Redstone
| Status | Retired |
|---|---|
| Rocket family | Redstone |
| Country | United States |
| Number of orbital launches | 1 |
| First launch | 1967-11-29 |
| Last launch | 1967-11-29 |
The PGM-11 Redstone was a short-range ballistic missile (SRBM) in active service between 1958 and 1964. A variant called SPARTA was used for a single orbital launch in 1967 with the first Australian satellite WRESAT from Woomera Test Range in South Australia. The Redstone ballistic missile was a direct descendant of the German V-2 rocket, developed primarily by a team of German rocket engineers brought to the United States after World War 2.
Launches:
| Launch date | Launch site | Rocket / Variant | Payload | Notes | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967-11-29 | Woomera | Redstone SPARTA | WRESAT | success | |
First Australian satellite. Rocket provided by the US. After this launch, Australia became the seventh nation to have a satellite and the third nation to launch from its own territory, after the Soviet Union and the United States. | |||||
Variants:
(This section is under construction)Redstone SPARTA (Sparta)
| First launch | 1967-11-29 |
|---|---|
| Stages | 3 |
| Boosters | 0 |
| Mass | 30 t |
| Height | 21.77 m |
Payload capacity:
| LEO | 45 kg |
|---|
The only Redstone variant used for orbital launch. It used surplus American Redstone ballistic missile as its first stage, a Thiokol Antares 2 from Scout rocket as a second stage, and a WRE BE-3 Alcyone solid-propellant engine as a third stage.