SPACE LAUNCH REPORT RS-1 Launch Vehicle Flight History by Variant/Year (2020-2023) by Ed Kyle, Last Update March 06, 2024 L(F) = Number of Launches(Number of Failures) RS-1 Grand Total Year L(F) L(F) L(F) L(F) L(F) L(F) ------------------------------------------------------------------ 2020 - - - - - - 2021 - - - - - - 2022 - - - - - - 2023 1(1) - - - - 1(1) ------------------------------------------------------------------ RS-1 Grand Total L(F) L(F) L(F) L(F) L(F) L(F) ------------------------------------------------------------------ Suborb - - - - - - Orbit 1(1) - - - - 1(1) Total 1(1) - - - - 1(1) ------------------------------------------------------------------ Vehicle Configurations ================================================================== Payload Config. Height Mass (tonnes) (meters) (tonnes) (1) 500 km x 98 deg (2) 200 km x 28.5 deg (3) GTO ================================================================== RS-1 0.97 t (1) 2-stages 26.83 m ~48 t 1.35 t (2) 0.32 t (3) ================================================================== RS-1 Vehicle Components Stg 1 Stg 2 PLF ================================================================== Diameter (m) 1.829 1.829 2.03 Length (m) 15.24 1.95 5.44 Mp (tonnes) 29.63 7.107 GLOW (tonnes) Propellant RP1/LOX RP1/LOX T (SL tonnes) 51.309 T (VAC tonnes) 5.896 ISP (Vac sec) Burn Time (sec) 160 345 Engines/Motors 9 1 Engine E2 E2vac Restart Mfgr ABL ABL ================================================================== Reference Mission Timeline Mission Event Time [m:s] ------------------------------------------------------- -0:02 Stage 1 Startup 0:00 Lift Off 1:18 Maximum Dynamic Pressure (MaxQ) 2:58 Main Engine Cut Off (MECO) 3:00 Stage Separation 3:04 Stage 2 Startup 1 3:16 Fairing Separation 7:59 Second Engine Cut Off (SECO) 8:37 Payload Deploy 10:00 Collision Avoidance Maneuver (CAM) 15:00 Deorbit Burn ------------------------------------------------------- RS-1 LAUNCH HISTORY DATE VEHICLE ID PAYLOAD MASS(t) SITE* ORBIT* ================================================================== 01/10/23 RS-1 F1 Demo-1 KD 3C [FTO] ================================================================== NOTES by Vehicle ID [F1] First stage engines shut down shortly after launch. All nine of RS1's E2 engines shut down simultaneously. Fell back on pad area and exploded. SPACE LAUNCH REPORT RS-1 Launch Vehicle ABL Smallsat Launcher by: Ed Kyle ABL Space Systems (ABL) was founded in 2017. It developed RS1, a two-stage, smallsat launcher. RS1 uses nine E2 Sea Level engines on the first and one E2 Vacuum engine on the second. It is six feet in diameter and 88-feet long. Both stages burn LOX/kerosene. The stages are made from aluminum alloys. They use common dome tanks. The tanks are grid-stiffened with isogrids. A bi-conic fairing protects the payload. RS1's first flight was conducted from Kodiak, Launch Pad 3C, on January 10, 2023 at 2327 UTC. All nine first stage E2 engines shut down simultaneously shortly after liftoff. RS1 impacted the pad and was destroyed. The impact and resulting fire damaged the launch facility. ABL later reported that at T+10.87 seconds, the first stage lost all electrical power. That deenergized propellant valves, causing the engines to shut down at a 232 meter altitude. RS1 coasted upward for 2.63 seconds before falling back. It impacted within 20 meters of its launch mount. The resulting explosion damaged the pad, including the launch mount, propellant tanks, communications equipment, and a fabric vehicle integration hangar. The company said that data suggested there had been a fire in the engine bay that started a few seconds after liftoff. *ABBREVIATIONS SITE KD: Kodiak Pacific Spaceport Center, Alaska ORBIT LEO: LOW EARTH ORBIT LEO/S: SUN SYNCHRONOUS LOW EARTH ORBIT SSO: SUN SYNCHRONOUS LOW EARTH ORBIT SUB: SUB-ORBITAL MISSION [FTO]: FAILED TO ORBIT [LEO]: UNPLANNED LEO References