| Topaze | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Function: | Sounding rocket | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Manufacturer: | SEREB | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Country-Origin: | France | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Height: | VE111C: 7.07m (23.2feet) VE111L: 7.9m (25.9feet) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Mass: | VE111C: VE111L: | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Stages: | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Derivatives: | Saphir, Diamant | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Status: | Retired | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sites: | CIEES | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Launches: | 14 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| First: | 19 December 1962 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Last: | 1965 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Stagedata: |
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Topaze (Véhicule Expérimental 111 Topaze) is the designation of a French sounding rocket.[1] The Topaze was developed by several French companies, notably Nord Aviation and Sud Aviation,[2] and built by SEREB (a joint venture of Nord and Sud, now known as Aérospatiale) and was the first guidable French sounding rocket. It was part of the Pierres précieuses (fr.: gemstones) program, that included five prototypes Agathe, Topaze, Emeraude, Rubis and Saphir, leading up to the Diamant orbital rocket.
The name indicates that it is a "Véhicule Expérimental" (Experimental Vehicle) with 1 stage, using solid propulsion (code 1), and guided (code 1).
The Topaze was launched 14 times from the CIEES launch site in Hammaguir (Hammaguira Bacchus pad), Algeria, by ONERA.[3]
There were three versions of the Topaze:
There were launches between 1962 and 1964, reaching an apogee of 80 km (49 mi).
| 1962 December 19 | Test mission | 80 | |
| 1963 March 22 | Test mission | 80 | |
| 1963 March 28 | Test mission | 80 | |
| 1963 June 21 | Test mission | 80 | |
| 1963 June 27 | Test mission | 80 | |
| 1963 October 24 | Test mission | 80 | |
| 1964 June 4 | MSBS test, failure | ||
| 1964 October 21 | MSBS test | 80 | |
| 1964 December 11 | MSBS test | 80 | |
| 1964 December 15 | MSBS test | 80 |
This version was launched eight times between 21 December 1963 and 21 May 1965, with apogees up to 110 km (68 mi).[8]
| 1963 December 21 | Test mission | 110 km | |
| 1964 March 11 | Test mission | 110 km |
This version was launched two times in 1965.
| 1965 May 18 | Test mission | 100 km | |
| 1965 May 21 | Test mission | 100 km |
The Topaze was also used as the second stage of the Diamant rocket, the launch vehicle for France's first satellite, the Asterix-1, and the Saphir rocket.[9] [10]