Project Pilot

In-active

US Navy (USN)

July 4, 1958

Description

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 kN
Family
  • Name
    Project Pilot
  • Family
  • Variant
  • Alias
  • Full Name
    Project Pilot
Payload Capacity
  • Launch Cost
  • Low Earth Orbit
    1 kg
  • Geostationary Transfer Orbit
  • Direct Geostationary
  • Sun-Synchronous Capacity

US Navy

Government
None
USN 1963

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.

Project Pilot | NOTS 6

US Navy | United States of America
Air launch to Suborbital flight
Aug. 28, 1958, midnight
Status: Launch Failure
Mission:

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.

Low Earth Orbit
Explore Share

Project Pilot | NOTS 5

US Navy | United States of America
Air launch to Suborbital flight
Aug. 26, 1958, midnight
Status: Launch Failure
Mission:

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.

Low Earth Orbit
Explore Share

Project Pilot | NOTS 4

US Navy | United States of America
Air launch to Suborbital flight
Aug. 25, 1958, midnight
Status: Launch Failure
Mission:

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.

Low Earth Orbit
Explore Share

Project Pilot | NOTS 3

US Navy | United States of America
Air launch to Suborbital flight
Aug. 22, 1958, midnight
Status: Launch Failure
Mission:

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.

Low Earth Orbit
Explore Share

Project Pilot | NOTS 2

US Navy | United States of America
Air launch to Suborbital flight
Aug. 12, 1958, midnight
Status: Launch Failure
Mission:

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.

Low Earth Orbit
Explore Share

Project Pilot | NOTS 1

US Navy | United States of America
Air launch to Suborbital flight
July 25, 1958, midnight
Status: Launch Failure
Mission:

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.

Low Earth Orbit
Explore Share

Long March 4C
Success
1 day, 11 hours ago
Shiyan 23
Launch Area 4 (SLS-2 / 603) - Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

Satellite officially named for "space environment detection" purposes, exact details unknown.


Falcon 9
Success
3 days, 6 hours ago
Starlink Group 8-2
Space Launch Complex 4E - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

A batch of 20 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Long March 3
Success
4 days, 9 hours ago
ZHTW 1-01
Launch Complex 2 (LC-2) - Xichang Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

Zhihui Tianwang 1-01 are 2 experimental Medium Earth Orbit communication satellites in a collaboration between Tsinghua University, SAST and the Shan…


Falcon 9
Success
4 days, 16 hours ago
Starlink Group 6-56
Launch Complex 39A - Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

A batch of 23 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Long March 6C
Success
6 days, 7 hours ago
Maiden Flight
Launch Complex 9A - Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

Carried 4 Earth observation satellites to orbit: * Haiwangxing-01, 239 kg X-band SAR satellite built by SAST for Zhihui Space Tech * Zhixing-1C, X-…