The Soyuz launch vehicle is 50 years old

Modern version of the carrier rocket, "Soyuz 2.1a"

The history of the “Union” began a long time ago, not 50 years ago, but a bit earlier. A start was made by a resolution of the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR, which spoke of the need to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying a thermonuclear charge for a distance of 10 thousand kilometers. A few years later, the task was completed, and the rocket entered service in specially created rocket forces. And in 1959, the first launch of a two-stage rocket of type ICBM R-7A took place. Already after Yuri Gagarin flew into space, the USSR began to implement a program of longer flights. The problem was that the Voskhod rocket was not suitable for work in such a project. This missile was also deprived of an emergency crew rescue system, which could carry out saving actions for the team (shooting the compartment) in case of an emergency situation that threatens not only the lives of the pilots, but also personnel on the ground.

As a result, it was decided to develop a new launch vehicle of the middle class of the R-7 family. The Kuybyshev Branch 3 of the OKB-1 was responsible for the development and production. The development was led by Dmitry Pavlovich Kozlov and Sergey Pavlovich Korolev. The design of the rocket was created on the basis of the R-7A and Voskhod launch vehicles. The new three-stage booster received the index 11A511 and the name "Soyuz". It was used to launch Progress-type cargo ships and manned Soyuz-type spacecraft. The first launch was carried out exactly 50 years and 1 day ago, on November 28, 1966.

Total for the period from 1966 to 1976 32 launches of 11A511 launch vehicles were conducted from the Baikonur cosmodrome. 30 launches were successful. On the basis of the first carrier rocket, three modifications were subsequently developed: “Soyuz-L” - for conducting the testing of the lunar cabin of the N1-LZ rocket-space complex; Soyuz-M - for launching special purpose reconnaissance satellites of the Zenit-4MT type into near-earth orbit; and, subsequently, “Soyuz-U” - for launching into a near-earth orbit of spacecraft of the “Soyuz” and “Progress” type. Plus, the "Soyuz" was used to launch a variety of spacecraft, both domestic and foreign. Among them - the apparatus of the series "Cosmos", "Resource-F", "Photon", "Bion".
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11A511 Soyuz was also considered as a launch vehicle capable of sending a manned spacecraft to fly around the moon with a crew of two people. For this purpose, it was planned to use in a near-earth orbit a whole complex consisting of the manned spacecraft Soyuz-7A, the rocket upper stage Soyuz-9K and the tanker refueling machine Soyuz-11K. All these elements of the system were planned to be put into orbit with the help of a middle-class launch vehicle.



From the original PH 11A57 "Voskhod", the launch vehicle 11A511 "Soyuz" was distinguished by a modernized third stage unit , which increased the energy characteristics of the launch vehicle. Subsequently, other stages were modernized. Outwardly, they have not changed, but their design and capabilities were different from the original. Among other changes are the following:

• facilitated onboard cable network control systems and telemetry;
• the telemetry system on the side and center units has been replaced by a new system installed on block “A”;
• the inclination of the spacecraft's orbit to the equatorial plane was reduced from 64.8 ° to 51.5 °;
• the strength of some power elements of the first stage is increased, since under the new cyclogram their separation was provided for at an increased velocity head;
• due to the scatter of parameters, the 8D727 engines (RD-108) for block “A” were selected individually (specific thrust - at least 252 seconds at sea level);
• reduced the length of the block "And", facilitated its cable network;
• upgraded third stage control system.

The Soyuz launch vehicle itself is outwardly different from other launch vehicles. First of all, conical blocks of the first stage and a head fairing with four rectangles of lattice stabilizers. The emergency rescue system at the top of the rocket is also highlighted.

The length of the launch vehicle is no more than 50.67 m. It depends on the type of the launched spacecraft. As for the transverse size, it is measured by the ends of the air rudders. With this in mind, the cross section is 10.3 m. The starting mass is no more than 308 tons, the total mass of the fuel is no more than 274 tons. The so-called “dry” mass of the launch vehicle with transport cartridges and payload is not more than 34 tons, it depends, first of all, on the type of the launched spacecraft.

The Soyuz launch vehicle can develop a total thrust of 413 ts at sea level and more than 505 ts in vacuum. This rocket consists of these elements:

• the first stage, which consists of four starting accelerators - blocks “B”, “C”, “G” and “D”;
• the second stage, which consists of the central block "A";
• third stage - block "I";
• payload adapter, head fairing and crew rescue system.

The Soyuz launch vehicle 11A511 allows us to put into the low-Earth orbit payloads of up to 7.1 tons. In the design of the rocket, the modified engines of the two-stage MBR R-7A and the three-stage launch vehicle of the middle class Voskhod are used.

Emergency rescue system

As mentioned above, one of the main tasks facing the creators of the new launch vehicle was the development of an emergency crew rescue system. It was activated 15 minutes before the launch of the launch vehicle and could provide the crew rescue during the launch or during the flight, in any part of it.

The Soyuz launch vehicle, among other tasks, was to put spacecraft of the Soyuz program of the same name into Earth orbit. This ship consisted of three compartments. The first compartment is the orbital, then the instrument-aggregate and descent vehicle. This device was located in the middle of the ship, while the power element was located at the bottom. For this reason, the ship had to be taken away from the rocket to a safe place entirely, along with the head fairing.



To implement this plan, solid rocket engines of separation were installed on the wings of the head fairing. Their task was to remove the head unit with the crew. At the very top of the module there was a small-sized engine, which was supposed to take the head fairing to the side, immediately after the main solid-fuel engine of the compartment tripped. In turn, the solid-fuel propulsion system SAS consists of two multi-nozzle blocks of solid-fuel engines with four small control solid propellant rocket motors.

The ship itself was connected to the head fairing with three pillars that surrounded the descent vehicle, resting on the lower frame of the household compartment. In order for the ship to remain stable in flight, four grid stabilizers were installed on the head fairing. This scheme has become the base for the entire series of "Unions".

Characteristics of the Soyuz emergency rescue system:

• Length - 19,825 m;
• Maximum diameter - 3 m;
• Mass with a payload (Soyuz 7K-OK) - 8.51 t;
• Payload mass (Soyuz 7K-OK) - 6.56 t;
• Time of reset of the SAS engine installations - T + 157 seconds;
• The time of resetting the head fairing is T + 161 seconds.
• Mass of CAC: 1.95 t

The Soyuz launch vehicle had several modifications. In particular, two modifications were developed based on the 11A511 Soyuz: Soyuz-L and Soyuz-M. RN "Soyuz-L" differed somewhat unusual shape of the head fairing. With this booster was carried out three starts. Onboard were spacecraft "Cosmos-379", "Cosmos-398" and "Cosmos-434".

Another modification, the Soyuz-M, was created to put the 7K-VI military research ship into orbit. It was developed by teams of the Kuibyshev branch of TsKBEM and the Progress plant. With the help of this modification, eight special purpose spacecraft of the Orion Zenit-4M type were launched into space. These launches were made from the Plesetsk cosmodrome.

The next modification of Soyuz-U was developed in 1970-1973. It, first of all, was intended for launching manned and cargo Soyuz-type spacecraft and Progress transport unmanned spacecraft into Earth orbit. With the help of this modification, the Cosmos, Resource-F, Foton, Bion and several foreign spacecraft were launched into space. The main difference of this launch vehicle from the original is the presence of first and second stage engines with improved energy performance. This modification has become the safest and most sought after. It was launched 771 times.

The Soyuz-2 launch vehicle is a modernized version of Soyuz-U, created at TsSKB-Progress. A booster rocket is capable of launching from 2,800 to 9,200 kg into low Earth orbit, depending on the launch point.

The Soyuz-ST rocket launcher is a whole family of medium-class launch vehicles that are created on the basis of the Soyuz-2 rocket launcher specifically to support commercial launches from the Kourou space center. The main differences of this rocket from the basic version are an upgraded control system designed to receive telecom commands from the control center to stop the flight. In addition, the telemetry here is modified and modified specifically for European ground stations receiving telemetric information.

In 2001, the launch vehicle Soyuz-FG was launched. For 15 years, there have been 48 launches under the manned program and 10 launch campaigns with a payload.

Problem situations

There were a few, only two. The first incident occurred on December 14, 1966, when pyrozapal did not work when preparing the launch. Then the automatic control system canceled the launch, and the rocket remained at the start. The personnel of the cosmodrome began to carry out procedures for draining fuel. But 27 minutes after the launch was canceled, the ship rescue emergency system worked. Subsequently, it became clear that she remained active all this time. Due to the rotation of the Earth, the sensors recorded the angular deviation of the spacecraft, and the work of the emergency system began.

After that, the remainder of the launch vehicle started a fire due to the fact that the coolant spilled out of the pipelines. After separation of the head of the pipelines lost check valves. A series of explosions followed that damaged the equipment. Fortunately, most people left the danger zone. One person suffocated in the smoke, and two more died the next day from injuries.

The second incident happened on April 5, 1975. Then, when the ship was launched into orbit, a failure occurred and the automation "decided" to separate the ship from the carrier. The separation occurred at an altitude of about 150 kilometers above the surface of the Earth. The ship’s descent vehicle sat down near Gorno-Altaisk on the mountainside. The system rolled down the slope and stopped only because the astronauts did not shoot the parachute. He caught on a tree that grew at the very edge of the abyss. Crew rescued, no one died.

What now?

Booster "Soyuz" has undergone 10 modifications. Now the Soyuz-U launch vehicles are used to launch transport cargo ships. Moreover, the new missiles of this modification are not used. On December 1 of this year, the launch vehicle of the Soyuz-U modification with TGK Progress MS-04 will be launched.

It is worth highlighting the development of Soyuz-2.1a , the development of which began in the difficult 1990s for the Russian aerospace industry. The energy capabilities of this device have grown, plus specialists have been able to improve the accuracy of launching the spacecraft into orbit. In addition, the automated process of testing and prelaunch rockets. On the modernized Soyuz, engines were installed with improved injection heads, both in the first and second stages, plus a new telemetry system was introduced. The components of the rocket fuel of the main propulsion systems PH - liquid oxygen and kerosene (T-1).

A total of 1020 launches of "Unions" of various modifications were carried out. To launch the Soyuz, seven launch pads were created, of which three are located in Plesetsk, two at Baikonur, one at the Guiana Space Center, and one at the Vostochny cosmodrome.

On November 28, 2016, 23 launches of the Soyuz-2-1a and 21 launches of the Soyuz-2-1b took place.