The Sparta (or Redstone Sparta) was a three-stage rocket that launched Australia's first Earth satellite, WRESAT, on 29 November 1967.[1][2][3]
Sparta used surplus American Redstone rockets as its first stage, a Thiokol Antares 2 from Scout rocket as a second stage, and a WRE BE-3 Alcyone solid-propellant engine as a third stage.[2][3][4]
A first stage was recovered from the Simpson Desert in 1990 after being found in searches by explorer Dick Smith the previous year.[5]: 76–80
Launches
Several Spartas were launched between 1966 and 1967 from Woomera Test Range LA8 in Woomera, South Australia as part of a joint United States–United Kingdom–Australian research program aimed at understanding re-entry phenomena, and the US donated a spare for the scientific satellite launch into polar orbit.[6][2][3]
The first launch was a failure, while the rest were successful.[3]
| Date | Mission Description | Nation | Agency | Apogee (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1966 Nov 28 | Sparta SV-1 (re-entry vehicle) | US | US Army | 90 |
| 1966 Dec 13 | Sparta SV-2 (re-entry vehicle) | US | US Army | 90 |
| 1967 Apr 20 | Sparta SV-3 (re-entry vehicle) | US | US Army | 90 |
| 1967 Jul 4 | Sparta SV-4 (re-entry vehicle) | US | US Army | 90 |
| 1967 Jul 24 | Sparta SV-5 (re-entry vehicle) | US | US Army | 90 |
| 1967 Aug 17 | Sparta SV-6 (re-entry vehicle) | US | US Army | 90 |
| 1967 Sep 15 | Sparta SV-7 (re-entry vehicle) | US | US Army | 91 |
| 1967 Oct 11 | Sparta SV-8 (re-entry vehicle) | US | US Army | 137 |
| 1967 Oct 31 | Sparta SV-9 (re-entry vehicle) | US | US Army | 111 |
| 1967 Nov 29 | WRESAT (satellite) | Australia | WRE | 1252 |
Gallery
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Redstone-Sparta at Woomera LA8 -
Preparation for launch of Redstone-Sparta CC-2029 at Woomera LA8 -
Preparation for launch of Redstone-Sparta CC-2029 at Woomera LA8 -
Launch of Redstone-Sparta CC-2029 with WRESAT satellite (November 29, 1967) -
Launch of Redstone-Sparta CC-2029 with WRESAT satellite (November 29, 1967)
References
- ^ Wade, Mark. "Redstone". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 2024-02-07.
- ^ a b c d Wade, Mark. "SPARTA". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 2022-11-09. Retrieved 2023-10-16.
- ^ a b c d e Krebs, Gunter D. "Redstone with solid fuel upper stage". Gunter's Space Page. Archived from the original on 2023-12-09. Retrieved 2023-10-21.
- ^ "Antares 2". www.astronautix.com. Retrieved 2025-01-14.
- ^ Dougherty, Kerrie. "Retrieving Woomera's heritage: recovering lost examples of the material culture of Australian space activities" (PDF). Artefacts: Studies in the History of Science and Technology. Vol. 6. p. 80. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2023-10-11. Retrieved 2024-04-24.
- ^ LePage, Andrew J. (May 2, 2011). "Old Reliable: The story of the Redstone". spacereview.com. Archived from the original on June 2, 2023. Retrieved February 7, 2023.