The R-7 () rocket family is a series of launch vehicles descended from the Soviet

R-7 Semyorka The R-7 Semyorka (, GRAU index: 8K71) was a Soviet Union, Soviet missile developed during the Cold War, and the world's first intercontinental ballistic missile. The R-7 made 28 launches between 1957 and 1961. A derivative, the R-7A Semyorka, R ...

, developed in the 1950s as the world's first

intercontinental ballistic missile An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a ballistic missile with a range (aeronautics), range greater than , primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery (delivering one or more Thermonuclear weapon, thermonuclear warheads). Conven ...

(ICBM). While the R-7 proved impractical as a weapon, it became a cornerstone of the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and subsequent Russian space programs. Over time, its design was largely standardized into the Soyuz rocket, which continues to operate in its modernized form, the

Soyuz-2 Soyuz2 (; GRAU index: 14A14) is a Russian expendable medium-lift launch vehicle and the seventh major iteration of the Soyuz rocket family. Compared to its predecessors, Soyuz-2 features significant upgrades, including improved engines and ...

. More R-7 rockets have been launched than any other family of orbital rockets.

Background

The R-7, developed by

OKB-1 S.P. Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation "Energia" () is a Russian manufacturer of spacecraft and space station components. Its name is derived from the Russian word for energy and is also named for Sergei Korolev, Sergei Pavlovich Korolev, th ...

in Kaliningrad, a Soviet design bureau led by rocket pioneer

Sergey Korolyov Sergei Pavlovich Korolev (14 January 1966) was the lead Soviet rocket engineer and spacecraft designer during the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union in the 1950s and 1960s. He invented the R-7 Rocket, Sputnik 1, and w ...

, was the world's first intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). Initially designed to deliver nuclear warheads to American targets, it was first successfully tested on 21 August 1957. The R-7's basic design comprises a central core stage (Block A) and four strap-on boosters (Block B, V, G, and D), fueled by refined kerosene ( RG-1), mixed with cryogenic

liquid oxygen Liquid oxygen, sometimes abbreviated as LOX or LOXygen, is a clear cyan liquid form of dioxygen . It was used as the oxidizer in the first liquid-fueled rocket invented in 1926 by Robert H. Goddard, an application which is ongoing. Physical ...

(LOX) as the oxidizer. Its stage numbering differs from conventional rockets: the boosters are considered the first stage, and the core stage is the second, though they ignite simultaneously at liftoff. The boosters burn for approximately two minutes before jettisoning, while the core stage continues to burn for about five minutes. The R-7's impracticality as a weapon became quickly apparent. Its huge launch complexes were vulnerable to attack, the 10 hours it took to prepare for launch hindered its operational readiness, and its reliance on a

cryogenic In physics, cryogenics is the production and behaviour of materials at very low temperatures. The 13th International Institute of Refrigeration's (IIR) International Congress of Refrigeration (held in Washington, DC in 1971) endorsed a univers ...

oxidizer meant that it could not be left on alert for more than an hour. However, due to the weight of Soviet nuclear warheads, the R-7 possessed a significantly greater payload capacity than early U.S. ICBMs. This advantage made the R-7 suitable for space launch missions, giving the Soviet Union a substantial head start in the

Space Race The Space Race (, ) was a 20th-century competition between the Cold War rivals, the United States and the Soviet Union, to achieve superior spaceflight capability. It had its origins in the ballistic missile-based nuclear arms race between t ...

. An unmodified R-7 launched Sputnik 1, the world's first artificial satellite. With the addition of upper stages, the R-7 spawned numerous variants, each optimized for specific missions. The Vostok variant carried the first human into orbit, Yuri Gagarin. Other variants, such as

Luna Luna commonly refers to: * Earth's Moon, named "Luna" in Latin, Spanish and other languages * Luna (goddess) In Sabine and ancient Roman religion and myth, Luna is the divine embodiment of the Moon (Latin ''Lūna'' ). She is often presented as t ...

, Voshkod, and Molniya, were used for lunar probes,

reconnaissance satellites A reconnaissance satellite or intelligence satellite (commonly, although unofficially, referred to as a spy satellite) is an Earth observation satellite or communications satellite deployed for Military intelligence, military or espionag ...

, and

communications satellites A communications satellite is an artificial satellite that relays and amplifies radio telecommunication signals via a transponder; it creates a communication channel between a source transmitter and a receiver at different locations on Earth. ...

. Later modifications were standardized around multipurpose

Soyuz Soyuz is a transliteration of the Cyrillic text Союз (Russian language, Russian and Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, 'Union'). It can refer to any union, such as a trade union (''profsoyuz'') or the Soviet Union, Union of Soviet Socialist Republi ...

design, first used in 1966. Its modernized version, the

, continues to serve as a workhorse for the Russian space program. Production of the R-7 family moved to the Progress Aviation Factory in Samara, Russia, in 1959. Over time, complete responsibility for the entire R-7 family shifted from the main OKB-1 office in Kaliningrad to Samara. The design facilities in Samara evolved from an OKB-1 subsidiary into the independent Central Specialized Design Bureau (TsSKB) in 1974. TsSKB and the Progress factory collaborated on the design, development, and production of Soyuz rockets. In 1996, TsSKB and the Progress factory merged to form a single company, Rocket and Space Centre "Progress" (RKTs Progress). R-7 rockets are launched from the

Baikonur Cosmodrome The Baikonur Cosmodrome is a spaceport operated by Russia within Kazakhstan. Located in the Kazakh city of Baikonur, it is the largest operational space launch facility in terms of area. All Russian Human spaceflight, crewed spaceflights are l ...

Plesetsk Cosmodrome Plesetsk Cosmodrome () is a Russian spaceport located in Mirny, Arkhangelsk Oblast, near the town of Plesetsk, from which it takes its name. Until 2025 and the commissioning of the Andøya Space, Andøya base in Norway, it was the only operati ...

, and

Vostochny Cosmodrome The Vostochny Cosmodrome () is a Russian space launch facility in the Amur Oblast, located above the 51st parallel north in the Russian Far East. It was built to help reduce Russia’s reliance on the Baikonur Cosmodrome which is located on lan ...

and were previously launched from the

Guiana Space Centre The Guiana Space Centre (; CSG), also called Europe's Spaceport, is a spaceport to the northwest of Kourou in French Guiana, an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas region of France in South America. Kourou is located approxim ...

between 2011 and 2022.

Summary of variants

All the R-7 family rockets are listed here by date of introduction. Most of the early R-7 variants have been retired. Active versions (as of 2022) are shown in green.

Korolev Cross

The Korolev Cross is a visual phenomenon observed in the smoke plumes of the R-7 series rockets during separation of the four liquid-fueled booster rockets attached to the core stage.NASA TV coverage of Soyuz TMA-12 launch As the boosters fall away from the rocket, they pitch over symmetrically due to aerodynamic forces acting upon them, forming a cross-like shape behind the rocket. The effect is named after

Sergei Korolev Sergei Pavlovich Korolev (14 January 1966) was the lead Soviet Aerospace engineering, rocket engineer and spacecraft designer during the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union in the 1950s and 1960s. He invented the R-7 Sem ...

, the designer of the R-7 rocket. When the rocket is launched into clear skies, the effect can be seen from the ground at the launch site.

References

* *

External links

Rocket R-7
from S.P. Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation Energia, a Russian rocket and space contractor {{DEFAULTSORT:R-07 Space launch vehicles of the Soviet Union Soviet inventions Rocket families Space launch vehicles of Russia

Background

Summary of variants

Korolev Cross

See also

References

External links