Black Arrow

A Black Arrow rocket launches the Prospero X-3 satellite. The relatively pale exhaust results from the use of hydrogen peroxide as the oxidiser.
Fact sheet
Function	Orbital carrier rocket
Manufacturer	Saunders-Roe to design by Royal Aircraft Establishment
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Size
Height	13 m
Diameter	1.98 m
Mass	18,130 kg
Stages	3
	Capacity
Payload to LEO	73 kg
Launch History
Status	Retired
Launch Sites	LA-5B, Woomera
Total launches	4
Successes	2
Failures	2
Maiden flight	22:58 GMT, 27 June 1969
Last flight	04:09 GMT, 28 October 1971
First satellite orbited	04:09 GMT, 28 October 1971 Prospero X-3
First Stage - Blue Streak (modified)
Engines	8 Gamma
Thrust	23,945 kgf
Specific Impulse	265 sec
Burn time	142 seconds
Fuel	H2O2/Kerosene
Second Stage
Engines	2 Gamma
Thrust	6,958 kgf
Specific Impulse	265 sec
Burn time	113 seconds
Fuel	H2O2/Kerosene
Third Stage
Engines	1 Solid
Thrust	3,000 kgf
Specific Impulse	278 sec
Burn time	28 seconds
Fuel	Solid

Black Arrow's engine

Black Arrow was a British satellite carrier rocket, based on the Black Knight and Blue Streak rockets. It was the first, and as of January 2007 only British rocket capable of placing a satellite into orbit. It was responsible for Britain's first indigenous satellite launch, Prospero X-3, on 28 October 1971, and was retired immediatly after the launch. It was developed by the Royal Aircraft Establishment and built by Saunders-Roe on the Isle of Wight. Its engines were tested at The Needles^[1] before being launched at Woomera in Australia. Image File history File links Blackarrow. ... The Prospero X-3 satellite (official designation 05580 / 71093A) was the only satellite to be launched by a British rocket. ... A Saturn V launch vehicle sends Apollo 15 on its way to the moon. ... Saunders-Roe Princess G-ALUN History Saunders-Roe Limited was a British aircraft manufacturing company based in East Cowes, Isle of Wight. ... This article needs cleanup. ... The metre, or meter (U.S.), is a measure of length. ... The U.S. National Prototype Kilogram, which currently serves as the primary standard for measuring mass in the U.S. It was assigned to the United States in 1889 and is periodically recertified and traceable to the primary international standard, The Kilogram, held at the Bureau International des Poids et... In cargo transport, the payload is the valuable contents of the vehicle. ... A low Earth orbit (LEO) is an orbit in which objects such as satellites are below intermediate circular orbit (ICO) and far below geostationary orbit, but typically around 350 - 1400 km above the Earths surface. ... This article is about the woomera, a weapon. ... For alternate meanings of GMT, see GMT (disambiguation). ... June 27 is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 187 days remaining. ... Year 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... For alternate meanings of GMT, see GMT (disambiguation). ... October 28 is the 301st day of the year (302nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 64 days remaining. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1971 calendar). ... For alternate meanings of GMT, see GMT (disambiguation). ... October 28 is the 301st day of the year (302nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 64 days remaining. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1971 calendar). ... The Prospero X-3 satellite (official designation 05580 / 71093A) was the only satellite to be launched by a British rocket. ... Blue Streak may refer to: Blue Streak missile Blue Streak (film) This is a disambiguation page, a list of pages that otherwise might share the same title. ... Thrust is a reaction force described quantitatively by Newtons Second and Third Law. ... The specific impulse (commonly abbreviated Isp) of a propulsion system is the impulse (change in momentum) per unit mass of propellant. ... ... It has been suggested that RP-1 be merged into this article or section. ... The specific impulse (commonly abbreviated Isp) of a propulsion system is the impulse (change in momentum) per unit mass of propellant. ... ... It has been suggested that RP-1 be merged into this article or section. ... The specific impulse (commonly abbreviated Isp) of a propulsion system is the impulse (change in momentum) per unit mass of propellant. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (576x768, 75 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Black Arrow Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used to... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (576x768, 75 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Black Arrow Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used to... The Black Arrow: A Tale of the Two Roses is a historical adventure novel and a romance by Robert Louis Stevenson. ... An Earth observation satellite, ERS 2 For other uses, see Satellite (disambiguation). ... A Saturn V launch vehicle sends Apollo 15 on its way to the moon. ... Black Knight was a British attempt to design a re-entry vehicle for the Blue Streak missile. ... Blue Streak may refer to: Blue Streak missile Blue Streak (film) This is a disambiguation page, a list of pages that otherwise might share the same title. ... The Prospero X-3 satellite (official designation 05580 / 71093A) was the only satellite to be launched by a British rocket. ... October 28 is the 301st day of the year (302nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 64 days remaining. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1971 calendar). ... This article needs cleanup. ... Saunders-Roe Princess G-ALUN History Saunders-Roe Limited was a British aircraft manufacturing company based in East Cowes, Isle of Wight. ... The Isle of Wight is an English island and county, off the southern English coast, to the south of the county of Hampshire. ... A cold (un-ignited) rocket engine test at NASA A rocket engine is a reaction engine that can be used for spacecraft propulsion as well as terrestrial uses, such as missiles. ... The Needles from the cliffs inshore The Needles is a row of distinctive stacks of chalk that rise out of the sea off the western extremity of the Isle of Wight, England, close to Alum Bay. ... Woomera Launchpad in the 60s Woomera (31°09′ S 136°48′ E) is a town in South Australia, 488 km north of Adelaide, along the Stuart Highway. ...

The rocket used hydrogen peroxide oxidizer with kerosene fuel. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is a very pale blue liquid which appears colourless in a dilute solution, slightly more viscous than water. ... It has been suggested that RP-1 be merged into this article or section. ...

Launches

• R0 was launched on 28 June 1969 and was destroyed by ground control after an electrical fault led to a loss of guidance control

• R1 was launched on 4 March 1970 and was successful, although it carried no third stage payload

• R2 was launched on 2 September 1970. The first stage was successful but a leak in the HTP pressurisation system meant the rocket did not have enough velocity to reach orbit, and crashed into the Gulf of Carpentaria with the loss of the X-2 experimental satellite

• R3 was launched on 28 October 1971. The launch was completely successful and placed into orbit the Prospero X-3 satellite, making the United Kingdom the sixth nation to place a satellite into orbit (See Timeline of first orbital launches by nationality).

June 28 is the 179th day of the year (180th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 186 days remaining. ... Year 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... March 4 is the 63rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (64th in leap years). ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ... In cargo transport, the payload is the valuable contents of the vehicle. ... September 2 is the 245th day of the year (246th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ... The Gulf of Carpentaria viewed from orbit. ... An Earth observation satellite, ERS 2 For other uses, see Satellite (disambiguation). ... October 28 is the 301st day of the year (302nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 64 days remaining. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1971 calendar). ... The Prospero X-3 satellite (official designation 05580 / 71093A) was the only satellite to be launched by a British rocket. ... While a number of countries have built satellites, only a few have sent objects into orbit using their own launch systems. ...

Cancellation

The cancellation of the Black Arrow project was announced in the House of Commons on 29 July 1971 by the then Minister for Aerospace, Frederick Corfield, although permission was given for the final launch of R3 to take place after this date. The last vehicle, R4, was never launched, and may be seen on display at the Science Museum, London. The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. ... July 29 is the 210th day (211th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 155 days remaining. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1971 calendar). ... A minister or a secretary is a politician who heads a government ministry or department (e. ... The Right Honourable Sir Frederick Vernon Corfield (b. ... A typical exhibit at a modern science museum. ...

The decision was taken on grounds of cost effectiveness; it was decided that using NASA's solid fuel Scout rocket for future launches would offer adequate performance at a lower cost. For other uses, see NASA (disambiguation). ... Scout launch (NASA) The Scout-rocket was an American rocket for launching small satellites. ...

Legacy

The cancellation of Black Arrow marked the end of the UK's chances of becoming a major space power. The UK had been at the forefront of rocketry since World War II but swiftly fell behind during the 60s and 70s. All future British satellite launches had to rely on foreign rockets. A rocket is a vehicle, missile or aircraft which obtains thrust by the reaction to the ejection of fast moving exhaust from within a rocket engine. ... Combatants Allied Powers: United Kingdom France Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Axis Powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Charles de Gaulle Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33...

As of 2006, the UK is the only nation to have successfully developed and then abandoned a satellite launch capability.^[2] For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ...

See also

• List of missiles
• UK topics
• Rainbow Codes

Below is a list of (links to pages on) missiles, sorted alphabetically by name. ... This is a list of topics related to the United Kingdom. ... The Rainbow Codes were a series of code names used to disguise the nature of various British military research projects from after the Second World War until 1958 when they were replaced by an alphanumeric code system. ...

External links

• Science Museum - Black Arrow
• http://www.spaceuk.org/ba/ba.htm
• http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/blaarrow.htm

References

1. ^ Rocket Testing at The Needles
2. ^ Millard, Douglas (2001). Black Arrow Rocket: A History of a Satellite Launch Vehicle and Its Engines (in English). Science Museum, 64. ISBN 1900747413. 

The Black Arrow was also an arrow used by Bard the Bowman in his attempt to slay Smaug. It is hinted in the book that it has been passed through generation. Bard also says that it has never missed its mark, and that it had always come back to him, wherever he shot it. A fictional character in The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien, Bard the Bowman of Esgaroth was one of the most skilled archers among Men, and the heir of Girion, the last king of old Dale. ... For the MUD of this name, see SMAUG. Smaug is a fictional character in The Hobbit, a fantasy book by J. R. R. Tolkien, published in 1937. ...