| Space Launch Report . . . Taurus Data Sheet | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Taurus Taurus is a four stage solid fuel expendable that combines a Peacekeeper (MX) ICBM-type first stage with three Orbital Sciences Pegasus upper stages. A Pegasus avionics assembly, mounted atop the upper stage, provides vehicle guidance and control. Three variants are available. For DoD missions, ARPA/Air Force Taurus (Taurus 1000-series) is powered by a surplus Thiokol Peacekeeper first stage. For commercial launches, Taurus-120 (Taurus 2000-series) uses a Thiokol Castor-120 in place of the Peacekeeper stage. Another commercial variant, Taurus XL (Taurus 3000-series), is also available. Taurus XL uses a Castor-120 first stage and three Pegasus XL upper stages. ARPA Taurus uses a 1.6 meter diameter payload fairing. The commercial variants can use 1.6 or 2.34 meter fairings. Thiokol's Castor-120 is a commercial derivative of the Peacekeeper first stage that also powered Lockheed Martin's Athena. Castor-120 has a less aggressive thrust profile than Peacekeeper, with less maximum thrust and a longer burn time. Orbital Sciences calls the Taurus first stage "Stage-0" in order to keep the Pegasus stage names, "Stage-1, 2, and 3". An optional Star 37 fourth stage can also be used for higher energy missions. The first Taurus demonstration flight, for ARPA, occurred in 1994. Taurus did not fly again until 1998, and it has flown infrequently since. The sixth launch failed to reach orbit in 2001 when a second stage thrust vector control actuator stuck for a few seconds at the start of the stage burn. The Taurus stages all fired, but the momentary loss of directional control caused a velocity shortfall. Taurus performed a successful flight in 2004, but no more launches are planned until the end of 2008 at the earliest. Taurus lifts off from a pedestal platform equipped with a fallback umbilical and minimal support equipment. All previous launches have taken place from Vandenberg AFB SLC 567E. Other potential Taurus launch sites include Vandenberg AFB SLC 8 (California Launch Facility); Wallops Island, Virginia; Kodiak Island, Alaska, and Cape Canaveral SLC 46. Vehicle Configurations
Example Launch Timeline Air Force Taurus to LEO Orbit from Vandenberg ========================================================== Event Time Altitude Range Velocity (sec) (nmi) (nmi) (ft/sec) ------------------------------------------------------------- S0 Start 0.0 0.0 0 0 S0 Sep/S1 Start 60.9 20.2 21 7,016 S1 Burnout 140.5 92.1 141 14,940 S1 Sep 145.6 97.7 152 14,870 S2 Start 147.7 100.0 157 14,504 Fairing Sep 152.7 105.5 167 14,706 S2 Burnout 229.0 174.4 371 20,732 S2 Sep 531.9 307.3 1,307 19,595 S3 Start 542.9 309.3 1,341 19,579 S3 Burnout 617.2 314.0 1,574 24,834 Payload Sep 732.0 ========================================================== Example Launch Timeline Commercial/Taurus-120 to LEO Orbit from Vandenberg ========================================================== Event Time Altitude Range Velocity (sec) (nmi) (nmi) (ft/sec) ------------------------------------------------------------- S0 Start 0.0 0.0 0 0 S0 Sep/S1 Start 81.5 21.0 30 6,824 S1 Burnout/Sep 154.7 61.0 147 14,974 S2 Start 166.8 69.0 175 14,885 Fairing Sep 169.8 71.0 182 15,010 S2 Burnout 247.5 117.0 405 21,726 S2 Sep/S3 Start 635.0 249.0 1,685 20,759 S3 Burnout 704.0 250.0 1,901 25,305 Payload Sep 764.0 250.0 2,116 25,305 ========================================================== Reference: Taurus Payload Users Guide, OSC, March 2006 Updated September 24, 2007
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