Project VANGUARD Report No. 2, Report of Progress
Abstract
Progress on the Vanguard program continued during January. The Army accepted responsibility for the tracking network pending allocation of the necessary funds, and a preliminary survey has been made of the South American locations. The Army District Engineers are now directing the construction of the launching facilities and assembly hangar at AFMTC. The use of AFMTC has been authorized by the Air Force, which is also providing test range facilities, administrative space, range instrumentation and the launching facilities and hangar being constructed under Army direction. The latter facilities are expected to be ready for the launching of the first test vehicle (Viking 13) in November 1956. Topographical considerations have resulted in the location of the Washington area Minitrack station at Blossom Point, Maryland, rather than the Chesapeake Bay Annex of NRL. The launching vehicle design specification (NRL 4100-1) has been forwarded to the Martin Company. The revised weight and performance parameters provide for an excess velocity margin of 1443 feet per second for a 300-mile altitude. Trajectory and performance studies continue, and first- and second-stage spatial mockups have been released for manufacture. About 50 percent of all major structural design for the first stage is now complete, including the design of dynamic model of the powerplant and tail section. Vehicle instrumentation has been extensively discussed with PAFB and various contractors, and a tentative frequency allocation has been obtained from the PAFB frequency coordinator. The contractors for parallel development of the third stage have been chosen.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 07, 1956
- Accession Number
- ADA475368
Entities
Organizations
- United States Naval Research Laboratory