The diagrams which follow show the shape and dimensions of the Delta II Rocket. Two Delta II rockets will be used in 1996 to send Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Pathfinder on their way to the Red Planet. Delta II is built by McDonnell Douglas Aerospace.
The Mars Observer (lost in August 1993) used a Martin Marietta Titan III rocket to launch in September 1992. The Delta II is smaller than the Titan III, reflecting the fact that Mars Global Surveyor is smaller than its Mars Observer predecessor.
Mars Global Surveyor is set to launch from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, in November 1996.
Mars Pathfinder is set for launch in December 1996, also from the Kennedy Space Center.
For more information about the Delta II Rocket, see: "Delta's Dawn: The Making of a Rocket," by Louis Zea, Final Frontier, February - March 1995.
