Saphir is the name of a French elevator research rocket and means sapphire in French language. The Saphir was used between 1965 and 1967 and had a payload capacity of 365 kilograms. The rocket could reach a maximum height of 1000 kilometers, had a takeoff thrust of 280 kilonewtons, a takeoff weight of 18,058 metric tons, a diameter of 1.40 meters and a length of 17.77 meters. The later orbital Diamond rocket, which carried the first French satellite into the orbit, was developed based on the Saphir rocket.

[edit] References

• astronautix.com - The Saphir rocket