Point Arguello (Spanish:Punta Argüello)[1][2] is aheadland on theGaviota Coast, inSanta Barbara County, California, near the city ofLompoc.[3] The area was first used by theUnited States Navy in 1959 for the launch of military and soundingrockets. It was transferred to theUnited States Air Force in 1964,[4] at which time it became part ofVandenberg Air Force Base.[5]
In 1769, the SpanishPortola expedition became the first Europeans to explore this area by land. Soldiers of the expedition named a nearby pointLos Pedernales orPunta Pedernales, because they found flints there.[6] The point was given that name on some early maps, but in 1792 British naval explorerGeorge Vancouver dubbed it Point Arguello forJosé Darío Argüello, aSpanish frontier soldier who was Commandant of thePresidio of Santa Barbara andacting governor ofAlta California.[7]
USS Edith wrecked off Point Argüello in 1849.[8]
AHigh-frequency direction finding (HFDF) was established here by the Navy duringWorld War II. These radio intercept sites alongthe coast could track Japanese warships and merchant marine vessels as far away as the Western Pacific. The other stations in California were atFarallon Islands, Point Saint George, and San Diego.Bainbridge Island, Washington also hosted a station.[9]
Rockets listed initalics were launched from the complex after its transfer to Vandenberg Air Force Base in 1964.
| Original Designation | Later Designation (Vandenberg Air Force Base, from 1966) | Rockets |
|---|---|---|
| LC-1-1 | SLC-3W | Atlas-Agena Thor-Agena Thorad-Agena Atlas E/F |
| LC-1-2 | SLC-3E | Atlas-Agena Atlas E/F Atlas H Atlas IIAS Atlas V |
| LC-2-3 | SLC-4W | Atlas-Agena Titan IIIB Titan 23G |
| LC-2-4 | SLC-4E | Atlas-Agena Titan IIID Titan 34D Titan IV Falcon 9 |
| PALC-A | N/A | Sounding rockets |
| PALC-B | N/A | Sounding rockets |
| LC-C | PLC-C | Sounding rockets |
| PALC-D | SLC-5 | Scout |
Launch Complex A orLC-A at the Point Arguello Naval Air Station inCalifornia,United States, subsequentlyPoint Arguello Launch Complex A orPALC-A at theVandenberg Air Force Base, is a launch complex that was used for a number ofsounding rocket launches between 1959 and 1966. It was originally built asLaunch Complex A orLC-A at thePoint Arguello Naval Air Station, and was subsequently transferred to Vandenberg Air Force Base as PALC-A following the merger of Point Arguello into Vandenberg AFB in 1964.
 Interactive map of Point Arguello Launch Complex A | |||||||||||
| Launch site | Point Arguello Vandenberg | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Location | 34°40′45″N120°35′32″W / 34.6791°N 120.5922°W /34.6791; -120.5922 | ||||||||||
| Short name | LC-A, PALC-A | ||||||||||
| Operator | US Air Force | ||||||||||
| Total launches | 39 | ||||||||||
| Launch pad | One | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Blue Scout Junior,Astrobee,Black Brant,DAC Roc,Honest John-Nike-Nike,Javelin,Journeyman,Nike-Asp andSeagull rockets were launched from the complex whilst it was active.
| Date/Time (GMT) | Rocket | Mission | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 14 July 1959, 17:45 | Nike-Asp | ||
| 17 July 1959, 17:40 | Nike-Asp | Failed | |
| 24 July 1959, 16:34 | Nike-Asp | ||
| 7 August 1959, 17:05 | Nike-Asp | ||
| 14 August 1959, 16:00 | Nike-Asp | ||
| 22 August 1959, 02:30 | Nike-Asp | ||
| 24 August 1959, 22:47 | Nike-Asp | ||
| 28 August 1959, 16:10 | Nike-Asp | ||
| 31 August 1959, 22:53 | Nike-Asp | ||
| 1 September 1959, 01:01 | Nike-Asp | ||
| 1 September 1959, 19:00 | Nike-Asp | ||
| 2 September 1959, 00:03 | Nike-Asp | ||
| 19 September 1960, 16:35 | Journeyman | ||
| 1 August 1961, 20:18 | Astrobee-1500 | ||
| 15 November 1961, 13:42 | Journeyman | ||
| 18 November 1961, 13:42 | Journeyman | ||
| 4 December 1961, 04:00 | Blue Scout Junior | O-2 | |
| 8 December 1961 | Astrobee-1500 | ||
| 31 May 1962, 17:08 | Blue Scout Junior SLV-1C | ERCS 279L-1 | |
| 9 July 1962 | Journeyman | ||
| 24 July 1962, 17:29 | Blue Scout Junior SLV-1C | ERCS 279L-2 | |
| 21 November 1962, 18:20 | Blue Scout Junior SLV-1C | ERCS 279L-3 | |
| 19 December 1962 | Blue Scout Junior SLV-1B | ||
| 2 February 1963, 06:56 | Blue Scout Jr SLV-1C | ERCS 279L-4 | |
| 12 February 1963, 01:47 | Journeyman | ||
| 14 March 1963, 01:01 | Blue Scout Junior SLV-1C | ERCS 279L-5 | |
| 17 May 1963, 23:00 | Blue Scout Junior SLV-1C | ERCS 279L-6 | |
| 1 July 1963 | Black Brant III | ||
| 24 October 1963 | DAC Roc | ||
| 7 November 1963 | Black Brant III | ||
| 18 November 1963 | Honest John-Nike-Nike | HAD-1 | |
| 10 December 1963 | DAC Roc | ||
| 20 December 1963 | Seagull | ||
| 6 February 1964 | Honest John-Nike-Nike | HAD-2 | Failed |
| 14 March 1964 | Honest John-Nike-Nike | HAD-3 | |
| 29 August 1964, 09:36 | Blue Scout Junior SLV-1B | ||
| 22 December 1964, 04:00 | Blue Scout Junior | Failed - premature third stage cutoff | |
| 19 March 1966, 12:31 | Javelin | HITAB-1 | |
| 25 March 1966, 09:42 | Javelin | HITAB-2 |
Launch Complex B orLC-B at the Point Arguello Naval Air Station inCalifornia,United States was a launch complex which was used for twenty threesounding rocket launches between 1960 and 1963.Astrobee-1500,Deacon-Arrow,Kiva-Hopi,Nike-Cajun,Nike-Viper,Terrier-Asp rockets were launched from the complex whilst it was active.
Interactive map of Launch Complex B | |||||||||||
| Launch site | Point Arguello | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Location | 34°40′11″N120°35′57″W / 34.6697°N 120.5993°W /34.6697; -120.5993 | ||||||||||
| Short name | LC-B | ||||||||||
| Operator | US Air Force | ||||||||||
| Total launches | 23 | ||||||||||
| Launch pad | One | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
The complex was transferred to theVandenberg Air Force Base as a result of a merger between it and Point Arguello in 1964, however by that time it was already inactive.
| Date/Time (GMT) | Rocket | Mission | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 February 1960 | Nike-Viper | ||
| 29 April 1960 | Nike-Viper | ||
| 27 June 1960 | Nike-Viper | ||
| 1 July 1960 | Deacon-Arrow | ||
| 8 July 1960 | Deacon-Arrow | ||
| 14 July 1960 | Deacon-Arrow | ||
| 20 July 1960 | Nike-Cajun | ||
| 12 August 1960 | Kiva-Hopi | ||
| 30 September 1960 | Nike-Viper | ||
| 12 October 1960 | Kiva-Hopi | ||
| 27 October 1960 | Kiva-Hopi | ||
| 21 November 1960 | Nike-Cajun | ||
| 22 November 1960 | Nike-Cajun | ||
| 6 December 1960, 18:44 | Kiva-Hopi | ||
| 14 December 1960 | Kiva-Hopi | ||
| 14 December 1960 | Kiva-Hopi | ||
| 16 December 1960 | Kiva-Hopi | ||
| 27 March 1961 | Deacon-Arrow | ||
| 14 March 1962 | Terrier-Asp | ||
| 9 July 1962 | Astrobee-1500 | Failed | |
| 5 August 1962 | Kiva-Hopi | ||
| 13 December 1962 | Terrier-Asp | ||
| 11 May 1963 | Kiva-Hopi |
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.| International | |
|---|---|
| Other | |
