List of Delta IV Heavy launches

Delta IV Heavy
	Delta IV Heavy launches from Vandenberg
Function	Orbital heavy-lift launch vehicle
Manufacturer	United Launch Alliance
Country of origin	United States
Cost per launch	US$350 million ; NRO: US$440 million
Cost per year	2018
Size
Height	72 m (236 ft)
Diameter	5 m (16 ft)
Width	270
Mass	733,000 kg (1,616,000 lb)
Stages	2+
Capacity
Payload to LEO
Mass	28,790 kg (63,470 lb)
Payload to GTO
Mass	14,220 kg (31,350 lb)
Associated rockets
Family	Delta IV
Comparable	Long March 5; Ariane 5; Falcon Heavy; Titan IV; Proton-M;
Launch history
Status	Active
Launch sites	Cape Canaveral, SLC-37B; VAFB, SLC-6;
Total launches	13
Success(es)	12
Partial failure(s)	1
First flight	21 December 2004 (USA-181)
Last flight	21 April 2021 (NROL-82)
Notable payloads	EFT-1; NRO classified payloads Kennen; Orion; ; Parker Solar Probe;
Boosters (CBC)
No. boosters	2
Length	40.8 m (134 ft)
Diameter	5.1 m (17 ft)
Empty mass	26,000 kg (57,000 lb)
Gross mass	226,400 kg (499,100 lb)
Propellant mass	200,400 kg (441,800 lb)
Engines	1 RS-68A
Thrust	3,140 kN (710,000 lbf)
Total thrust	6,280 kN (1,410,000 lbf)
Specific impulse	Sea level: 360 s (3.5 km/s); Vacuum: 412 s (4.04 km/s)
Burn time	242 seconds
Propellant	LH2 / LOX
First stage (CBC)
Length	40.8 m (134 ft)
Diameter	5.1 m (17 ft)
Gross mass	226,400 kg (499,100 lb)
Propellant mass	200,400 kg (441,800 lb)
Engines	1 RS-68A
Thrust	3,140 kN (710,000 lbf)
Specific impulse	Sea level: 360 s (3.5 km/s); Vacuum: 412 s (4.04 km/s)
Burn time	328 seconds
Propellant	LH2 / LOX
Second stage (DCSS)
Length	13.7 m (45 ft)
Diameter	5.1 m (17 ft)
Gross mass	30,700 kg (67,700 lb)
Propellant mass	27,220 kg (60,010 lb)
Engines	1 RL10-B-2
Thrust	110 kN (25,000 lbf)
Specific impulse	462 s (4.53 km/s)
Burn time	1125 seconds
Propellant	LH2 / LOX

Delta IV Heavy for Exploration Flight Test-1

The following is a list of Delta IV Heavy launches since 2004.

About the Delta IV Heavy[]

The Delta IV Heavy (Delta 9250H) is an expendable heavy-lift launch vehicle, the largest type of the Delta IV family and the world's second highest-capacity rocket in operation, behind SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket (in expendable configuration) and closely followed by CNSA's Long March 5 rocket.^[4]^[5] It is manufactured by United Launch Alliance and was first launched in 2004.^[6]

The Delta IV Heavy consists of a central Common Booster Core (CBC), with two additional CBCs as liquid rocket boosters instead of the GEM-60 solid rocket motors used by the Delta IV Medium+ versions. At lift off, all three cores operate at full thrust, and 44 seconds later the center core throttles down to 55% to conserve fuel until booster separation. The boosters burn out at 242 seconds after launch and are separated as the core booster throttles back up to full thrust. The core burns out 86 seconds later, and the second stage completes the ascent to orbit.^[3]

The rocket uses three RS-68 engines, one in the central core and one in each booster.^[7]

Launch statistics[]

2

2004

2010

2015

2020

Failure
Partial failure
Success
Scheduled

Launch history[]

hide
Flight	Date	Payload ^[8]	Mass	Launch site	Outcome ^[8]
1	21 December 2004	DemoSat, Sparkie / 3CS-1 and Ralphie / 3CS-2	~13,228 pounds (6000 kilograms)	Cape Canaveral, SLC-37B	Partial failure^[a]
2	11 November 2007	DSP-23 Defense Support Program	11,574 pounds (5,250 kilograms)	Cape Canaveral, SLC-37B	Success
3	18 January 2009	Orion 6 / Mentor 4 (USA-202 / NROL-26)	Classified	Cape Canaveral, SLC-37B	Success
4	21 November 2010	Orion 7 / Mentor 5 (USA-223 / NROL-32)	Classified	Cape Canaveral, SLC-37B	Success
5	20 January 2011	KH-11 Kennen 15 (USA-224 / NROL-49)	<37,479 pounds (17,000 kilograms)	Vandenberg, SLC-6	Success
6	29 June 2012	Orion 8 / Mentor 6 (USA-237 / NROL-15)	Classified	Cape Canaveral, SLC-37B	Success
7	26 August 2013	KH-11 Kennen 16 (USA-245 / NROL-65)	<37,479 pounds (17,000 kilograms)	Vandenberg, SLC-6	Success
8	5 December 2014	Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1)	46,297 pounds (21,000 kilograms) ^[9]^[b]	Cape Canaveral, SLC-37B	Success
9	11 June 2016	Orion 9 / Mentor 7 (USA-268 / NROL-37)	Classified	Cape Canaveral, SLC-37B	Success
10	12 August 2018	Parker Solar Probe^[c]	1,510 pounds (685 kilograms)	Cape Canaveral, SLC-37B	Success
11	19 January 2019	NROL-71	Classified	Vandenberg, SLC-6	Success
12	11 December 2020	Orion 10 / Mentor 8 (USA-268/ NROL-44)^[10]^[11]	Classified	Cape Canaveral, SLC-37B	Success
13	26 April 2021	KH-11 Kennen 17 (NROL-82)	41,800 pounds (19,000 kilograms)	Vandenberg, SLC-6	Success

Notes[]

^ CBCs underperformed, lower orbit than planned
^ The officially reported mass of 21,000 kg includes the Launch Abort System (LAS) which did not reach orbit, but excludes the residual mass of the upper stage, which did reach orbit, likely offsetting the mass of the LAS.
^ Star 48BV upper stage

References[]

^ "ULA CEO Tory Bruno". Twitter. Retrieved 12 February 2018. Delta IV Heavy goes for about $350M. That's current and future, after the retirement of both Delta IV Medium and Delta II.
^ "Delta IV Heavy". Spaceflight 101. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b "Delta IV Payload Planner's Guide, June 2013" (PDF). United Launch Alliance. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 July 2014. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
^ "Mission Status Center". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 26 July 2014. The ULA Delta 4-Heavy is currently the world's largest rocket, providing the nation with reliable, proven, heavy lift capability for our country's national security payloads from both the east and west coasts.
^ "Falcon Heavy, SpaceX's Big New Rocket, Succeeds in Its First Test Launch". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 February 2018. The Falcon Heavy is capable of lifting 140,000 pounds to low-Earth orbit, more than any other rocket today.
^ "Boeing Delta IV Heavy Achieves Major Test Objectives in First Flight" Archived 19 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine Boeing, 2004, accessed 22 March 2012
^ "Delta 4-Heavy likely heading for geosynchronous orbit with top secret payload". Spaceflight Now. 26 August 2020. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b Krebs, Gunter. "Delta-4". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
^ "NASA Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 PRESS KIT" (PDF). NASA. December 2014. p. 12. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
^ "Launch Schedule". Spaceflight Now. 27 October 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
^ "Launch Mission Execution Forecast". 45th Weather Squadron - Patrick Air Force Base. 30 October 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.

[9] CBCs underperformed, lower orbit than planned

[Orion_EFT-1-11] The officially reported mass of 21,000 kg includes the Launch Abort System (LAS) which did not reach orbit, but excludes the residual mass of the upper stage, which did reach orbit, likely offsetting the mass of the LAS.

[12] Star 48BV upper stage

[1] "ULA CEO Tory Bruno". Twitter. Retrieved 12 February 2018. Delta IV Heavy goes for about $350M. That's current and future, after the retirement of both Delta IV Medium and Delta II.

[sf1d4-2] "Delta IV Heavy". Spaceflight 101. Retrieved 26 July 2014.

[d4ppg-3] Jump up to: ^a ^b "Delta IV Payload Planner's Guide, June 2013" (PDF). United Launch Alliance. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 July 2014. Retrieved 26 July 2014.

[4] "Mission Status Center". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 26 July 2014. The ULA Delta 4-Heavy is currently the world's largest rocket, providing the nation with reliable, proven, heavy lift capability for our country's national security payloads from both the east and west coasts.

[5] "Falcon Heavy, SpaceX's Big New Rocket, Succeeds in Its First Test Launch". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 February 2018. The Falcon Heavy is capable of lifting 140,000 pounds to low-Earth orbit, more than any other rocket today.

[6] "Boeing Delta IV Heavy Achieves Major Test Objectives in First Flight" Archived 19 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine Boeing, 2004, accessed 22 March 2012

[SFN20200826-7] "Delta 4-Heavy likely heading for geosynchronous orbit with top secret payload". Spaceflight Now. 26 August 2020. Retrieved 27 August 2020.

[Gunter's_Space_Page-8] Jump up to: ^a ^b Krebs, Gunter. "Delta-4". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 15 March 2018.

[EFT1_press_kit-10] "NASA Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 PRESS KIT" (PDF). NASA. December 2014. p. 12. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.

[SFN20201027-13] "Launch Schedule". Spaceflight Now. 27 October 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2020.

[45th_Weather_Squadron-14] "Launch Mission Execution Forecast". 45th Weather Squadron - Patrick Air Force Base. 30 October 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.

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show v t Orbital launch systems
List of orbital launch systems Comparison of orbital launch systems
Current	Angara A5 Antares 230+ Ariane 5 Atlas V Ceres-1 Delta IV Heavy Electron Epsilon Falcon 9 Block 5 Falcon Heavy Firefly Alpha^† GSLV Mk II Mk III H-IIA Hyperbola-1 Jielong 1 Kuaizhou 1 1A 11^† Kaituozhe 2 LauncherOne Long March 2C 2D 2F 3A 3B/E 3C 4B 4C 5 5B 6 7 7A 8 11 Minotaur I IV V C OS-M1^† Pegasus XL Proton-M PSLV Qased Rocket 3^† Safir Shavit Simorgh^† Soyuz-2 2.1a / STA 2.1b / STB 2-1v Unha Vega Zenit 3SL 3SLB 3F Zhuque-1^†
In development	Agnibaan Amur Angara 1.2 Antariksh - 1 Ariane 6 Bloostar Chetak Cyclone-4M Eris Firefly Beta H3 Hyperbola-2 Irtysh Kuaizhou 21 31 Long March 921 rocket 9 Miura 5 Neutron New Glenn New Line 1 Nuri OS-M2 OS-M4 Orbex Prime Phoenix Red Dwarf SLV-1T SLV-VT SLS Block 1 Block 1B Block 2 Soyuz-7 SSLV Starship Terran 1 R Vega C Vega E Vikram - I Vikram - II Vikram - III Vulcan Zero Zhuque-2
Retired	Antares 110 120 130^† 230 Ariane 1 2 3 4 ASLV Athena I II Atlas B D E/F G H I II III LV-3B SLV-3 Able Agena Centaur Black Arrow Conestoga^† Delta A B C D E G J L M N 0100 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 II III IV Diamant Dnepr Energia Europa^† Falcon 1 Falcon 9 v1.0 v1.1 v1.2 "Full Thrust" Feng Bao 1 GSLV Mk I H-I H-II H-IIB Juno I Juno II Kaituozhe-1 Kosmos 1 2I 3 3M Lambda 4S Long March 1 1D^† 2A 2E 3 3B 4A Mu 4S 3C 3H 3S 3SII V N1^† N-I N-II Naro-1 Paektusan Pilot-2^† R-7 Luna Molniya M L Polyot Soyuz original FG L M U U2 Soyuz/Vostok Sputnik Voskhod Vostok L K 2 2M R-29 Shtil' Volna^† Saturn I IB V Scout SLV Space Shuttle SPARK^† Sparta SS-520 Start-1 Thor Able Ablestar Agena Burner Delta DSV-2U Thorad-Agena Titan II GLV IIIA IIIB IIIC IIID IIIE 34D 23G CT-3 IV Tsyklon original 2 3 Universal Rocket UR-500 Proton Proton-K Rokot Strela Vanguard VLS-1^† Zenit 2 2M
Classes	Sounding rocket Small-lift launch vehicle Medium-lift launch vehicle Heavy-lift launch vehicle Super heavy-lift launch vehicle
This Template lists historical, current, and future space rockets that at least once attempted (but not necessarily succeeded in) an orbital launch or that are planned to attempt such a launch in the future Symbol ^† indicates past or current rockets that attempted orbital launches but never succeeded (never did or has yet to perform a successful orbital launch)

show v t Orbital launch systems developed in the United States
Active	Antares 230+ Atlas V Delta IV Heavy Falcon 9 Block 5 Falcon Heavy Firefly Alpha LauncherOne Minotaur I IV V C Pegasus XL Astra Rocket 3
In development	Firefly Beta New Glenn Red Dwarf SLS Block 1 Block 1B Block 2 Starship Terran 1 R Vulcan
Retired	Antares 110/120/130/230** Athena I II Atlas B D E/F G H I II III LV-3B SLV-3 Able Agena Centaur Conestoga Delta A B C D E G J L M N 0100 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 II III IV Falcon 1 Falcon 9 v1.0 v1.1 v1.2 "Full Thrust" H-I* Juno I Juno II N-I* N-II* Pilot Saturn I IB V Scout Space Shuttle SPARK Sparta Thor Able Ablestar Agena Burner Delta DSV-2U Thorad-Agena Titan II GLV IIIA IIIB IIIC IIID IIIE 34D 23G CT-3 IV Vanguard
* - Japanese projects using US rockets or stages ** - uses Russian engines