V-4 (rocket launch)
V-4 was the first mostly-successful launch of the Aggregat 4 rocket, later known as Vergeltungswaffe 2 (V-2). The launch occurred on 3 October 1942 and the rocket reached an apogee of 84.5 km (52.5 mi), thereby becoming the first artificial object to reach both the mesosphere and the thermosphere, surpassing the apogee of 42.3 km (26.3 mi) set by the Paris gun in 1918.
| Mission type | Test launch |
|---|---|
| Operator | Wehrmacht |
| Apogee | 84.5 km (52.5 miles) |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | V-4 |
| Spacecraft type | A-4 |
| Manufacturer | Mittelwerk GmbH |
| Launch mass | 12,500 kg |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 3 October 1942 |
| Launch site | Peenemünde Army Research Center |
| End of mission | |
| Disposal | Impact |
| Destroyed | 3 October 1942 |
At the time, the V-4 launch was considered the first time a man-made object reached outer space ("Geburtstag der Raumfahrt" ("Birthday of spaceflight")). In 1960, the FAI set a space boundary at 100 km (62 mi) (the highest possible altitude where an aircraft can fly at less than orbital velocity in order not to stall) while the USAF, the NASA and the FAA consider 50 mi (80 km) the space boundary, the lower mesopause. The V-4 launch satisfied the present-day American definition, while it didn't cross the FAI's 100-km-line. The 100-km-boundary was established much later however, and the V-4 trajectory did reach the Kármán altitude range (83 km (52 mi) ~ 100 km (62 mi)[1]).