| Launch Area 3 | |||||||||||
| Imsize: | 300 | ||||||||||
| Site: | Wallops Flight Facility | ||||||||||
| Short: | LA-3 | ||||||||||
| Operator: | NASA | ||||||||||
| Tlaunches: | 45 | ||||||||||
| Pads: | Two | ||||||||||
| Paddetails: |
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Launch Area 3 (LA-3) at the Wallops Flight Facility is a launch complex which was used, mostly by Scout rockets, between 1960 and 1985. Forty-one Scout launches occurred from the complex, making both orbital and suborbital. In addition, four Nike sounding rockets were launched from the complex in 1970.
Launch Area 3 contains two launch pads, Area 3 and Area 3A.
Area 3, also known as the Mk.I launcher, was used by eighteen Scout rockets between 1960 and 1964. The first launch from the complex, on 18 April 1960, was the maiden flight of the Scout launch vehicle, using the Scout X configuration. The last Scout launch from the pad occurred on 6 November 1964. On 7 March 1970, a Nike-Apache and four Nike-Iroquois rockets were launched from the complex.
The upgraded Launch Area 3A, or Mk.II launcher, replaced the original Launch Area 3. It was used for twenty-three Scout launches, starting on 20 July 1964. The last launch from the complex occurred on 13 December 1985.
List of launches from Area 3, Mk.I launcher:[1]
| Date | Launch Vehicle | Mission | Apogee | Details | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 April 18 | Scout X | Cub Scout test | Live first and third stages, broke up after first stage burnout. | ||
| 1960 July 2 | Scout X-1 | Test mission | 1380 km | Failure. | |
| 1960 October 4 | Scout X-1 | Radiation Probe Plasma mission | 5600 km | ||
| 1960 December 4 | Scout X-1 | Explorer (9) S 56 | Second stage malfunction. | ||
| 1961 February 16 | Scout X-1 | Explorer 9 | Third stage failed ignition, vehicle destroyed. | ||
| 1961 August 25 | Scout X-1 | Explorer 13 | Partial failure. | ||
| 1961 October 19 | Scout X-1 | P-21 Plasma / aeronomy mission | 6855 km | ||
| 1962 March 1 | Scout X-1A | Reentry 1 re-entry vehicle test flight | 214 km | ||
| 1962 March 29 | Scout X-2 | P-21A Plasma / aeronomy mission | 6291 km | Late stage 3 ignition. | |
| 1962 December 16 | Scout X-3A | Explorer 16 | |||
| 1963 May 22 | Scout X-3 | RFD-1 re-entry vehicle test flight | 145 km | ||
| 1963 June 28 | Scout X-4 | GRS | Failure. | ||
| 1963 July 20 | Scout X-3A | Reentry 3 re-entry vehicle test flight | 2 km | NASA Scout rocket, intentionally destroyed when it deviated from its course a few seconds after liftoff. | |
| 1964 March 27 | Scout X-3 | Ariel 2 | |||
| 1964 August 18 | Scout X-4A | Reentry 4A | 183 km | ||
| 1964 November 6 | Scout X-4 | Explorer 23 | |||
| 1970 March 7 | Nike Apache | Eclipse aeronomy mission | 200 km | ||
| 1970 March 7 | Nike Iroquois | Mass spectrometer Eclipse aeronomy mission | 76 km | ||
| 1970 March 7 | Nike Iroquois | Mass spectrometer Eclipse aeronomy mission | 113 km | ||
| 1970 March 7 | Nike Iroquois | Mass spectrometer Eclipse aeronomy mission | 122 km |
List of launches from Area 3A, Mk.II launcher:[2]
| Date | Launch Vehicle | Mission | Apogee | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 July 20 | Scout X-4 | SERT 1 Technology mission | 4002 km | |
| 1964 October 9 | Scout X-3C | RFD-2 re-entry vehicle test flight | 132 km | |
| 1964 December 15 | Scout X-4 | San Marco 1 | 842 km | |
| 1965 April 29 | Scout X-4 | Explorer 27 | 1309 km | |
| 1965 August 10 | Scout B | SECOR 5 (EGRS 5) | 2419 km | |
| 1965 November 19 | Scout X-4 | Explorer 30 | 856 km | |
| 1966 February 10 | Scout X-4A | Reentry 4B Re-entry vehicle test | 175 km | |
| 1966 June 10 | Scout B | OV3-04 | 4704 km | |
| 1967 October 19 | Scout B | RAM C-1 Re-entry vehicle test | 217 km | |
| 1968 March 5 | Scout B | Explorer 37 (Partial Failure) | 433 km | |
| 1968 April 27 | Scout X-5C | Reentry 5 re-entry vehicle test flight | 175 km | |
| 1968 August 22 | Scout B | RAM C-2 Re-entry vehicle test | 227 km | |
| 1970 September 30 | Scout B | RAM C-3 re-entry vehicle test flight | 269 km | |
| 1970 November 9 | Scout B | OFO 1, RM-1, RMS | 518, 526 km | |
| 1971 June 20 | Scout B | PAET re-entry vehicle test flight | 377 km | |
| 1971 July 8 | Scout B | Explorer 44 | 632 km | |
| 1971 August 16 | Scout B-1 | Eole 1 | 836 km | |
| 1971 September 20 | Scout B | BIC Plasma / barium release mission | 31479 km | |
| 1972 August 13 | Scout D-1 | Explorer 46 | 811 km | |
| 1976 June 18 | Scout D-1 | GP-A Physics mission | 10230 km | |
| 1979 February 18 | Scout D-1 | SAGE | 506 km | |
| 1979 June 2 | Scout D-1 | Ariel 6 | 383 km | |
| 1985 December 13 | Scout G-1 | USA 13 (ITV 1 ASAT Balloon Target), ITV 1 Balloon A, ITV 1 Balloon B, USA 14 (ITV 2 ASAT Balloon Target) | 691, 737, 160, 450 km |