Orbital launch vehicle
N-I
The N-I or N-1 was a derivative of the American Thor-Delta rocket, produced under licence in Japan. It used a Thor-ELT first stage, a Mitsubishi Heavy Industries-designed LE-3 engine was used as a second stage, and three Castor SRMs. Seven were launched between 1975 and 1982, before it was replaced by the N-II.
Flights flown7
Success rate85.7%6/7
Payload to LEO1,200kg
Maiden flight1975-09-09
Peak year19751 flight
N-I is built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Japan. It first flew on 9 September 1975 and last flew on 3 September 1982.
Flight record
85.7% success rate6 of 7 flown · 1 failed
1975peak 1975 · 1 flight1982
First flight1975-09-09
Latest flight1982-09-03
Failures1
Consecutive successes2
Fastest turnaround172d 22h
Payload
| Low Earth orbit | 1,200kg |
|---|---|
| Geostationary transfer orbit | 360kg |
Vehicle
| Stages | 3 |
|---|---|
| Length | 34m |
| Diameter | 2.44m |
| Launch mass | 131t |
| Maiden flight | 1975-09-09 |
| Reusable | No |
Pads used
Orbits delivered
Low Earth Orbit4Geostationary Orbit3
Launch history
| Date | Mission | Pad | Orbit | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982-09-03 | N-I | Kiku-4 | Osaki Launch Complex | Low Earth Orbit | Success |
| 1980-02-22 | N-I | Ayame 2 | Osaki Launch Complex | Geostationary Orbit | Success |
| 1979-02-06 | N-I | Ayame | Osaki Launch Complex | Geostationary Orbit | Failure |
| 1978-02-16 | N-I | Ume 2 | Osaki Launch Complex | Low Earth Orbit | Success |
| 1977-02-23 | N-I | Kiku 2 | Osaki Launch Complex | Geostationary Orbit | Success |
| 1976-02-29 | N-I | Ume 1 | Osaki Launch Complex | Low Earth Orbit | Success |
| 1975-09-09 | N-I | Kiku-1 | Osaki Launch Complex | Low Earth Orbit | Success |
Specifications from Launch Library 2 by The Space Devs, launch records from Space Index. Derived figures are computed here; see sources and method.
Further reading: Wikipedia