Terrier-Lynx sounding rocket?
 

Hello All,

A while back I came across references to the Terrier-Lynx sounding rocket (links to Terrier-Lynx information & photographs, plus an attached photograph, are given below). The Lynx second stage rocket motor appears to be the same size as the Orion motor (which is a military surplus Hawk guided missile motor), yet NASA already uses the original Hawk and Improved Hawk rocket motors under the names Orion and Improved Orion. Is the Lynx motor a third version of the surplus Hawk motor, or is it perhaps a specially-manufactured version of the Hawk motor made to NASA requirements? Many thanks in advance to anyone who can help, and here are the Terrier-Lynx links:

http://sites.wff.nasa.gov/code810/v...errier_Lynx.pdf
http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/terrlynx.htm
http://mysite.verizon.net/resspat1/...ble/stable.html

Hello,

the Lynx stage is not related to the Hawk missile. It is a surplus Mk.104 motor from decomissioned Standard SM-2MR Block II (RIM-66G-L) missiles. On the photo you can see, where the original strakes of the Standard missile were mounted.

http://space.skyrocket.de/doc_lau_det/terrier_lynx.htm

Hope this helps (although the thread is rather old)

Gunter Krebs
http://space.skyrocket.de

Super information!

Thanks!

Allen

It does indeed, Gunter; thank you for posting this! As other guided missiles are withdrawn from military service, there will be other "mystery sounding rockets." Peter Alway discovered the military roots of the Malemute upper stage motor--it was the motor used for the SAM-D (which later became the Patriot).

Yes, the Malemute has indeed roots with the SAM-D/Patriot, but was manufactured as a sounding rocket motor.

In this context it is interesting, that the "improved Malemute", which recently became operational with the Terrier improved Malemute, is indeed a surplus Patriot motor.

http://space.skyrocket.de/doc_lau_d...mp-malemute.htm


Gunter Krebs
http://space.skyrocket.de

Yes, it even flew as a single-stage version, although the single-stage Malemute may have been a test vehicle (I only know of one or two of these vehicles) to make sure the motor would work okay in a spinning sounding rocket.Thank you--and that raises another question: Is the PAC-3 motor (from the new missile that is fired from existing Patriot SAM launchers--it looks longer than the Patriot and has different fins) also an improved Patriot motor, or is it a new product altogether? Even if it is, it could be used in sounding rockets after it is withdrawn from service, although perhaps with different fin and payload hardware than the Malemute's and Improved Malemute's.

AFAIK, there were four single stage Malemute launchs.




The PAC-3 motor is a completely new development and has smaller dimensions than the original Patriot.

Thank you for providing the number. On the first one or two, they tried (I don't recall if they succeeded) to recover the spent motors intact for examination by blowing off all but one fin, to make them tumble during descent. Did the last two carry payloads? I've wondered if the single-stage Malemute was also initially envisioned as a low-altitude sounding rocket for which a need never developed.Thank you for confirming this--yes, they looked pretty "skinny" compared with the Patriot box launchers in the photos I saw.

For the third one, i am not sure, what the purpose was. The fourth was a radar target.

Gunter Krebs

Interesting... The Cajun (and possibly the Apache) was also flown as a single-stage vehicle with various payloads (including smoke trail chemicals) before "finding its calling" as an upper stage.