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Agate (rocket)
French test rocket From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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VE 110 Agate is the designation of an unguided French test rocket developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s.[1][2][3]
It was part of the Pierres précieuses (fr.: gemstones) program, that included five prototypes Agathe, Topaze, Emeraude, Rubis and Saphir,[3] leading up to the Diamant orbital rocket.
The Agate has a length of 8.50 metres, a diameter of 0.80 metres, a start mass of 3.2 tonnes, a takeoff thrust of 186 kN and a ceiling of 20 km. It used a NA801 Mammouth solid propellant rocket engine (same as the Rubis VE-210).[2]
The initial version was designated VE (Véhicule Expérimental) 110,[1][3] while the VE 110RR version was used to develop recovery procedures at sea.[2][3] The name indicates that it is a "Véhicule Expérimental" (Experimental Vehicle) with 1 stage, using solid propulsion (code 1), and not guided (code 0).
Agate and Rubis rockets
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Launches
The Agate was launched from the CIEES test site in Hammaguir, French Algeria, and the Île du Levant test site,[2] in order to test instrument capsules and recovery systems.[3]
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See also
References
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