SM-65B Atlas

The SM-65B Atlas was the second developmental configuration of the Atlas intercontinental ballistic missile built for the United States Air Force by the Convair division of General Dynamics. It followed the Atlas A, which carried only the two booster engines and a dummy nosecone, and added a sustainer engine and a separable nosecone, so its propulsion system came close to operational capability. The B series was a flight test vehicle and never entered field service. Its first launch in July 1958 exploded soon after liftoff, but in November 1958 one B series missile flew about 6,000 miles down the Atlantic Missile Range. Atlas 10-B placed itself into orbit on 18 December 1958 carrying the Project SCORE payload, the first communications satellite and the first successful use of the Atlas as a space launch vehicle. The later Atlas C, D, E and F models carried the design forward toward deployed missiles.