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Shavit 2

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For the village in Iran sometimes Romanized as "Shavit", seeShavi, Dezful.

Shavit 2
שביט
FunctionExpendablelaunch vehicle
ManufacturerIsrael Aerospace Industries
Country of originIsrael
Cost per launch$18M
Size
Height26.4 m
Diameter1.35 m
Mass30,500–70,000 kg
Stages4
Capacity
Payload toLEO
Mass350–800 kg[1]
Launch history
StatusActive
Launch sitesPalmachim Airbase
Total launches12
Success(es)10
Failure(s)2
First flight19 September 1988
Last flight28 March 2023
First stage (LeoLink LK-1) – LK-1
Powered byLK-1
Maximum thrust553.8kN(124,499lbf)
Specific impulse268 seconds
Burn time55 seconds
PropellantHTPB
First stage (LeoLink LK-2) – Castor 120
Maximum thrust1650.2kN(370,990 lbf)
Specific impulse280 seconds
Burn time82 seconds
PropellantHTPBpolymer, Class 1.3 C
Second stage – LK-1
Powered by1 LK-1
Maximum thrust515.8kN
Specific impulse268 seconds
Burn time55 seconds
PropellantHTPB
Third stage – RSA-3-3
Powered by1 RSA-3-3
Maximum thrust58.6 kN
Specific impulse298 seconds
Burn time94 seconds
PropellantSolid
Fourth stage – LK-4
Powered by1 LK-4
Maximum thrust0.402 kN
Specific impulse200 seconds
Burn time800 seconds
PropellantHydrazine[2]
[edit on Wikidata]

Shavit 2(Hebrew:"comet"– שביט) is asmall liftlaunch vehicleproduced byIsraelfrom 1982 onwards, to launchsatellitesintolow Earth orbit.It was first launched on 19 September 1988 (carrying anOfek-1satellite payload), making Israel theeighth nationto have an orbital launch capability[3]after theUSSR,United States, France, Japan,People's Republic of China,United Kingdom, and India.

The Shavit 2 project is believed to have been an offshoot development, resulting from Israel'sJerichonuclear armedintercontinental ballistic missile(ICBM) program.[4][5]

Shavit rockets are launched fromPalmachim Airbaseby theIsrael Space Agencyinto highlyretrograde orbitsover theMediterranean Seato prevent debris coming down in populated areas and also to avoid flying over nations hostile to Israel to the east; this results in a lower payload-to-orbit than east-directed launches would allow.[3][6]The launcher consists of three stages powered bysolid-fuelrocket motors,with an optionalliquid-fuelfourth stage, and is manufactured byIsrael Aircraft Industries(IAI).

TheRepublic of South Africaproduced and tested a licensed version in cooperation with Israel called theRSA-3in an ultimately unsuccessful bid to produce a domestic satellite launch vehicle and ballistic missile; the South African program was closed in 1994.[7]

An earlier unrelated project called Shavit 2 was the first Israelisounding rocket,launched on 5 July 1961 formeteorologicalresearch.[8]Shavit Three, with an altitude reported as 100 miles (160 km), was launched on 11 August 1961.

Development[edit]

The development of Shavit 2 began in 1982.[9]Shavit was a three-stage, solid-propellant launcher designed to carry payloads up to 250 kg intolow Earth orbit.It was speculated for some time and later confirmed that the first two stages of the Shavit were that of theJericho II missile.[10]

Shavit was first launched in 1988 and because of its geographic location and hostile relations with surrounding countries, Israel had to launch it to the west, over theMediterranean Sea,in order to avoid flying over those hostile territories to its east. The practice has continued ever since.[11]

Vehicle description[edit]

The first of the Shavit vehicles were a small, 3-stage, solid-propellant booster based on the 2-stage Jericho-II ballistic missile and developed under the general management ofIsrael Aircraft Industriesand in particular its MBT System and Space Technology subsidiary.Israel Military Industries Systemsproduces the first-stage and second-stage motors, whileRafaelis responsible for the third-stage motor.[12]

A planned commercial Shavit upgrade was called Next. This name is no longer used, and this proposed upgrade configuration is now called Shavit-2. Both first and second stages of the Shavit-2 use the stretched motor design of the Shavit-1 first stage.

Launch history[edit]

The Shavit has been launched 12 times, placing the payload into orbit 10 times.[13]On the 4th and 6th flights, the vehicle failed before reaching space. Most non-Israeli satellites are launched eastward to gain a boost from the Earth's rotational speed. However, the Shavit is launched westward (retrograde orbit) over the Mediterranean Sea to avoid flying and dropping spent rocket stages over populated areas in Israel and neighboring Arab countries. The Shavit is also said to be made available for commercial launches in the near future.

AUS-51 third-stage engine model
Variant Date of launch (UTC) Launch location Payload Mission status
Shavit 19 September 1988
09:31 		Palmachim Airbase IsraelOfek-1 Success
Shavit 3 April 1990
12:02 		Palmachim Airbase IsraelOfek-2 Success
Shavit-1 5 April 1995
11:16 		Palmachim Airbase IsraelOfek-3 Success
Shavit-1 22 January 1998
12:56 		Palmachim Airbase IsraelOfek-4 Failure
Shavit-1 28 May 2002
15:25 		Palmachim Airbase IsraelOfek-5 Success
Shavit-1 6 September 2004
10:53 		Palmachim Airbase IsraelOfek-6 Failure
Shavit-2 10 June 2007
23:40 		Palmachim Airbase IsraelOfek-7 Success
Shavit-2 22 June 2010
19:00 		Palmachim Airbase IsraelOfek-9 Success[14]
Shavit-2 9 April 2014
19:06 		Palmachim Airbase IsraelOfek-10 Success[3]
Shavit-2 13 September 2016
14:38 		Palmachim Airbase IsraelOfek-11 Success[15]
Shavit-2 6 July 2020
01:00 		Palmachim Airbase IsraelOfek-16 Success[16]
Shavit-2 28 March 2023
23:10 		Palmachim Airbase IsraelOfeq-13 Success[17]

The September 2004 failure of the Shavit resulted in the destruction of the US$100 millionOfeq 6spy satellite. Israel used IndianPolar Satellite Launch Vehiclein the subsequent launch for theTecSARSAR satellite,[18]while upgrading the Shavit launcher.[citation needed]On the upgraded Shavit 2, the follow-up Ofeq 7 was successfully launched on a Shavit rocket in 2007.

South African RSA series[edit]

Main article:Jericho (missile)

The Jericho II missile-Shavit SLV was also license produced in the Republic of South Africa as the RSA series of space launch vehicles and ballistic missiles. TheRSA-3was produced by the Houwteq (a discontinued division ofDenel) company atGrabouw,30 km east ofCape Town.Test launches were made fromOverbergTest RangenearBredasdorp,200 km east of Cape Town.Rooielswas where the engine-test facilities were located. Development continued even after South African renunciation[19]of itsnuclear weaponsfor use as a commercial satellite launcher. Development actually reached its height in 1992, a year after nuclear renunciation, with 50–70 companies involved, employing 1300–1500 people from the public and private sector.[20][21]A much heavier ICBM or space launch vehicle, theRSA-4,with a first stage in thePeacekeeperICBM class but with Jericho-2/RSA-3 upper-stage components was in development.[7][22][23]

Variant Date of launch Launch location Payload Mission status
RSA-3 1 June 1989 Denel Overberg Test Range South AfricaRSA-3-d 1 Apogee: 100 km (60 mi)
RSA-3 6 July 1989 Denel Overberg Test Range South AfricaRSA-3 2 Apogee: 300 km (180 mi)
RSA-3 19 November 1990 Denel Overberg Test Range South AfricaRSA-3 3 Apogee: 300 km (180 mi)

In June 1994 the RSA-3 / RSA-4 South African satellite launcher program was cancelled.[24]

Proposed LK civilian launch variants[edit]

In 1998,Israel Space Agencypartnered with U.S. Coleman Research Corporation (now a division ofL-3 Communications) to develop the LK family of small launch vehicles.[25]In 2001, a new French joint-venture, LeoLink, betweenAstriumandIsrael Aircraft Industries,was created to market the LK variant.[26]It is believed that in 2002 development of the LK variant was discontinued.[27]

The LK-1 was closely based on the Shavit-2, but with motors and other components built in the United States to satisfy U.S. government requirements.[25]The LK-2 was a larger vehicle using a Thiokol Castor 120 motor as its first stage. The third stage was either a standard AUS-51 motor built under license by Atlantic Research Corp., or aThiokolStar 48motor. All launch vehicles would have had a smallmonopropellanthydrazinefourth stage.[28]

  • LK-A – for 350 kg-class satellites in 240 × 600 km elliptical polar orbits.
  • LK-1 – for 350 kg-class satellites in 700 km circular polar orbits.
  • LK-2 – for 800 kg-class satellites in 700 km circular polar orbits.

A Shavit LK air-launched satellite launcher was proposed by ISA andIsrael Aircraft Industries(IAI). The booster would have been a standard Shavit-1 or Shavit-2 without a first stage that would be dropped from aHercules C-130.An alternative proposal consisted of a full launch stack carried atopBoeing 747aircraft, similar to how theSpace Shuttlewas carried, through theStraits of Tiranand past theArabian Peninsulainto open sea; this called for a zoom-climb launch over theIndian Ocean,permitting the eastward boost from the rotation of the Earth rather than launching into a westward retrograde orbit over the Mediterranean, nearly doubling the maximum payload weight.[28][29]

Comparable solid fuel rockets[edit]

Main article:Comparison of solid-fuelled orbital launch systems

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^"Shavit",Space launch systems,Deagel
  2. ^"Astronautix leolinklk-1 Review".Archived fromthe originalon 28 December 2016.Retrieved14 June2021.
  3. ^abc"Shavit".Space Launch Report. 20 April 2014. Archived from the original on 25 January 2016.Retrieved7 July2015.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  4. ^"Delivery systems",Israel(country profile), NTI.
  5. ^Report of the Secretary-General (1991).South Africa's Nuclear-Tipped Ballistic Missile Capability(PDF).Department for Disarmament Affairs. Disarmament Study Series. New York:United Nations.doi:10.18356/8afa8632-en.ISBN92-1-142178-0.
  6. ^Stephen Clark (22 June 2010)."New Israeli spy satellite blasts off into the night".Spaceflight Now.Retrieved7 July2015.
  7. ^ab"RSA".Archived fromthe originalon 3 March 2016.Retrieved6 February2015.
  8. ^Google Books[1][2]
  9. ^Zorn, EL (Winter–Spring 2001)."Israel's Quest for Satellite Intelligence"(PDF).Studies in Intelligence(10).CIA:33–38. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 13 June 2007.Retrieved11 September2009.Public DomainThis article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.
  10. ^"Missile",Israel(profile), NTI, archived fromthe originalon 4 July 2007.
  11. ^"Shavit",Britannica.
  12. ^"Israel",Guide,FAS, archived fromthe originalon 9 April 2016,retrieved25 March2016.
  13. ^Ed Kyle."Space Launch Report: Shavit".Space Launch Report. Archived from the original on 21 December 2019.Retrieved10 January2020.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  14. ^Greenberg, Hanan (22 June 2010)."Israel launches spy satellite".Ynetnews.Ynet.Retrieved22 June2010.
  15. ^"Israel Launches Advanced Optical Reconnaissance Satellite".Spaceflight 101. 13 September 2016.Retrieved13 September2016.
  16. ^"Israel successfully places surveillance satellite into orbit".Spaceflight Now. 6 July 2020.Retrieved6 July2020.
  17. ^"Israel Launches Latest Generation Ofek Spy Satellite".Reuters.29 March 2023.Retrieved29 March2023.
  18. ^Stephen Clark (21 January 2008)."Covert satellite for Israel launched by Indian rocket".Spaceflight Now.Retrieved7 July2015.
  19. ^Stumpf, Waldo (December 1995 – January 1996)."South Africa's Nuclear Weapons Programme: From Deterrence to Dismantlement"(PDF).Arms Control Today.25(10).Arms Control Association:3–8.JSTOR23625371.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2 August 2017.Retrieved12 July2013.
  20. ^Iain McFadyen."The South African Rocket and Space Programme".Retrieved6 February2015.
  21. ^Guy Martin."Satellites for South Africa".Retrieved6 February2015.
  22. ^"RSA-3".Archived fromthe originalon 5 August 2014.Retrieved6 February2015.
  23. ^"RSA-4".Archived fromthe originalon 5 August 2014.Retrieved6 February2015.
  24. ^"South Africa".Archived fromthe originalon 25 April 2015.Retrieved6 February2015.
  25. ^ab"Israel Missile Update".The Risk Report.6(6).Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control.November–December 2000. Archived fromthe originalon 28 March 2010.Retrieved23 June2010.
  26. ^"LeoLink Incorporated to Market Shavit Derivatives".Space & tech Digest. Archived fromthe originalon 22 June 2011.Retrieved23 June2010.
  27. ^Wade, Mark."Shavit".Astronautix.Archived fromthe originalon 27 June 2010.Retrieved23 June2010.
  28. ^ab"Description",Israel,DE: Space rockets, archived fromthe originalon 6 February 2009.
  29. ^"Israel Studies Airborne Launch Scheme for Shavit Rocket".SpaceNews.Retrieved6 February2015.
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