Success
Courier 1B
Communications
United States Air Force(USAF)Government
Thor DM-21 Ablestar
LEOorbit
An active repeater communications satellite. The vehicle succesfully launched and successfully operated for a few weeks proving the experimental system.
Tuesday, October 4, 1960 at 5:50 PM
Mission details
Orbital Attempt
#79
USAF Mission
#30
Pad Launch
#4
Location Launch
#44
Designator
1960-013
Launch Window
NET
Oct 4, 1960, 5:50 PM
Schedule Changes
1 update
Thor DM-21 Ablestar Specs
The Thor-Ablestar, or Thor Able-Star, also known as Thor-Epsilon was an early American expendable launch system consisting of a PGM-17 Thor missile, with an Ablestar upper stage. It was a member of the Thor family of rockets, and was derived from the Thor-Able.
Length
29 m
Diameter
1.44 m
Launch Mass
51 t
Thrust
760 kN
LEO Capacity
150 kg
Reusable
No
Maiden Flight
1960
Fastest Turnaround
1mo 16d
Total Launches
19
Successful
13
Failed
6
Consecutive Success
5
Maiden flight: Apr 13, 1960
United States 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 Signal Corps, the USAF was established as a separate branch of the United States Armed Forces in 1947 with the enactment of the National Security Act of 1947.
Founded
1947
Administrator
Commander-in-Chief: President of the US
Total Launches
1,078
Successful
972
Failed
106
Pending
0
Consecutive Success
68
Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) is an installation of the United States Space Force's Space Launch Delta 45, located on Cape Canaveral in Brevard County, Florida.
Timezone
America/New_York
Local Launch Time
Oct 4, 1960, 1:50 PM
Total Launches
1,109
Total Landings
75
Coordinates
28.4889, -80.5778