AC-1 Failure - First Atlas-Centaur launch (1962/05/08) -
Video from the channel Retro Space HD about Atlas (familia), linked on its Above Ten Thousand entry. Duration: 4:17. Language: English. Video type: Documentary.
Short piece that combines footage from the first launch of an Atlas-Centaur with added narration telling its story. Convair developed the Centaur for the Atlas, derived from the Atlas D, and the stage shared with it the pressure-stabilized tank structure. It was the first stage to use liquid hydrogen and oxygen. Integrating the two vehicles was difficult, because the combined vehicle was almost 30% longer than the Atlas D.
The flight of May 8, 1962, was meant to perform a single burn with the Centaur partially loaded. At 53 seconds the upper stage broke apart and dragged the Atlas down with it. An insulation panel had come loose during ascent; the hydrogen overheated, the pressure exceeded the tank's strength, and the debris ruptured the Atlas's oxygen tank. Testing was suspended to correct the design.