AS-105 was the fifth and final

orbit In celestial mechanics, an orbit is the curved trajectory of an object such as the trajectory of a planet around a star, or of a natural satellite around a planet, or of an artificial satellite around an object or position in space such as a p ...

al flight of a boilerplate Apollo spacecraft, and the third and final launch of a Pegasus micrometeroid detection satellite. It was launched by SA-10, the tenth and final

Saturn I The Saturn I was a rocket designed as the United States' first medium lift launch vehicle for up to low Earth orbit payloads.Terminology has changed since the 1960s; back then, 20,000 pounds was considered "heavy lift". The rocket's first stag ...

rocket, in 1965.

Overview

AS-105 was an

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...

boilerplate spacecraft; boilerplate BP-9A was used for the flight. The spacecraft reentered on November 22, 1975. The Saturn launch vehicle (SA-10) was similar to those of missions AS-103 and AS-104. As on the previous mission, the boilerplate service module was equipped with a test installation of a reaction control engine package. The primary flight objective was to continue demonstration of the launch vehicle's iterative guidance mode and evaluation of system accuracy.

Launch

AS-105 was launched from Cape Kennedy Launch Complex 37B at 08:00 EST (13:00 GMT) on July 30, 1965, on the last Saturn I rocket, SA-10. A planned thirty-minute hold ensured that launch time coincided with the opening of the

Pegasus Pegasus ( grc-gre, Πήγασος, Pḗgasos; la, Pegasus, Pegasos) is one of the best known creatures in Greek mythology. He is a winged divine stallion usually depicted as pure white in color. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as hor ...

launch window. The launch was normal and the payload was inserted into orbit approximately 10.7 minutes after lift-off. The total mass placed in orbit, including the spacecraft, Pegasus spacecraft, adapter, instrument unit, and S-IV stage, was 34,438 pounds (15,621 kg). The spacecraft was separated 812 seconds after lift-off and the separation and ejection system operated as planned. The

Pegasus 3 Pegasus 3 or III, also known as Pegasus C before launch, was an American satellite which was launched in 1965 to study micrometeoroid impacts in Low Earth orbit. It was the last of three Pegasus satellites to be launched, the previous two having ...

spacecraft, which was attached to the S-IV stage of the Saturn I and stowed inside the boilerplate service module, was deployed 40 seconds after command initiation at 872 seconds. Pegasus 3 was a 1423.6 kilogram (3138.6 pound) micrometeoroid detection satellite, which was bolted to the S-IV.

References

External links

NSSDC: SA-10Range safety data for Saturn SA-10SA-10 flight mechanical summary technical memorandum, Jul. 13, 1965Vibration and acoustic analyzes, Saturn SA-10 flightSaturn SA-10/Pegasus C postflight trajectory
{{Use American English, date=January 2014 Apollo program Spacecraft launched in 1965 1965 in the United States Test spaceflights Spacecraft launched by Saturn rockets