Thor family
Thor Delta B
American orbital launch vehicle family with Thor first stage and a delta second stage.
Flights flown9
Success rate88.9%8/9
Payload to LEO370kg
Cost per kg to LEO$25,919$9.6M per launch
Maiden flight1962-12-13
Peak year19636 flights
Thor Delta B is built by McDonnell Douglas of the United States. It first flew on 13 December 1962 and last flew on 19 March 1964.
Flight record
88.9% success rate8 of 9 flown · 1 failed
1962peak 1963 · 6 flights1964
First flight1962-12-13
Latest flight1964-03-19
Failures1
Consecutive successes0
Fastest turnaround31d 11h
Payload
| Low Earth orbit | 370kg |
|---|---|
| Geostationary transfer orbit | 68kg |
| Launch cost | $9.6M |
| Cost per kg to LEO | $25,919 |
Vehicle
| Stages | 3 |
|---|---|
| Length | 31m |
| Diameter | 2.44m |
| Launch mass | 51t |
| Liftoff thrust | 667kN |
| Maiden flight | 1962-12-13 |
| Reusable | No |
Pads used
Orbits delivered
Elliptical Orbit2Geosynchronous Orbit2Low Earth Orbit2Sun-Synchronous Orbit2Medium Earth Orbit1
Launch history
| Date | Mission | Pad | Orbit | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964-03-19 | Thor Delta B | Beacon Explorer A | Space Launch Complex 17A | Low Earth Orbit | Failure |
| 1964-01-21 | Thor Delta B | Relay 2 | Space Launch Complex 17B | Elliptical Orbit | Success |
| 1963-12-21 | Thor Delta B | Tiros 8 | Space Launch Complex 17B | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Success |
| 1963-07-26 | Thor Delta B | Syncom 2 | Space Launch Complex 17A | Geosynchronous Orbit | Success |
| 1963-06-19 | Thor Delta B | Tiros 7 | Space Launch Complex 17B | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Success |
| 1963-05-07 | Thor Delta B | Telstar 2 | Space Launch Complex 17B | Medium Earth Orbit | Success |
| 1963-04-03 | Thor Delta B | Explorer 17 | Space Launch Complex 17A | Low Earth Orbit | Success |
| 1963-02-14 | Thor Delta B | Syncom 1 | Space Launch Complex 17B | Geosynchronous Orbit | Success |
| 1962-12-13 | Thor Delta B | Relay 1 | Space Launch Complex 17A | Elliptical 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