Orbital Minotaur-C User Manual

Minotaur-c, Overview, System features

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Small-Class

Overview

The Minotaur-C launch vehicle provides a cost-effective and reliable launch capability for satellites
weighing up to 3,500 pounds (1,590 kilograms). Minotaur-C is currently in production to support
U.S. Government and commercial customers. The versatility and flexibility of the Minotaur-C family of
vehicles provides the means to access space for a variety of payloads.

System Features

• Incorporates all solid propulsion stages and proven technologies to meet mission requirements

• Provides substantial payload performance into a variety of low inclination low-Earth orbit (LEO), polar

LEO, sun-synchronous LEO, geotransfer and interplanetary orbits

• Designed for easy transportability, rapid set-up and launch from austere launch sites

• Streamlined vehicle/payload integration and testing through simplified avionics interfaces and offline

payload encapsulation

• Compatible with the U.S. Air Force Western Range (WR), Eastern Range (ER), NASA’s Wallops Flight

Facility, Kodiak Launch Complex (KLC) and Reagan Test Site (RTS)

• Flight-proven heritage with single and multiple payloads

Minotaur-C incorporates advanced
structural and avionics technology
proven on Pegasus

®

and other

operational launch systems

FACTS AT A GLANCE

The Minotaur-C launch vehicle is a ground-
launched variant of Orbital’s highly successful
Pegasus

air-launched space booster.

Minotaur-C

Ground-Launched Space Launch Vehicle

LAUNCH

VEHICLE

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