The sign accompanying the LR-105 engine. It reads
Atlas Sustainer Engine
Atlas is a family of
U.S. space launch vehicles. The original Atlas missile was designed in the
late 1950s. It was a liquid-fuel rocket burning LOX and RP-1 in three engines
configured in an unusual "stage-and-a-half" or "Parallel Staging" design, two
of its three engines were jettisoned during ascent, but its fuel tanks and
other structural elements were retained. Various Atlas II models were launched
6 times between 1991 and 2004. there were only 6 launches of the Atlas III,
all between 2000 and 2005. The Atlas V
is still in service, with launches planned through 2011. Produces 57,000 lb of
thrust.
The traditional Atlas series went from Atlas A through Atlas F, and was
replaced in 1990 with the Atlas I. The LR-105 was replaced in the Atlas I, and
has not been used since.
The Atlas V continues to be in service, with five launches as of September 13,
2012. The United Launch Alliance also has a pamphlet entitled Atlas
I to Atlas V: The Path to an Affordable and Operationally Efficient Launch
System [direct link to 750K PDF].
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