Vanguard
Vanguard familyLockheed MartinRetired
The Vanguard rocket was intended to be the first launch vehicle the United States would use to place a satellite into orbit. Instead, the Sputnik crisis caused by the surprise launch of 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.
Specifications
- Thrust
- 123 kN
- Height
- 23 m
- Diameter
- 1.14 m
- Launch mass
- 10 t
- Stages
- 3
- LEO capacity
- 9 kg
Specifications from Launch Library. Figures the operator has not published are omitted.
Flight record
11flightswith a definitive outcome
27.3%success rate3 of 11
8failuresincluding partial failures
1success streakcurrent
First flight December 6, 1957 · latest September 18, 1959
Counted from padside's own launch record, the same basis as the stats page.
Flights per year
- Successful
- Failed
Show the numbers for Vanguard flights per year
| Year | Successful | Failed | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1957 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 1958 | 1 | 5 | 6 |
| 1959 | 2 | 2 | 4 |