Saturn C-4

Saturn C-4
	Saturn C-4B on pad
Function	LEO and Lunar launch vehicle
Manufacturer	Boeing (S-IB); North American (S-II); Douglas (S-IV);
Country of origin	United States
Cost per launch	43.5 million
Cost per year	1985
Size
Height	269.0 ft (82.0 m)
Diameter	320 in (8.1 m)
Mass	1,023,670 lb (464,330 kg)
Stages	3
Capacity
Payload to LEO
Mass	218,000 lb (99,000 kg)
Payload to TLI
Mass	70,000 lb (32,000 kg)
Associated rockets
Family	Saturn
Comparable	Saturn V
Launch history
Status	Proposed (1962)
Launch sites	planned SLC 37, LC-39; Kennedy Space Center
First stage – S-IB-4
Height	113.10 ft (34.47 m)
Diameter	320 in (8.1 m)
Empty mass	149,945 lb (68,014 kg)
Gross mass	1,599,433 lb (725,491 kg)
Powered by	4 Rocketdyne F-1
Maximum thrust	6,000,000 lbf (27,000 kN)
Specific impulse	265 sec (sea level)
Burn time	139 seconds
Propellant	RP-1/LOX
Second stage – S-II-4
Height	69.80 ft (21.28 m)
Diameter	320 in (8.1 m)
Empty mass	54,978 lb (24,938 kg)
Gross mass	449,840 lb (204,040 kg)
Powered by	4 Rocketdyne J-2
Maximum thrust	800,000 lbf (3,600 kN)
Specific impulse	300 sec (sea level)
Burn time	200 seconds
Propellant	LH2 / LOX
Third stage – S-IVB
Height	61.6 ft (18.8 m)
Diameter	21.7 ft (6.6 m)
Empty mass	29,700 lb (13,500 kg)
Gross mass	271,000 lb (123,000 kg)
Powered by	1 Rocketdyne J-2
Maximum thrust	225,000 lbf (1,000 kN)
Specific impulse	421 seconds (4.13 km/s)
Burn time	165 + 335 seconds (2 burns)
Propellant	LH2 / LOX
	[edit on Wikidata]

The Saturn C-4 was the fourth rocket in the Saturn C series studied from 1959 to 1962. The C-4 design was proposed in 1960 for a three-stage launch vehicle that could launch 99,000 kg (218,000 lb) to low Earth orbit and send 32,000 kg (70,000 lb) to the Moon via trans-lunar injection. It met the initial requirements for a lunar orbit rendezvous and lunar landing mission.^[1]

It would have consisted of three stages; an S-IB-4 first stage, a S-II-4 second stage and a S-IVB third stage. The first and second stages were essentially four-engine variants of the stages that would be used on the Saturn V, while the IVB stage was actually used on both the Saturn V and the Saturn IB.

It would have been capable of sending the 30,000 kg (67,000 lb) Apollo Command/Service Module into lunar orbit, but it would not have been able to carry the 15,000 kg (32,000 lb) Apollo Lunar Module as well. Although NASA eventually used the lunar orbit rendezvous method to go to the Moon, it decided to use the larger Saturn V which would provide a reserve payload capacity.

A December 1961 version called Saturn C-4B would have consisted of a S-IC C-4B first stage, a S-II C-5A second stage and a S-IVB C-5A third stage.^[2] It would have been capable of sending a 31,000 kg (68,000 lb) payload to a translunar trajectory.^[2]

References

^ "Saturn C-4". Astronautix.com. Archived from the original on 17 June 2012. Retrieved 8 June 2012.
^ ^a ^b "Saturn C-4B". 2012-06-17. Archived from the original on 2012-06-17. Retrieved 2023-12-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

Encyclopedia Astronautica Saturn C-4
Bilstein, Roger E, Stages to Saturn, US Government Printing Office, 1980. ISBN 0-16-048909-1. Excellent account of the evolution, design, and development of the Saturn launch vehicles.
Stuhlinger, Ernst, et al., Astronautical Engineering and Science: From Peenemuende to Planetary Space, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1964.
NASA, "Earth Orbital Rendezvous for an Early Manned Lunar Landing," pt. I, "Summary Report of Ad Hoc Task Group Study" [Heaton Report], August 1961.
David S. Akens, Saturn Illustrated Chronology: Saturn's First Eleven Years, April 1957 through April 1968, 5th ed., MHR-5 (Huntsville, AL : MSFC, 20 Jan. 1971).

This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

[1] "Saturn C-4". Astronautix.com. Archived from the original on 17 June 2012. Retrieved 8 June 2012.

[:0-2] "Saturn C-4B". 2012-06-17. Archived from the original on 2012-06-17. Retrieved 2023-12-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

[1]

[2]

v t e Orbital launch systems
List of orbital launch systems Comparison of orbital launch systems
Current	Angara 1.2 A5 Ariane 6 Atlas V Ceres 1 1S Chollima-1 Electron Falcon 9 Block 5 Falcon Heavy Firefly Alpha Gravity-1 GSLV H-IIA H3 Hyperbola-1 Jielong 1 3 KAIROS^† Kaituozhe 2 Kinetica 1 Kuaizhou 1 1A 11 Long March 2C 2D 2F 3A 3B/E 3C 4B 4C 5 5B 6 6A 7 7A 8 11 11H LVM3 Minotaur I IV V C Nuri OS-M1^† Pegasus XL Proton-M PSLV Qaem 100 Qased RS1^† Shavit 2 Simorgh SLS Block 1 Soyuz-2 2.1a / STA 2.1b / STB 2-1v SSLV Starship Tianlong-2 Unha Vega C Vulcan Centaur Zhuque 2
In development	Antares 330 Bloostar Cyclone-4M Deca Epsilon S Eris Gravity-2 Hyperbola-2 Irtysh Kuaizhou 21 31 Long March 9 10 12 Miura 5 MLV Neutron New Glenn New Line 1 NGLV Nova OS-M 2 4 Orbex Prime Pallas-1 Red Dwarf SLS Block 1B Block 2 Soyuz-7 Terran R Tianlong-3 VLM Vega E Zero Zhuque 3 Zuljanah
Retired	Antares 110 120 130^† 230 230+ Ariane 1 2 3 4 5 ASLV Athena I II Atlas B D E/F G H I II III LV-3B SLV-3 Able^† Agena Centaur Black Arrow Conestoga^† Delta A B C D E G J L M N 0100 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 II III IV IV Heavy Diamant Dnepr Energia Epsilon Europa I^† II^† Falcon 1 Falcon 9 v1.0 v1.1 v1.2 "Full Thrust" Feng Bao 1 GSLV Mk I H-I H-II H-IIB Juno I Juno II Kaituozhe-1 Kosmos original 1 2/2I 3 3M Lambda 4S LauncherOne Long March 1 1D^† 2A 2E 3 3B 4A Mu 4S 3C 3H 3S 3SII V N1^† N-I N-II Naro-1 Paektusan^† Pilot-2^† R-7 Luna Molniya M L Polyot Soyuz original FG L M U U2 Soyuz/Vostok Sputnik Voskhod Vostok L K 2 2M R-29 Shtil' Volna^† Rocket 3 Safir 1 1A 1B Saturn I IB V Scout X-1 Blue Scout II^† X-2^† X-2M X-3 X-3M X-4 X-2B^† B A B-1 D-1 A-1 E-1 F-1 G-1 Shavit original 1 SLV Space Shuttle SPARK^† Sparta SS-520 Start-1 Terran 1^† Thor Able Ablestar 1 2 Agena A B D Burner 1 2 Delta DSV-2U Thorad-Agena SLV-2G SLV-2H Titan II GLV IIIA IIIB IIIC IIID IIIE 34D 23G CT-3 IV Tsyklon R-36-O original 2 3 Universal Rocket UR-500 Proton Proton-K Rokot Strela Vanguard Vega original VLS-1^† Zenit 2 2M 2FG 3SL 3SLB 3F Zhuque 1^†
Classes	Sounding rocket Small-lift launch vehicle Medium-lift launch vehicle Heavy-lift launch vehicle Super heavy-lift launch vehicle
This Template lists historical, current, and future space rockets that at least once attempted (but not necessarily succeeded in) an orbital launch or that are planned to attempt such a launch in the future Symbol ^† indicates past or current rockets that attempted orbital launches but never succeeded (never did or has yet to perform a successful orbital launch)

v t e Saturn launch vehicle family
Early proposals	Juno V Saturn A-1 A-2 B-1
"C" series	Saturn C-1 C-2 C-3 C-4 C-5 C-5N C-8
Saturn I series	Saturn I IB IB-CE IB-A IB-B IB-C IB-D INT-05 INT-11 INT-12 INT-13 INT-14 INT-15 INT-16 INT-27 LCB
Saturn II series	Saturn II INT-17 INT-18 INT-19
Saturn V series	Saturn V MLV V ELV INT-20 INT-21 INT-23 INT-24 INT-25 Saturn-Shuttle Saturn V-3 V-A V-B V-C V-D V-Centaur Jarvis

See also

References