Electrical Power

Silver oxide/zinc batteries supplied electrical power for the Scout vehicle. They provided high electric currents and weighed less than other types of batteries.  So that the cells would be fresh for the launch, the potassium hydroxide electrolyte was added to the cells only a few weeks prior to launch. To improve safety, remotely activated batteries were used for firing motor EED’s. A remotely (or auto) activated battery had a reservoir containing the electrolyte. To activate the battery, an EED was fired in the battery to set off a pressure cartridge that forced the electrolyte out of the reservoir and into the cells of the battery. Activation was done very late in the launch countdown when the checkout of the other systems was complete. The following table lists the batteries used in the SCOUT vehicle.

System Stage Activation No. Req. Amp-hrs Volts Fin hydraulic pump 1 Manual 1 15 28 Guidance electronics 3 Manual 1 3 28 Guidance reaction motors 3 Manual 1 1 37 Telemetry 3 Manual 1 3 28 Radar beacon 3 Manual 1 1 28 Ignition 3 Auto 2* 1 28 Auto destruct 1 Manual 2* 1 12 Auto destruct 2 Manual 2* 1 12 Destruct receiver 3 Manual 2* 1 28 Payload separation 4 Manual 2* 1 12

*Scout carried two identical ignition and destruct systems to increase reliability.

SCOUT LAUNCH VEHICLE DESCRIPTION

Motors and Structure
Flight Control
Sequencing the Flight Events
Stage Separation
Destruct System and Radar Beacon Command Destruct
Electrical Power
Launch History
Launch List