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RD-180,
Centaur Upper Stage Delivered for First Atlas V Rocket
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The RD-180 engine
and Centaur upper stage for the first Atlas V launch vehicle have
been delivered to Lockheed Martin Astronautics Launch Vehicle Final
Assembly Building, near Denver, Colorado. In addition, the
booster’s liquid oxygen tank and RP-1 fuel tank built at the
company’s factory near Denver are undergoing final tests and
inspection.
RD-180 engine,
number 9T, will be installed on Lockheed Martin’s first Atlas V
rocket, designated AV-001, in January 2001. The Centaur upper stage
will be integrated in the spring. The Atlas V will be transported to
Cape Canaveral, Fla., in April 2001 where it will be prepared for
launch in early 2002.
Four RD-180 rocket
engines were shipped to Lockheed Martin Space Systems, including the
engine that will power the first flight of  the
Atlas V rocket (the other three engines will be used on Atlas III
rocket boosters). The engines arrived on November 23. Each engine
weighs 5445 kg (12,000 lbm). This latest delivery represents the
fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth RD-180 engines delivered to
Lockheed Martin by RD AMROSS.
The Atlas V RD-180
engine system was fully flight certified through an extensive test
program conducted by NPO Energomash. Each engine was test fired for
over 200 seconds at a minimum of five different thrust levels to
ensure the engines are ready. In addition, the engines were given
commands that simulate conditions that will be encountered in
flight.
The RD-180 system
has the ability to throttle up and down during flight. During its
successful first flight on May 24, 2000, the Atlas III using an
RD-180 lifted off the launch  pad
using only 74 percent of the maximum 860,200 pounds of thrust it can
provide at sea level. During the first three minutes of that flight,
the RD-180 was throttled from 74 percent up to 92 percent, down to
65 percent and back up to 87 percent. The ability to ease the
throttle up and down provides a smoother, less stressful ride for
the rocket and its satellite payload and allows for more efficient
use of propellants.
RD AMROSS is a
joint venture established by Pratt & Whitney, a division of
United Technologies, and NPO Energomash, Khimky, Russia, to build
the RD-180 engines. In 1996,  Lockheed
Martin awarded a contract to engine maker RD AMROSS valued at just
over $1 billion for a total of 101 RD-180 engines, eight of which
have now been delivered.
The
first Common Centaur upper stage arrived at Lockheed Martin’s
factory located near Denver, Colo., where final assembly and
installation of engines, avionics, harnessing and other components
will be completed. The Atlas V Centaur uses an RL10A-4-2 engine, a
change from the flight-proven RL10A-4-1B engine. The Common Centaur
will provide greater performance capability to lift heavier
satellites and multiple-satellite constellations. Additional
propellant will allow for longer duration engine burns and increased
performance to boost satellites to a variety of orbits to meet
satellite customer needs. The identical tank design, hence the name
Common Centaur, will be used on the Atlas IIIB as well as flying
atop the Atlas V 400, 500 and HLV series rockets. 
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