Minotaur-4 HAPS [Spaceflight Now]
The most recent addition to Orbital's line of space launch vehicles, the Minotaur-4 (a.k.a. OSP-2 Peacekeeper SLV) combines elements of government-furnished decommissioned Peacekeeper missiles with technologies from our proven Pegasus, Taurus and OSP Minotaur boosters. The vehicle consists of three Peacekeeper solid rocket stages, a commercial Orion-38 fourth stage motor and subsystems derived from established space launch boosters. Under a 10-year contract with the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center, Orbital will develop and operate the low-cost Minotaur-4 vehicle to launch U.S. government-funded satellites into low-Earth orbit.
The Minotaur-4 incorporates a standard 92-inch fairing from the Taurus booster and supports dedicated or shared launch missions. Capable of boosting payloads more than 1,750 kg into orbit, the vehicle is compatible with multiple U.S. government and commercial launch sites. The Minotaur-4 is designed to provide 18-month mission response including payload integration and launch by Orbital's experienced launch crews.
→ complete list of all Minotaur-4 / -5 / -6 flights
→ complete list of all Peacekeeper / Castor-120 based rockets
Version | Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Stage 3 | Stage 4 | Stage 5 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Minotaur-4 HAPS | TU-903 (SR-118) | SR-119 | SR-120 | Orion-38 | HAPS / 3 × MR-107K |
Performance (kg) | LEO | LPEO | SSO | GTO | GEO | MolO | IP |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Minotaur-4 HAPS | - | - |
Nr Vehicle Date LS Sub Suc Payload
3 1 Minotaur-4 HAPS 20.11.2010 Kd LP-1 STPSat 2 / FASTRAC 1 / FASTRAC 2 / FalconSat 5 / FASTSat-HSV 01 / RAX 1 / O/OREOS / NanoSail-D2 / Ballast A / Ballast B Planned: Launch sites: CC = Spaceport Florida, Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA/ SLC-46 Kd = Kodiak Launch Complex, Kodiak Island, Narrow Cape, Alaska, USA
/ LP-1 Va = Vandenberg AFB, California, USA
/ SLC-8 (ex CLF) WI = Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS), Wallops Island, Virginia, USA
/ LA-0B
Source: Orbital Sciences Corp. Website