Agate (rocket)
Template:Short description Template:Infobox rocketVE 110 Agate is the designation of an unguided French test rocket developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s.<ref name=":2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name=":1">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
It was part of the Pierres précieuses (fr.: gemstones) program, that included five prototypes Agathe, Topaze, Emeraude, Rubis and Saphir,<ref name=":1" /> leading up to the Diamant orbital rocket.
The Agate has a length of 8.50 metres, a diameter of 0.80 metres, a start mass of 3.2 tonnes, a takeoff thrust of 186 kN and a ceiling of 20 km. It used a NA801 Mammouth solid propellant rocket engine (same as the Rubis VE-210).<ref name=":0" />
The initial version was designated VE (Véhicule Expérimental) 110,<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":1" /> while the VE 110RR version was used to develop recovery procedures at sea.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> The name indicates that it is a "Véhicule Expérimental" (Experimental Vehicle) with 1 stage, using solid propulsion (code 1), and not guided (code 0).
- SEREB Agate Rubis rockets.gif
Agate and Rubis rockets
LaunchesEdit
The Agate was launched from the CIEES test site in Hammaguir, French Algeria, and the Île du Levant test site,<ref name=":0" /> in order to test instrument capsules and recovery systems.<ref name=":1" />
| Date | Launch Site | Launch Complex | Mission Description | Apogee (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 June 3 | Hammaguira | Hammaguira Bacchus | Test mission | 20 |
| 1961 June 7 | Hammaguira | Hammaguira Bacchus | Test mission | 20 |
| 1961 Nov 13 | Hammaguira | Hammaguira Bacchus | Test mission | 20 |
| 1961 Nov 17 | Hammaguira | Hammaguira Bacchus | Test mission | 20 |
| 1962 Mar 19 | Hammaguira | Hammaguira Bacchus | Test mission | 20 |
| 1962 Mar 23 | Hammaguira | Hammaguira Bacchus | Test mission | 20 |
| 1963 May 18 | Hammaguira | Hammaguira Brigitte | Test mission | 20 |
| 1963 May 21 | Hammaguira | Hammaguira Brigitte | Test mission | 20 |
| 1963 Nov 19 | Île du Levant | CERES | Failure | 0 |
| 1963 Nov 28 | Ile du Levant | CERES | Test mission | 20 |
| 1964 Feb 28 | Ile du Levant | CERES | Test mission | 20 |
| 1964 Apr 20 | Ile du Levant | CERES | Test mission | 20 |