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Molniya-L
The Molniya (russian: Молния, meaning "lightning"), GRAU Index 8K78, was a modification of the well-known R-7 Semyorka rocket and had four stages. The 8K78 resulted from a crash program by the Korolev Bureau to develop a booster for launching planetary probes. A larger third stage was added along with a fourth stage (Blok L) that was designed to fire in-orbit to send the payload out of LEO. The basic R-7 core was also structurally strengthened and given more powerful engines. A rushed development produced multiple malfunctions of the upper stages, which led to its being replaced by the improved Molniya-M in 1964, but there were enough 8K78s left to continue flying them into 1967.The Soyuz Launch Vehicle: The Two Lives of an Engineering Triumph By Christian Lardier, Stefan Barensky, page 156 The Molniya also carried early Venera probes to Venus. Molniya (E6) was a minor revision adapted for launch of some Luna series space probes. Characteristics * Length: 43.440 m * Di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Luna Programme
The Luna programme (from the Russian word "Luna" meaning "Moon"), occasionally called ''Lunik'' by western media, was a series of robotic spacecraft missions sent to the Moon by the Soviet Union between 1959 and 1976. Fifteen were successful, each designed as either an orbiter or lander, and accomplished many firsts in space exploration. They also performed many experiments, studying the Moon's chemical composition, gravity, temperature, and radiation. Twenty-four spacecraft were formally given the Luna designation, although more were launched. Those that failed to reach orbit were not publicly acknowledged at the time, and not assigned a Luna number. Those that failed in low Earth orbit were usually given Cosmos designations. The estimated cost of the Luna programme in 1964 was US$6–10 billion. Mission types The name ''Luna'' was used to designate a variety of spacecraft designs, to achieve several types of missions: Impactors Impactor spacecraft are designed to h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
R-7 (rocket Family)
The R-7 family of rockets (russian: Р-7) is a series of rockets, derived from the Soviet R-7 Semyorka, the world's first ICBM. More R-7 rockets have been launched than any other family of large rockets. When Soviet nuclear warheads became lighter, the R-7 turned out to be impractical as a ballistic missile, and there were no other heavy payloads with a military application. However, long-term development has made the rockets useful in the Soviet, and later, Russian space programmes. Their purpose shifted primarily to launching satellites, probes, manned and unmanned spacecraft, and other non-threatening payloads. The R-7 family consists of both missiles and orbital carrier rockets. Derivatives include the Vostok, Voskhod and Soyuz rockets, which as of 2022 have been used for all Soviet, and later Russian human spaceflights. The type has a unique configuration where four break-away liquid-fueled engines surround a central core. The core acts as, in effect, a "second stage" af ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1963 In Spaceflight
Deep space rendezvous Notable creations of orbital debris Orbital launch summary By country By rocket By orbit References Footnotes {{DEFAULTSORT:1963 In Spaceflight Spaceflight by year ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Molniya-M
The Molniya-M (russian: Молния, meaning "lightning"), designation 8K78M, was a Soviet Union (later Russian) launch vehicle derived from the R-7 Semyorka Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). The original 8K78 booster had been the product of a rushed development program and its launch record was no better than the 8K72 Luna booster of 1958–1960. As 1962 ended, there had been 12 launches of 8K78s, 10 of which failed (five Blok L failures, four Blok I failures, and one failure caused by the Blok A core stage). The two successful launches had had their probes (Venera 1 and Mars 1) fail en route to their respective planetary targets. As such, work began at the Korolev Bureau to improve the basic 8K78 vehicle. The core and strap-ons engines were enhanced still further and the Kosberg Bureau completely redesigned the Blok I stage. The Blok L engine was also slightly enhanced. The first six 8K78Ms built used RD-0108 engines in the Blok I stage, which was also used in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national republics; in practice, both its government and its economy were highly centralized until its final years. It was a one-party state governed by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, with the city of Moscow serving as its capital as well as that of its largest and most populous republic: the Russian SFSR. Other major cities included Leningrad (Russian SFSR), Kiev (Ukrainian SSR), Minsk ( Byelorussian SSR), Tashkent (Uzbek SSR), Alma-Ata (Kazakh SSR), and Novosibirsk (Russian SFSR). It was the largest country in the world, covering over and spanning eleven time zones. The country's roots lay in the October Revolution of 1917, when the Bolsheviks, under the leadership of Vladimir Lenin, overthrew the Russian Provisional Government ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1973 In Spaceflight
1973 saw the launch of the first American Space station known as Skylab Skylab was the first United States space station, launched by NASA, occupied for about 24 weeks between May 1973 and February 1974. It was operated by three separate three-astronaut crews: Skylab 2, Skylab 3, and Skylab 4. Major operations in ... on a Saturn rocket. Launches , colspan=8, January , - , colspan=8, February , - , colspan=8, March , - , colspan=8, April , - , colspan=8, May , - , colspan=8, June , - , colspan=8, July , - , colspan=8, August , - , colspan=8, September , - , colspan=8, October , - , colspan=8, November , - , colspan=8, December , - Deep Space Rendezvous EVAs References Footnotes {{Orbital launches in 1973 Spaceflight by year ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1961 In Spaceflight
Overview Human spaceflight The first crewed spaceflight mission was Vostok 1 ("East 1"), carrying the 27-year-old Soviet cosmonaut, Yuri Gagarin, on 12 April 1961. The spacecraft completed one orbit around the globe, lasting about 1 hour and 48 minutes. On 5 May 1961, NASA astronaut Alan Shepard became the first American in space with his Freedom 7 spacecraft travelling on a suborbital trajectory. Unlike Vostok 1, the mission featured the first manual controlling of the spacecraft and the presence of the pilot within it during landing, the latter making it the first "completed" human spaceflight by formalistic interpretation of past Fédération Aéronautique Internationale The (; FAI; en, World Air Sports Federation) is the world governing body for air sports, and also stewards definitions regarding human spaceflight. It was founded on 14 October 1905, and is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland. It maintai ... definitions.() Deep Space Rendezvous N ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Venera 4V-2
Venera 4V-2 (russian: Венера 4В-2) was a series of two identical spacecraft sent to Venus by the Soviet Union, consisting of Venera 15 and Venera 16. Both unmanned orbiters were to map the surface of Venus using high resolution imaging systems. The spacecraft were identical and based on modifications to the earlier Venera space probes. Mission profile Venera 15 was launched on June 2, 1983, at 02:38:39 UTC, and Venera 16 on June 7, 1983, at 02:32:00 UTC. Venera 15 and Venera 16 both reached Venus' orbit (on October 10, 1983, and October 14, 1983, respectively). The two spacecraft were inserted into Venus orbit a day apart with their orbital planes shifted by an angle of approximately 4° relative to one another. This made it possible to reimage an area if necessary. Each spacecraft was in a nearly polar orbit with a periapsis ~1000 km, at 62°N latitude, and apoapsis ~65000 km, with an inclination ~90°, the orbital period being ~24 hours. In June 1984, Venus was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Voskhod Rocket
The Voskhod rocket (russian: Восход, ''"ascent"'', ''"dawn"'') was a derivative of the Soviet R-7 ICBM designed for the human spaceflight programme but later used for launching Zenit reconnaissance satellites. It consisted of the Molniya 8K78M third stage minus the Blok L. In 1966, all R-7 variants were equipped with the uprated core stage and strap-ons of the Soyuz 11A511. The Blok I stage in the Voskhod booster used the RD-0107 engine rather than the crew rated and more powerful RD-0110 used on the Soyuz. The sole exception to this were the two manned Voskhod launches, which had RD-0108 engines, a crew-rated RD-0107 but with the same performance. All 11A57s launched after 1965 were functionally a 11A511 without the Soyuz's payload shroud and launch escape system (with the exception of the second stage propulsion system as noted above). Around 300 were flown from Baikonur and Plesetsk through 1976 (various payloads, but Zenith IMINT satellites were the most common). T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Soyuz Launch Vehicle
The Soyuz (russian: Союз, meaning "union", GRAU index 11A511) was a Soviet expendable carrier rocket designed in the 1960s by OKB-1 and manufactured by State Aviation Plant No. 1 in Kuybyshev, Soviet Union. It was commissioned to launch Soyuz spacecraft as part of the Soviet human spaceflight program, first with 8 uncrewed test flights, followed by the first 19 crewed launches. The original Soyuz also propelled four test flights of the improved Soyuz 7K-T capsule between 1972 and 1974. In total it flew 30 successful missions over 10 years and suffered two failures. The Soyuz 11A511 type, a member of the R-7 family of rockets, first flew in 1966. Derived from the Voskhod 11A57 type, It was a two-stage rocket, with four liquid-fuelled strap-on boosters clustered around the first stage, with a Block I second stage. The first four test launches were all failures, but eventually it worked. The new, uprated core stage and strap-ons became standard for all R-7 derived launch v ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
