Aelita project
1969 Soviet project of a crewed flight to Mars
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Mars Expeditionary Complex (MEK), code name Aelita was a 1969 abandoned Soviet project of a crewed flight to Mars. It was named after the 1923 science fiction novel Aelita by Russian author Aleksey Tolstoy about a flight to Mars.[1][2][3][4][5]
| Manufacturer | OKB-1 |
|---|---|
| Designer | Konstantin Feoktistov |
| Country of origin | Soviet Union |
| Operator | Soviet space program |
| Applications | Crewed martian landing |
| Specifications | |
| Spacecraft type | Crewed spacecraft |
| Launch mass | 150,000 kg |
| Crew capacity | 3 - 6 |
| Dimensions | 175 m length 4.1 m wide |
| Power | Nuclear electric |
| Regime | Mars orbit |
| Design life | ~630 days |
| Production | |
| Status | Canceled |
| MPK (Mars Landing Craft (Martian descent/ascent) | |
The project considered a crew of three to six astronauts, with a total mission duration of 630 days.[2] Initially three design bureaus competed for mission design.[2]
The final version, by Chelomei, consisted of a 175 meter long MEK subdivided into the Mars Landing Craft (MPK), the Mars Orbit Spacecraft (MOK), Recovery Apparatus (VA), radiation shield, telescoping thermionic radiator booms, Power and Engine Section (YaERDU).[2]
See also
- Martian Piloted Complex, a 1956-62 Soviet project
