Editing Launch pad (section)

== History ==

Precursors to modern rocketry, such as fireworks and rocket launchers, did not generally require dedicated launch pads. This was due in part to their relatively portable size, as well as the sufficiency of their casings in sustaining stresses. One of the first pads for a liquid-fueled rocket, what would later be named the [[Goddard Rocket Launching Site]] after [[Robert H. Goddard]]'s series of launch tests starting in 1926, consisted of a mount situated on an open field in rural Massachusetts. The mount consisted of a frame with a series of gasoline and liquid oxygen lines feeding into the rocket. 

It wasn't until the 1930s that rockets were increasing enough in size and strength that specialized launch facilities became necessary. The [[Verein für Raumschiffahrt]] in Germany was permitted after a request for funding in 1930 to move from farms to the [[Berlin rocket launching site]] ({{langx|de|Raketenflugplatz Berlin}}), a repurposed ammunition dump.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://history.msfc.nasa.gov/german/highlights.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070821043454/http://history.msfc.nasa.gov/german/highlights.html|archive-date=21 August 2007|title=Highlights in German Rocket Development|access-date=14 June 2016}}</ref> 

A test stand was built for liquid-propellant rockets in [[Kummersdorf]] in 1932, where the early designs from the [[Aggregat]] series of ballistic missiles were afterwards developed. This site was also the location of the first casualties in rocket development, when Dr. Wahmke and 2 assistants were killed, and another assistant was injured. A propellant fuel tank exploded, while experimenting with mixing 90% [[hydrogen peroxide]] and alcohol, before combustion.<ref name=walter>{{cite book |last1=Dornberger |first1=Walter |title=V-2 |date=1954 |publisher=The Viking Press, Inc. |location=New York |pages=27–42}}</ref>{{rp|35}}<ref name="wf">{{cite book |last1=Fleischer |first1=Wolfgang |title=The Wehrmacht Weapons Testing Ground at Kummersdorf |date=1997 |publisher=Schiffer Publishing Ltd. |location=Atglen |isbn=9780764302732 |pages=9–46}}</ref>{{rp|52–53}}

In May 1937, Dornberger, and most of his staff, moved to the [[Peenemünde Army Research Center]] on the island of [[Usedom]] on the [[Baltic Sea|Baltic]] coast which offered much greater space and secrecy. Dr. Thiel and his staff followed in the summer of 1940. Test Stand VI at Pennemünde was an exact replica to Kummersdorf's large test stand.<ref name=walter/>{{rp|56,60}}<ref name=wf/>{{rp|57}} It was this site which saw the development of the [[V-2 rocket]]. [[Test Stand VII]] was the principle testing facility at the [[Peenemünde Airfield]] and was capable of static firing rocket motors with up to 200 tons of thrust.

Launch pads would increase in complexity over the following decades throughout and following the [[Space Race]]. Where large volumes of exhaust gases are expelled during engine testing or vehicle launch, a [[flame deflector]] might be implemented to mitigate damage to the surrounding pad and direct exhaust. This is especially important with [[reusable launch vehicles]] to increase efficiency of launches while minimizing time spent refurbishing.