MVP Archive History | Apollo Archive Special 06 : F-1 ENGINE

Basic Information

Name: F-1 Rocket Engine
Manufacturer: Rocketdyne
Operational Period: 1967 – 1973
Application: Saturn V First Stage (S-IC)
Fuel: RP-1 (Kerosene)
Oxidizer: Liquid Oxygen (LOX)
Thrust: Approx. 680 tons

What is the F-1 Engine?

The F-1 engine is a liquid-fuel rocket engine that was mounted on the first stage of the Saturn V rocket used in the Apollo program.
Even today, it possesses one of the highest thrusts of any single-combustion chamber liquid-fuel rocket engine that has actually flown.
It was the driving force that sent humanity from Earth into space during the Apollo program.

Structure

The F-1 engine was composed of a massive combustion chamber, a nozzle, and a high-output turbopump.
It generates thrust by burning the fuel, RP-1, and liquid oxygen, and ejecting ultra-high-temperature, ultra-high-pressure gas from the nozzle.
While its structure may appear simple, it was a collection of extremely advanced technology for its time.

Relationship with Saturn V

Five F-1 engines were mounted on the first stage of the Saturn V.
At liftoff, all five were ignited simultaneously, reaching a total thrust of approximately 3,400 tons.
This immense thrust allowed the Saturn V, which exceeded 110 meters in total length, to leave Earth.

Performance

Thrust

Approx. 1.5 Million lbf (Approx. 680 tons)

Height

Approx. 5.8 m

Diameter

Approx. 3.7 m

Weight

Approx. 8.4 t

Burn Time

Approx. 150 seconds

Number of units

5 per Saturn V

What was achieved

The F-1 engine supported manned lunar exploration missions from Apollo 8 through Apollo 17.
It was also used for the launch of the Skylab space station.
Both humanity's first moon landing and the return of Apollo 13 began with a launch powered by F-1 engines.

Technical significance

The F-1 engine is not merely a large engine.
It was required to generate extremely high thrust while maintaining high reliability and stability.
The success of the Apollo program could not have been realized without the completion of this engine.
For this reason, it is still discussed today as one of the representative technical achievements in rocket engineering.

Afterward

After the Apollo program ended, the operation of the F-1 engine also concluded.
However, its design philosophy and development experience have been passed on to subsequent large rocket developments.
The actual hardware can still be seen in museums today, preserved as an engineering legacy that symbolizes the Apollo era.