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Have to start this thread over as I deleted the original thread by accident.
The Centaur G/G Prime was two versions of the Centaur upper stage which today is flying on the Atlas V EELV. In this case, it was modified to be able to be launched on the Shuttle. The LH2 tank was enlarged from it's normal 10 ft diameter to 14 ft.
The primary difference between the G version and G Prime version was the LH2 tank length. The G version was 20 ft in length leaving 40 ft available for payloads. This was the version intended for GEO payloads.
The G Prime was the larger version at 29.6 ft leaving 30.4 ft available for payloads. This was the version intended for NASA interplanetary payloads such has Galileo, Ulysses and Magellan.
Only the G Prime version was ever constructed prior to the Challenger accident.
To house the Centaur in the payload bay of the orbiter, a special support system was designed, called the Centaur Integrated Support System (CISS).
The CISS carried the Deployment Adapter and the cryogenic plumbing used to support the Centaur stage while it was in the payload bay.
A special umbilical system was designed and constructed to service the Centaur hydrogen system, providing fill/drain and venting of the hydrogen tank. This umbilical system was called the Rolling Beam Umbilical System (RBUS).
The Centaur G/G Prime was two versions of the Centaur upper stage which today is flying on the Atlas V EELV. In this case, it was modified to be able to be launched on the Shuttle. The LH2 tank was enlarged from it's normal 10 ft diameter to 14 ft.
The primary difference between the G version and G Prime version was the LH2 tank length. The G version was 20 ft in length leaving 40 ft available for payloads. This was the version intended for GEO payloads.
The G Prime was the larger version at 29.6 ft leaving 30.4 ft available for payloads. This was the version intended for NASA interplanetary payloads such has Galileo, Ulysses and Magellan.
Only the G Prime version was ever constructed prior to the Challenger accident.
To house the Centaur in the payload bay of the orbiter, a special support system was designed, called the Centaur Integrated Support System (CISS).
The CISS carried the Deployment Adapter and the cryogenic plumbing used to support the Centaur stage while it was in the payload bay.
A special umbilical system was designed and constructed to service the Centaur hydrogen system, providing fill/drain and venting of the hydrogen tank. This umbilical system was called the Rolling Beam Umbilical System (RBUS).
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