited on the ground and jettisoned at the same time.
Delta II launches
Notable payloads
Earth-orbiting
* GLAST
* Gravity Probe B
Gravity Probe B (GP-B) was a satellite-based experiment to test two unverified predictions of general relativity: the geodetic effect and frame-dragging. This was to be accomplished by measuring, very precisely, tiny changes in the direction of ...
* 24 GPS satellites
* 60 Iridium
Iridium is a chemical element with the symbol Ir and atomic number 77. A very hard, brittle, silvery-white transition metal of the platinum group, it is considered the second-densest naturally occurring metal (after osmium) with a density of ...
satellites
* ICESat-2
ICESat-2 (Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite 2), part of NASA's Earth Observing System, is a satellite mission for measuring ice sheet elevation and sea ice thickness, as well as land topography, vegetation characteristics, and clouds. ICES ...
* Kepler space telescope
The Kepler space telescope is a disused space telescope launched by NASA in 2009 to discover Earth-sized planets orbiting other stars. Named after astronomer Johannes Kepler, the spacecraft was launched into an Earth-trailing heliocentric orb ...
* OSTM/Jason-2
* Radarsat-1
RADARSAT-1 was Canada's first commercial Earth observation satellite. It utilized synthetic aperture radar (SAR) to obtain images of the Earth's surface to manage natural resources and monitor global climate change. As of March 2013, the satelli ...
* Polar (satellite)
The Global Geospace Science (GGS) ''Polar'' satellite was a NASA science spacecraft designed to study the polar magnetosphere and aurorae. It was launched into orbit in February 1996, and continued operations until the program was terminated in ...
* ROSAT
ROSAT (short for Röntgensatellit; in German X-rays are called Röntgenstrahlen, in honour of Wilhelm Röntgen) was a German Aerospace Center-led satellite X-ray telescope, with instruments built by West Germany, the United Kingdom and the Uni ...
* Spitzer Space Telescope (SIRTF)
* STSS-ATRR
* Swift
Swift or SWIFT most commonly refers to:
* SWIFT, an international organization facilitating transactions between banks
** SWIFT code
* Swift (programming language)
* Swift (bird), a family of birds
It may also refer to:
Organizations
* SWIFT, ...
* THEMIS
In Greek mythology and Ancient Greek religion, religion, Themis (; grc, Θέμις, Themis, justice, law, custom) is one of the twelve Titans, Titan children of Gaia and Uranus (mythology), Uranus, and the second wife of Zeus. She is the godde ...
* USA 193 (NROL-21)
* WIND
Wind is the natural movement of air or other gases relative to a planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heating of land surfaces and lasting a few hou ...
* WISE
* WMAP
The Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP), originally known as the Microwave Anisotropy Probe (MAP and Explorer 80), was a NASA spacecraft operating from 2001 to 2010 which measured temperature differences across the sky in the cosmic mic ...
Extra-planetary
* 2001 Mars Odyssey
''2001 Mars Odyssey'' is a robotic spacecraft orbiting the planet Mars. The project was developed by NASA, and contracted out to Lockheed Martin, with an expected cost for the entire mission of US$297 million. Its mission is to use spectr ...
* CONTOUR
Contour may refer to:
* Contour (linguistics), a phonetic sound
* Pitch contour
* Contour (camera system), a 3D digital camera system
* Contour, the KDE Plasma 4 interface for tablet devices
* Contour line, a curve along which the function ha ...
* Dawn
Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc has reached 18° below the observer's horizo ...
* '' Deep Impact''
* Deep Space 1
''Deep Space 1'' (DS1) was a NASA technology demonstration spacecraft which flew by an asteroid and a comet. It was part of the New Millennium Program, dedicated to testing advanced technologies.
Launched on 24 October 1998, the ''Deep Space 1 ...
* Genesis
Genesis may refer to:
Bible
* Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind
* Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...
* GRAIL
The Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) was an American lunar science mission in NASA's Discovery Program which used high-quality gravitational field mapping of the Moon to determine its interior structure. The two small spacecraf ...
* Mars Climate Orbiter
The ''Mars Climate Orbiter'' (formerly the Mars Surveyor '98 Orbiter) was a robotic space probe launched by NASA on December 11, 1998, to study the Martian climate, Martian atmosphere, and surface changes and to act as the communications re ...
* Mars Exploration Rover
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover (MER) mission was a robotic space mission involving two Mars rovers, ''Spirit (rover), Spirit'' and ''Opportunity (rover), Opportunity'', exploring the planet Mars. It began in 2003 with the launch of the two rover ...
s
* Mars Global Surveyor
''Mars Global Surveyor'' (MGS) was an American robotic space probe developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and launched November 1996. MGS was a global mapping mission that examined the entire planet, from the ionosphere down through the a ...
* Mars Pathfinder
''Mars Pathfinder'' (''MESUR Pathfinder'') is an American robotic spacecraft that landed a base station with a roving probe on Mars in 1997. It consisted of a lander, renamed the Carl Sagan Memorial Station, and a lightweight, wheeled robot ...
* Mars Phoenix
* Mars Polar Lander
The Mars Polar Lander, also known as the Mars Surveyor '98 Lander, was a 290-kilogram robotic spacecraft lander launched by NASA on January 3, 1999, to study the soil and climate of Planum Australe, a region near the south pole on Mars. It for ...
* MESSENGER
''MESSENGER'' was a NASA robotic space probe that orbited the planet Mercury between 2011 and 2015, studying Mercury's chemical composition, geology, and magnetic field. The name is a backronym for "Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geoche ...
* NEAR
NEAR or Near may refer to:
People
* Thomas J. Near, US evolutionary ichthyologist
* Near, a developer who created the higan emulator
Science, mathematics, technology, biology, and medicine
* National Emergency Alarm Repeater (NEAR), a form ...
* STEREO
Stereophonic sound, or more commonly stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that recreates a multi-directional, 3-dimensional audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two independent audio channels through a configuration ...
The last Delta II launch was the ICESat-2
ICESat-2 (Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite 2), part of NASA's Earth Observing System, is a satellite mission for measuring ice sheet elevation and sea ice thickness, as well as land topography, vegetation characteristics, and clouds. ICES ...
satellite in September 2018.
In 2008, ULA indicated that it had "around half a dozen" unsold Delta II rockets on hand, but ULA CEO Tory Bruno stated in October 2017 that there are no complete, unbooked Delta II rockets left in the ULA inventory; and though there are leftover Delta II parts, there are not enough to build another launch vehicle. The remaining pieces will be used to create a museum piece for the Smithsonian.
Comparable rockets
* Antares
Antares is the brightest star in the constellation of Scorpius. It has the Bayer designation α Scorpii, which is Latinised to Alpha Scorpii. Often referred to as "the heart of the scorpion", Antares is flanked by σ Scorpii and τ S ...
* Ariane 4
The Ariane 4 was a European expendable space launch system, developed by the '' Centre national d'études spatiales'' (CNES), the French space agency, for the European Space Agency (ESA). It was manufactured by ArianeGroup and marketed by Ari ...
(retired)
* GSLV
Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) is an expendable launch system operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). GSLV was used in fourteen launches from 2001 to 2021. Even though GSLV Mark III shares the name, it is an ...
* Long March 4B
The Long March 4B (), also known as the Chang Zheng 4B, CZ-4B and LM-4B is a Chinese expendable orbital Launch vehicle. Launched from Launch Complex 1 at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, it is a 3-stage launch vehicle, used mostly to place ...
* PSLV
The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) is an expendable medium-lift launch vehicle designed and operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It was developed to allow India to launch its Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) satellite ...
* Soyuz Soyuz is a transliteration of the Cyrillic text Союз ( Russian and Ukrainian, 'Union'). It can refer to any union, such as a trade union (''profsoyuz'') or the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Сою́з Сове́тских Социалис ...
* Tsyklon-3
The Tsyklon-3, also known as Tsiklon-3 and Cyclone-3 (known as SL-14 by the United States DoD), GRAU index 11K68, was a Soviet, and subsequently Ukrainian orbital carrier rocket. Tsyklon 3 rocket body debris accounts for more than 500 pieces o ...
(retired)
* Vega
Vega is the brightest star in the northern constellation of Lyra. It has the Bayer designation α Lyrae, which is Latinised to Alpha Lyrae and abbreviated Alpha Lyr or α Lyr. This star is relatively close at only from the Sun, an ...
Space debris
The only person on record ever hit by space debris was hit by a piece of a Delta II rocket. Lottie Williams was exercising in a park in Tulsa on 22 January 1997 when she was hit in the shoulder by a piece of blackened metallic material. U.S. Space Command confirmed that a used Delta II rocket from the April 1996 launch of the Midcourse Space Experiment
The Midcourse Space Experiment (MSX) is a Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO) satellite experiment (unmanned space mission) to map bright infrared sources in space. MSX offered the first system demonstration of technology in space t ...
had crashed into the atmosphere 30 minutes earlier. The object tapped her on the shoulder and fell off harmlessly onto the ground. Williams collected the item and NASA tests later showed that the fragment was consistent with the materials of the rocket, and Nicholas Johnson, the agency's chief scientist for orbital debris, believes that she was indeed hit by a piece of the rocket.
See also
* Comparison of orbital launchers families
This article compares different orbital launcher families (although many launchers that are significantly different from other members of the same 'family' have their own separate entries). The article is organized into two tables: the first tabl ...
* Comparison of orbital launch systems
This comparison of orbital launch systems lists the attributes of all individual rocket configurations designed to reach orbit. A first list contains rockets that are operational or in development as of 2022; a second list includes all retired roc ...
References
External links
Delta II page
at Boeing.com
at Skyrocket.de
History of the Delta launch vehicle
Delta II Launch Weather Commit Criteria
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