Atlas-Big Joe Mercury Test Launch Vehicle
Atlas-Big Joe was the one-off Atlas D configuration used for Project Mercury's first full-scale ballistic reentry test. Atlas 10-D launched a boilerplate Mercury spacecraft on 9 September 1959 to validate its ablative heat shield, aerodynamics, instrumentation, and recovery before the later Mercury-Atlas qualification series.
Identity
- Aliases
- Atlas Big JoeBig Joe Atlas
- Family Name
- Atlas-Big Joe
- Full Name
- Atlas-Big Joe Mercury Test Launch Vehicle
- Reusability
- expendable
- Slug
- atlas-big-joe-mercury-test-launch-vehicle
- Status
- retired
- Type
- rocket
Details
- Description
- Atlas-Big Joe was the one-off Atlas D configuration used for Project Mercury's first full-scale ballistic reentry test. Atlas 10-D launched a boilerplate Mercury spacecraft on 9 September 1959 to validate its ablative heat shield, aerodynamics, instrumentation, and recovery before the later Mercury-Atlas qualification series.
- Diameter M
- 3.05
- Engines
- Count
- 2
- Name
- Rocketdyne LR89
- Placement
- booster
- Count
- 1
- Name
- Rocketdyne LR105
- Placement
- core
- First Flight Year
- 1,959
- Last Flight Year
- 1,959
- Manufacturer Id
- jd754p822eq7qbqrw26rf23hq97kq8av
- Operator Id
- vh76vnx3yy1vy23j7zc3wk80wx7nhx5f
- Parent Vehicle Family Id
- nd7rkr1c03a7nef4rg7taecxf185kt92
Links
Assets & Meta
- Creation Time
- 7/13/2026, 1:08:55 PM
- Updated Time
- 7/13/2026, 1:08:55 PM