Topaze is the designation of a French

sounding rocket A sounding rocket or rocketsonde, sometimes called a research rocket or a suborbital rocket, is an instrument-carrying rocket designed to take measurements and perform scientific experiments during its sub-orbital flight. The rockets are used to ...

. The Topaze was developed by several French companies, notably

Nord Aviation Nord-Aviation ( en, Northern Aviation) was a state-owned French aircraft manufacturer. The bulk of its facilities were based on the site of Bourges airport, in the département of Cher, in central France. On 1 October 1954, Nord Aviation was cr ...

and

Sud Aviation Sud Aviation (, ''Southern Aviation'') was a French state-owned aircraft manufacturer, originating from the merger of Sud-Est ( SNCASE, or ''Société nationale des constructions aéronautiques du sud-est'') and Sud-Ouest ( SNCASO or ''Société ...

,News Digest
// ''Aviation Week & Space Technology'', January 7, 1963, v. 78, no. 1, p. 37. and built by SEREB (a

joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acces ...

of Nord and Sud, now known as

Aérospatiale Aérospatiale (), sometimes styled Aerospatiale, was a French state-owned aerospace manufacturer that built both civilian and military aircraft, rockets and satellites. It was originally known as Société nationale industrielle aérospatiale ...

) and was the first guidable French sounding rocket. The Topaze was launched 14 times from the CIEES launch site in

Hammaguir Hammaguir (also written Hamaguir and Hammaguira) ( ar, حماقير) is a village in Abadla District, Béchar Province, Algeria, south-west of Béchar. It lies on the N50 national highway between Béchar and Tindouf. The location is notable ...

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

, by

ONERA The Office National d'Etudes et de Recherches Aérospatiales (ONERA) is the French national aerospace research centre. It is a public establishment with industrial and commercial operations, and carries out application-oriented research to supp ...

. There were two versions of the Topaze: *Topaze VE111C **payload mass: 410 kg (900 lb) **total mass: 2900 kg (6400 lb) **length: 7.07 m (23.2 ft) **range: 80 km (49 mi) **liftoff thrust: 120.0 kN :There were six launches between 19 December 1962 and 24 October 1963, reaching an

apogee An apsis (; ) is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body. For example, the apsides of the Earth are called the aphelion and perihelion. General description There are two apsides in any el ...

of 80 km (49 mi). * Topaze VE111L **payload mass: 360 kg (840 lb) **total mass: 3434 kg (7570 lb) **length: 7.90 m (25.9 ft) **range: 110 km (68 mi) **liftoff thrust 147.0 kN :This version was launched eight times between 21 December 1963 and 21 May 1965, with apogees ranging from 60 km (37 mi) to 110 km (68 mi). The Topaze was also used as the second stage of the

Diamant The Diamant rocket (French for "diamond") was the first exclusively French expendable launch system and at the same time the first satellite launcher not built by either the United States or USSR. As such, it has been referred to as being a key ...

rocket, the launch vehicle for France's first satellite, the Asterix-1, and the Saphir rocket.

References

Sounding rockets of France {{Rocket-stub