Which rocket launched NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft in 1977?

The Titan IIIE-Centaur rocket launched NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft in 1977.

Voyager 1 lifted off from Cape Canaveral on 5 September 1977 aboard a three-stage Titan IIIE-Centaur. The powerful vehicle combined a Titan IIIE core and strap-on solid rocket motors with a Centaur upper stage, giving the spacecraft the energy needed for its ambitious trajectory toward Jupiter and Saturn.

Voyager 1 launched after Voyager 2, despite its lower mission number, because its faster trajectory allowed it to reach Jupiter first. Its launch window used a rare planetary alignment that enabled gravity assists, reducing the propellant the spacecraft needed to visit the outer planets.

The rocket is often confused with the Delta II, which launched several later planetary missions, including Mars Pathfinder. Titan IIIE-Centaur also launched Voyager 2 and the Viking Mars missions, making it one of the most important American heavy launch vehicles of the 1970s.