List of upper stages
Encyclopedia
This is a list of upper stages used on rocket
s.
Rocket
A rocket is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust from a rocket engine. In all rockets, the exhaust is formed entirely from propellants carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction...
s.
| Name | Country | Flown on | Proposed for | Status | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agena RM-81 Agena The RM-81 Agena was an American rocket upper stage and satellite support bus which was developed by Lockheed initially for the canceled WS-117L reconnaissance satellite program... |
Atlas Atlas-Agena The Atlas-Agena was an American expendable launch system derived from the SM-65 Atlas missile. It was a member of the Atlas family of rockets, and was used for 119 orbital launches between 1960 and 1978.... , Thor Thor-Agena Thor-Agena was a series of orbital launch vehicles. The rockets used Thor first stages and Agena second stages. They are thus cousins of the more famous Thor-Deltas, which founded the Delta rocket family. The first attempted launch of a Thor-Agena was in January 1959... , Thorad Thorad-Agena The Thorad-Agena was an American expendable launch system, derived from the Thor and Delta rockets. The first stage of the rocket was the stretched variant of the Thor which had been developed for the Delta programme. The second stage was the Agena-D, which had already been used in conjunction with... , Titan IIIB |
Retired | |||
| Block D Block D Blok D is an upper stage used on Soviet and later Russian expendable launch systems, including the N1, Proton-K and Zenit. There were plans to use it for some other rockets as well .... |
N1 N1 -Aviation:* N1, in jet engine terminology, the gas generator section RPM* N1 , a Soviet Union rocket* N-I rocket, a Japanese rocket* AEG N.I, a German World War I night bomber* Caproni Campini N.1, a 1940 early motorjet-powered test aeroplane... , Proton, Proton-K Proton-K The Proton-K, also designated Proton 8K82K after its GRAU index, 8K82K, is a Russian, previously Soviet, carrier rocket derived from the earlier Proton. It was built by Khrunichev, and is launched from sites 81 and 200 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan... |
Retired | |||
| Block DM | Proton-K Proton-K The Proton-K, also designated Proton 8K82K after its GRAU index, 8K82K, is a Russian, previously Soviet, carrier rocket derived from the earlier Proton. It was built by Khrunichev, and is launched from sites 81 and 200 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan... , Proton-M Proton-M The Proton-M, GRAU index 8K82M or 8K82KM, is a Russian carrier rocket derived from the Soviet-developed Proton. It is built by Khrunichev, and launched from sites 81 and 200 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Commercial launches are marketed by International Launch Services , and generally... |
In service | |||
| Block DM-SL | Zenit | In service | |||
| Briz-KM | Rokot Rockot The Rokot , also transliterated as a the pun Rockot, is a Russian space launch vehicle that can launch a payload of 1,950 kilograms into a 200 kilometre high Earth orbit with 63° inclination. It is a derivative of the UR-100N intercontinental ballistic missile , supplied and operated by Eurockot... |
In service | |||
| Briz-M Briz-M The Briz-M , is a Russian orbit insertion upper stage manufactured by Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center and used on the Proton-M rocket.- Characteristics :... |
Proton-K Proton-K The Proton-K, also designated Proton 8K82K after its GRAU index, 8K82K, is a Russian, previously Soviet, carrier rocket derived from the earlier Proton. It was built by Khrunichev, and is launched from sites 81 and 200 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan... Proton-KM Proton-M Proton-M The Proton-M, GRAU index 8K82M or 8K82KM, is a Russian carrier rocket derived from the Soviet-developed Proton. It is built by Khrunichev, and launched from sites 81 and 200 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Commercial launches are marketed by International Launch Services , and generally... |
In service | |||
| Centaur Centaur (rocket stage) Centaur is a rocket stage designed for use as the upper stage of space launch vehicles. Centaur boosts its satellite payload to geosynchronous orbit or, in the case of an interplanetary space probe, to or near to escape velocity... |
Atlas Atlas-Centaur The Atlas-Centaur was an American expendable launch system designed and built by General Dynamics Convair Division in San Diego, CA. It was derived from the SM-65 Atlas missile. It was a member of the Atlas family of rockets, and was used for 61 orbital launches between 1962 and 1983. It was... , Atlas G Atlas G The Atlas G, also known as Atlas G Centaur-D1AR was an American expendable launch system derived from the Atlas-Centaur. It was a member of the Atlas family of rockets, and was used to launch seven communication satellites during the mid to late 1980s... , Atlas I Atlas I The Atlas I was an American expendable launch system, used in the 1990s to launch a variety of different satellites. The "I" in "Atlas I" can cause confusion, as all previous Atlas rockets were designated using letters, ending with the Atlas H, however subsequent rockets were designated using roman... , Atlas II Atlas II Atlas II was a member of the Atlas family of launch vehicles, which evolved from the successful Atlas missile program of the 1950s. Atlas II was the last Atlas to use a three engine, "stage-and-a-half" design: two of its three engines were jettisoned during ascent, but its fuel tanks and other... , Atlas III Atlas III The Lockheed Martin Atlas III was an American orbital launch vehicle, used between 2000 and 2005. It was the first member of the Atlas family since the Atlas A to feature a "normal" staging method, compared to the previous Atlas family members, which were equipped with jettisonable engines on the... , Atlas V Atlas V Atlas V is an active expendable launch system in the Atlas rocket family. Atlas V was formerly operated by Lockheed Martin, and is now operated by the Lockheed Martin-Boeing joint venture United Launch Alliance... , Titan IIIE Titan IIIE The Titan IIIE or Titan 3E, also known as Titan III-Centaur was an American expendable launch system, launched seven times between 1974 and 1977... , Titan IV Titan IV The Titan IV family of space boosters were used by the U.S. Air Force. They were launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, and Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. At the time of its introduction, the Titan IV was the "largest unmanned space booster used by the Air Force."The... |
Blue Streak, Saturn I Saturn I The Saturn I was the United States' first heavy-lift dedicated space launcher, a rocket designed specifically to launch large payloads into low Earth orbit. Most of the rocket's power came from a clustered lower stage consisting of tanks taken from older rocket designs and strapped together to make... , Space Shuttle Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons... |
In service | ||
| Earth Departure Stage Earth Departure Stage The Ares V Earth Departure Stage was a rocket stage which NASA planned to design at its Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama as part of Project Constellation... |
Ares V Ares V The Ares V was the planned cargo launch component of the Constellation program, which was to have replaced the Space Shuttle after its retirement in 2011. Ares V was also planned to carry supplies for a human presence on Mars... |
In development | |||
| Falcon 9 second stage | (private) Private spaceflight Private spaceflight is flight above Earth altitude conducted by and paid for by an entity other than a government. In the early decades of the Space Age, the government space agencies of the Soviet Union and United States pioneered space technology augmented by collaboration with affiliated design... |
Falcon 9 Falcon 9 Falcon 9 is a rocket-powered spaceflight launch system designed and manufactured by SpaceX. Both stages of its two-stage-to-orbit vehicle use liquid oxygen and rocket-grade kerosene propellants... |
In service | Merlin 1C vacuum LOX Lox Lox is salmon fillet that has been cured. In its most popular form, it is thinly sliced—less than in thickness—and, typically, served on a bagel, often with cream cheese, onion, tomato, cucumber and capers... /RP-1 kerosene RP-1 RP-1 is a highly refined form of kerosene outwardly similar to jet fuel, used as a rocket fuel. Although having a lower specific impulse than liquid hydrogen , RP-1 is cheaper, can be stored at room temperature, is far less of an explosive hazard and is far denser... 616 kN (138,482.3 lbf) engine |
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| Falcon Heavy second stage | (private) Private spaceflight Private spaceflight is flight above Earth altitude conducted by and paid for by an entity other than a government. In the early decades of the Space Age, the government space agencies of the Soviet Union and United States pioneered space technology augmented by collaboration with affiliated design... |
Falcon Heavy Falcon Heavy Falcon Heavy, previously known as the Falcon 9 Heavy, is a spaceflight launch system that uses rocket engines currently being designed and manufactured by SpaceX. Both stages of the two-stage-to-orbit vehicles use liquid oxygen and rocket-grade kerosene propellants... |
In development | Merlin 1D vacuum engine | |
| Fregat Fregat Fregat is a type of rocket stage developed by NPO Lavochkin in the 1990s. Its main engine is a liquid propellant rocket that uses UDMH and N2O4 as propellants.- Specifications :... |
Soyuz-U Soyuz-U The Soyuz-U launch vehicle is an improved version of the original Soyuz LV. Soyuz-U is part of the R-7 family of rockets based on the R-7 Semyorka missile. Members of this rocket family were designed by the TsSKB design bureau and constructed at the Progress Factory in Samara, Russia.... , Soyuz-FG Soyuz-FG The Soyuz-FG launch vehicle is an improved version of the Soyuz-U, from the R-7 family of rockets, designed and constructed by TsSKB-Progress in Samara... , Soyuz-2 |
Zenit | In service | ||
| Inertial Upper Stage Inertial Upper Stage The Inertial Upper Stage , originally known as the Interim Upper Stage, is a two-stage solid-fueled booster rocket developed by the U.S... |
Titan 34D Titan 34D The Titan 34D was an American rocket, used to launch a number of satellites for mostly military applications. After its retirement from military service, a small number were converted to the Commercial Titan III configuration, which included a stretched second stage, and a larger fairing... , Titan IV Titan IV The Titan IV family of space boosters were used by the U.S. Air Force. They were launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, and Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. At the time of its introduction, the Titan IV was the "largest unmanned space booster used by the Air Force."The... , Space Shuttle Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons... |
Retired | |||
| Payload Assist Module Payload Assist Module frame|PAM-D with the [[Phoenix |Phoenix]] spacecraft. The [[Star 48|Star 48-B]] engine is shown being spun, fired, [[Yo-yo de-spin|yo-yo de-spun]] and jettisoned.thumb|SBS-3 satellite with PAM-D stage inside the space shuttle... /Star-48B |
Delta 3000 Delta 3000 The Delta 3000 series was an American expendable launch system which was used to conduct thirty five orbital launches between 1975 and 1989. It was a member of the Delta family of rockets. Several variants existed, which were differentiated by a four digit numerical code.The first stage was the... , Delta 4000 Delta 4000 The Delta 4000 series was an American expendable launch system which was used to conduct two orbital launches in 1989 and 1990. It was a member of the Delta family of rockets. Although several variants were put forward, only the Delta 4925 was launched. The designations used a four digit numerical... , Delta II Delta II Delta II was an American space launch system, originally designed and built by McDonnell Douglas. Delta II is part of the Delta rocket family and was in service from 1989 until November 1, 2011... , Space Shuttle Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons... |
Delta 5000 Delta 5000 The Delta 5000 series was an American expendable launch system which was used to conduct an orbital launch in 1989. It was a member of the Delta family of rockets. Although several variants were put forward, only the Delta 5920 was launched. The designation used a four digit numerical code to store... |
In service | ||
| Transtage Transtage Transtage was an American upper stage used on Titan III rockets. 40 were launched, of which three failed.The first launch, boosted by a Titan IIIA carrier rocket, occurred on 1 September 1964. The Transtage failed to pressurise, resulting in premature engine cutoff, and a failure to reach orbit.... |
Titan IIIA Titan IIIA The Titan IIIA or Titan 3A was an American expendable launch system, launched four times in 1964 and 1965, to test the Transtage upper stage which was intended for use on the larger Titan IIIC. The Transtage was mounted atop two core stages derived from the Titan II... , Titan IIIC, Titan 34D Titan 34D The Titan 34D was an American rocket, used to launch a number of satellites for mostly military applications. After its retirement from military service, a small number were converted to the Commercial Titan III configuration, which included a stretched second stage, and a larger fairing... |
Retired | |||