Page 32 - Apollo Moonships

30 On bOard apOllO mOOnships
S–IC FIRST STAGE
Equipped with five engines, each with about 1.5 million pounds of thrust, the S-IC stage provided the first boost to the Saturn V and accelerated the rocket from 0 mph at the time of launch up to 6 000 mph before turning off at 38
miles of altitude. The engines were fed by two propellant tanks: the fuel tank contained 209 000 gallons of kerosene (RP-1), while the oxidizer tank held 334 000 gallons of liquid oxygen (LOX). The whole propellant was consumed in 150.7 seconds. The propellant tanks, situated one above the other, were made of aluminum alloy and were stiffened by ring baffles attached to their metal skin. The heaviest component of the stage was the thrust structure (24 tons), designed to support not only the five F-1 engines but also the fully loaded Saturn V rocket, which weighed approximately 6 million pounds. The thrust structure included the upper and lower thrust rings, which provided stability and operated as bearing frameworks; the four hold-down points that carried the weight of the launch vehicle; the five posts that held up the five F-1 engines; and the heat shield, which provided thermal protection for critical engine parts.
SATURN V S–IC STAGE CUTAWAY
1 F–1 engine (cluster of five engines)
2 Engine gimbal point
3 Lower thrust ring
4 Heat shield
5 Instrumentation
6 Outboard engine support
7 Engine fairing (4)
S–IC STAGE SIZE
8
7
6
5
9
2
3
Forward skirt
Oxidizer tank
13
15
16
17
12
11 10
1
4
14
18
138 feet
Intertank section
Fuel tank
33 feet
MAJOR STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS
19.48 feet
43.08 feet
1 THRUST STRUCTURE
2 FUEL TANK