Shuttle Buran program
Encyclopedia
The Buran program was a Soviet
and later Russian reusable spacecraft
project that began in 1974 at TsAGI
and was formally suspended in 1993. It was a response to the United States
Space Shuttle program
. The project was the largest and the most expensive in the history of Soviet space exploration
. Development work included sending the BOR-5
on multiple sub-orbital test flights, and atmospheric flights of the OK-GLI
. Buran completed one unmanned orbital spaceflight in 1988 before its cancellation in 1993.
Although the Buran spacecraft was similar in appearance to the NASA
Space Shuttle, and could similarly function as a re-entry spaceplane
, the main engines during launch were on the Energia
rocket and not taken into orbit on the spacecraft. The Buran program matched an expendable rocket to a reusable spaceplane.
The Buran orbiter which flew the test flight was crushed in the Buran hangar collapse on May 12, 2002 in Kazakhstan. The OK-GLI resides in Technikmuseum Speyer.
The idea saw its first iteration in the Burya
high-altitude jet aircraft, which reached the prototype stage. Several test flights are known, before it was cancelled by order of the Central Committee
. The Burya
had the goal of delivering a nuclear payload, presumably to the United States, and then returning to base. The cancellation was based on a final decision to develop ICBMs. The next iteration of the idea was Zvezda from the early 1960s, which also reached a prototype stage. Decades later, another project with the same name was used as a service module for the International Space Station
. After Zvezda, there was a hiatus in reusable projects until Buran.
program. Soviet officials were concerned about a perceived military threat posed by the US Space Shuttle. In their opinion, the Shuttle's 30-ton payload-to-orbit capacity and, more significantly, its 15-ton payload return capacity, were a clear indication that one of its main objectives would be to place massive experimental laser weapons into orbit that could destroy enemy missiles from a distance of several thousands of kilometers. Their reasoning was that such weapons could only be effectively tested in actual space conditions and that in order to cut their development time and save costs it would be necessary to regularly bring them back to Earth for modifications and fine-tuning. Soviet officials were also concerned that the US Space Shuttle could make a sudden dive into the atmosphere to drop bombs on Moscow, despite the fact that such a scenario was not supported by physics.
While the Soviet engineers favored a smaller, lighter lifting body
vehicle, the military leadership pushed for a direct, full scale copy of the double-delta wing
Space Shuttle, in an effort to maintain the strategic parity between the superpowers.
NPO Molniya
conducted all development under the lead of Gleb Lozino-Lozinskiy
.
The construction of the shuttles began in 1980, and by 1984 the first full-scale Buran was rolled out. The first suborbital test flight of a scale-model (BOR-5
) took place as early as July 1983. As the project progressed, five additional scale-model flights were performed. A test vehicle was constructed with four jet engines mounted at the rear; this vehicle is usually referred to as OK-GLI
, or as the "Buran aerodynamic analogue". The jets were used to take off from a normal landing strip, and once it reached a designated point, the engines were cut and OK-GLI glided back to land. This provided invaluable information about the handling characteristics of the Buran design, and significantly differed from the carrier plane/air drop method used by the USA and the Enterprise
test craft. Twenty-four test flights of OK-GLI were performed after which the shuttle was "worn out".
of 1977, insisted that all Soviet space missions contain at least one crew member who has been to space before. In particular, in 1982, it was decided that all Buran commanders and their back-ups would occupy the third seat on a Soyuz mission, prior to their Buran spaceflight. Several people had been selected to potentially be in the first Buran crew. By 1985, it was decided that at least one of the two crew members would be a test pilot
trained at the Gromov Flight Research Institute
(known as "LII"), and potential crew lists were drawn up. Only two potential Buran crew members reached space: Igor Volk
, who flew in Soyuz T-12
to the space station Salyut 7
, and Anatoli Levchenko
who visited Mir
, launching with Soyuz TM-4
and landing with Soyuz TM-3
. Both Soyuz spaceflights lasted about a week.
conducted by a woman.
to Mir, and returned to Earth about a week later on Soyuz TM-3
. His mission is sometimes called Mir LII-1, after the Gromov Flight Research Institute
shorthand. Levchenko died of a brain tumour the following year, leaving the back-up crew again without spaceflight experience. A Soyuz spaceflight for another potential back-up commander was pursued by the Gromov Flight Research Institute, but such a spaceflight never occurred.
on 15 November 1988. It was lifted into orbit by the specially designed Energia
booster rocket. The life support system was not installed and no software was installed on the CRT
displays. The shuttle orbited the Earth
twice in 206 minutes of flight. On its return, it performed an automated landing on the shuttle runway at Baikonur Cosmodrome
.
The planned unmanned second flight of the Ptichka was changed in 1991 to the following:
After the first flight, the project was suspended due to lack of funds and the political situation in the Soviet Union. The two subsequent orbiters, which were due in 1990 (informally Ptichka
, meaning "birdie") and 1992 (Shuttle 2.01
) were never completed. The project was officially terminated on June 30, 1993 by President Boris Yeltsin
. At the time of its cancellation, 20 billion rubles
(roughly 71,534,000 USD) had been spent on the Buran program.
The program was designed to boost national pride, carry out research, and meet technological objectives similar to those of the U.S. shuttle program, including resupply of the Mir
space station, which was launched in 1986 and remained in service until 2001. When Mir was finally visited by a space shuttle, the visitor was a U.S. shuttle, not Buran.
The Buran SO, a docking module that was to be used for rendezvous with the Mir space station, was refitted for use with the U.S. Space Shuttles during the Shuttle-Mir missions.
in Kazakhstan
collapsed because of a structural failure
due to poor maintenance. The collapse killed 7 workers and destroyed the orbiter as well as a mock-up of an Energia booster rocket. It occurred at building 112 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome
, 14 years after its first and only flight. Work on the roof had begun for a maintenance project, whose equipment is thought to have contributed to the collapse. Also, preceding May 12 there had been several days of heavy rain.
of the U.S. Space Shuttles caused many to wonder whether the Russian Energia
launcher or Buran shuttle could be brought back into service. By then, however, all of the equipment for both (including the vehicles themselves) had fallen into disrepair or been repurposed after falling into disuse with the collapse of the Soviet Union
. However, because of the imminent retirement of the American space shuttle by 2010 and the need for STS-type craft in the meantime to complete the International Space Station, some American and Russian scientists had been mulling over plans to possibly revive the already-existing Buran shuttles in the Buran program rather than spend money on an entirely new craft and wait for it to be fully developed but the plans did not come to fruition. Recently there have been new interests in renewing the program temporarily while Russia struggles with the CSTS
and Kliper
design stages.
Dimensions
Propulsion
's, and because there were striking visual similarities between the two shuttle systems—a state of affairs which recalled the similarity between the Tupolev Tu-144
and Concorde
supersonic airliners—many speculated that Cold War
espionage
played a role in the development of the Soviet shuttle. Despite remarkable external similarities, many key differences existed, which suggests that, had espionage been a factor in Buran's development, it would likely have been in the form of external photography or early airframe designs. One CIA commenter, however, states that Buran was based on a rejected NASA design.
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and later Russian reusable spacecraft
Spacecraft
A spacecraft or spaceship is a craft or machine designed for spaceflight. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, earth observation, meteorology, navigation, planetary exploration and transportation of humans and cargo....
project that began in 1974 at TsAGI
TsAGI
TsAGI is a transliteration of the Russian abbreviation for Центра́льный аэрогидродинами́ческий институ́т or "Tsentralniy Aerogidrodinamicheskiy Institut", the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute....
and was formally suspended in 1993. It was a response to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Space Shuttle program
Space Shuttle program
NASA's Space Shuttle program, officially called Space Transportation System , was the United States government's manned launch vehicle program from 1981 to 2011...
. The project was the largest and the most expensive in the history of Soviet space exploration
Space exploration
Space exploration is the use of space technology to explore outer space. Physical exploration of space is conducted both by human spaceflights and by robotic spacecraft....
. Development work included sending the BOR-5
BOR-5
The BOR-5 flight vehicle was used to test the main aerodynamic characteristics, thermal and acoustic loads and stability for the Shuttle Buran program...
on multiple sub-orbital test flights, and atmospheric flights of the OK-GLI
OK-GLI
The OK-GLI was a test vehicle in the Buran program. It was constructed in 1984, and was used for 25 test flights between 1985 and 1988 before being retired. It is now an exhibition at the Technikmuseum Speyer in Germany.- Construction :The development of the Buran began in the late 1970s as a...
. Buran completed one unmanned orbital spaceflight in 1988 before its cancellation in 1993.
Although the Buran spacecraft was similar in appearance to the NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
Space Shuttle, and could similarly function as a re-entry spaceplane
Spaceplane
A spaceplane is a vehicle that operates as an aircraft in Earth's atmosphere, as well as a spacecraft when it is in space. It combines features of an aircraft and a spacecraft, which can be thought of as an aircraft that can endure and maneuver in the vacuum of space or likewise a spacecraft that...
, the main engines during launch were on the Energia
Energia
Energia was a Soviet rocket that was designed by NPO Energia to serve as a heavy-lift expendable launch system as well as a booster for the Buran spacecraft. Control system main developer enterprise was the NPO "Electropribor"...
rocket and not taken into orbit on the spacecraft. The Buran program matched an expendable rocket to a reusable spaceplane.
The Buran orbiter which flew the test flight was crushed in the Buran hangar collapse on May 12, 2002 in Kazakhstan. The OK-GLI resides in Technikmuseum Speyer.
Background
The Soviet reusable space-craft program has its roots in the very beginning of the space age, the late 1950s. The idea of Soviet reusable space flight is very old, though it was neither continuous, nor consistently organized. Before Buran, no project of the program reached production.The idea saw its first iteration in the Burya
Burya
The Burya was a trisonic, intercontinental cruise missile developed by the Lavochkin design bureau , based on a request for proposal issued by the Soviet government in 1954. The purpose of the design competition was to develop a cruise missile capable of delivering a nuclear payload to the United...
high-altitude jet aircraft, which reached the prototype stage. Several test flights are known, before it was cancelled by order of the Central Committee
Central Committee
Central Committee was the common designation of a standing administrative body of communist parties, analogous to a board of directors, whether ruling or non-ruling in the twentieth century and of the surviving, mostly Trotskyist, states in the early twenty first. In such party organizations the...
. The Burya
Burya
The Burya was a trisonic, intercontinental cruise missile developed by the Lavochkin design bureau , based on a request for proposal issued by the Soviet government in 1954. The purpose of the design competition was to develop a cruise missile capable of delivering a nuclear payload to the United...
had the goal of delivering a nuclear payload, presumably to the United States, and then returning to base. The cancellation was based on a final decision to develop ICBMs. The next iteration of the idea was Zvezda from the early 1960s, which also reached a prototype stage. Decades later, another project with the same name was used as a service module for the International Space Station
International Space Station
The International Space Station is a habitable, artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ISS follows the Salyut, Almaz, Cosmos, Skylab, and Mir space stations, as the 11th space station launched, not including the Genesis I and II prototypes...
. After Zvezda, there was a hiatus in reusable projects until Buran.
Development
The development of the Buran began in the early 1970s as a response to the U.S. Space ShuttleSpace Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
program. Soviet officials were concerned about a perceived military threat posed by the US Space Shuttle. In their opinion, the Shuttle's 30-ton payload-to-orbit capacity and, more significantly, its 15-ton payload return capacity, were a clear indication that one of its main objectives would be to place massive experimental laser weapons into orbit that could destroy enemy missiles from a distance of several thousands of kilometers. Their reasoning was that such weapons could only be effectively tested in actual space conditions and that in order to cut their development time and save costs it would be necessary to regularly bring them back to Earth for modifications and fine-tuning. Soviet officials were also concerned that the US Space Shuttle could make a sudden dive into the atmosphere to drop bombs on Moscow, despite the fact that such a scenario was not supported by physics.
While the Soviet engineers favored a smaller, lighter lifting body
Lifting body
A lifting body is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration in which the body itself produces lift. In contrast to a flying wing, which is a wing with minimal or no conventional fuselage, a lifting body can be thought of as a fuselage with little or no conventional wing...
vehicle, the military leadership pushed for a direct, full scale copy of the double-delta wing
Delta wing
The delta wing is a wing planform in the form of a triangle. It is named for its similarity in shape to the Greek uppercase letter delta .-Delta-shaped stabilizers:...
Space Shuttle, in an effort to maintain the strategic parity between the superpowers.
NPO Molniya
NPO Molniya
NPO Molniya is a Russian scientific and production enterprise, founded on February 26, 1976 prior to and for the creation of Shuttle Buran. At present, NPO Molniya carrying works on the reusable launch systems.- External links :*...
conducted all development under the lead of Gleb Lozino-Lozinskiy
Gleb Lozino-Lozinskiy
Gleb Evgeniyevich Lozino-Lozinskiy , December 25, 1909 – November 28, 2001) was a Russian and Ukrainian engineer, General Director and General Designer of the JSC NPO Molniya, lead developer of the Russian Spiral and Shuttle Buran programme, Doctor of Science, Hero of Socialist Labour, laureate of...
.
The construction of the shuttles began in 1980, and by 1984 the first full-scale Buran was rolled out. The first suborbital test flight of a scale-model (BOR-5
BOR-5
The BOR-5 flight vehicle was used to test the main aerodynamic characteristics, thermal and acoustic loads and stability for the Shuttle Buran program...
) took place as early as July 1983. As the project progressed, five additional scale-model flights were performed. A test vehicle was constructed with four jet engines mounted at the rear; this vehicle is usually referred to as OK-GLI
OK-GLI
The OK-GLI was a test vehicle in the Buran program. It was constructed in 1984, and was used for 25 test flights between 1985 and 1988 before being retired. It is now an exhibition at the Technikmuseum Speyer in Germany.- Construction :The development of the Buran began in the late 1970s as a...
, or as the "Buran aerodynamic analogue". The jets were used to take off from a normal landing strip, and once it reached a designated point, the engines were cut and OK-GLI glided back to land. This provided invaluable information about the handling characteristics of the Buran design, and significantly differed from the carrier plane/air drop method used by the USA and the Enterprise
Space Shuttle Enterprise
The Space Shuttle Enterprise was the first Space Shuttle orbiter. It was built for NASA as part of the Space Shuttle program to perform test flights in the atmosphere. It was constructed without engines or a functional heat shield, and was therefore not capable of spaceflight...
test craft. Twenty-four test flights of OK-GLI were performed after which the shuttle was "worn out".
Buran cosmonaut preparation
A rule, set in place because of the failed Soyuz 25Soyuz 25
Soyuz 25 was a 1977 Soviet manned space flight, the first to the new Salyut 6 space station, which had been launched 10 days earlier. However, the mission was aborted when cosmonauts Vladimir Kovalyonok and Valery Ryumin failed to engage the docking latches of the station despite five attempts...
of 1977, insisted that all Soviet space missions contain at least one crew member who has been to space before. In particular, in 1982, it was decided that all Buran commanders and their back-ups would occupy the third seat on a Soyuz mission, prior to their Buran spaceflight. Several people had been selected to potentially be in the first Buran crew. By 1985, it was decided that at least one of the two crew members would be a test pilot
Test pilot
A test pilot is an aviator who flies new and modified aircraft in specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques or FTTs, allowing the results to be measured and the design to be evaluated....
trained at the Gromov Flight Research Institute
Gromov Flight Research Institute
M. M. Gromov Flight Research Institute or LII for short is an important Russian aircraft test base, scientific research center located in Zhukovsky, 40 km south-east of Moscow.It has one of the longest runways in Europe at 5,403 m...
(known as "LII"), and potential crew lists were drawn up. Only two potential Buran crew members reached space: Igor Volk
Igor Volk
Igor Petrovich Volk was a cosmonaut and test pilot in the Soviet Union. He is married and has two children.Igor Volk was selected as a cosmonaut on July 30, 1980, flew as Research Cosmonaut on Soyuz T-12, the 7th expedition to Salyut 7...
, who flew in Soyuz T-12
Soyuz T-12
Soyuz T-12 was the seventh manned spaceflight to the Soviet space station Salyut 7. The name "Soyuz T-12" is also the name of the spacecraft used to launch and land the mission's three person crew. The mission occurred in July 1984, during the long-duration expedition Salyut 7 EO-3...
to the space station Salyut 7
Salyut 7
Salyut 7 was a space station in low Earth orbit from April 1982 to February 1991. It was first manned in May 1982 with two crew via Soyuz T-5, and last visited in June 1986, by Soyuz T-15. Various crew and modules were used over its lifetime, including a total of 12 manned and 15 unmanned launches...
, and Anatoli Levchenko
Anatoli Levchenko
Anatoli Semyonovich Levchenko was a Soviet cosmonaut....
who visited Mir
Mir
Mir was a space station operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, at first by the Soviet Union and then by Russia. Assembled in orbit from 1986 to 1996, Mir was the first modular space station and had a greater mass than that of any previous spacecraft, holding the record for the...
, launching with Soyuz TM-4
Soyuz TM-4
-Mission parameters:*Mass: 7070 kg*Perigee: 337 km*Apogee: 357 km*Inclination: 51.6°*Period: 91.5 minutes-Mission highlights:...
and landing with Soyuz TM-3
Soyuz TM-3
-Mission parameters:*Mass: 7100 kg*Perigee: 297 km*Apogee: 353 km*Inclination: 51.6°*Period: 91.0 minutes...
. Both Soyuz spaceflights lasted about a week.
Spaceflight of Igor Volk
Volk was planned to be the commander of the first Buran flight. There were two purposes of the Soyuz T-12 mission, one of which was to give Volk spaceflight experience. The other purpose, seen as the more important factor, was to beat the United States and have the first spacewalkExtra-vehicular activity
Extra-vehicular activity is work done by an astronaut away from the Earth, and outside of a spacecraft. The term most commonly applies to an EVA made outside a craft orbiting Earth , but also applies to an EVA made on the surface of the Moon...
conducted by a woman.
Spaceflight of Anatoli Levchenko
Levchenko was planned to be the back-up commander of the first Buran flight, and in March 1987 he began extensive training for his Soyuz spaceflight. In December 1987, he occupied the third seat aboard Soyuz TM-4Soyuz TM-4
-Mission parameters:*Mass: 7070 kg*Perigee: 337 km*Apogee: 357 km*Inclination: 51.6°*Period: 91.5 minutes-Mission highlights:...
to Mir, and returned to Earth about a week later on Soyuz TM-3
Soyuz TM-3
-Mission parameters:*Mass: 7100 kg*Perigee: 297 km*Apogee: 353 km*Inclination: 51.6°*Period: 91.0 minutes...
. His mission is sometimes called Mir LII-1, after the Gromov Flight Research Institute
Gromov Flight Research Institute
M. M. Gromov Flight Research Institute or LII for short is an important Russian aircraft test base, scientific research center located in Zhukovsky, 40 km south-east of Moscow.It has one of the longest runways in Europe at 5,403 m...
shorthand. Levchenko died of a brain tumour the following year, leaving the back-up crew again without spaceflight experience. A Soyuz spaceflight for another potential back-up commander was pursued by the Gromov Flight Research Institute, but such a spaceflight never occurred.
Orbital flight
The only orbital launch of the (unmanned) Buran shuttle 1.01 was at 3:00 UTCCoordinated Universal Time
Coordinated Universal Time is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is one of several closely related successors to Greenwich Mean Time. Computer servers, online services and other entities that rely on having a universally accepted time use UTC for that purpose...
on 15 November 1988. It was lifted into orbit by the specially designed Energia
Energia
Energia was a Soviet rocket that was designed by NPO Energia to serve as a heavy-lift expendable launch system as well as a booster for the Buran spacecraft. Control system main developer enterprise was the NPO "Electropribor"...
booster rocket. The life support system was not installed and no software was installed on the CRT
Cathode ray tube
The cathode ray tube is a vacuum tube containing an electron gun and a fluorescent screen used to view images. It has a means to accelerate and deflect the electron beam onto the fluorescent screen to create the images. The image may represent electrical waveforms , pictures , radar targets and...
displays. The shuttle orbited the Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
twice in 206 minutes of flight. On its return, it performed an automated landing on the shuttle runway at Baikonur Cosmodrome
Baikonur Cosmodrome
The Baikonur Cosmodrome , also called Tyuratam, is the world's first and largest operational space launch facility. It is located in the desert steppe of Kazakhstan, about east of the Aral Sea, north of the Syr Darya river, near Tyuratam railway station, at 90 meters above sea level...
.
Planned flights
The planned flights for the shuttles in 1989, before the downsizing of the project and eventual cancellation, were:- 1991 - Shuttle Ptichka unmanned first flight, duration 1–2 days.
- 1992 - Shuttle Ptichka unmanned second flight, duration 7–8 days. Orbital maneuvers and space station approach test.
- 1993 - Shuttle Buran unmanned second flight, duration 15–20 days.
- 1994 - Shuttle 2.01Shuttle 2.01Shuttle 2.01 was the third space shuttle vehicle of the Soviet Buran program, serial number 11F35 K3. 2.01's construction was not complete when the Buran program was ended , so it remains unfinished.- Differences from Shuttle Buran :...
first manned space test flight, duration of 24 hours. Craft equipped with life-support system and with two ejection seats. Crew would consist of only two cosmonauts with Igor VolkIgor VolkIgor Petrovich Volk was a cosmonaut and test pilot in the Soviet Union. He is married and has two children.Igor Volk was selected as a cosmonaut on July 30, 1980, flew as Research Cosmonaut on Soyuz T-12, the 7th expedition to Salyut 7...
as commander, and Aleksandr Ivanchenko as flight engineer. - Second manned space test flight, crew would consist of only two cosmonauts.
- Third manned space test flight, crew would consist of only two cosmonauts.
- Fourth manned space test flight, crew would consist of only two cosmonauts.
The planned unmanned second flight of the Ptichka was changed in 1991 to the following:
- December 1991 - Shuttle 1.02 - informally "Ptichka" unmanned second flight, with a duration of 7–8 days. Orbital maneuvers and space station approach test:
- automatic docking with MirMirMir was a space station operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, at first by the Soviet Union and then by Russia. Assembled in orbit from 1986 to 1996, Mir was the first modular space station and had a greater mass than that of any previous spacecraft, holding the record for the...
's KristallKristallThe Kristall module was the fourth module and the third major addition to the Mir space station. As with previous modules, its configuration was based on the 77K module, and was originally named "Kvant 3". It was launched on May 31, 1990 on a Proton rocket...
module - crew transfer from Mir to the shuttle, with testing of some of its systems in the course of twenty-four hours, including the remote manipulator
- undocking and autonomous flight in orbit
- docking of the manned Soyuz-TMSoyuz-TMThe Soyuz-TM crew transports were fourth generation Soyuz spacecraft used for ferry flights to the Mir and ISS space stations...
101 with the shuttle - crew transfer from the Soyuz to the shuttle and onboard work in the course of twenty-four hours
- automatic undocking and landing
- automatic docking with Mir
Cancellation (1993)
Shuttle Ptichka
Ptichka is an informal nickname for the second space shuttle to be produced as part of the Buran program. It was never officially named. It is also known as Shuttle 1.02. It is distinguishable from the other shuttles by a red framework attached to the top of its cargo bay doors.Ptichka was also...
, meaning "birdie") and 1992 (Shuttle 2.01
Shuttle 2.01
Shuttle 2.01 was the third space shuttle vehicle of the Soviet Buran program, serial number 11F35 K3. 2.01's construction was not complete when the Buran program was ended , so it remains unfinished.- Differences from Shuttle Buran :...
) were never completed. The project was officially terminated on June 30, 1993 by President Boris Yeltsin
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999.Originally a supporter of Mikhail Gorbachev, Yeltsin emerged under the perestroika reforms as one of Gorbachev's most powerful political opponents. On 29 May 1990 he was elected the chairman of...
. At the time of its cancellation, 20 billion rubles
Soviet ruble
The Soviet ruble or rouble was the currency of the Soviet Union. One ruble is divided into 100 kopeks, ....
(roughly 71,534,000 USD) had been spent on the Buran program.
The program was designed to boost national pride, carry out research, and meet technological objectives similar to those of the U.S. shuttle program, including resupply of the Mir
Mir
Mir was a space station operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, at first by the Soviet Union and then by Russia. Assembled in orbit from 1986 to 1996, Mir was the first modular space station and had a greater mass than that of any previous spacecraft, holding the record for the...
space station, which was launched in 1986 and remained in service until 2001. When Mir was finally visited by a space shuttle, the visitor was a U.S. shuttle, not Buran.
The Buran SO, a docking module that was to be used for rendezvous with the Mir space station, was refitted for use with the U.S. Space Shuttles during the Shuttle-Mir missions.
Buran hangar collapse
On May 12, 2002, the Buran hangarHangar
A hangar is a closed structure to hold aircraft or spacecraft in protective storage. Most hangars are built of metal, but other materials such as wood and concrete are also sometimes used...
in Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
collapsed because of a structural failure
Structural failure
Structural failure refers to loss of the load-carrying capacity of a component or member within a structure or of the structure itself. Structural failure is initiated when the material is stressed to its strength limit, thus causing fracture or excessive deformations...
due to poor maintenance. The collapse killed 7 workers and destroyed the orbiter as well as a mock-up of an Energia booster rocket. It occurred at building 112 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome
Baikonur Cosmodrome
The Baikonur Cosmodrome , also called Tyuratam, is the world's first and largest operational space launch facility. It is located in the desert steppe of Kazakhstan, about east of the Aral Sea, north of the Syr Darya river, near Tyuratam railway station, at 90 meters above sea level...
, 14 years after its first and only flight. Work on the roof had begun for a maintenance project, whose equipment is thought to have contributed to the collapse. Also, preceding May 12 there had been several days of heavy rain.
Status
As well as the five production Burans, there were eight test vehicles. These were used for static testing or atmospheric trials, and some were merely mock-ups for testing of electrical fittings, crew procedures, etc.| Image | Serial number | Construction Date | Usage | Current status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Space Flight Burans (Production vehicles) | ||||
| Shuttle OK-1K1 - "Buran" Shuttle Buran The Buran spacecraft , GRAU index 11F35 K1 was a Russian orbital vehicle analogous in function and design to the US Space Shuttle and developed by Chief Designer Gleb Lozino-Lozinskiy of Energia rocket corporation... (11F35 Grau Grau is a German word meaning "gray" and a Catalan word meaning "grade". It may refer to:* BAP Almirante Grau , a De Zeven Provinciën class cruiser in service with the Peruvian Navy* Grau Käse, Tyrolean grey cheese... K1) |
1986 | Unmanned flight (1988) | Destroyed in the Buran hangar collapse in 2002. | |
| http://www.aerospaceweb.org/question/spacecraft/buran/ptichka2.jpg | Shuttle OK-1K2 - informally "Ptichka" (11F35 K2) | 1988 | 95-97% completed, unused | Property of Kazakhstan Kazakhstan Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe... , at the Baikonur Cosmodrome Baikonur Cosmodrome The Baikonur Cosmodrome , also called Tyuratam, is the world's first and largest operational space launch facility. It is located in the desert steppe of Kazakhstan, about east of the Aral Sea, north of the Syr Darya river, near Tyuratam railway station, at 90 meters above sea level... , in the MIK Building. |
| http://www.aerospaceweb.org/question/spacecraft/buran/2.01-move2.jpg | Shuttle OK-2K1 Shuttle 2.01 Shuttle 2.01 was the third space shuttle vehicle of the Soviet Buran program, serial number 11F35 K3. 2.01's construction was not complete when the Buran program was ended , so it remains unfinished.- Differences from Shuttle Buran :... "Baikal" (?) (11F35 K3) |
1990? | Incomplete | Moved from Khimki Reservoir in Moscow Moscow Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent... to Zhukovsky Ramenskoye Airport Ramenskoye Airport , also known as Ramenskoye Airfield or Zhukovsky Airfield, is an airport in Moscow Oblast, Russia located 40 km southeast of Moscow and near the town of Ramenskoye. It serves as a major aircraft testing facility since the Cold War years with the majority of the major Russian... airfield in order to be prepared for the MAKS MAKS Airshow MAKS is an International Air Show held near Moscow, Russia on Zhukovskiy LII air field. The first show, Mosaeroshow-92, was held in 1992. Since 1993, it was renamed to its current name and is held on odd years .MAKS is an important event in Russian business... -2011 |
| http://www.aerospaceweb.org/question/spacecraft/buran/2.02-2.jpg | Shuttle OK-TK(?) Shuttle 2.02 2.02 is the number of the fourth built Soviet Shuttle Buran reusable space vehicles.In 1993, when the Soviet Space Shuttle program was stopped, 2.02 was in an early stage of construction... (11F35 K4) |
1991? | Incomplete | Partially dismantled, remains outside Tushino Machine Building Plant, near Moscow. |
| Shuttle 2.03 Shuttle 2.03 2.03 was the designation of the fifth Soviet Shuttle Buran reusable space vehicle.2.03 was a second series shuttle, as shown by the '2' in its number... (11F35 K5) |
1992? | Incomplete | Dismantled. | |
| Aero and Static Tester Burans (Mock-ups) | ||||
| http://www.k26.com/buran/assets/images/aok.jpg | OK-M (later OK-ML-1) | 1982 | Static test | Static test model: parts, normal temperature static loads, moment of inertia, payload mass, interface tests (horizontal and vertical) with the launch vehicle. Located at Baikonur Cosmodrome. |
| http://www.k26.com/buran/assets/images/aok-ks1.jpg | OK-KS (003) | 1982 | Static electrical/integration test | Static test model: electronic and electric. Located at the Energia factory S.P. Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation Energia OAO S.P. Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation Energia , also known as RKK Energiya, is a Russian manufacturer of spacecraft and space station components... in Korolev |
| http://www.k26.com/buran/assets/images/okmlt.jpg | OK-MT (later OK-ML-2) | 1983 | Engineering mock-up | Static test model: documentation, loading methods for liquids and gases, hermetic system integrity, crew entry and exit, manuals. Located at Baikonur Cosmodrome. |
 |
OK-GLI OK-GLI The OK-GLI was a test vehicle in the Buran program. It was constructed in 1984, and was used for 25 test flights between 1985 and 1988 before being retired. It is now an exhibition at the Technikmuseum Speyer in Germany.- Construction :The development of the Buran began in the late 1970s as a... (Buran Analog BTS-002) |
1984 | Aero test | Analogue aero test model. Completed 25 aero test flights and 9 taxi tests. Bought by the Technikmuseum Speyer, transported to Germany in 2008. |
| OK-??? (Model 005?) | Static test | Vibration and vacuum test vehicle. Location unknown. | ||
| http://www.buran.fr/bourane-buran/img/ok-tvi1-petit.jpg | OK-TVI | Static heat/vacuum testbed | Static test model: Environmental chamber heat/vacuum, thermal regimes. Location: NIIKhimMash, Moscow. | |
| OK-??? (Model 008?) | Static test | Vibration and vacuum test vehicle. Location unknown. | ||
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OK-TVA | Static test | Structural test vehicle: loads and stresses, heating and vibration. Located in Gorky Park Gorky Park (Moscow) Gorky Central Park of Culture and Leisure is an amusement park in Moscow, named after Maxim Gorky.-History:... , Moscow. |
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| Related Scale Models and Ships | ||||
| BOR-4 BOR-4 The BOR-4 flight vehicle is a scaled prototype of the Soviet Spiral VTHL spaceplane. An unmanned, subscale craft, its purpose was to test the heatshield tiles and reinforced carbon-carbon for the Buran space shuttle, then under development... |
1982–1984 | Sub-scale model of the Spiral Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-105 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-105 was a manned test vehicle to explore low-speed handling and landing.It was a visible result of a Soviet project to create an orbital spaceplane... space plane |
1:2 scale model of Spiral space plane. 5 launches. NPO Molniya, Moscow. | |
.jpg) |
BOR-5 BOR-5 The BOR-5 flight vehicle was used to test the main aerodynamic characteristics, thermal and acoustic loads and stability for the Shuttle Buran program... ("Kosmos") |
1983–1988 | Suborbital test of 1/8 scale model of Buran | 5 launches, none were reflown but at least 4 were recovered. NPO Molniya, Moscow. |
| Full-scale crew section | Medical-biological tests | |||
| GLI Horizontal Flight Simulator | Flight control software fine tuning | |||
| Wind tunnel models | Scales from 1:3 to 1:550 | 85 models built | ||
| Gas dynamics models | Scales from 1:15 to 1:2700 | |||
Future possibilities
The 2003 groundingSpace Shuttle Columbia disaster
The Space Shuttle Columbia disaster occurred on February 1, 2003, when shortly before it was scheduled to conclude its 28th mission, STS-107, the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated over Texas and Louisiana during re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere, resulting in the death of all seven crew members...
of the U.S. Space Shuttles caused many to wonder whether the Russian Energia
Energia
Energia was a Soviet rocket that was designed by NPO Energia to serve as a heavy-lift expendable launch system as well as a booster for the Buran spacecraft. Control system main developer enterprise was the NPO "Electropribor"...
launcher or Buran shuttle could be brought back into service. By then, however, all of the equipment for both (including the vehicles themselves) had fallen into disrepair or been repurposed after falling into disuse with the collapse of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. However, because of the imminent retirement of the American space shuttle by 2010 and the need for STS-type craft in the meantime to complete the International Space Station, some American and Russian scientists had been mulling over plans to possibly revive the already-existing Buran shuttles in the Buran program rather than spend money on an entirely new craft and wait for it to be fully developed but the plans did not come to fruition. Recently there have been new interests in renewing the program temporarily while Russia struggles with the CSTS
CSTS
CSTS or ACTS is a human spaceflight system proposal. It was originally a joint project between the European Space Agency and the Russian Space Agency , but is now solely an ESA project...
and Kliper
Kliper
Kliper is a partly reusable manned spacecraft, proposed by RSC Energia.Designed primarily to replace the Soyuz spacecraft, Kliper has been proposed in two versions: as a pure lifting body design and as spaceplane with small wings...
design stages.
Technical data
Mass breakdown- Mass of Total Structure / Landing Systems: 42,000 kg
- Mass of Functional Systems and Propulsion: 33,000 kg
- SSME 14,200
- Maximum Payload: 30,000 kg
- Maximum liftoff weight: 105,000 kg
Dimensions
- Length: 36.37 m
- Wingspan: 23.92 m
- Height on Gear: 16.35 m
- Payload bay length: 18.55 m
- Payload bay diameter: 4.65 m
- Wing glove sweep: 78 degrees
- Wing sweep: 45 degrees
Propulsion
- Total orbital maneuvering engine thrust: 17,600 kgf
- Orbital Maneuvering Engine Specific Impulse: 362 sec
- Total Maneuvering Impulse: 5 kgf-sec
- Total Reaction Control System Thrust: 14,866 kgf
- Average RCS Specific Impulse: 275-295 sec
- Normal Maximum Propellant Load: 14,500 kg
Comparison to NASA Space Shuttle
Because Buran's debut followed that of Space Shuttle ColumbiaSpace Shuttle Columbia
Space Shuttle Columbia was the first spaceworthy Space Shuttle in NASA's orbital fleet. First launched on the STS-1 mission, the first of the Space Shuttle program, it completed 27 missions before being destroyed during re-entry on February 1, 2003 near the end of its 28th, STS-107. All seven crew...
's, and because there were striking visual similarities between the two shuttle systems—a state of affairs which recalled the similarity between the Tupolev Tu-144
Tupolev Tu-144
The Tupolev Tu-144 was a Soviet supersonic transport aircraft and remains one of only two SSTs to enter commercial service, the other being the Concorde...
and Concorde
Concorde
Aérospatiale-BAC Concorde was a turbojet-powered supersonic passenger airliner, a supersonic transport . It was a product of an Anglo-French government treaty, combining the manufacturing efforts of Aérospatiale and the British Aircraft Corporation...
supersonic airliners—many speculated that Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
espionage
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
played a role in the development of the Soviet shuttle. Despite remarkable external similarities, many key differences existed, which suggests that, had espionage been a factor in Buran's development, it would likely have been in the form of external photography or early airframe designs. One CIA commenter, however, states that Buran was based on a rejected NASA design.
Key differences from the NASA Space Shuttle
- Buran was not an integral part of the system, but rather a payload for the Energia launcher. The orbiter had no main rocket engines, freeing space and weight for additional payload; the largest cylindrical structure is the Energia carrier-rocket, not just a fuel tankFuel tankA fuel tank is safe container for flammable fluids. Though any storage tank for fuel may be so called, the term is typically applied to part of an engine system in which the fuel is stored and propelled or released into an engine...
. In contrast, in the American Space Shuttle system, the three main engines on the rear of the orbiterOrbiterAn orbiter is a space probe that orbits a planet.-Asteroids:*NEAR Shoemaker...
comprise the second stage launch propulsion system, and the External Tank and twin boosters are not used to launch anything except an orbiter. - The main engines were mounted on the core Energia stage and thus destroyed when it burns up in the atmosphere, unlike the U.S. Space Shuttle which has reusable main engines in the orbiter. Both designs feature reusable boosters (although reusability was not demonstrated on Energia). There were some plans for constructing a fully reusable Energia carrier, but funding cuts meant that this was never completed.
- The boosters used liquidLiquidLiquid is one of the three classical states of matter . Like a gas, a liquid is able to flow and take the shape of a container. Some liquids resist compression, while others can be compressed. Unlike a gas, a liquid does not disperse to fill every space of a container, and maintains a fairly...
propellantPropellantA propellant is a material that produces pressurized gas that:* can be directed through a nozzle, thereby producing thrust ;...
(keroseneKeroseneKerosene, sometimes spelled kerosine in scientific and industrial usage, also known as paraffin or paraffin oil in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Ireland and South Africa, is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid. The name is derived from Greek keros...
/oxygenOxygenOxygen is the element with atomic number 8 and represented by the symbol O. Its name derives from the Greek roots ὀξύς and -γενής , because at the time of naming, it was mistakenly thought that all acids required oxygen in their composition...
). The Space Shuttle's boosters use solid propellant. - Buran's equivalent of the shuttle's Orbital Maneuvering System used GOX/Kerosene propellant, with lower toxicity and higher performance (a specific impulseSpecific impulseSpecific impulse is a way to describe the efficiency of rocket and jet engines. It represents the derivative of the impulse with respect to amount of propellant used, i.e., the thrust divided by the amount of propellant used per unit time. If the "amount" of propellant is given in terms of mass ,...
of 362 seconds) than the Shuttle's monomethyl hydrazine/nitrogen tetroxide OMS engines. - Energia was designed from the start to be configured for a variety of uses, rather than just a shuttle launcher. Other payloads than Buran, with mass as high as 80 metric tons, could be lifted to space by Energia, as was the case on its first launch. The heaviest configuration (never built) would have been able to launch 200 tons into orbit. (The Shuttle-CShuttle-CThe Shuttle-C was a NASA proposal to turn the Space Shuttle launch stack into a dedicated unmanned cargo launcher. This would use the Space Shuttle external tank and Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters , combined with a cargo module that would attach to Shuttle hardpoints and include the Space...
concept was a similar proposal to the Energia system, envisaged to complement the space shuttle by adapting its boosters and external tank for use with other vehicles, but it never moved beyond the experimental mock-up stage. The NASA Ares VAres VThe Ares V was the planned cargo launch component of the Constellation program, which was to have replaced the Space Shuttle after its retirement in 2011. Ares V was also planned to carry supplies for a human presence on Mars...
rocket, since canceled, was a similarly "shuttle-derived" idea.) - The Energia launch rocket was also capable of delivering a payload to the Moon. However, this configuration was never tested. The Space Shuttle was never intended to go beyond Low Earth orbitLow Earth orbitA low Earth orbit is generally defined as an orbit within the locus extending from the Earth’s surface up to an altitude of 2,000 km...
. - As Buran was designed to be capable of both manned and roboticRobotic spacecraftA robotic spacecraft is a spacecraft with no humans on board, that is usually under telerobotic control. A robotic spacecraft designed to make scientific research measurements is often called a space probe. Many space missions are more suited to telerobotic rather than crewed operation, due to...
flight, it had automated landingLandingthumb|A [[Mute Swan]] alighting. Note the ruffled feathers on top of the wings indicate that the swan is flying at the [[Stall |stall]]ing speed...
capability; the manned version was never operational. The Space Shuttle was later retrofitted with an automated landing capability; the equipment to make this possible was first flown on STS-121STS-121STS-121 was a space shuttle mission to the International Space Station flown by Space Shuttle Discovery. The main purposes of the mission were to test new safety and repair techniques introduced following the Columbia disaster of February 2003 as well as to deliver supplies, equipment and...
, but is intended only as a contingency, and was never used on any flight. - The orbiters were designed to carry two jet engines for increased return capability. Although they were not installed in the first orbiter for reason of weight limits on the first EnergiaEnergiaEnergia was a Soviet rocket that was designed by NPO Energia to serve as a heavy-lift expendable launch system as well as a booster for the Buran spacecraft. Control system main developer enterprise was the NPO "Electropribor"...
launcher, provisions exist in the structure for later retrofit. Although early designs of the NASA Space Shuttle also incorporated jet engines, the operation version landed as an unpowered glider, relying entirely on management of descent energy for landing. - The nose landing gear is located much farther down the fuselage rather than just under the mid-deck as with the NASA Space Shuttle.
- Buran could lift 30 metric tons into orbit in its standard configuration, comparable to the early Space Shuttle's original 27.8 metric tons
- Buran was designed to return 20 metric tons of payload from orbit, compared to 15 metric tons for the Space Shuttle orbiter.
- The drag chute was installed on Buran right from the start of the program as opposed to the Space Shuttle where the drag chute is added much later in the program.
- The lift-to-drag ratioLift-to-drag ratioIn aerodynamics, the lift-to-drag ratio, or L/D ratio, is the amount of lift generated by a wing or vehicle, divided by the drag it creates by moving through the air...
of Buran is cited as 6.5, compared to a subsonic L/D of 4.5 for the Space Shuttle. - The thermal protection tiles on the Buran and U.S. Space Shuttles are laid out differently. Soviet engineers believed their design to be thermodynamically superior.
- Buran was designed to be moved to the launch pad horizontally on special train tracks, and then erected at the launch site. This enabled a much faster rollout than the US Space Shuttle, which is moved vertically, and as such must be moved very slowly (less than one mile per hour, typically taking about 6 hours to move the Mobile Launch Platform supporting the Shuttle stack from the VAB to the launch pad on a Crawler-Transporter.)
- The booster rockets were not constructed in segments vulnerable to leakage through O-rings, which caused the destruction of ChallengerSpace Shuttle ChallengerSpace Shuttle Challenger was NASA's second Space Shuttle orbiter to be put into service, Columbia having been the first. The shuttle was built by Rockwell International's Space Transportation Systems Division in Downey, California...
. (Their liquid-fueled nature would make this design inapplicable.) However, the liquid fuel for the booster rockets (see above) would have made them less easy to prepare - and hold ready - for flight than solid rocket fuel in the Shuttle boosters and in addition represented a potential explosive hazard on the ground. - The manned version was intended to have a crew of ten as opposed to seven.
See also
- Manned space missions
- Unmanned space missions
- Space explorationSpace explorationSpace exploration is the use of space technology to explore outer space. Physical exploration of space is conducted both by human spaceflights and by robotic spacecraft....
- Space accidents and incidents
External links
- Buran entry at Encyclopedia AstronauticaEncyclopedia AstronauticaThe Encyclopedia Astronautica is a reference web site on space travel. A comprehensive catalog of vehicles, technology, astronauts, and flights, it includes information from most countries that have had an active rocket research program, from Robert Goddard to the NASA Space shuttle to the Soviet...
- Official website by the NPO "Molniya", makers of the Buran
- Detailed site on the Buran space shuttle
- Energia - all about the HLLV. Includes information about the Buran.
- Russian Aviation page
- Buran The Russian Shuttle - Gizmohighway Technology Guide
- German aviation museum acquires Buran test article for display (in German)
- Buran's first flight, lift-off video
- Aerospaceweb.org: Soviet Buran Space Shuttle Gorky Park, with OK-TVA clearly visible OK-GLI in Bahrain
- Buran Family overview
- RussianSpaceWeb.com
- Buran, The First Russian Shuttle at English Russia (photos, movie)
- The Soviet VKK (Vosdushno Kosmicheskiy Korabl) Space Shuttle Program
- Photo of collapsed Buran hangar
- Photo of Buran in collapsed hangar. The Buran's right front windshield is still visible under the debris.
