Tag Archives: Rocketdyne F-1

14 May 1973, 17:30:00 UTC, T plus 000:00:00.22

May 14, 2025Space FlightAstronauts, Low Earth Orbit, Manned Space Flight, NASA, Rocketdyne F-1, Rocketdyne J-2, S-IC, S-II, S-IVB, SA-513, Saturn IB, Saturn V Launch Vehicle, Skylab, Skylab Program, Skylab SL-1, Space StationBryan Swopes

SA 513/Skylab 1 (SL-1) launch from LC 39A, 17:30:00 UTC, 14 May 1973. (NASA)

14 May 1973: At 12:30:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, America’s first orbital space station, Skylab, was launched by a Saturn V Launch Vehicle, SA-513, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida. First motion was detected at T + 000:00:00.22.

After first stage separation, the S-IC/S-II interstage connector failed to separate from the second stage. because of this, orbital insertion occurred at T + 000:09:59.0; 0.64 seconds later than planned, and 0.6 meters per second faster than predicted. The S-II stage followed the Skylab into Earth orbit. Skylab’s orbit was almost perfectly circular, with an apogee of 234.2 nautical miles (433.7 kilometers), and perigee of 233.0 nautical miles (431.5 kilometers). The orbital period was 93.23 minutes, with a velocity of 17,111 miles per hour (27,537 kilometers per hour).

Skylab was unmanned at launch. Three 3-man crews were carried to the station aboard Apollo command/service modules launched by the smaller Saturn IB rocket.

Skylab’s mission was to demonstrate that humans could live and work in orbit for extended periods of time, and that they could also perform useful work and research. The first crew had to make repairs in orbit to extend a damaged solar array and to use a spare solar panel as a shade to prevent sunlight from overheating the station. This was the first orbital repair mission. Astronauts occupied Skylab for 171 days, 13 hours and conducted over 300 scientific projects.

The Skylab was built from an empty Saturn V third stage, S-IVB number 213, modified by McDonnell Douglas. The launch vehicle consisted of the first two stages of a Saturn V rocket, an S-IC first stage and an S-II second stage.

The total vehicle weight at engine ignition was 6,297,336 pounds (2,856,424 kilograms). Post-launch analysis determined that the five Rocketdyne F-1 engines of SA-513’s S-IC first stage generated 7,551,000 pounds of thrust (33,588.52 kilonewtons) at Sea Level.

The S-IC was propelled by five Rocketdyne F-1 engines, producing 1,522,000 pounds of thrust, each, for a total of 7,610,000 pounds of thrust at Sea Level. These engines were ignited seven seconds prior to lift off and the outer four burned for 168 seconds. The center engine was shut down after 142 seconds to reduce the rate of acceleration. The F-1 engines were built by the Rocketdyne Division of North American Aviation, Inc., at Canoga Park, California.

The S-II second stage was built by North American Aviation at Seal Beach, California. It was 81 feet, 7 inches (24.87 meters) tall and had the same diameter as the first stage. The second stage weighed 80,000 pounds (36,000 kilograms) empty and 1,060,000 pounds loaded. The propellant for the S-II was liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. The stage was powered by five Rocketdyne J-2 engines, also built at Canoga Park. Each engine produced 232,250 pounds of thrust, and combined, 1,161,250 pounds of thrust.

The unmanned space station’s orbit decayed and it reentered on 11 July 1979. It broke up and parts landed in the Indian Ocean and near Perth, Australia.

Skylab in Earth orbit over the Amazon River Valley, 28 July 1973. (NASA)

7 December 1972 05:33:00 UTC, T + 00:00:00.63

December 7, 2024Space FlightApollo 17, Apollo Program, AS-512, Astronaut, Boeing, Douglas Aircraft Company, Eugene A. Cernan, Harrison H. Schmitt, Launch Complex 39A, Manned Space Flight, Moon Shot, NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, North American Aviation Inc., Rocketdyne Division of North American Aviation Inc., Rocketdyne F-1, Rocketdyne J-2, Ronald A. Evans, Saturn V, Taurus-Littrow ValleyBryan Swopes

Apollo 17 (AS-512) on the pad at Launch Complex 39A, 21 November 1972. (NASA)

7 December 1972: At 05:33:00.63 UTC (12:33 a.m., Eastern Standard Time), Apollo 17, the last manned mission to The Moon in the 20th century, lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida. The destination was the Taurus-Littrow Valley.

The Mission Commander, on his third space flight, was Eugene A. Cernan. The Command Module Pilot was Ronald A. Evans, on his first space flight, and the Lunar Module Pilot was Harrison H. Schmitt, also on his first space flight.

Gene Cernan, seated, with Harrison Schmitt and Ronald Evans. (NASA)

Schmitt was placed in the crew because he was a professional geologist. He replaced Joe Engle, an experienced test pilot who had made sixteen flights in the X-15 hypersonic research rocketplane. Three of those flights were higher than the 50-mile altitude, qualifying Engle for U.S. Air Force astronaut wings.

The launch of Apollo 17 was delayed for 2 hours, 40 minutes, due to a minor mechanical malfunction. When it did liftoff, the launch was witnessed by more than 500,000 people.

Apollo 17/Saturn V (AS-512) at Pad 39A during countdown. (NASA 72C-5901)

The Saturn V rocket was a three-stage, liquid-fueled heavy launch vehicle. Fully assembled with the Apollo Command and Service Module, it stood 363 feet (110.642 meters) tall. The first and second stages were 33 feet (10.058 meters) in diameter. Fully loaded and fueled the rocket weighed 6,200,000 pounds (2,948,350 kilograms). It could lift a payload of 260,000 pounds (117,934 kilograms) to Low Earth Orbit.

The first stage was designated S-IC. It was designed to lift the entire rocket to an altitude of 220,000 feet (67,056 meters) and accelerate to a speed of more than 5,100 miles per hour (8,280 kilometers per hour). The S-IC stage was built by Boeing at the Michoud Assembly Facility, New Orleans, Louisiana. It was 138 feet (42.062 meters) tall and had an empty weight of 290,000 pounds (131,542 kilograms). Fully fueled with 203,400 gallons (770,000 liters) of RP-1 and 318,065 gallons (1,204,000 liters) of liquid oxygen, the stage weighed 5,100,000 pounds (2,131,322 kilograms). It was propelled by five Rocketdyne F-1 engines, producing 1,522,000 pounds of thrust (6770.19 kilonewtons), each, for a total of 7,610,000 pounds of thrust at Sea Level (33,850.97 kilonewtons). These engines were ignited seven seconds prior to lift off and the outer four burned for 168 seconds. The center engine was shut down after 142 seconds to reduce the rate of acceleration. The F-1 engines were built by the Rocketdyne Division of North American Aviation at Canoga Park, California.

The Saturn V third stage was designated S-IVB. It was built by Douglas Aircraft Company at Huntington Beach, California. The S-IVB was 58 feet, 7 inches (17.86 meters) tall with a diameter of 21 feet, 8 inches (6.604 meters). It had a dry weight of 23,000 pounds (10,000 kilograms) and fully fueled weighed 262,000 pounds. The third stage had one J-2 engine and also used liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen for propellant. The S-IVB would place the Command and Service Module into Low Earth Orbit, then, when all was ready, the J-2 would be restarted for the Trans Lunar Injection.

Eighteen Saturn V rockets were built. They were the most powerful machines ever built by man.

Apollo 17 launched 3 years, 4 months, 20 days, 16 hours, 1 minute, 0 seconds after Apollo 11, the first manned flight to The Moon.

Apollo 17 (AS-512) lifts off from Launch Complex 39A at 05:33:00 UTC, 7 December 1972. (NASA)

14 November 1969, 16:24:42.4 UTC, T plus 2:42.4

November 14, 2024Space FlightApollo 12, Apollo Program, Apollo/Saturn V, First Stage Separation, Manned Space Flight, Rocketdyne Division of North American Aviation Inc., Rocketdyne F-1, Rocketdyne J-2, Saturn S-IC, Saturn S-II, Saturn SA-507Bryan Swopes

Saturn V S-IC first stage separation. (NASA)

14 November 1969, 16:24:43.4 UTC: The Apollo 12 Saturn 5 passes 42 miles (67 kilometers) altitude at 5,145 miles per hour (8,280 kilometers per hour). The rocket reaches it maximum inertial acceleration of 3.91 g.

At T plus 2 minutes, 42.4 seconds, Apollo 12’s S-IC first stage separates. 0.8 seconds later, the S-II stage Rocketdyne J-2 engines ignited.

14 November 1969, 16:22:00.68 UTC, T plus 000.00.00.68

November 14, 2024Space FlightAlan L. Bean, Apollo 12, Apollo Command Module, Apollo CSM-108, Apollo LM-6, Apollo Program, Apollo Service Module, AS-507, Astronauts, Cape Canaveral, Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr., Intrepid, Kennedy Space Center, Launch Complex 39A, LC 39A, Manned Space Flight, Mare Procellarum, Moon Shot, Richard F. Gordon Jr., Rocketdyne Division of North American Aviation Inc., Rocketdyne F-1, Rocketdyne J-2, Saturn S-IC, Saturn S-II, Saturn S-IVB, Saturn SA-507, Saturn V, Yankee ClipperBryan Swopes

Apollo 12 Saturn V (AS-507) lifts off from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 16:22:00 UTC, 14 November 1969. (NASA image scanned and remastered by Dan Beaumont)

14 November 1969: At 16:22:00.68 UTC (11:22:00 a.m., Eastern Standard Time), the Apollo 12 Saturn V (AS-507) lifted off from Launch Complex 39A, Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida.

This was the second manned space flight to the Moon. The flight crew were Commander Charles “Pete” Conrad, Jr., United States Navy, Mission Commander; Commander Richard F. Gordon, Jr., U.S. Navy, Command Module Pilot; Commander Alan L. Bean, U.S. Navy, Lunar Module Pilot.

Their destination was Oceanus Procellarum.

The crew of Apollo 12: Charles “Pete” Conrad, Jr., Richard F. Gordon, Jr., and Alan L. Bean. (NASA)

Two lightning strikes 36.5 seconds after liftoff caused the spacecraft’s automatic systems to shut down three fuel cells, leaving Apollo 12 operating on battery power. A third electrical disturbance at T + 52 seconds caused the “8 ball” attitude indicator in the cockpit to fail. A quick thinking ground controller, the “EECOM,” called “Try SCE to Aux.” Alan Bean recalled this from a simulation a year earlier, found the correct switch and restored the failed systems.

The lightning discharge was caused by the Apollo 12/Saturn V vehicle accelerating through rain at approximately 6,300 feet (1,950 meters). There were no thunderstorms in the area. Post-flight analysis indicates that it is probable that the lightning discharge started at the top of the Apollo 12/Saturn V vehicle. Energy of the discharge was estimated at 10⁴–10⁸ joules.

Lightning discharge near Launch Complex 39A (NASA)

Soon after passing Mach 1, the Saturn V rocket encountered the maximum dynamic pressure (“Max Q”) of 682.95 pounds per square foot (0.327 Bar) as it accelerated through the atmosphere.

The Saturn V rocket was a three-stage, liquid-fueled heavy launch vehicle. Fully assembled with the Apollo Command and Service Module, it stood 363 feet, 0.15 inches (110.64621 meters) tall, from the tip of the escape tower to the bottom of the F-1 engines. The first and second stages were 33 feet, .2 inches (10.089 meters) in diameter. Fully loaded and fueled the rocket weighed approximately 6,200,000 pounds (2,948,350 kilograms).¹ It could lift a payload of 260,000 pounds (117,934 kilograms) to Low Earth Orbit.

The first stage was designated S-IC. It was designed to lift the entire rocket to an altitude of 220,000 feet (67,056 meters) and accelerate to a speed of more than 5,100 miles per hour (8,280 kilometers per hour). The S-IC stage was built by Boeing at the Michoud Assembly Facility, New Orleans, Louisiana. It was 138 feet (42.062 meters) tall and had an empty weight of 290,000 pounds (131,542 kilograms). Fully fueled with 203,400 gallons (770,000 liters) of RP-1 and 318,065 gallons (1,204,000 liters) of liquid oxygen, the stage weighed 5,100,000 pounds (2,131,322 kilograms). It was propelled by five Rocketdyne F-1 engines, producing 1,522,000 pounds of thrust (6770.19 kilonewtons), each, for a total of 7,610,000 pounds of thrust at Sea Level (33,851 kilonewtons).² These engines were ignited 6.50 seconds prior to Range Zero and the outer four burned for 161.74 seconds. The center engine was shut down after 135.24 seconds to reduce the rate of acceleration. The F-1 engines were built by the Rocketdyne Division of North American Aviation at Canoga Park, California.

Eighteen Saturn V rockets were built. Only three still exist. One, on display at the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas, is made up of the the S-IC first stage of SA-514, S-II second stage of SA-515, and S-IVB third stage of SA-513. It is the only one consisting of flight-certified hardware. The Apollo Command and Service Module is CSM-115, originally intended for the Apollo 19 mission.

¹ The AS-507 total vehicle mass at First Stage Ignition (T – 6.50 seconds) was 6,137,868 pounds (2,784,090 kilograms).

² Post-flight analysis gave the total thrust of AS-507’s S-IC stage as 7,594,000 pounds of thrust (33,780 kilonewtons).

³ Post-flight analysis gave the total thrust of AS-507’s S-II stage as 1,161,534 pounds of thrust (5,166.8 kilonewtons).

⁴ Post-flight analysis gave the total thrust of AS-507’s S-IVB stage as 206,956 pounds of thrust (920.6 kilonewtons) during the first burn; 207,688 pounds (923.8 kilonewtons) during the second burn.

9 November 1967, 12:00:01.263 UTC, T plus 0.263

November 9, 2024Space FlightApollo 4, Apollo Program, Apollo Spacecraft 017, AS-501, Boeing, Douglas Aircraft Company, Kennedy Space Center, Launch Complex 39A, Liquid-Fueled Rocket, Lunar Module Test Article LTA-10R, Manned Space Flight, Multi-Stage Rocket, North American Aviation Inc., Rocket, Rocketdyne Division of North American Aviation Inc., Rocketdyne F-1, Rocketdyne J-2, S-IC, S-II, S-IVB, Saturn, Saturn Launch Vehicle SA-501, Saturn VBryan Swopes

Apollo 4 Saturn V (AS-501) on the launch pad at sunset, the evening before launch, 8 November 1967. (NASA)

9 November 1967: The first flight of a Saturn V took place when the unmanned Apollo 4/Saturn V (AS-501) was launched from Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida. The rocket lifted off at 12:00:01.263 UTC.

AS-501 consisted of the first Saturn V launch vehicle, SA-501, with Apollo Spacecraft 017 (a Block I vehicle with Block II upgrades), and included the Launch Escape Tower, Command Module, Service Module, Lunar Module Adapter, and Lunar Module Test Article LTA-10R).

The Saturn V rocket was a three-stage, liquid-fueled heavy launch vehicle. Fully assembled with the Apollo Command and Service Module, it stood 363 feet, 0.15 inches (110.64621 meters) tall, from the tip of the escape tower to the bottom of the F-1 engines. The first and second stages were 33 feet, 1.2 inches (10.089 meters) in diameter. Fully loaded and fueled the rocket weighed 6,200,000 pounds (2,948,350 kilograms).¹ It could lift a payload of 260,000 pounds (117,934 kilograms) to Low Earth Orbit.

The first stage was designated S-IC. It was designed to lift the entire rocket to an altitude of 220,000 feet (67,056 meters) and accelerate to a speed of more than 5,100 miles per hour (8,280 kilometers per hour). The S-IC stage was built by Boeing at the Michoud Assembly Facility, New Orleans, Louisiana. It was 138 feet (42.062 meters) tall and had an empty weight of 290,000 pounds (131,542 kilograms). Fully fueled with 203,400 gallons (770,000 liters) of RP-1 and 318,065 gallons (1,204,000 liters) of liquid oxygen, the stage weighed 5,100,000 pounds (2,131,322 kilograms). It was propelled by five Rocketdyne F-1 engines, producing 1,522,000 pounds of thrust, each, for a total of 7,610,000 pounds of thrust at Sea Level.² These engines were ignited seven seconds prior to lift off and the outer four burned for 168 seconds. The center engine was shut down after 142 seconds to reduce the rate of acceleration. The F-1 engines were built by the Rocketdyne Division of North American Aviation at Canoga Park, California.

A Rocketdyne F-1 engine is being installed on a Saturn S-IC first stage. (NASA)

The Saturn V third stage was designated S-IVB. It was built by Douglas Aircraft Company at Huntington Beach, California. The S-IVB was 58 feet, 7 inches (17.86 meters) tall with a diameter of 21 feet, 8 inches (6.604 meters). It had a dry weight of 23,000 pounds (10,000 kilograms) and fully fueled weighed 262,000 pounds. The third stage had one J-2 engine and also used liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen for propellant.⁴ The S-IVB would place the Command and Service Module into Low Earth Orbit, then, when all was ready, the J-2 would be restarted for the Trans Lunar Injection.

Eighteen Saturn V rockets were built. They were the most powerful machines ever built by man.

Apollo 4 Saturn V AS-501 lifts off at 12:00:01 UTC, 9 November 1967. (NASA) — Apollo 4 Saturn V (AS-501) lifts off at 12:00:01 UTC, 9 November 1967. (NASA)

¹ The AS-501 total vehicle mass at First Motion was 6,137,868 pounds (2,784,090 kilograms).

² Post-flight analysis gave the total thrust of AS-501’s S-IC stage as 7,728,734.5 pounds of thrust (34,379.1 kilonewtons).

³ Post-flight analysis gave the total thrust of AS-501’s S-II stage as 1,086,396 pounds of thrust (4,832.5 kilonewtons).

⁴ Post-flight analysis gave the total thrust of AS-501’s S-IVB stage as 222,384 pounds of thrust (989.2 kilonewtons) during the first burn; 224,001 pounds (996.4 kilonewtons) during the second burn.

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