Soyuz programme
Encyclopedia
Human spaceflight
Human spaceflight is spaceflight with humans on the spacecraft. When a spacecraft is manned, it can be piloted directly, as opposed to machine or robotic space probes and remotely-controlled satellites....
programme that was initiated by 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....
in the early 1960s, originally part of a Moon landing
Moon landing
A moon landing is the arrival of a spacecraft on the surface of the Moon. This includes both manned and unmanned missions. The first human-made object to reach the surface of the Moon was the Soviet Union's Luna 2 mission on 13 September 1959. The United States's Apollo 11 was the first manned...
project intended to put a Soviet 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....
on the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
. It was the third Soviet
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....
human spaceflight
Human spaceflight
Human spaceflight is spaceflight with humans on the spacecraft. When a spacecraft is manned, it can be piloted directly, as opposed to machine or robotic space probes and remotely-controlled satellites....
programme after the Vostok
Vostok programme
The Vostok programme was a Soviet human spaceflight project that succeeded in putting a person into Earth's orbit for the first time. The programme developed the Vostok spacecraft from the Zenit spy satellite project and adapted the Vostok rocket from an existing ICBM design...
and Voskhod programme
Voskhod programme
The Voskhod programme was the second Soviet human spaceflight project. Two manned missions were flown using the Voskhod spacecraft and rocket, one in 1964 and one in 1965....
.
The programme consists of the 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...
and the Soyuz rocket and is now the responsibility of the Russian Federal Space Agency
Russian Federal Space Agency
The Russian Federal Space Agency , commonly called Roscosmos and abbreviated as FKA and RKA , is the government agency responsible for the Russian space science program and general aerospace research. It was previously the Russian Aviation and Space Agency .Headquarters of Roscosmos are located...
.
Soyuz rocket
Expendable launch system
An expendable launch system is a launch system that uses an expendable launch vehicle to carry a payload into space. The vehicles used in expendable launch systems are designed to be used only once , and their components are not recovered for re-use after launch...
are manufactured at the Progress State Research and Production Rocket Space Center
Progress State Research and Production Rocket Space Center
The Progress State Research and Production Space Centre is a Russian "Federal State Unitary Enterprise" under the jurisdiction of Roscosmos, the Russian Federal Space Agency responsible for space science and aerospace research...
(TsSKB-Progress) in Samara, Russia
Samara, Russia
Samara , is the sixth largest city in Russia. It is situated in the southeastern part of European Russia at the confluence of the Volga and Samara Rivers. Samara is the administrative center of Samara Oblast. Population: . The metropolitan area of Samara-Tolyatti-Syzran within Samara Oblast...
. As well as being used in the Soyuz programme as the launcher for the manned Soyuz spacecraft, Soyuz launch vehicles are now also used to launch unmanned Progress supply spacecraft
Progress spacecraft
The Progress is a Russian expendable freighter spacecraft. The spacecraft is an unmanned resupply spacecraft during its flight but upon docking with a space station, it allows astronauts inside, hence it is classified manned by the manufacturer. It was derived from the Soyuz spacecraft, and is...
to 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...
and commercial launches marketed and operated by TsSKB-Progress and the Starsem
Starsem
Starsem is a European-Russian company that was created in 1996 to commercialise the Soyuz launcher. Starsem is headquartered in Évry, France and has the following shareholders:* Russian Federal Space Agency...
company. There were 11 Soyuz launches in 2001 and 9 in 2002. Currently Soyuz vehicles are launched from 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 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...
and the Plesetsk Cosmodrome
Plesetsk Cosmodrome
Plesetsk Cosmodrome is a Russian spaceport, located in Arkhangelsk Oblast, about 800 km north of Moscow and approximately 200 km south of Arkhangelsk.-Overview:...
in northwest Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and, starting in 2011, Soyuz launch vehicles can now also be launched from the Guiana Space Centre in French Guiana
French Guiana
French Guiana is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department located on the northern Atlantic coast of South America. It has borders with two nations, Brazil to the east and south, and Suriname to the west...
. The first launch from the Guiana space centre took place on 21 October 2011.
Soyuz spacecraft
The basic Soyuz spacecraftSoyuz 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...
design was the basis for many projects, many of which never came to light. Its earliest form was intended to travel to the moon without employing a huge booster like the Saturn V
Saturn V
The Saturn V was an American human-rated expendable rocket used by NASA's Apollo and Skylab programs from 1967 until 1973. A multistage liquid-fueled launch vehicle, NASA launched 13 Saturn Vs from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida with no loss of crew or payload...
or the Soviet N-1
N1 rocket
N-1 was a heavy lift rocket intended to deliver payloads beyond low Earth orbit, acting as the Soviet counterpart to the NASA Saturn V rocket. This heavy lift booster had the capability of lifting very heavy loads into orbit, designed with manned extra-orbital travel in mind...
by repeatedly docking with upper stages that had been put in orbit using the same rocket as the Soyuz. This and the initial civilian designs were done under the Soviet Chief Designer Sergei Pavlovich Korolev, who did not live to see the craft take flight. Several military derivatives took precedence in the Soviet design process, though they never came to pass.
A Soyuz spacecraft consists of three parts (from front to back):
- a spheroid orbital moduleOrbital moduleThe orbital module is a portion of spacecraft used only in orbit. These have developed from the Soviet Soyuz spacecraft.-Soyuz orbit module:The orbit module is a spherical part of Soviet-Russian Soyuz space ship series...
- a small aerodynamic reentry module
- a cylindrical service moduleService moduleA service module is a spacecraft compartment containing a variety of support systems used for spacecraft operations. Usually located in the uninhabited area of the spacecraft, the service module is jettisoned upon the completion of the mission, and usually burns up during atmospheric reentry...
with solar panels attached
There are several variants of the Soyuz spacecraft, including:
- Soyuz ASoyuz ASergei Korolev initially promoted the Soyuz A-B-V circumlunar complex concept in which a two-man craft Soyuz 7K would rendezvous with other components in Earth orbit to assemble a lunar excursion vehicle, the components being delivered by the proven R-7 rocket...
7K-9K-11K circumlunar complex proposal(1963) - Soyuz 7K-OKSoyuz 7K-OKThe manned Soyuz spacecraft can be classified into design generations. Soyuz 1 through Soyuz 11 were first-generation vehicles, carrying a crew of up to three without spacesuits and distinguished from those following by their bent solar panels and their use of the Igla automatic docking navigation...
(1967-1971)- Soyuz 7K-L1Soyuz 7K-L1The Soyuz 7K-L1 spacecraft was designed to launch men from the Earth to circle the Moon without going into lunar orbit in the context of the Soviet manned moon-flyby program in Moon race. It was based on the Soyuz 7K-OK with several components stripped out to reduce the vehicle weight...
Zond (1967-1970) - Soyuz 7K-L3Soyuz 7K-L3The Soyuz 7K-LOK, or simply LOK was a Soviet spacecraft designed to launch men from Earth to circle the moon and developed in parallel to the 7K-L1. The LOK would carry two cosmonauts into orbit around the Moon, acting as "mother" spacecraft for the LK Lander, which would land one member of the...
LOK - Soyuz 7K-OKSSoyuz 7K-OKSSoyuz 7K-OKS version of the Soyuz spacecraft was designed for space station flights and had a docking port that allowed internal transfer between spacecraft. It flew only twice manned in 1971...
(1971)- Soyuz 7K-TSoyuz 7K-TThe second generation of the Soyuz spacecraft, the Soyuz Ferry or Soyuz 7K-T, comprised Soyuz 12 through Soyuz 40 . Although still using the Igla system, these had no solar panels, employing batteries...
or "ferry" (1973-1981) - Soyuz 7K-TMSoyuz 7K-TMApollo-Soyuz Test Project 1975 version of the Soyuz spacecraft served as a technological bridge to the third generation Soyuz-T spacecraft ....
(1975-1976)
- Soyuz 7K-T
- Soyuz 7K-L1
- Military SoyuzMilitary SoyuzSeveral military Soyuz spacecraft models were planned, but none actually flew in space. These versions were named Soyuz 7K-P, Soyuz 7K-PPK, Soyuz R, Soyuz 7K-VI, and Soyuz OIS .-Soyuz 7K-P:...
(7K-P, 7K-PPK, R, 7K-VI Zvezda, and OIS) - Soyuz-TSoyuz-TThe Soyuz-T spacecraft was the third generation Soyuz spacecraft, in service for seven years from 1979 to 1986. The T stood for transport...
(1976-1986) - Soyuz-TMSoyuz-TMThe Soyuz-TM crew transports were fourth generation Soyuz spacecraft used for ferry flights to the Mir and ISS space stations...
(1986-2003) - Soyuz-TMASoyuz-TMAThe Soyuz-TMA is a recent revision of the Soyuz spacecraft, superseded in 2010 by the Soyuz TMA-M..It is used by the Russian Federal Space Agency for human spaceflight...
(2003-.... ) - Soyuz-TMA-M (2010/.... )
- Soyuz-ACTS (2012/....)
Derivatives
The ZondZond program
Zond was the name given to two distinct series of Soviet unmanned space program undertaken from 1964 to 1970. The first series based on 3MV planetary probe was intended to gather information about nearby planets...
spacecraft was another derivative, designed to take a crew traveling in a figure-eight orbit around the Earth and the moon but never achieving the degree of safety or political need to be used for such.
Finally, the Progress
Progress spacecraft
The Progress is a Russian expendable freighter spacecraft. The spacecraft is an unmanned resupply spacecraft during its flight but upon docking with a space station, it allows astronauts inside, hence it is classified manned by the manufacturer. It was derived from the Soyuz spacecraft, and is...
series of unmanned cargo ships for the Salyut
Salyut
The Salyut program was the first space station program undertaken by the Soviet Union, which consisted of a series of nine space stations launched over a period of eleven years from 1971 to 1982...
and 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 laboratories used the automatic navigation and docking mechanism (but not the re-entry capsule) of Soyuz.
As of 2011, Soyuz derivatives provide much of mankind's human spaceflight capability and are used to ferry personnel and supplies to and from 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...
. With the retirement of the USA's Space Shuttle
Space 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...
s, Russia will have the sole proven system for boosting crew to the station.
While not a direct derivative, the Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
Shenzhou spacecraft
Shenzhou spacecraft
Shenzhou is a spacecraft developed and operated by the People's Republic of China to support its manned spaceflight program. The name is variously translated as "Divine Craft," "Divine Vessel of God," "Magic Boat" or similar and is also homophonous with an ancient name for China...
follows the basic template originally pioneered by Soyuz.
Soyuz manned flights
- See List of Soviet manned space missions and List of Russian manned space missions
Soyuz unmanned flights
| Flights 1 - 5 | Flights 6 - 10 | Flights 11 - 15 | Flights 16 - 20 | Flights 21 - 26 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Cosmos 133 Cosmos 133 Kosmos 133 was a Soviet Soyuz programme test satellite launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome aboard a Vostok rocket. It was the first test flight of the Soyuz 7K-OK earth orbit spacecraft. It was a planned "all up" test with a second Soyuz to be launched the following day and automatically dock... |
6. Cosmos 212 Cosmos 212 Kosmos 212 was one of a series of Soviet Soyuz programme test spacecraft whose purpose was to further test and develop the passenger version. Scientific data and measurements were relayed to earth by multichannel telemetry systems equipped with space-borne memory units. Kosmos 212 and Kosmos 213... |
11. Cosmos 396 | 16. Cosmos 638 Cosmos 638 Kosmos 638 was an unmanned test of the ASTP Soyuz. It carried an APAS-75 androgynous docking system.-Mission parameters:*Spacecraft: Soyuz-7K-TM №71*Mass: 6510 to 6680 kg*Crew: None*Launched: April 3, 1974*Landed: April 13, 1974-References:... |
21. Soyuz 20 Soyuz 20 Soyuz 20 was an unmanned spacecraft launched by the Soviet Union. It was a long-duration test of the Soyuz spacecraft that docked with the Salyut 4 space station. Soyuz 20 performed comprehensive checking of improved on-board systems of the spacecraft under various flight conditions. It also... |
| 2. Launch failure | 7. Cosmos 213 Cosmos 213 Kosmos 213 was one of a series of Soviet Soyuz programme test spacecraft whose purpose was to further test and develop the passenger version. Scientific data and measurements were relayed to earth by multichannel telemetry systems equipped with space-borne memory units. Kosmos 212 and Kosmos 213... |
12. Cosmos 434 Cosmos 434 Kosmos 434 was the final unmanned test flight of the Soviet LK Lander. It performed the longest burn of the three unmanned LK Lander tests. It finished in a 186 km by 11,804 km orbit. This test qualified the lander as flightworthy. The LK was the only hardware system of the Soviet lunar... |
17. Cosmos 656 | 22. Cosmos 869 Cosmos 869 -Mission parameters:*Spacecraft: Soyuz 7K-S.*Mass: 6800 kg.*Crew: None.*Launched: November 29, 1976.*Landed: December 17, 1976 10:31 GMT.*Perigee: 209 km.*Apogee: 289 km.*Inclination: 51.7 deg.*Duration: 17.99 days.-Maneuver Summary:... |
| 3. Cosmos 140 Cosmos 140 Kosmos 140 was an unmanned flight of the Soyuz spacecraft. It was the third attempted test flight of the Soyuz 7K-OK model, after orbital and launch failures of the first two Soyuz spacecraft. The spacecraft suffered attitude control problems and excessive fuel consumption in orbit, but remained... |
8. Cosmos 238 Cosmos 238 Kosmos 238 was the final test series of the Soviet Soyuz spacecraft prior to the launch of Soyuz 3. It tested the orbital maneuvering system, reentry, descent and landing systems that had been modified and improved after the Soyuz 1 accident.... |
13. Cosmos 496 Cosmos 496 Kosmos 496 was an unmanned test of the redesigned Soyuz ferry. It did not dock with any space station. After the Soyuz 11 disaster the third seat was removed because the space was need for the two crewmen in space suits and their equipment... |
18. Cosmos 670 Cosmos 670 -Mission parameters:*Spacecraft: 7K-S*Mass: 6700 kg*Crew: None*Launched: August 6, 1974*Landed: August 8, 1974 23:59 GMT.*Perigee: 221 km*Apogee: 294 km*Inclination: 50.6 deg*Duration: 2.99 days... |
23. Cosmos 1001 Cosmos 1001 Kosmos 1001 was a redesigned Soviet Soyuz T spacecraft that failed an unmanned test in 1978. The spacecraft was the upgraded Soyuz for Salyut-6 and Salyut-7.-Mission parameters:*Spacecraft: Soyuz-7K-ST.*Mass: 6680 kg.*Crew: None.... |
| 4. Cosmos 186 | 9. Soyuz 2 Soyuz 2 Soyuz 2 was an unpiloted spacecraft in the Soyuz family intended to perform a docking maneuver with Soyuz 3. Although the two craft approached closely, the docking did not take place.-Other uses of name:... |
14. Cosmos 573 Cosmos 573 Kosmos 573 was an unmanned test of the Soyuz Ferry without solar arrays. It did not dock with a space station.-Mission parameters:*Spacecraft: Soyuz-7K-T*Mass: 6800 kg*Crew: None*Launched: June 15, 1973*Landed: June 17, 1973-References:... |
19. Cosmos 672 Cosmos 672 Kosmos 672 was the second unmanned test of the ASTP Soyuz spacecraft. Also had APAS-75 androgynous docking system.-Mission parameters:*Spacecraft: Soyuz 7K-OK*Mass: 6510 to 6680 kg*Crew: None*Launched: August 12, 1974*Landed: August 18, 1974... |
24. Cosmos 1074 Cosmos 1074 Kosmos 1074 was a Soviet unmanned long-duration test flight of the Soyuz-T spacecraft launched on January 31 of 1979 and de-orbited on April the 1st of the same year.-Mission parameters:*Spacecraft: Soyuz 7K-ST*Mass: 6450 kg*Crew: None... |
| 5. Cosmos 188 | 10. Cosmos 379 Cosmos 379 Kosmos 379 was a test of the LK Lander . Earth orbit simulated propulsion system operations of a nominal lunar landing mission. Kosmos 379 entered a 192 to 232 km orbit. After three days fired its motor to simulate hover and touchdown on the moon, because of the burn in earth orbit the apogee... |
15. Cosmos 613 Cosmos 613 Kosmos 613 was a long-duration orbital storage test of the Soyuz Ferry in preparation for long stays attached to a space station.-Mission parameters:*Spacecraft: Soyuz-7K-T*Mass: 6800 kg*Crew: None*Launched: November 30, 1973... |
20. Cosmos 772 Cosmos 772 -Mission parameters:*Spacecraft: Soyuz 7K-S*Mass: 6750 kg*Crew: None*Launched: September 29, 1975*Landed: October 3, 1975 4:10 GMT*Perigee: 154 km*Apogee: 245 km*Inclination: 51.8 deg*Duration: 3.99 days-Maneuver Summary:... |
25. Soyuz T-1 Soyuz T-1 Soyuz T-1 was a 1979-80 unmanned Soviet space flight, a test flight of a new Soyuz craft which docked with the orbiting Salyut 6 space station.-Mission parameters:*Spacecraft: Soyuz 7K-ST*Mass: 6450 kg*Crew: None*Launched: December 16, 1979... |
| 26. Soyuz TM-1 Soyuz TM-1 Soyuz TM-1 was an unmanned test flight of the Soyuz-TM spacecraft, intended for use in the Mir space station program. This was the maiden flight of the Soyuz-TM spacecraft, intended as the successor to the Soyuz-T spacecraft used in the Salyut program.... |
See also
- ShenzhouShenzhou spacecraftShenzhou is a spacecraft developed and operated by the People's Republic of China to support its manned spaceflight program. The name is variously translated as "Divine Craft," "Divine Vessel of God," "Magic Boat" or similar and is also homophonous with an ancient name for China...
, a Chinese spacecraft influenced by Soyuz - Space ShuttleSpace ShuttleThe 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...
- Buran (spacecraft)
- Space accidents and incidents