Athena (rocket family)

Athena

Athena II with Lunar Prospector
Function	Small, modular component launch vehicle
Manufacturer	Lockheed Martin Alliant Techsystems
Country of origin	United States
Size
Height	19.8 - 30.48 m (65 - 100 ft)
Diameter	2.36 m (92 in)
Mass	66,344 - 120,202 kg (146,264 - 265,000 lb)
Stages	2 or 3
Capacity
Payload to LEO
Mass	794–1,896 kg (1,750–4,180 lb)
Launch history
Status	Retired[1]
Launch sites	Cape Canaveral LC-46 Vandenberg AFB SLC-6 Kodiak Launch Complex
Total launches	7 For breakdown by variant, see text. Launch data.[2]
Success(es)	5
Failure(s)	2
First flight	August 15, 1995
Last flight	September 30, 2001
Type of passengers/cargo	Lunar Prospector
First stage – Castor 120
Powered by	1
Maximum thrust	1,900 kN (430,000 lbf)
Specific impulse	280 s (2.7 km/s)
Burn time	83.4 seconds
Propellant	Class 1.3 HTPB/AP
Second stage – ORBUS 21D
Powered by	1
Maximum thrust	194 kN (44,000 lbf)
Specific impulse	293 s (2.87 km/s)
Burn time	150 seconds
Propellant	Class 1.3 HTPB/AP
[edit on Wikidata]

Athena was a 1990s Lockheed Martin expendable launch system which underwent several name changes in its lifetime.

Development began at the Lockheed Corporation in 1993, where the design was known as the Lockheed Launch Vehicle. The name was subsequently changed to the Lockheed Martin Launch Vehicle when Lockheed merged with Martin Marietta. In 1997^[3] the name was finally changed to Athena, and all of the launches after the demonstration flight in August 1995 were conducted using that name. Athena was retired from service in 2001, but in September 2010 Athena was added to NASA's Launch Services II contract. It was announced that it would be put back into production, with launches set to resume in 2012.^[4] All production had ceased by March 2017.^[5]