NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), is the gubernamental agency from the USA in charge of space exploration and rocket development. It was founded on July 29 1958. It has around 18.000 direct employees. Among its most important missions they include the landing on the Moon, the development of numerous rockets or the succesful missions around the solar system and beyond. It is the most important space agency around the world and includes arguably some of the most important achievements in humankind history.

Headquarters: Washington DC

Launch/Test sites: Cape Canaveral FL, Kennedy Space Center FL, Vandenberg AFB CA, others.

Rockets

SLS

Overview (SLS)

The SLS rocket is being developed by NASA for the purpose of returning humans to the Moon and having future manned missions to Mars and further beyond. It started being developed in 2011. It will also launch a space station that will orbit the moon. It is planned to launch with the Orion capsule.

Data (SLS)

Height: 111.3 m

Diameter: 8.4 m

Stages: 2

LEO (Block 1): 95,000 kg

Moon (block 1): 26,000 kg

Reusability: None

Solid Rocket Boosters

Number: 2

Thrust: 16,000 kN (3,600,000 IbF) each

Specific Impulse: 269 seconds

Burn Time: 126 seconds

Fuel: APCP

First Stage

Engine: RS-25

Engine Number: 4

Thrust (Sea Level): 7,440 kN (1,670,000 lbf)

Fuel: LH₂ (Liquid Hydrogen) and LOX (liquid oxygen)

Specific Impulse: 363 seconds

Burn Time: 480 seconds

Height: 65 m

Mass: 979,000 kg

Second Stage

Engine: RL10B-2

Engine Number: 1

Specific Impulse: 462 seconds

Burn Time: 1125

Thrust (vacuum): 110.1 kN (24,800 lbf)

Fuel: LH₂(Liquid Hydrogen) and LOX (liquid oxygen)

Height: 13.7 m

Mass: 30,710 kg

Space Shuttle

Overview (Space Shuttle)

The Space Shuttle is a rocket designed by NASA with the help of contractors such as ULA, Thiokol, Lockheed Martin, Boeing and Rockwell. It was designed to be partially reusable and to carry 7 astronauts and a payload to Orbit. Among its most important missions, they include the construction of the ISS, the Hubble Telescope, as well as numerous science experiments and satellites. It was developed after the Apollo program had finished, as there was a change in focus from the Moon, to Low Earth Orbit.

Data (Space Shuttle)

Height: 56.1 m

Diameter: 8.7 m

Weight: 2,030,000 kg

Stages: 1.5

LEO: 27,500 kg

GTO: 10,890 kg

GEO: 2,270 kg

ISS: 16,050 kg

Polar Orbit: 12,700 kg

First Launch: April 12 1981

Last Launch: July 21 2011

Launches: 135

Successes: 133

Partial Failures: 0

Failures: 2

Astronauts killed: 14

Success Rate: 98.5%

Reusability: Orbiter and Solid Rocket Boosters

Solid Rocket Boosters

Number: 2

Thrust: 12,500 kN (each)

Specific Impulse: 242 seconds

Burn Time: 124 seconds

Fuel: ACPC

First Stage

Engine: RS-25

Engine Number: 3

Thrust (Sea Level): 5,250 kN (1,180,000 lbf) total

Fuel: LH₂ (Liquid Hydrogen) and LOX (liquid oxygen)

Specific Impulse: 455 seconds

Burn Time: 480 seconds

Cost: 576 Million USD - 1,64 Billion USD. (2012)

Saturn V

Overview (Saturn V)

The Saturn V rocket was the one designed for the purpose of taking humans to the Moon and returning them safely back to Earth. It was the succesor of the Saturn 1B. It is (as of today) the biggest and most powerful rocket succesfully launched. It had 3 Stages and could lift up to 140.000kg to LEO. It was developed by NASA whose lead engineer for the rocket was Wernher von Braun, with the help of contractors which included Boeing, North American Aviation, Douglas Aircraft Company and IBM.

Data (Saturn V)

Height: 110.6 m

Diameter: 10.1 m

Weight: 2,970,000 kg

Stages: 3

LEO: 140,000 kg

First Launch: November 9 1967

Last Launch: May 14 1973

Launches: 13

Successes: 12

Partial Failures: 1

Failures: 0

Success Rate: 92.3%

Reusability: None

First Stage

Engine: F-1

Engine Number: 5

Thrust (Sea Level): 35,100 kN (7,891,000 lbf)

Fuel: RP-1 (kerosene) and LOX (liquid oxygen)

Specific Impulse: 263 seconds

Burn Time: 168 seconds

Height: 42.1 m

Mass: 2,290,000 kg

Second Stage

Engine: J-2

Engine Number: 5

Specific Impulse: 421 seconds

Burn Time: 360s

Thrust (vacuum): 5,141 kN (1,155,800 lbf)

Fuel: LH₂(Liquid Hydrogen) and LOX (liquid oxygen)

Height: 24.8 m

Mass: 496,000 kg

Third Stage

Engine: J-2

Engine Number: 1

Thrust: 1,033 kN (232,250 IbF)

Fuel: LH₂(Liquid Hydrogen) and LOX (liquid oxygen)

Height: 18.8 m

Mass: 123,000 kg

Cost: 185 Million $ (1969), 1,23 Billion $ (2019).

Titan

Overview (Titan)

This is a rocket family used by NASA between 1959 and 2005 which were developed from balistic missiles. They include the Titan I, Titan II, Titan III, Titan IV and Titan V and their variants. They were used for the project Gemini which studied and developed technologies for human spaceflight prior to the Moon missions. They were manufactured by the Glenn L. Martin Company.

Data (Titan)

Variants

Mercury Redstone

Overview (Mercury)

This is a rocket used for the Mercury Missions which derived from the balistic missile "Redstone". It was developed by NASA and was used for six sub-orbital flights whose purpose was develop the technology for future manned missions to orbit and to the Moon. Its Manufacturer was the Chrysler Corporation.