A thrust-vectoring Star 48 is the final stage of the Minotaur IV+ launch vehicle.Ī Star 48B motor used in the 3rd stage of the New Horizons probe was the first part of the New Horizons mission to reach Jupiter, crossing Pluto's orbit in 2015 at a distance of 200 million kilometers. Usually after motor burnout and just prior to satellite release the spin is canceled out using a yo-yo de-spin technique.Ī non-spinning, thrust-vectoring version of the Star 48 is available ('Star 48BV'), but much less common. A turntable, mounted in the shuttle payload bay or atop the previous Delta stage, spun the PAM and payload to approximately 60 rpm prior to release. On such missions, the stage was spin-stabilized. Because geostationary orbit is much more lucrative, the additional stage was needed for the final leg of the journey. Onboard the Space Shuttle, the complete stage (motor plus accessories) was referred to as the Payload Assist Module (PAM), as the Shuttle could only take satellites to low Earth orbit.

Other launchers such as ULA's Atlas 551 have also incorporated the motor, but with lower frequency. The most common use of the Star 48 was as the final stage of the Delta II launch vehicles. In this case, 'E' refers to the Elkton, MD division and the 'M' stands for motor. The 'T' prefix stands for Thiokol, and the following letter refers to the company division that developed the rocket motor. Subtypes are given one or more letter suffixes after the diameter number, or a trailing number (i.e., '-2') after the internal designation. Internally, Thiokol's designation was TE-M-711 for early versions, and TE-M-799 for later ones. The '48' designation refers to the approximate diameter of the fuel casing in inches Thiokol had also manufactured other motors such as the Star 37 and Star 30. In 2018, Orbital ATK in turn was acquired by Northrop Grumman. The Star 48 is a type of solid rocket motor developed primarily by Thiokol Propulsion, which was purchased by Orbital ATK in 2001. Qualified as the orbit insertion motor for Boeing's Global Positioning Satellite (GPS), and as the apogee motor for the RCA SATCOM Ku-Band satellite. The Pioneer 10 & 11, and Voyager 1 & 2 Propulsion Modules used Star 37E motors each is now on a similar interstellar trajectory to its companion probe, and is set to leave the Solar System (except the Pioneer 11 stage, which is thought to have remained in solar orbit ).ĭeveloped and qualified for use as an apogee kick motor on FLTSATCOM Maximum propellant weight is 2350 pounds, while the motor has been qualified for propellant off-loading to 2257 pounds.Ī spin-stabilized or thrust-vectoring version of Star 37 is used as the final stage of the Minotaur V launch vehicle. The Nozzle assembly uses a 3D carbon-carbon throat and a carbon-phenolic exit cone. The motor is a replacement for the Star 37E Delta, which has been discontinued. The Star 37FM rocket motor was developed and qualified for use as an apogee kick motor on FLTSATCOM. In this case, 'M' refers to the Magna, UT Division.

Not surprisingly, the 'T' prefix stands for Thiokol, and the following letter refers to the company division that developed the rocket motor. Internally, Thiokol's designation was TE-M-364 for early versions, TE-M-714 for later ones, and TE-M-783 for a special HTPB model used for FLTSATCOM launches. The '-37' designation refers to the approximate diameter of the fuel casing in inches Thiokol had also manufactured other motors such as the Star-40 and Star 48. The Burner I used the Thiokol FW-4 (TE 364-1) engine and the Burner 2 used the Thiokol (TE-M-364-2). The Star 37 was first used as the engine for the Thor-Burner upper stage in 1965. Thor (rocket family), Delta (rocket family), upper stage It burns an 86% solids carboxyl-terminated polybutadiene (CTPB) fuel. The Star 24 (TE-M-640) is a solid fuel apogee kick motor, first qualified in 1973. Three Star 37 stages, and one Star 48 stage, were launched on solar escape trajectories fast enough to leave the Sun's orbit and out into interstellar space, where barring the low chance of colliding with debris, they will travel past other stars in the Milky Way galaxy and survive potentially intact for millions of years. They are used almost exclusively as an upper stage, often as an apogee kick motor. The Star is a family of US solid-propellant rocket motors originally developed by Thiokol and used by many space propulsion and launch vehicle stages. Family of US solid-propellant rocket motors

Rocket star