payload
the part of a cargo producing revenue or income, usually expressed in weight.
the number of paying passengers, as on an airplane.
Aerospace, Military.
the bomb load, warhead, cargo, or passengers of an aircraft, a rocket, missile, etc., for delivery at a target or destination.
the total complement of equipment carried by a spacecraft for the performance of a particular mission in space.
the explosive energy of the warhead of a missile or of the bomb load of an aircraft: a payload of 50 megatons.
Origin of payload
1Words Nearby payload
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use payload in a sentence
Firefly's "Blue Ghost" lunar lander will deliver the payloads to the lunar surface in 2023 in fulfillment of the Commercial Lunar payload Services task order, the company said.
Rocket Report: Iran debuts new booster, SpaceX to launch Lunar Gateway | Eric Berger | February 12, 2021 | Ars TechnicaThe third party then responds with a much larger payload to the site the attackers want to take down.
DDoSers are abusing the Plex Media Server to make attacks more potent | Dan Goodin | February 5, 2021 | Ars TechnicaSpeaking of satellites, we’re poised to see Blue Origin launching a lot more of its own payloads into orbit once New Glenn can fly.
Blue Origin could definitely use more Jeff Bezos in the next decade | Neel Patel | February 4, 2021 | MIT Technology ReviewAstra offers launch services of payloads ranging from 50 to 150 kilograms or as much as 330 pounds, and expects to begin deliveries into space by the end of the year.
Rocket startup Astra to go public in race for commercial space | Hamza Shaban | February 2, 2021 | Washington PostIt’s a single-stage prototype, which can only carry 18 lbs of payload, and it’s designed to achieve suborbital space.
bluShift Aerospace launches its first rocket powered by biofuels | Darrell Etherington | February 1, 2021 | TechCrunch
There is, of course, cheapness to be considered -- the dollar per kilogram bill for putting a payload into low earth orbit.
Up to a Point: A 'Space Corvette' in Every Garage | P. J. O’Rourke | September 6, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe Delta IV can carry a larger payload into low earth orbit than the Atlas V, 60,779 lbs.
Why Does the USA Depend on Russian Rockets to Get Us Into Space? | P. J. O’Rourke | June 22, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe X-37B has a payload bay about the size of a pickup truck bed.
Will The Pentagon’s Secret Space Plane Ever Return to Earth? | Kyle Mizokami | April 7, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe Gripen was designed as a small aircraft with a relatively large payload.
The Planet’s Best Stealth Fighter Isn’t Made in America | Bill Sweetman | March 24, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThen I just have to “retrieve payload” from Coinapult, trot on back over to Blockchain and BAM!
But if they improve the rockets, manage to make room for a bigger payload, wouldn't it be cheaper?
This Crowded Earth | Robert BlochAnd I have only about twice the fuel supply you carry for a 100-ton payload.
Atom Drive | Charles Louis FontenayBut his hand moved over his pad and he made an impatient go-on gesture with his head, swallowing some of his payload.
Makers | Cory DoctorowBut those landing rockets and Lieutenant Commander Brown constituted all its payload.
Space Tug | Murray LeinsterOn the last payload trip of the Towle the pilot asked me if I wanted to go along, and of course I was delighted.
The First Airplane Diesel Engine: Packard Model DR-980 of 1928 | Robert B. Meyer
British Dictionary definitions for payload
/ (ˈpeɪˌləʊd) /
that part of a cargo earning revenue
the passengers, cargo, or bombs carried by an aircraft
the equipment carried by a rocket, satellite, or spacecraft
the explosive power of a warhead, bomb, etc, carried by a missile or aircraft: a missile carrying a 50-megaton payload
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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