The Cherokee was an experimental rocket built by the Cook Electric Co. for use by the United States Air Force during the 1950s for the testing of ejection seats.
| Function | Experimental rocket |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Cook Electric Co. |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Size | |
| Height | 7.6 metres (25 ft) |
| Diameter | 1,300 millimetres (51 in) |
| Mass | 2,000 kilograms (4,500 lb) |
| Stages | One |
| Launch history | |
| Status | Retired |
| Launch sites | Edwards Air Force Base Holloman Air Force Base |
| Total launches | 4 |
| Partial failure(s) | 4 |
| First flight | January 26, 1954 |
| Last flight | April 3, 1956 |
| First stage | |
| Powered by | 1 |
| Maximum thrust | 222 kN (50,000 lbf) |
| Burn time | 3 seconds |
| Propellant | Solid |
History
editMade from aluminum,[1] Cherokee was a blocky, simple design that was designed for air-launch from a B-29 bomber.[2] It was operated as part of Project Whoosh, an effort to determine if the use of ejection seats at supersonic speeds was feasible.[3]
Launched from the B-29 mothership at an altitude of 6 miles (9.7 km)[4] it would fire a solid-fueled rocket to accelerate to supersonic speed, at which point the ejection seat, containing an anesthetized chimpanzee as a test subject, would be fired.[3] The first test took place on January 26, 1954, at Edwards Air Force Base; another test in June was held before the project moved to Holloman Air Force Base, with two further tests being carried out in July 1955 and April 1956.[5] None of the four chimpanzees used in the tests survived due to difficulties with the ejection system, however the project was considered a partial success.[5]
References
edit- Citations
- ^ Ordway and Wakeford 1960, p.179.
- ^ Shinabery, Michael. "Whoosh failures were 'instructive' Archived 2014-05-17 at the Wayback Machine". October 26, 2008. Alamogordo Daily News. Accessed 2014-05-17.
- ^ a b Burgess and Dubbs 2006, p.107.
- ^ Parsch 2003
- ^ a b Bushnell 1958, p.56.
- Bibliography
- Burgess, Colin, and Chris Dubbs. Animals in Space: From Research Rockets to the Space Shuttle. 2006. New York: Springer Publishing. ISBN 978-0387360539.
- Bushnell, David. History of Research in Space Biology and Biodynamics at the U.S. Air Force Missile Development Center, Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico: 1946-1958 Archived 2015-05-01 at the Wayback Machine. Historical Division, Office of Information Services, Air Force Missile Development Center, Air Research and Development Command, Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico. 1958. Accessed 2014-05-17. ASIN B0019QSQ1E.
- Parsch, Andreas (2003). "Cook Cherokee". Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missiles, Appendix 4: Undesignated Vehicles. designation-systems.net. Retrieved 2014-05-17.