Minotaur (rocket family)
The Minotaur is a family of United States solid fuel launch vehicles derived from converted Minuteman and Peacekeeper intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM). They are built by Northrop Grumman via contract with the Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center's Space Development and Test Directorate (SMC/SD) as part of the Air Force's Rocket Systems Launch Program which converts retired Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles into space and test launch systems for U.S. government agencies.
Three variants of the Minotaur are currently in service. The Minotaur I is an orbital launch system used to launch small satellites into low Earth orbit (LEO). The Minotaur II is a target launch vehicle (TLV), also known as Chimera, used for suborbital flights, often as a target for tracking and anti-ballistic missile tests. The Minotaur IV is a more capable LEO launch system. The Minotaur V is designed to reach higher orbits, including Geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) and trans-lunar trajectories. The Minotaur III is a version under development, which will be used for suborbital flights.
The Minotaur I and II are derived from the Minuteman missile, while the Minotaur III, IV and V are derived from the Peacekeeper.
Vehicles
Minotaur-C (Taurus)
The Taurus launch vehicle, later renamed [1] Minotaur-C (for "Minotaur-Commercial"), was the first of the Minotaur vehicle family, and the first ground-launched orbital booster developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation (OSC), derived by adding a solid booster stage to the air-launched Pegasus rocket. The first flight, sponsored by DARPA, was in 1994. After a series of failures between 2001 and 2011, the launch vehicle was rebranded as Minotaur-C in 2014. Due to laws against selling government equipment, the Minotaur-C is the only available Minotaur launch vehicle for commercial launches.[citation needed]
Minotaur I
The original Minotaur launch vehicle, consisting of an M55A1 first stage, SR19 second stage, Orion 50XL third stage, Orion 38 fourth stage, and optional HAPS fifth stage for velocity trim and multiple payload deployment. Payload 580 kg to a 185 km, 28.5° orbit from Cape Canaveral; or 310 kg to a 740 km Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) from Vandenberg.[2]
Minotaur II
A suborbital target vehicle, essentially consisting of a Minuteman II with Orbital guidance and control systems. Consists of M55A1 first stage, SR19 second stage, and M57 third stage. Payload 460 kg on 6700 km suborbital trajectory.[2]
Minotaur III
A suborbital target vehicle, consisting of an SR118 first stage, SR119 second stage, SR120 third stage, and Super HAPS fourth stage. Payload 3060 kg on a 6700 km suborbital trajectory.[2]
Minotaur IV
The Minotaur IV combines U.S. government-furnished solid rocket motors from decommissioned Peacekeeper ICBMs with technologies from other Orbital-built launch vehicles, including the Minotaur I, Pegasus, and Taurus. The Minotaur IV launch vehicle consists of an SR118 first stage, SR119 second stage, SR120 third stage, and Orion 38 fourth stage. Payload 1735 kg to a 185 km, 28.5° orbit from Cape Canaveral. The first Minotaur IV was launched 22 April 2010 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.[3] This vehicle is also being developed to accommodate the Conventional Prompt Global Strike (CPGS) mission for the Air Force.
Minotaur V
The Minotaur V is a five-stage version based on the Minotaur IV+. It has an additional upper stage for small geostationary transfer orbit (GTO), lunar, and interplanetary missions. NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) mission was launched on the first Minotaur V, from the Wallops Island, Virginia launch site at 03:27 UTC on 7 September 2013. The Minotaur launched the LADEE spacecraft into a highly elliptic orbit where it can phase and time its trajectory burn to the moon.[4]
Minotaur VI
A Minotaur VI five-stage version has also been conceptualized. It is also based on the Minotaur IV+, adding a second SR-118 first stage.[5]
Launch statistics
Rocket configurations
- Taurus/Minotaur-C
- Minotaur I
- Minotaur II
- Minotaur II+
- Minotaur IV
- Minotaur IV Lite
- Minotaur IV HAPS
- Minotaur IV+
- Minotaur V
Launch sites
- Vandenberg LF-06
- Vandenberg SLC-8
- Vandenberg SLC-576E
- Kodiak LP-1
- MARS LP-0B
- Cape Canaveral SLC-46
Launch outcomes
- Success
- Failure
- Planned
Launch history
1994 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 March 1994 22:32 |
Taurus / Minotaur-C (ARPA Taurus) | VAFB, SLC-576E | STEP Mission 0 and DARPASAT | USAF / DARPA[6][7] | Success | ||
1998 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 2 | 10 February 1998 13:20 |
Taurus/Minotaur-C (Commercial Taurus configuration) | VAFB, SLC-576E | GFO and Orbcomm (satellites 11,12) | Success | |||
| 3 | 3 October 1998 10:04:49 |
Taurus/Minotaur-C (Air Force Taurus Configuration) | VAFB, SLC-576E | Space Technology Experiment (STEX) | NRO | Success | ||
1999 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 4 | 21 December 1999 07:13 |
Taurus/Minotaur-C (Model 2110) | VAFB, SLC-576E | KOMPSAT and ACRIMSAT | Success | |||
2000 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 1 | 27 January 2000 03:03:06 |
Minotaur I | VAFB, SLC-8 | JAWSat (P98-1) (FalconSat1 / ASUSat1 / OCSE / OPAL) | Low Earth Orbit | Success | ||
| 5 | 12 March 2000 09:29 |
Taurus/Minotaur-C (Air Force Taurus Configuration) | VAFB, SLC-576E | Multispectral Thermal Imager (MTI) | Success | |||
| 1 | 28 May 2000 20:00 |
Minotaur II | VAFB, LF-06 | OSP-TLV Missile Defense Technology Demonstrator | Suborbital | Success | ||
| 2 | 19 July 2000 20:09:00 |
Minotaur I | VAFB, SLC-8 | MightySat II.1 (Sindri, P99-1) / MEMS 2A / MEMS 2B | Low Earth Orbit | Success | ||
2001 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 6 | 21 September 2001 18:49:30 |
Taurus / Minotaur-C (Model 2110) | VAFB, SLC-576E | Orbview-4/QuikTOMS | Failure | |||
| 2 | 4 December 2001 04:59 |
Minotaur II | VAFB, LF-06 | TLV-1 IFT-7 GMDS target mission | Suborbital | Success | ||
2002 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 3 | 16 March 2002 02:11 |
Minotaur II | VAFB, LF-06 | TLV-2 IFT-8 GMDS target mission | Suborbital | Success | ||
| 4 | 15 October 2002 02:01 |
Minotaur II | VAFB, LF-06 | TLV-3 GMDS target mission | Suborbital | Success | ||
| 5 | 11 December 2002 08:26 |
Minotaur II | VAFB, LF-06 | TLV-4 GMDS target mission | Suborbital | Success | ||
2004 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 7 | 20 May 2004 17:47:03 |
Taurus / Minotaur-C (Model 3210) | VAFB, SLC-576E | ROCSAT-2 | Success | |||
2005 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 3 | 11 April 2005 13:35 |
Minotaur I | VAFB, SLC-8 | XSS-11 | Low Earth Orbit | Success | ||
| 4 | 22 September 2005 19:24:00 |
Minotaur I | VAFB, SLC-8 | Streak (STP-R1) | Low Earth Orbit | Success | ||
2006 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 5 | 15 April 2006 01:40:00 |
Minotaur I | VAFB, SLC-8 | COSMIC (FORMOSAT-3) | Low Earth Orbit | Success | ||
| 6 | 16 December 2006 12:00:00 |
Minotaur I | MARS, LP-0B | TacSat-2 / GeneSat-1 | Low Earth Orbit | Success | ||
2007 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 6 | 21 March 2007 04:27 |
Minotaur II | VAFB, LF-06 | TLV-5 FTX-02 SBR target mission | Suborbital | Success | ||
| 7 | 24 April 2007 06:48 |
Minotaur I | MARS, LP-0B | NFIRE | LEO | Success | ||
| 7 | 23 August 2007 08:30 |
Minotaur II+ | VAFB, LF-06 | TLV-7 Mission 2a sensor target for NFIRE satellite | Suborbital | Success | ||
2008 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 8 | 24 September 2008 06:57 |
Minotaur II+ | VAFB, LF-06 | TLV-8 Mission 2b sensor target for NFIRE satellite | Suborbital | Success | ||
2009 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 8 | 24 February 2009 09:55:00 |
Taurus/Minotaur-C (Model 3110) | VAFB, SLC-576E | Orbiting Carbon Observatory [8] | Failure | |||
| 8 | 19 May 2009 23:55 |
Minotaur I | MARS, LP-0B | TacSat-3 / PharmaSat / AeroCube 3 / HawkSat I / CP6 | LEO | Success | ||
2010 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 1 | 22 April 2010 23:00 |
Minotaur IV | VAFB, SLC-8 | HTV-2a hypersonic research spacecraft | Suborbital | Success | ||
| 2 | 26 September 2010 04:41:00 |
Minotaur IV | VAFB, SLC-8 | SBSS | Sun-synchronous orbit | Success | ||
| 3 | 20 November 2010 01:25:00 |
Minotaur IV HAPS | Kodiak, LP-1 | STP-S26 (FASTRAC-A / FASTRAC-B / FalconSAT-5 / FASTSAT / O/OREOS / RAX) | LEO | Success | ||
2011 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 9 | 6 February 2011 12:26 |
Minotaur I | VAFB, SLC-8 | NROL-66 | Low Earth Orbit | Success | ||
| 9 | 4 March 2011 10:09:43 |
Taurus / Minotaur-C (Model 3110) | VAFB, SLC-576E | Glory, KySat-1, Hermes, and Explorer-1 [PRIME] | Failure [9] | |||
| 10 | 30 June 2011 03:09:00 |
Minotaur I | MARS, LP-0B | ORS-1 | Low Earth Orbit | Success | ||
| 4 | 11 August 2011 14:45 |
Minotaur IV Lite | VAFB | Hypersonic Technology Vehicle 2 (HTV-2b) | Suborbital | Success | ||
| 5 | 27 September 2011 15:49 |
Minotaur IV+ | Kodiak LP-1 | TacSat-4 | MEO | Success | ||
2013 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 1 | 7 September 2013 03:27:00 |
Minotaur V | MARS, LP-0B | LADEE | High Earth orbit | Success | ||
| 11 | 20 November 2013 01:15 |
Minotaur I | MARS, LP-0B | ORS-3 (STPSat-3 along with 28 additional cubesats) | Low Earth Orbit | Success [10][11] | ||
2017 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 6 | 26 August 2017 06:04 |
Minotaur IV | CCAFS, SLC-46 | ORS-5 | Low Earth Orbit | Success | ||
| 10 | 31 October 2017 21:37 |
Minotaur-C (Model 3210) | VAFB, SLC-576E | SkySat × 6, Flock-3m × 4 | Success | |||
2020 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 7 | 15 July 2020 13:46:00 |
Minotaur IV | MARS, LP-0B | NROL-129 (USA 305 to USA 308) [12] | Low Earth orbit | NRO | Success | |
2021 | ||||||||
| Flight No. | Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Payload mass | Orbit | Customer | Launch outcome |
| 7 | 15 June 2021 13:35 |
Minotaur I | MARS, LP-0B | NROL-111 [13] | Low Earth orbit | NRO | Success | |
Planned launches
| Date / time (UTC) | Rocket, Configuration |
Launch site | Payload | Orbit | Customer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Late 2021 [14] | Minotaur II | VSFB, SLC-8 | Suborbital | SMC | |
| Late 2021 [14] | Minotaur IV | MARS, LP-0B | NROL-174 | NRO |
See also
- Dnepr, a converted Soviet ICBM often used for commercial satellite launches
- Minotaur-C, the vehicle formerly known at Taurus
References
- ^ Stephen Clark, "Taurus rocket on the market with new name, upgrades", Spaceflight Now 24 February 2014
- ^ a b c "Minotaur". Encyclopedia Astronautix. Archived from the original on 8 May 2009.
- ^ "Minotaur IV". Orbital Sciences Corporation.
- ^ Culler, Jessica (16 June 2015). "LADEE - Lunar Atmosphere Dust and Environment Explorer". NASA. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Orbital ATK" (PDF). Orbital Sciences Corporation. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
- ^ "DARPASAT". space.skyrocket.de. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ "Encyclopedia Astronautica: TAOS". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Retrieved 27 August 2011.
- ^ "OCO". Orbital Sciences Corporation.
- ^ "Taurus rocket nose shroud dooms another NASA satellite". Spaceflight Now. March 2011.
- ^ Powell, Rebecca (16 April 2015). "Air Force Minotaur Rocket Launching from Virginia November 19". NASA. Retrieved 1 August 2017. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "ORS-3 and STPSat-3 Successfully Launched". losangeles.af.mil. Retrieved 1 August 2017. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "NROL-129". Gunter's Space Page. Archived from the original on 23 March 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
- ^ "Northrop Grumman Successfully Launches Minotaur I Rocket for the National Reconnaissance Office". Northrop Grumman. 15 June 2021. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
- ^ a b "Minotaur rocket successfully deploys four NRO satellites in orbit". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
