Sun Probe

Sun Probe (sometimes Sunprobe) was a space probe used to collect particles from around the sun.

If not for International Rescue, the Sun Probe mission would have been a disaster. Using an ion drive and a chemical rocket system, the Sun Probe's launch thrust of 20 million pounds gave it the acceleration to reach solar orbit in a week.

The three solarnauts, Colonel Harris, Asher and Camp remained aboard the Sun Probe while the nose cone was detached to collect the particles from a solar prominence and then retrieved. But because of the sun's high radiation levels and electromagnetic pulse particles, the Sun Probe's retros failed and the probe went on a collision course with the surface of the sun, which meant the Sun Probe, as well as all three solarnauts, would have been killed by its extreme heat.

Even Cape Kennedy's backup system couldn't stop the Sun Probe from heading straight for the sun. A safety beam activated from Thunderbird 3 managed to fire the retros, which allowed the Sun Probe to head back to Earth.

The red nose cone is constructed from cahelium and ceramic additives, and the fuel Toxerlene is developed from seawater.

History[]

Before the Launch[]

PP21 — Sir Jeremy (left) and Borender watch the launch of the Sun Probe in secret (*The Perils of Penelope*)

Sun Probe was originally designed by Griffiths Merridew, who had retained controls of the craft's onboard computer systems.

The spaceship was powered by Toxerlene, Professor Borender and Sir Jeremy Hodge's secret revolutionary new fuel, which is largely made from seawater. Borender had been working on the fuel for ten years before Hodge joined him to finish the project, and each credited the other with the fuel's success.

Solar Mission[]

Sp6 — The Sun Probe launches from Cape Kennedy (*Sun Probe*)

Sun Probe launched from Cape Kennedy, with Colonel Benson overseeing the launch at Solar Control.

Not long after the Sun Probe's launch, Doctor Godber kidnaps Borender so he can try to force Toxerlene's secrets from him - the events of which play out in The Perils of Penelope.

A week after the launch, Sun Probe arrives at the sun's orbit. The probe itself, the detachable nosecone of the craft, seperated from the main body and flew into a 'limb' of the sun, collecting solar matter as it did so, and succesfully rendezvoused with the rest of the ship. However, in doing so, the intense radiation locked the craft onto a collision course with the sun that they were unable to steer out of.

Back on Earth, Brains had realised the ship would get into trouble, and also that ground safety measures would also fail, owing to the intense radiation. Colonel Benson, trying and failing to recover the probe's course from Solar Control, is forced to plead for International Rescue's involvement in order the save the crew onboard.

International Rescue end up starting a two-pronged mission. Both Thunderbird 3 (short-range) and the Transmitter Truck (long-range) have the capability to remotely take control of the Sun Probe, and so both are launched to maximise the change of a successful rescue. It takes 65 hours for Thunderbird 3 to get into the right position in space.

Meanwhile, on board the Sun Probe, the solarnauts are still alive and are intensely aware of their fate, counting down the final 24 hours before the heat from the sun melts them to nothing. Thunderbird 3 gets close enough to get in radio contact with the Probe and reassure the crew that is rescue is taking place, but the rescuers realise they will have to go much closer to the sun than planned in order for their radio beam to reach.

Pushing Thunderbird 3 to the limit, they end up saving the Sun Probe, which safely returns to Earth. Thunderbird 3, on the other hand, finds itself also on a crash course, but the ground team in the Transmitter Truck manage to later save their colleagues.

Technical Data[]

Length: 363 feet
Weight: 2,580 tons
Fuel: Toxerlene
Total Delta Velocity: 30 miles per second (108,000 mph)
Standard Acceleration: 1 g
Maximum Acceleration Attained: 2 g
Emergency Acceleration: 5 g
Crew: 3
Designer: Griffiths Merridew

Engines[]

1 Rosenthal-Hodge Dynamics sustainer rocket
3 Rosenthal-Hodge Dynamics secondary rockets
4 retro rockets
16 attitude thrusters
Ion Drive: 24 Amalgamated Atomics Inc. TE-14 thrust modules

Crew[]

The Sun Probe is manned by a team of three solarnauts. Colonel Harris took the helm for the original mission, along with Asher and Camp.

Pressurized Cabin[]

The crew were in a pressurized cabin in the forward part of the rocket, situated behind the Probe Module.

Probe Module[]

The Probe Module was attached to the front of the Sun Probe, and was fired into a close orbit with the sun, to collect a piece of solar matter as it passes through the sun's prominence.

Launch Sequence[]

Main article: Sun Probe/Launch Sequence

Cutaway Drawings[]

Main article: History of the Cutaway Drawings (Classic Thunderbirds)

At least two cross-sections of the Sun Probe exist. Both were illustrated by Graham Bleathman. One appeared in World of Thunderbirds, and the other featured in a Redan comic in the 2000s.