Voskhod (rocket)
Russian rocket
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The Voskhod rocket (Russian: Восход, lit. 'ascent/dawn') was Soviet medium-lift launch vehicle, a derivative of the R-7, an ICBM. The Voskhod rocket was designed for the human spaceflight programme but later used for launching Zenit reconnaissance satellites.[1][2] It was essentially an 8K78/8K78M minus the Blok L stage and spec-wise was a halfway between the two boosters, with the former's older, lower-spec engines and the latter's improved Blok I design. Its first flight was on 16 November 1963 when it successfully launched a Zenit satellite from LC-1/5 at Baikonur. Boosters used in the Voskhod program had a man-rated version of the RD-0107 engine; this version was known as the RD-0108.[3]
 Voskhod rocket | |
| Function | Medium-lift launch vehicle |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | OKB-1 |
| Country of origin | Soviet Union |
| Size | |
| Height | 30.84 m (101.2 ft) |
| Diameter | 2.99 m (9.8 ft) |
| Mass | 298,400 kg (657,900 lb) |
| Stages | 3 |
| Capacity | |
| Payload to LEO | |
| Mass | 5,900 kg (13,000 lb) |
| Associated rockets | |
| Family | R-7 |
| Launch history | |
| Status | Retired |
| Launch sites | |
| Total launches | 300 |
| Success(es) | 287 |
| Failure | 13 |
| First flight | 16 November 1963 |
| Last flight | 29 June 1976 |
| Carries passengers or cargo | Voskhod spacecraft Zenit (satellite) |
| Boosters (First stage) – Block B, V, G & D[a] | |
| No. boosters | 4 |
| Powered by | 1 × RD-107 |
| Maximum thrust | 995.4 kN (223,800 lbf) |
| Total thrust | 3,981.6 kN (895,100 lbf) |
| Specific impulse | 257 s (2.52 km/s) |
| Burn time | 119 seconds |
| Propellant | LOX / RP-1 |
| Second stage (core) – Block A | |
| Powered by | 1 × RD-108 |
| Maximum thrust | 941 kN (212,000 lbf) |
| Specific impulse | 248 s (2.43 km/s) |
| Burn time | 301 seconds |
| Propellant | LOX / RP-1 |
| Third stage – Block I[b] | |
| Powered by | 1 × RD-0107 |
| Maximum thrust | 294 kN (66,000 lbf) |
| Specific impulse | 330 s (3.2 km/s) |
| Burn time | 240 seconds |
| Propellant | LOX / RP-1 |
Starting in 1966, the 11A57 adopted the standardized 11A511 core with the more powerful 8D74M first stage engines, however the Blok I stage continued using the RD-0107 engine rather than the RD-0110. Around 300 were flown from Baikonur and Plesetsk through 1976, almost all of them used to launch Zenit reconnaissance satellites (one exception was the Intercosmos 6 satellite in 1973).
The newer 11A511U core had been introduced in 1973, but the existing stock of 11A57s took another three years to use up.
The rocket had a streak of 86 consecutive successful launches between 11 September 1967 and 9 July 1970.
See also
Notes
- This is a transliteration of the second through fifth letters of the Cyrillic alphabet (Б, В, Г, Д). A sense-for-sense translation would correspond to the second through fifth letters of the Latin alphabet, 'Block B, C, D & E'.
- This is a transliteration of the tenth letter of the Cyrillic alphabet (И), which also carries the numerical value 10 in Cyrillic numerals. A sense-for-sense translation would use a Roman numeral, 'Block X'.