
MIDAS 8, launched on 12 June 1963 failed when the Atlas booster malfunctioned during ascent.✅ In the first episode of this series, we will cover the key quant skills you’ll need for Graphical Interpretation questions, one of the major question types in the Data Insights section. Two deployable solar arrays were mounted on the aft equipment rack of the Agena-B to provide power. The Agena-B upper stage of the Atlas-LV3 Agena-B launch vehicle was used as the spacecraft bus and provided power and attitude control to the MIDAS payload.
#ATLAS AGENA PAYLOAF SERIES#
The basic spacecraft remained unchanged from the Series II, except for reliability upgrades. The 2.7-micron system provided both spectral and spatial background rejection, and emphasized boost phase detection of missiles in the "Atlas class." The telescope rotated on its spin table at 6 rpm, like its Baird-Atomic predecessor. With a heritage that spans six decades, Atlas rockets will continue to see service for many years to come.tlas V 500, Human figure for scale (1.8m tall). The payload projection for low Earth orbit of an Atlas-Agena B exceeded that projected for the two-stage Atlas-Vega, and almost matched that of the three. View another illustration showing several Atlas rocket versions. The detector array on the surface of the focal-plane assembly contained 184 lead sulfide detectors arranged in eight vertical columns of 23 detectors each which provided complete vertical coverage of a 24-degree 58-minute field of view. The Agena, used first as an upper stage on Thor-Agena rockets was adapted for use on Atlas rockets. Paired with the Atlas booster, Agena B was used in 1962 for the first two Mariner flights (the Atlas stage malfunctioned during the Mariner 1 launch).

for the Air Force, was capable of restarting its engines, thus permitting the spacecraft to be positioned more precisely.

It featured a Bouwers concentric telescope with an 8-inch aperture. The Agena upper stage, developed by Lockheed Missiles and Space Co. The Series III carried an improved Aerojet-General infrared payload. American modification of the Agena-D upper stage for use as a docking target and space tug for Gemini. The MIDAS Series 3 (Military Defense Alarm System) satellites, MIDAS 6, 7, 8, and 9, were the third development models for the MIDAS early warning system. Titan IIIB was the collective name for a number of derivatives of the Titan II ICBM and Titan III launch vehicle, modified by the addition of an Agena upper stage.
