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Show MISSILE TO HASH ACROSS U.S. SUNDAY TRIBUNE 26 Jan 64 Athena 9-Minute Trek: Green River, Utah, to White Sands, New Mexico What promises to be one of the fastest flights ever flown over the United States is scheduled early this year when the multi-stage Air Force Athena Is fired from a point near Green River, Utah. Approximately nine, minutes after launch, Athena, being developed by Missile Systems Division of; Atlantic Research for She Air Force ^Ballisjjic Systems Division at Norton'"AFB, will impact at fee White Sands Missile Range, New .Mexico, 470 miles away. But speed is not the object. Even though the 50-foot long reentry vehicle will be boring back to earth at velocities in excess of 22,000-ft. per second, its primary purpose will be to simulate the re-entry environment of intercontinental ballistic . missiles. early operational use of an advanced re-entry system. For the Athena assembly and launch area, a luanch control and monitoring blockhouse and three launcher pads and storage bunkers have been built on After reaching altitudes of up to 200 miles, the four-stage solid propellant vehicle will drive the rocket payload downward into the atmosphere after the first two stages burn out, allowing the final two stages and payload to return to earth at ballistic missile re-entry velocities., The final two stages and pay- . load will be dfeecte* ipto m2lNew MeXlm test'environment by b. 'controlI Range instrwmentatton at system using precision gyro {White Sands will support the sensors and reaction jets. missile flight. site to assure satisfaction of variety of payloads to gather range safety requirements as- scientific data needed for Ath-sociated with the critical aspect ena .trajectory and payload an-of impacting expended boosters' off • range in non - populated areas. These radars also provide Designed to speed development of the Air Force's advanced ballistic re-entry systems (ABRES) program, Athena will help to develop an un- derstanding of re-entry pheno-| sections of the rocket can fall safely after burn-out and sep- mena and the inter-action of various types of re-entry vehicles with the re-entry environ- the off-range launch complex j acquisiti:on data to the near Green River Utah 470 0 e rad satisfying mis. miles to fte northwest of the sile ^^ requiremente ^ Sands Misstle Range in ing ^yload ^^ ^ While the firs| Athena. Iauri;vb' 5 ing is still some months away, Atlantic Research, in conjunc--tion with the Ballistic Systems Division of Air Force Systems Command, has successfully implemented early testing phases of the program. To date 15 At-1 a n t i c Research engineered Nike-Apache test vehicles have been launched from the White Sands Missile Range. The two-stage sounding rockets were A safety zone of 40 to 50 square miles has been established around the launching site. Extensive reserve areas have also been set up where spent aration from the payload. Tracking radars are appropri- ment, thus paving the way for lately located near the launch I successfully sent aloft wife |
