NOTS 5

Overview

Destination: Low Earth Orbit
Mission: Government/Top Secret

Low Earth Orbit Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake Air launch to Suborbital flight

The project pilot payloads were small cylindrical satellites. These missions intended to be the first to launch a satellite from an aircraft. They had only a single instrument, a very primitive infrared line scanning device to make IR images of the ground.

Project Pilot

Family:
Configuration:

The NOTS-EV-1 Pilot, also known as NOTSNIK was an expendable launch system and anti-satellite weapon developed by the United States Navy's United States Naval Ordnance Test Station (NOTS).

Specifications
  • Stages
    5
  • Length
    4.4 m
  • Diameter
    0.76 m
  • Fairing Diameter
    0.76 m
  • Launch Mass
  • Thrust
    125.0 kN
Family
  • Name
    Project Pilot
  • Family
  • Variant
  • Alias
  • Full Name
    Project Pilot
Payload Capacity
  • Launch Cost
  • Low Earth Orbit
    1.0 kg
  • Geostationary Transfer Orbit
  • Direct Geostationary
  • Sun-Synchronous Capacity

US Navy

US Navy

(USN)

Founded: 1963 Successes: 3 Failures: 15 Pending: 0

Agency Type:

The Navy was competed with the Army to put the first American satellite into orbit. Their first two Vanguard missions failed, with the second being a highly publicized failure, as it exploded on the launchpad. They went on to put 3 satellites into orbit but did not beat the Army to be the first. Their work in space continues today largely on military satellites.

INFO WIKI

Air launch to Suborbital flight

Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake


Falcon 9
Success
2 days, 2 hours ago
Bandwagon 3 (Dedicated Mid-Inclination Rideshare)
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA

Dedicated rideshare flight to a mid-inclination orbit with dozens of small microsatellites and nanosatellites for commercial and government customers.


Falcon 9
Success
2 days, 19 hours ago
Dragon CRS-2 SpX-32
Launch Complex 39A - Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

32nd commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station operated by SpaceX. The flight will be conducted under the second Commer…


Falcon 9
Success
3 days, 15 hours ago
NROL-145
Space Launch Complex 4E - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

Tenth batch of satellites for a reconnaissance satellite constellation built by SpaceX and Northrop Grumman for the National Reconnaissance Office to…


Long March 6A
Success
5 days, 4 hours ago
Shiyan 27 01-06
Launch Complex 9A - Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

A group of 6 Chinese satellites reported to be for "space environment probing and other related technological testing". Actual usage not known.


Minotaur IV
Success
1 week ago
NROL-174
Space Launch Complex 8 - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

Classified payload for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office.


New Shepard
Success
1 week, 2 days ago
NS-31
West Texas Suborbital Launch Site/ Corn Ranch - Corn Ranch, Van Horn, TX, USA

NS-31 is the 11th crewed flight for the New Shepard program and the 31st in its history.


Falcon 9
Success
1 week, 2 days ago
Starlink Group 6-73
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA

A batch of 27 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Falcon 9
Success
1 week, 4 days ago
Starlink Group 12-17
Launch Complex 39A - Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

A batch of 21 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Falcon 9
Success
1 week, 4 days ago
NROL-192
Space Launch Complex 4E - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

Ninth batch of satellites for a reconnaissance satellite constellation built by SpaceX and Northrop Grumman for the National Reconnaissance Office to…


Long March 3
Success
1 week, 6 days ago
TJSW-17
Launch Complex 3 (LC-3/LA-1) - Xichang Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

Chinese classified satellite claimed to be for communication technology test purposes. Actual mission not known.