NEXT SPACEFLIGHT

Atlas III

The Atlas III (known as the Atlas II-AR (R for Russian) early in development) was an American orbital launch vehicle, used in the years 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 two jettisonable outboard engines on the first (booster) stage (with a single center engine serving as the sustainer).

The first stage engines were Russian RD-180s, which are also used by the Atlas V. The Atlas III was produced in two versions. The baseline was the Atlas IIIA, but the Atlas IIIB, featuring a twin-engine version of the Centaur upper stage, was also produced.

Missions: 6
Successes: 6
Partial Failures: 0
Failures: 0
Success Streak: 6
Success Rate: 100%
Wiki

Configurations

Atlas IIIA
Image Credit: USAF or NASA
Lockheed
Status: Retired
Liftoff Thrust: 3,826 kN
Payload to LEO: 8,640 kg
Payload to GTO: 4,055 kg
Stages: 2
Strap-ons: 0
Rocket Height: 52.8 m
Fairing Diameter: 4.2 m
Fairing Height: 12.2 m
Atlas IIIB
Image Credit: USAF or NASA
Lockheed
Status: Retired
Liftoff Thrust: 3,826 kN
Payload to LEO: 10,218 kg
Payload to GTO: 4,500 kg
Stages: 2
Strap-ons: 0
Rocket Height: 52.8 m
Fairing Diameter: 4.2 m
Fairing Height: 12.2 m

Launch Sites

SLC-36B, Cape Canaveral SFS, Florida, USA

Launches

Lockheed
Atlas IIIB | NOSS-3 3A & 3B (USA-181) (NROL-23)
Thu Feb 03, 2005 07:41 UTC
SLC-36B, Cape Canaveral SFS, Florida, USA
ILS
Atlas IIIA | MBSat
Sat Mar 13, 2004 05:40 UTC
SLC-36B, Cape Canaveral SFS, Florida, USA
Lockheed
Atlas IIIB | UHF F/O F11
Thu Dec 18, 2003 02:30 UTC
SLC-36B, Cape Canaveral SFS, Florida, USA
ILS
Atlas IIIB | AsiaSat 4
Sat Apr 12, 2003 00:47 UTC
SLC-36B, Cape Canaveral SFS, Florida, USA
ILS
Atlas IIIB | EchoStar VII
Thu Feb 21, 2002 12:43 UTC
SLC-36B, Cape Canaveral SFS, Florida, USA
ILS
Atlas IIIA | Eutelsat W4
Wed May 24, 2000 23:10 UTC
SLC-36B, Cape Canaveral SFS, Florida, USA