The Éridan is a two-stage French sounding rocket, which results from the use of the Stromboli engine (also used on the Dragon and Dauphin) for the first and second stages.[3][4]
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| Country of origin | France[1] |
|---|---|
| First flight | 26 September 1968 |
| Last flight | 14 November 1979 |
| Application | high altitude research |
| sounding rocket[2] | |
It belonged to a family of solid-propellant rockets that also encompasses the Belier, the Centaure, the Dragon, and the Dauphin.[5][6] As the most powerful version of this series it could lift payloads from 100 to 420 kg to heights of 200 to a maximum of 460 km.[4] Its ascent time is between 230 and 350 seconds.[7]
Total thrust was 90.00 kN (20,232 lbf) with a gross mass of 2,127 kg (4,689 lb). The rocket had a height of 9.92 m (32.54 ft), a diameter of 0.56 m (1.82 ft) and a span of 1.55 m (5.10 ft).[4]
Launches
editThe main launch site was Kourou, but the first flight on 26 September 1968 from this site failed.[4] Twelve additional launches took the rocket to altitudes of 196 – 420 km between 12 April 1969 and 14 November 1979. Two Éridan were launched in January and February 1975 off the Kerguelen Islands.[3][4]
| Date | Launch Site | Launch Complex | Mission Description | Apogee (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 September 26 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | Failure | 0 |
| 1969 April 12 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | FU-181B test flight test | 406 |
| 1969 April 23 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | FU-187 test, A cone test | 420 |
| 1969 August 22 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | FU-187 test, B cone test | 242 |
| 1971 May 17 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | FU-203 recovery test | 196 |
| 1971 October 16 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | ATLAS / CM16 / Gemini Ultraviolet astronomy mission | 205 |
| 1972 November 11 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | FU-201 LPSP-EUV2 | 300 |
| 1972 December 7 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | FU-205 JANUS Ultraviolet astronomy mission | 213 |
| 1973 November 11 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | FU-201 (Solar EUV 2) Solar extreme ultraviolet mission | 300 |
| 1974 November 5 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | FAUST FU-214 Ultraviolet astronomy mission | 220 |
| 1974 November 19 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | FAUST FU-215 Ultraviolet astronomy mission | 220 |
| 1975 January 26 | Kerguelen | - | ARAKS Northward Ionosphere / plasma mission | 190 |
| 1975 February 15 | Kerguelen | - | ARAKS Eastward Ionosphere / plasma mission | 185 |
| 1978 November 23 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | Ariane range test | 350 |
| 1979 June 13 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | Ariane range test | 350 |
| 1979 November 14 | Kourou | Kourou ALFS | Ariane range test | 350 |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (1965). Semiannual Report to the Congress. The Administration.
- ^ STAR. NASA, Office of Scientific and Technical Information. 1967.
- ^ a b "History of Dauphin & Eridan Sounding Rockets | 54th International Astronautical Congress of the International Astronautical Federation, the International Academy of Astronautics, and the International Institute of Space Law". International Astronautical Congress (IAF). 29 September 2003. doi:10.2514/6.IAC-03-IAA.2.3.05. Retrieved 2023-07-30.
- ^ a b c d e "Eridan". www.astronautix.com. Retrieved 2023-07-30.
- ^ "Sud Aviation Sounding Rockets". 2007-01-06. Archived from the original on 2007-01-06. Retrieved 2023-07-30.
- ^ "Eridan". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2023-07-30.
- ^ "Intéressés, ils demandèrent au CNES d'envisager sérieusement un projet d'astronomie spatiale d'envergure qui serait réalisé par quelque soixante fusées-sondes Éridan (ou de la classe Éridan).". Les débuts de la recherche spatiale française. Institut français d'histoire de l'espace. 2007. ISBN 2846082154.