Soyuz 7
Encyclopedia
Soyuz 7 was part of a joint mission with Soyuz 6
and Soyuz 8
that saw three Soyuz spacecraft
in orbit together at the same time, carrying seven cosmonaut
s.
The crew consisted of commander Anatoly Filipchenko, flight-engineer Vladislav Volkov
and research-cosmonaut Viktor Gorbatko
, whose mission was to dock with Soyuz 8 and transfer crew, as the Soyuz 4
and Soyuz 5
missions did. Soyuz 6 was to film the operation from nearby.
However, this objective was not achieved due to equipment failures. Soviet sources later claimed that no docking had been intended, but this seems unlikely, given the docking adapters carried by the spacecraft, and the fact that the Soyuz 8 crew were both veterans of the previous successful docking mission. This was the last time that the Soviet manned Moon landing hardware was tested in orbit, and the failure seems to have been one of the final nails in the coffin of the programme.
The radio call sign of the spacecraft was , meaning blizzard, which years later was re-used as the name of the entirely different spaceplane Buran
. This word is apparently used as the name of an active or aggressive squadron in Soviet military training, and, just like the Soyuz 4
, it was constructed and trained to be the active or male spacecraft in its docking. Further, the word was probably chosen as it begins with the second letter of the alphabet.
Soyuz 6
Soyuz 6 was part of a joint mission with Soyuz 7 and Soyuz 8 that saw three Soyuz spacecraft in orbit together at the same time, carrying seven cosmonauts...
and Soyuz 8
Soyuz 8
Soyuz 8 was part of a joint mission with Soyuz 6 and Soyuz 7 that saw three Soyuz spacecraft in orbit together at the same time, carrying seven cosmonauts....
that saw three Soyuz spacecraft
Soyuz spacecraft
Soyuz , Union) is a series of spacecraft initially designed for the Soviet space programme by the Korolyov Design Bureau in the 1960s, and still in service today...
in orbit together at the same time, carrying seven cosmonaut
Astronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
s.
The crew consisted of commander Anatoly Filipchenko, flight-engineer Vladislav Volkov
Vladislav Volkov
Vladislav Nikolayevich Volkov was a Soviet cosmonaut who flew on the Soyuz 7 and Soyuz 11 missions. The second mission terminated fatally.-Biography:...
and research-cosmonaut Viktor Gorbatko
Viktor Gorbatko
Viktor Vasilyevich Gorbatko was a Soviet cosmonaut who flew on the Soyuz 7, Soyuz 24, and Soyuz 37 missions.After leaving the space program in 1982 he taught at the Air Force Engineering Academy in Moscow.-References:...
, whose mission was to dock with Soyuz 8 and transfer crew, as the Soyuz 4
Soyuz 4
Soyuz 4 was launched on January 14, 1969. On board the Soyuz 7K-OK spacecraft was cosmonaut Vladimir Shatalov on his first flight. The aim of the mission was to dock with Soyuz 5, transfer two crew members from that spacecraft, and return to Earth...
and Soyuz 5
Soyuz 5
Soyuz 5 was a Soyuz mission using the Soyuz 7K-OK spacecraft launched by the Soviet Union on January 15, 1969, which docked with Soyuz 4 in orbit...
missions did. Soyuz 6 was to film the operation from nearby.
However, this objective was not achieved due to equipment failures. Soviet sources later claimed that no docking had been intended, but this seems unlikely, given the docking adapters carried by the spacecraft, and the fact that the Soyuz 8 crew were both veterans of the previous successful docking mission. This was the last time that the Soviet manned Moon landing hardware was tested in orbit, and the failure seems to have been one of the final nails in the coffin of the programme.
The radio call sign of the spacecraft was , meaning blizzard, which years later was re-used as the name of the entirely different spaceplane 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...
. This word is apparently used as the name of an active or aggressive squadron in Soviet military training, and, just like the Soyuz 4
Soyuz 4
Soyuz 4 was launched on January 14, 1969. On board the Soyuz 7K-OK spacecraft was cosmonaut Vladimir Shatalov on his first flight. The aim of the mission was to dock with Soyuz 5, transfer two crew members from that spacecraft, and return to Earth...
, it was constructed and trained to be the active or male spacecraft in its docking. Further, the word was probably chosen as it begins with the second letter of the alphabet.
Crew
Backup Crew
Reserve Crew
Mission parameters
- Mass: 6570 kg (14,484.4 lb)
- Perigee: 210 km (130.5 mi)
- Apogee: 223 km (138.6 mi)
- Inclination: 51.7°
- Period: 88.8 min