RD-0410
Encyclopedia
RD-0410 was a Soviet nuclear thermal rocket
engine developed from 1965 through the 1980s using liquid hydrogen
propellant. The engine was ground-tested at the Semipalatinsk Test Site
, and its use was incorporated in the Kurchatov Mars 1994 manned mission proposal.
The hydrogen boost turbopump was designed by KBKhA.
Nuclear thermal rocket
In a nuclear thermal rocket a working fluid, usually liquid hydrogen, is heated to a high temperature in a nuclear reactor, and then expands through a rocket nozzle to create thrust. In this kind of thermal rocket, the nuclear reactor's energy replaces the chemical energy of the propellant's...
engine developed from 1965 through the 1980s using liquid hydrogen
Liquid hydrogen
Liquid hydrogen is the liquid state of the element hydrogen. Hydrogen is found naturally in the molecular H2 form.To exist as a liquid, H2 must be pressurized above and cooled below hydrogen's Critical point. However, for hydrogen to be in a full liquid state without boiling off, it needs to be...
propellant. The engine was ground-tested at the Semipalatinsk Test Site
Semipalatinsk Test Site
The Semipalatinsk Test Site was the primary testing venue for the Soviet Union's nuclear weapons. It is located on the steppe in northeast Kazakhstan , south of the valley of the Irtysh River...
, and its use was incorporated in the Kurchatov Mars 1994 manned mission proposal.
The hydrogen boost turbopump was designed by KBKhA.
Further reading
- Soviet Mars Propulsion - Nuclear Thermal astronautix.com
- Popular Mechanics article in Russian
- Russian article
See also
- NERVANERVANERVA is an acronym for Nuclear Engine for Rocket Vehicle Application, a joint program of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission and NASA managed by the Space Nuclear Propulsion Office until both the program and the office ended at the end of 1972....
, the American project for nuclear thermal propulsion