Delta IV Heavy Delta IV Heavy Upgrade
Delta IV Heritage
Delta IV Heavy Launch Vehicle
Delta IV Heavy History
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Delta IV Heavy Model Configuration
Payload
Fairing
Starboard Strap-on
Common Booster
Core
Center Common
Booster Core
Port Strap-on
Common
Booster Core
Delta IV Heavy Model Configuration
Payload
Fairing
Starboard Strap-on
Common Booster
Core
Center Common
Booster Core
Port Strap-on Common
Booster Core
Credit: United Launch Alliance
Delta IV Heavy Configuration
1. Payload Fairing
2. Acoustic Blankets
3. Spacecraft
4. Payload Attach Fitting
5. Second-Stage Fuel (H) Tank
6. Second-Stage Intertank Truss
Assembly
7. High Pressure Helium Bottle
8. Second-Stage Oxidizer (L02)
Tank
9. Strap-on Nosecone
10. Second-Stage Equipment
Shelf
11. Hydrazine Bottle
12. Interstage Adapter
13. Second-Stage Engine (RL10)
14. Strap-on Strut Assembly
15. First-Stage Oxidizer (L02) Tank
16. Anti-slosh Baffle
17. Centerbody
18. First-Stage Fuel (LH2) Tank
19. First-Stage Oxidizer (L02)
Feedline
20. Port Strap-on Common
Booster Core
21. Center Common Booster
Core
22. Starboard Strap-on
Common Booster Core
23. Isogrid Structure
24. First-Stage Fuel (LH2)
Feedline
25. Thermal Shield
26. First-Stage Engine (RS-68)
The Delta 4 Heavy launch vehicle configuration consists of one
center common booster core (CBC) and two strap-on CBCs
powered by Rocketdyne RS-68A engines that burn liquid
hydrogen and liquid oxygen, and a payload fairing.
The approximately 232 ft in height rocket is launched from
Space Launch Complex-37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station
in Florida and Space Launch Complex-6 at Vandenberg Air
Force Base in California.
The major components of the vehicle are:
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2
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10 11
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First Delta IV Heavy Launch The Boeing Delta IV Heavy was first launched
on December 21, 2004 from Space Launch
Complex 37B, Cape Canaveral Air Force
Station, FL.
The inaugural flight payload included a
demonstration DemoSat and two low Earth orbit
Microsats.
However, the center common booster core
(CBC) shut down 9 seconds early and the two
strap-on CBCs shut down 8 seconds early.
- The second stage compensated for the early
shutdowns.
- The DemoSat payload achieved the correct
geosynchronous transfer orbit but the two
Microsats failed to orbit.
- The Delta IV CBCs were retrofitted with new
pressure valves to alleviate cavitation in the
liquid oxygen fuel lines that possibly occurred in
the during the flight.
-- The cavitation, or bubbling, is a localized
condition where the super-cold oxidizer changed
from liquid to vapor within the feed lines running
from the rocket's tanks to the engines causing
the them to shutdown early. Credit: The Boeing Company
The first operational flight of the United Launch
Alliance Delta IV Heavy successfully launched
the Defense Support Program flight 23 satellite
(DSP-23).
The rocket is shown launching the early
warning satellite from Space Launch Complex
37B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL on
November 11, 2011.
- DSP-23 marked the end of a 36 year era of
DSP satellites.
United Launch Alliance (ULA) was formed in
December 2006 bringing together two launch
industry teams to provide space launch
services for the United States government.
ULA is a 50-50 joint venture between
Lockheed Martin and The Boeing Company.
- U.S. government launch customers include:
the Department of Defense, NASA, the National
Reconnaissance Office and other
organizations.
Credit: U.S. Air Force
First Successful Operational Delta IV Heavy Launch
The first launch of the United Launch Alliance
Delta IV Heavy from Space Launch Complex-
6 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, CA was
on January 20, 2011.
The rocket successfully orbited a National
Reconnaissance Office payload (NROL-49).
The rocket was the largest to ever launch
from the West Coast of the United States.
During the launch, a large fireball of unburnt
hydrogen emerged from the launch table
engulfing the center common booster core
(CBC) and the two strap-on CBCs in flames.
- The hydrogen burn-off caused the foam
insulation on the CBCs to catch fire.
-- The flames were extinguished during
vertical ascent.
- A staggered ignition was implemented to
reduce the flame.
-- As the starboard engine runs, it aspirates
the gaseous hydrogen coming from the port
and center engines, directing the H2 down the
launch table into the flame deflector where
the H2 can burn instead of rising and creating
the large fireball.
First Delta IV Heavy Launch from Vandenberg
Credit: United Launch Alliance
First Delta IV Heavy Upgrade Launch An upgrade of the Delta IV Heavy was
first successfully flight tested during a
launch on June 29, 2012 from Space
Launch Complex 37B, Cape Canaveral
Air Force Station, FL.
The upgraded rocket lifted the National
Reconnaissance Office NROL-15 payload
(NROL-15).
The center and two strap-on common
booster cores were powered by the
higher performance RS-68A engine.
- The three engines produced a
combined liftoff thrust of nearly 2.1 million
lbs, approximately a 6 percent increase
from the previous RS-68 engine thrust.
-- Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne developed
the RS-68A specifically to be able to lift
the NROL-15 payload.
Credit: U.S. Air Force
Launch Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 A United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy Upgrade is
scheduled to launch an un-crewed Orion Multi-Purpose
Crew Vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station
(CCAFS), FL on December 4, 2014.
The Orion spacecraft will take astronauts beyond low
Earth orbit to deep space.
- It will provide emergency abort capability, sustain the
crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from
deep space.
The Exploration Flight Test-1 will test the Orion Crew
Module’s orbital ability and re-entry capabilities.
- The capsule will dive into Earth's atmosphere giving
engineers key data on how the spacecraft responds to a
re-entry at speeds closely replicating what the vehicle
will see when returning from deep space missions.
The Delta IV Heavy launch vehicle has a center
common booster core (CBC) and two strap-on CBCs
powered by RS-68A cryogenic engines.
- The second stage is also cryogenic powered by a Pratt
and Whitney RL-10B2 engine.
This Delta IV Heavy, shown with Orion, was originally
photographed launching a National Reconnaissance
Office classified payload in November 2010 from
CCAFS, FL.
Strap-on
Common
Booster
Core
2nd Stage
Orion
Crew
Vehicle
Credit: U.S. Air Force and
Lockheed Martin
Center
Common
Booster
Core
Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 Vehicle
Exploration Flight Test-1 or EFT-1 is the first planned un-crewed test flight of the Orion Multi-
Purpose Crew Vehicle.
The EFT-1 Delta IV Heavy rocket and the SM with the Delta IV second stage will take
Orion to an altitude of approximately 3,600 miles above the Earth.
- By flying Orion out to that distance, NASA will be able to see how Orion performs in and
returns from deep space journeys.
After the test flight, the Orion CM will separate from the SM and re-enter the atmosphere
at a speed of over 20,000 miles per hour, faster than any current human spacecraft.
- As Orion reenters the atmosphere, it will endure temperatures up to 4,000º F, higher than
any human spacecraft since astronauts returned from the Moon.
- Orion will land in the water and be recovered.
The EFT-1 flight will play an important role in the finalization of Orion’s design and will
increase efficiencies and reduce risk.
- It is equivalent to the 1967 Apollo 4 mission which validated the Apollo flight control system
and the heat shield at re-entry conditions planned for the return from lunar missions.
Credit: NASA
Service Module
(SM)
Crew Module
(CM)
Select Image
for Animation
Delta IV
Second
Stage
The Horizontal Integration Facility (HIF) near Space
Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force
Station, FL is used to process the Delta launch
vehicles.
Work areas are used for assembly and checkout to
provide fully integrated launch vehicles ready for
transfer to the launch pad.
Inside the HIF (left), United Launch Alliance
technicians prepare the second stage of the Delta IV
Heavy rocket for mating to the center common core
booster for the Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1).
Orion EFT-1 Delta IV Heavy Assembly
The Mobile Service Tower (MST), shown on the right, provides
environmental protection and access to the launch vehicle prior to
and after mating it to the Launch Table (LT) in the vertical position.
The MST includes an overhead bridge crane with a 300 ft hook
height capacity.
The LT supports the vehicle on the pad.
The Fixed Pad Erector uses two long-stroke hydraulic pistons to
raise the vehicle to the vertical position after being rolled to the
pad from the HIF.
The EFT-1 Delta IV Heavy rocket is shown, after it was raised to
the vertical position in the MST, on the pad at Space Launch
Complex 37 on October 1, 2014.
The MST moves on rails to a parked position during final launch
countdown.
Credit: Aerojet
Rocketdyne
Credit: NASA
Credit: NASA
No. Date Type Type of
Payload
Launch
Site
Outcome Remarks
1 December 21,
2004
Heavy Demonstration
payload
CCAFS Success First launch
2 November 11,
2007
Heavy Missile warning
satellite
CCAFS
Success First operational launch
3 January 18,
2009
Heavy Reconnaissance
satellite
CCAFS
Success
4 November 21,
2010
Heavy Reconnaissance
satellite
CCAFS Success
5 January 20,
2011
Heavy Reconnaissance
satellite
VAFB Success First launch from VAFB
6 June 29,
2012
Upgrade Reconnaissance
satellite
CCAFS Success First upgrade launch
7 August 28,
2013
Upgrade Reconnaissance
satellite
VAFB Success
8 December 4,
2014
Upgrade NASA Orion
EFT-1
CCAFS First flight test of Orion
CM (no crew)
Delta IV Heavy Launch History
Legend:
CCAFS Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL
CM Crew Module
EFT-1 Exploration Flight Test-1
VAFB Vandenberg Air Force Base, CA
Delta IV Heavy Heritage
Credit: U.S. Federal Aviation
Administration
The Delta launch vehicle program was initiated in the late 1950s by NASA.
The Delta vehicle was developed as an interim space launch vehicle using a modified Thor
missile as the first stage and Vanguard components as the second and third stages capable
of delivering payloads of 120 lbs to Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit and 400 lbs to Low
Earth Orbit.
The Delta program has culminated in the current Delta family of launch vehicles, with a
wide range of increasing capabilities.
Reference Information Text and Images:
http://www.afspc.af.mil/
http://upload.wikimedia.org/
www.ulalaunch.com/
http://www.boeing.com/
http://www.spacelaunchreport.com/
http://www.spaceflightnow.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/
http://www.spaceflight101.com/
www.nasa.gov/
http://www.nasa.gov/
Propulsion for the 21st Century - RS-68, AIAA 2002-4324, B. K. Wood, The Boeing
Company, Rocketdyne Propulsion - American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
paper summarizes the development of the RS-68 engine &
Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 Animation:
http://youtu.be/lMQ8g2fNHOs?list=UUq7FCASmpEVrFV5-e5NwVAA
End
The Delta IV Heavy launch vehicle major components include:
The Delta IV common booster core (CBC) is 16.7 ft in diameter and 133.9 ft long.
- The CBC is constructed of isogrid aluminum barrels, spun-formed aluminum domes,
machined aluminum tank skirts, and a composite centerbody.
Delta IV first-stage propulsion is provided by the RS-68 engine system.
- The RS-68 burns cryogenic liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen and delivers 663,000 Ibf of
thrust at sea level.
- The booster's cryogenic tanks are insulated with a combination of spray-on and bond-on
insulation and helium-purged insulation blankets.
- The Delta IV vehicle is controlled by an avionics system, which provides guidance, flight
control, and vehicle sequencing functions during CBC and second-stage phases of flight.
The Delta IV Heavy configuration employs two additional CBCs as strap-on liquid rocket
boosters to augment the first-stage CBC.
The spacecraft is encapsulated inside the 16.8 ft payload fairing, consisting of a composite
bisector (two-piece shell) or optional trisector (three-piece shell) fairing.
The second-stage is 16.7 ft in diameter and 42.8 ft long.
- The propellant tanks are constructed of isogrid aluminum ring forgings, spun-formed
aluminum domes, machined aluminum tank skirts and a composite intertank truss.
- The second-stage is also a cryogenic liquid hydrogen/liquid oxygen-fueled vehicle.
- It uses a single RL10 engine that produces 24,750 Ibf of thrust.
- An equipment shelf attached to the aft dome of the second-stage liquid oxygen tank
provides the structural mountings for vehicle electronics.
The structural and electronic interfaces with the satellite are provided via the payload
attach fitting.
Delta IV Heavy Major Components Sheet 1
The RS-68 engine (left) is undergoing hot-fire testing on July 6,
2000 at Stennis Space Center during its developmental phase.
The nearly transparent exhaust is due to the engine's exhaust
being mostly superheated steam (water vapor from its
propellants, hydrogen and oxygen).
The RS-68 is capable of operating in and transitioning
between full power and minimum power upon command from
the vehicle.
The engine also supplies pressurization gasses to thrust
vector and roll control by gimbaling the thrust chamber
assembly and the fuel turbine exhaust roll control nozzle,
respectively.
The engine is designed and built by Aerojet Rocketdyne,
Canoga Park, CA.
Delta IV Heavy RS-68 Engine Sheet 2
The RS-68 engine schematic is shown on the right.
High-pressure hot gases from the gas generator
power, in parallel, the two turbines.
- The turbopumps are single-shaft with direct drive
turbines.
High-pressure ducting delivers pumped fuel and
LO2 (LOX) to the injector/thrust chamber assembly.
The thrust chamber/nozzle assembly consists of a
combustion chamber and an ablative nozzle.
- The expansion of the gases through the chamber
and the nozzle produce thrust.
Credit: NASA
Credit: Aerojet
Rocketdyne
Thor and Vanguard Launch Vehicles:
Thor was the first operational ballistic missile deployed by the U.S. Air Force.
- Named after the Norse god of thunder, it was deployed in the United Kingdom between
1959 and September 1963 as an intermediate range ballistic missile with thermonuclear
warheads.
Vanguard rockets were used by Project Vanguard from 1957 to 1959.
- Vanguard was intended to be the first launch vehicle the U.S. would use to place a satellite
into orbit.
-- Instead, the surprise launch of the Soviet Union’s Sputnik 1 led the U.S., after the failure of
Vanguard TV3, to quickly orbit the Explorer 1 satellite using a Juno I rocket, making Vanguard
I the second successful U.S. orbital launch.
-- Three successful launches of eleven placed satellites into orbit.
Delta Launch Vehicles:
Delta is an American space launch system, originally designed and built by McDonnell
Douglas and continued by Boeing and United Launch Alliance.
- A four-digit system is used to identify the specific Delta configurations.
-- The numbers and letters indicate the major configuration elements.
The Delta II entered service in 1989 and delivers a capacity of 5,960 - 13,440 lbs to low
Earth orbit (LEO).
- Delta II is available in a number of configurations within the following series: 7300, 7400,
and 7900.
The first Delta III launch was on August 26, 1998 and had the capability to deliver a capacity
of 18,280 lbs to LEO.
- The Delta III is referred to as the Delta 8930.
Delta IV Heavy Heritage Sheet 1
Delta Launch Vehicles (Continued):
The Delta IV entered service in 1989 and delivers a capacity of 20,750 - 63,470 lbs to LEO.
The newest member of the Delta family is the Delta IV launch system which comes in five
vehicle configurations.
- Each has a first-stage, called the Common Booster Core (CBC), using cryogenic
propellants.
The Delta IV Medium employs a first-stage CBC, a cryogenic second stage, and a 13.4 ft
diameter composite Payload Fairing (PLF).
The Delta IV M+ vehicle comes in three different configurations.
- The Delta IV M+(4,2) configuration uses two strap-on Solid Rocket Motors (SRMs) to
augment the first-stage CBC, a cryogenic second stage, and a 13.4 ft diameter composite
PLF.
- The other two configurations are the Delta IV M+(5,2) and Delta IV M+(5,4) that have two
and four SRMs, respectively, to augment the first-stage CBC.
-- Both of these configurations employ a cryogenic second stage, and a 16.8 ft diameter
composite PLF.
The Delta IV Heavy employs two additional CBCs as strap-on Liquid Rocket Boosters to
augment the first-stage CBC, a cryogenic second stage, and either a 16.8 ft diameter
composite or metallic PLF.
Delta IV Heavy Heritage Sheet 2