Delta 5000 series
FunctionExpendable launch system
Country-originUnited States
CplUS$34.22 million in 1985 [1]
Alt-cplUS$79.99 million in 2018
Height34 m (112 ft)
Diameter2.44 m (8.0 ft)
Mass201,580 kg (444,410 lb)
Stages2
SitesVandenberg SLC-2W
Launches1
Success1
StatusRetired
Only18 November 1989
FamilyDelta
ComparableDelta 4000, Delta II
Delta 5000
LocationLEO
Kilos3,848 kg (8,483 lb)
Delta 5000
LocationGTO
Kilos1,405 kg (3,097 lb)
Castor 4A
booster
Number9
Length9.12 m (29.9 ft)
Diameter1.02 m (3.3 ft)
Empty1,529 kg (3,371 lb)
Gross11,743 kg (25,889 lb)
EnginesSolid
Solidyes
Thrust478.3 kN (107,500 lbf)
Si
    • Sea level: 237 seconds
    • Vacuum: 266 seconds
Burntime56 s
PropellantAluminum fuel, ammonium perchlorate oxidizer in an HTPB binder
Thor/Delta ELT
stage
StagenoFirst
Length22.37 m (73.4 ft)
Diameter2.44 m (8.0 ft)
Empty4,360 kg (9,610 lb)
Gross84,368 kg (186,000 lb)
Engines1 RS-27
Thrust1,030.2 kN (231,600 lbf)
Si
    • Sea level: 262 seconds
    • Vacuum: 296 seconds
Burntime223 s
FuelLOX / RP-1
Delta K
stage
StagenoSecond
Length5.89 m (19.3 ft)
Diameter2.44 m (8.0 ft)
Empty950 kg (2,090 lb)
Gross6,954 kg (15,331 lb)
Engines1 AJ10-118K
Thrust43.6 kN (9,800 lbf)
Si319 s
Burntime431 s
Fuel/ Aerozine 50

The Delta 5000 series was an American expendable launch system which was used to conduct an orbital launch in 1989. It was a member of the Delta family of rockets. Although several variants were put forward, only the Delta 5920 was launched. The designation used a four digit numerical code to store information on the configuration of the rocket. It was built from a combination of spare parts left over from earlier Delta rockets, which were being retired, and parts from the Delta II 6000-series, which was just entering service.

The first stage was the RS-27 powered Extended Long Tank Thor, flown on several earlier Delta rockets. Nine Castor-4A solid rocket boosters were attached to increase thrust at lift-off, replacing the less powerful Castor-4 boosters used on the 3000 series. The Delta-K was used as a second stage. In the configuration that was launched, no third stage was flown.

The Delta 5000 was launched just once, from Space Launch Complex 2W at the Vandenberg Air Force Base. Launch occurred at 14:34 on 18 November 1989. It was successful, and placed the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) spacecraft into low Earth orbit.[2][3]

References

  1. ^ "Delta 5000". Archived from the original on September 16, 2016.
  2. ^ Wade, Mark. "Delta". Archived from the original on 2008-07-24.
  3. ^ Krebs, Gunter. "Thor Family". Gunter's Space Page. Archived 2007-08-06 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2021-12-21.