Atlas II (Lockheed Martin)
The Atlas II is a non-reusable, inactive launch vehicle manufactured by Lockheed Martin (established in 1953). It undertook its inaugural launch on 12/07/1991.
Atlas II was a member of the Atlas family of launch vehicles, which evolved from the successful Atlas missile program of the 1950s. It was designed to launch payloads into low earth orbit, geosynchronous transfer orbit or geosynchronous orbit. Sixty-three launches of the Atlas II, IIA and IIAS models were carried out between 1991 and 2004; all sixty-three launches were successes, making the Atlas II the most reliable launch system in history.
Atlas II Specifications
| Variant | II |
|---|---|
| Length | 47.54 m |
| Diameter | 3.04 m |
| Stages | 3 |
| Launch Mass | 204 T |
| Takeoff Thrust | 2479 kN |
| LEO Capacity | 6580 kg |
| GTO Capacity | 2810 kg |
Atlas II Launch Record
| Total Launches | 10 |
|---|---|
| Successful Launches | 10 |
| Consecutive Successful Launches | 10 |
Manufacturer
Lockheed Martin's Space Division started in the production of missiles and later ICBM's in the 1950s. Their TITAN missile system was used for 12 Gemini spacecraft and the Voyager probes. They have worked largely in collaboration with NASA on many of their probes, landers, and spacecraft, and hope to play a key role in NASA's return to the moon in 2024.