How are names for spaceships chosen? What was the name of Yuri Gagarin's spaceship: alternative versions What is the name of this spaceship
Residents of the whole world learned the name of the man who opened space to people.
From sensational newspaper headlines, enthusiastic radio reports in all possible languages, and, finally, TV programs, it became known what Yuri Gagarin was called. A common word meaning one of the four cardinal directions. The name does not say anything about it, it does not reveal any mysteries. There were many questions, but few answers.
A bit of near-science-political fiction
Of course, if such an event had happened forty years earlier, in the twenties, one can only guess what name the first would have received. In those years, as usual, it would probably have been called "International-1", or some kind of ingenious abbreviation, corresponding to the then party fashion. For example, Strasovkosom (Country of Soviets in space). Or "Vladlenkos" (Vladimir Lenin ibid.). After all, even the position of Deputy People's Commissar for Maritime Affairs was designated as "Zamkompomorde". In general, they would come up with something expressive.
And if the first one had been put into orbit under Stalin, then, perhaps, he would have carried the name of the leader, the “father of peoples” on his body.
Another name for a missile, military
If a professional military man, a secret rocket scientist, were asked about the real name of Yuri Gagarin's spaceship, he would answer (observing the secrecy regime, and only to those who had the "first clearance"), which is correct - R-7. Because it was this one that was the carrier that brought the famous Soviet pilot into orbit. But just asking such questions was fraught. Firstly, it was still necessary to find out who to approach with them, and this turned out to be beyond the power of even such insidious intelligence as the CIA. And secondly, practically everything related to Soviet space research was kept secret.
Tricky questions to Gagarin and his witty answers
On April 16, 1961, the world's first astronaut came to a press conference at which correspondents from all news agencies could ask him any, even the most tricky questions. At that time, they only knew the name of Yuri Gagarin's spacecraft, the weight of its payload (5 tons) and a few other parameters announced earlier by Academician Keldysh. The hero smiled charmingly, willingly and witty answered all the interviewers' questions, but did not provide new technical information. Until 1968, when the Vostok descent vehicle became an exhibit at VDNKh, even the shape of the habitable compartment remained a mystery, not to mention the complex devices that ensure the life and landing of the capsule. There were grounds for such a veil of secrecy. The Americans literally stepped on their heels, but they were always two or three months late, which greatly upset President Kennedy and other important people in the White House, and not only. Even seemingly insignificant details could lead overseas designers to the right direction, and priority would be lost. Specialists from the United States made assumptions about the layout of the Vostok, but, as time has shown, they were all wrong.
"Vostok" and "Zenith" - twin brothers
So, everyone knows the name of Yuri Gagarin's spaceship - "Vostok-1". But the word "Zenith" until 1968 almost did not say anything to anyone. Only a few knew about the true and main problem that they solved when designing the return head of the space rocket. In addition to delivering nuclear weapons, the R-7 could launch a reconnaissance satellite into orbit, equipped with heavy-duty optics and photographic equipment. With great difficulty, Keldysh and Korolev managed to add words about manned flight to the top-secret government decree. So the spacecraft of Yuri Gagarin became an example of conversion, while its main purpose was military photographic reconnaissance.
And again about history
Time has shown the correctness of the great scientist S.P. Korolev and his wonderful team. Decades have passed, and today spy satellites, clear images of Soviet and American defense facilities, ballistic megadeaths aimed at each other and other terrible realities are rarely remembered. But all of humanity remembers the name of Yuri Gagarin's ship, knows about our space priority and pronounces the name of the pioneer space with respect and love. This can no longer be changed.
The Millennium Falcon spacecraft from the Star Wars universe
Before becoming the Millennium Falcon, this ship was a regular Correlian truck bought by Lando Calrissian. Lando almost completely changed the truck, making many modifications, including installing a hyperdrive. One day, Han Solo arrived on Bespin and, betting against Calrissian, the Falcon won. With a few more significant changes, Solo began running a spice drug smuggling scam and recruited a new navigator, Wookiee Chewbacca.
Ship "Enterprise"
a fictional Starfleet Constitution-class starship from Star Trek. Over the course of 40 years of its use, it has undergone modernization, at least two repairs. Time travel was made with it, making it the most famous Starfleet ship of that period. Major achievements occurred during the five-year mission (2265-2270) under the command of James T. Kirk.
"Reaper"
The main exterminators of all living beings in the history of the known Universe, a biomechanical race that periodically appears to destroy all intelligent organic life (the game features a time period of 50,000 (apparently - earthly, since in the games of the series this information was somehow communicated to a representative of humanity) years, but it is unlikely that it is constant for all cycles). The term "Reaper" is not the name of the race itself, but was coined to refer to them by the Protheans, according to the information of the Sovereign (a living inorganic ship - the vanguard force of the Reapers, left by them before their return). In the game, the Reapers live in a "dark space" that is outside of our galaxy. The return to the Milky Way takes place via a mass relay, which is the giant space station Citadel. The game's plot revolves around preventing their invasion of the galaxy.
The spacecraft is a ship that docked with Soyuz-19 in 1975:
- Apollo
The history of the docking of two ships
On July 17, 1975 at 15.20 Moscow time, for the first time in the history of mankind, a unique event took place: launching into open space with an interval of several hours, the US Apollo spacecraft and the USSR Soyuz-19 spacecraft docked. Two days later, the ships undocked and re-docked, spending a total of 46 hours and 36 minutes docked.
An experimental flight within the framework of a joint space exploration program was carried out with the aim of docking two ships in open space, testing the docking unit and elements of a compatible rendezvous system in orbit, gaining experience, testing equipment and equipment.
For the operation, both the Soviet and American sides developed special models of ships with docking units and special technical equipment. The Soyuz spacecraft was equipped with a second seat, solar panels were added, and the ship's carrying capacity was also changed. As for the American "Apollo", the main technical indicators remained unchanged, the only addition was the installation of a docking and airlock transitional compartment.
Taking into account the difference in the conditions of the air atmosphere and pressure on the ships, the docking was carried out at a certain risk for both crews. The main problem was that the American Apollo was designed to operate at low pressure, while the Soviet Soyuz-19 operated with an atmosphere close in all respects to that of the earth. In order to somehow equalize the difference in performance, the American spacecraft was equipped with a special additional compartment, and the pressure was reduced in the Soviet spacecraft. The command compartment of the Apollo was hermetically sealed.
The joint flight program was finally agreed upon and approved in the spring of 1972, after the development of a special docking petal node. The docking mechanism was similar for both ships, which prevented possible incompatibility problems in emergency situations, and also eliminated disputes in a political context.
Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, the most famous after Yuri Gagarin, was elected commander of the Soviet spacecraft, and Valery Kubasov became flight engineer. The American crew was led by Tom Stafford, who included Vance Brand and Donald Slayton.
At the appointed time, the ships were docked, and after equalizing in atmospheric indicators, the hatches were opened. The pilots shook hands through a special airlock tunnel, after which the teams got to know each other for two days, sharing their experience.
Who tends to: ESA, NASA, China, Japan
Both names - "Rosetta" and "Fila" - are related to the decoding of ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs. The name "Rosetta" comes from the famous Rosetta stone - a stone slab with three texts identical in meaning engraved on it, two of which are written in ancient Egyptian (one in hieroglyphs, the other in demotic writing), and the third in ancient Greek. Scientists used the Rosetta Stone to decipher ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs: ancient Greek was well known to them, and by comparing the texts, experts were able to read the new language.
Computer model of the Rosetta, photo: DLR German Aerospace Center. Rosetta Stone, photo: Hans Hillewaert
Hans HillewaertThe name of the Philae lander was chosen during a competition held in 2004 among residents of the countries participating in the project. This is the name of an island on the River Nile where an obelisk was discovered with a hieroglyphic inscription mentioning King Ptolemy VIII and Queens Cleopatra II and Cleopatra III. The obelisk has also helped scientists decipher ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs.
With the help of Rosetta and the lander, scientists hope to understand what happened to the universe in the first moments of its existence, hence the choice of names.
By the way, their mission to comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko was so successful that ESA extended it until the fall of 2016.
Tribute to ancient mythology is paid not only in Europe, but also in China. The Chang'e lunar module and its faithful companion, the six-wheeled Yutu lunar rover, descended to the lunar surface the year before last and told the world a lot of new things about our natural satellite. Chang'e is the name of a Chinese moon goddess, and Yutu (translated as "jade hare") is a strange creature that always accompanies Chang'e.
The Chang'e-3 lunar module with the Yutu lunar rover on board. Image: CNSA/SASTiND/Xinhua/Marco Di Lorenzo/Ken Kremer, Goddess Chang'e Flies to the Moon, art. Ren Shuaiying/Wikimedia
wikimediaOther Chinese spacecraft are also related to the mythology of this vast and incomprehensible country, and their names are very poetic: "Shenzhou" - "Heavenly Boat", "Tiangong" - "Heavenly Palace", "Shenlong" - "Divine Dragon" and, finally , booster "Changzheng", which means "Long March".
All names consist of two hieroglyphs and have a historical, and sometimes philosophical (and understandable only to the Chinese themselves) meaning. For example, "Shenlong" is the motto of the reign of the only empress in the history of China, Wu Zetian, as well as Emperor Zhong Zong.
The Japanese revere their mythology no less than their neighbors. The second Japanese artificial satellite of the moon was given the name "Kaguya" (the name was traditionally chosen by the public) - that was the name of the lunar princess from an old Japanese legend. And after two small satellites successfully separated from Kaguya, they were officially named Okina and Oyuna in honor of the old man and the old woman, who in the same fairy tale sheltered the moon princess.
Computer model of the Japanese Kaguya craft, image: JAXA. Still from the animated film "The Tale of Princess Kaguya"/Studio Ghibli
JAXAEuropeans are not alone in their love for their mythology. At the beginning of the space age, ships and missions were named after ancient Greek and Roman gods: the first US manned program was called Mercury, and during the Apollo program, American astronauts landed on the moon six times.
But NASA has since forgotten Greece and Ancient Rome.
Ancient European gods are sometimes remembered by other countries: the same Japanese gave their space sailboat the name IKAROS (Icarus), which is traditionally an English abbreviation: Interplanetary Kite-craft Accelerated by Radiation Of the Sun (an interplanetary sailing apparatus moving due to solar radiation).
Ships in honor of ships
Who tends to: ESA, NASA
Often, when naming new vehicles, space agencies perpetuate significant sea vessels of the past. For example, the European lander Beagle is named after the ship on which Charles Darwin traveled. Unlike the “real” Beagle, the mission of his space follower failed: after an unsuccessful landing on Mars, he disappeared and was relatively recently found by orbiters.
Beagle lander leaving Mars Express, image: Medialab/ESA. The Beagle, on which Charles Darwin traveled, watercolor by Owen Stanley
ESAThe most consistent "admirers" of maritime transport are shuttles. All space shuttles are named after ships that have become famous for something.
The first shuttle, the Columbia, was named after the sailboat on which Captain Robert Gray explored the inland waters of British Columbia (today Washington and Oregon) in 1972. The Challenger following it was named after the sea vessel that made the first global oceanic scientific expedition in the 70s of the last century. Both of these shuttles crashed and exploded. The Discovery shuttle bears the name of one of the two ships of the famous British captain James Cook. Cook's second ship, the Endeavor, gave its name to the last of the shuttles. The fourth shuttle has a loud and seemingly meaningless name "Atlantis" (Atlantis), was named after the first American sailing ship, which was specially built in 1930 to study the biology, geology and physics of the sea.
It is curious that the very first, trial shuttle, a prototype of future shuttles that never left the earth's atmosphere, was originally supposed to be pathetically called "Constitution" in honor of the 200th anniversary of the US constitution. However, according to the results of voting by the audience of the terribly popular Star Trek series at that time, it was called the Enterprise (initiative) - this was the name of the fictional starships of the universe of the series.
"Star Wars" also "participated" in the name of real spaceships. Their famous Millennium Falcon became the prototype for the Falcon series of launch vehicles created by the American private space company SpaceX.
Launch vehicle "Falcon-9", photo: CRS-6. The Millennium Falcon, still from the Star Wars/Lucasfilm franchise
LucasfilmRomantic titles
Featured: NASA, Japan, USSR/Russia
Very often ships have romantic names. For example, Nozomi (hope), the Japanese probe sent to Mars in 1998, the famous American rovers Spirit (spirit), Opportunity (opportunity). The last two flew in pairs - in 2003 they came up with names as part of the traditional NASA competition, 9-year-old girl Sophie Collins. By the way, she was born in Siberia and was adopted by an American family from Arizona.
Right now, the Mars-crawling Curiosity (curiosity) craft has been named in an internet vote. The proposed options were entirely poetic: Adventure (adventure), Journey (journey), Pursuit (aspiration), Perception (perception), Wonder (miracle) and so on.
A romantic flair is also captured in the names of both Voyagers (travelers), who headed beyond the boundaries of the solar system more than 30 years ago. Moreover, this name was chosen by the organizers of the mission from NASA themselves - it was not customary then to hold a competition of names among citizens.
man and telescope
Featured: NASA and ESA
In cosmonymy (the non-existent science of the names of spacecraft), there is another trend that is gaining momentum - to assign the names of great people to ships. The Cassini Saturnian probe is named after the French astronomer, the names of Planck, Hubble, Herschel and Kepler NASA named the most famous space observatories and is going to continue this tradition further: in 2018, another American space telescope, James Webb, named after the second head of the American space agency.
Europeans prefer artists to scientists. Thus, the space probe "Giotto", which was created to fly past Halley's comet, is named after the Renaissance artist Giotto di Bondone, who depicted this comet on the fresco "Adoration of the Magi". The European cargo ship Jules Verne is in the same trend.
Computer model of the Giotto probe, image: Andrzej Mirecki/Wikimedia, Giotto di Bondone Adoration of the Magi
wikimediaPatriotic
Featured: China and the USSR
The space age began with the unremarkable "Sputnik", and the modest name immediately scattered around the world, becoming a proper name from a common noun. Then came the "Easts" and "Sunrise", which, apparently, symbolized the beginning of the space age and the advantage of the East over the West. They were replaced by "Worlds" and "Salutes", denoting the main values of the Soviet ideology.
Model of the Vostok ship, photo: Georgy Elizarov/Wikimedia
wikimediaChina is also suffering from the virus of patriotism. Take, for example, the launch vehicle of the seventieth year "Dongfanghong" ("Red East") and the already mentioned "Changzheng" ("Long March"), although there are some doubts about the latter due to the ambiguity of the name.
bureaucratic
Featured: USSR / Russia; ESA, India
Russia, Europe, and partly India, often call their spacecraft dry and bureaucratic. Sending the next device to the Moon, in the USSR it was often called simply "Moon" with the corresponding number. Russia continued the tradition: "Mars" ("Mars-96") tried to fly to Mars, "Phobos" ("Phobos-Grunt") tried to fly to Phobos, and so on. Europeans are also prone to official names: suffice it to recall the Venera-Express and Mars-Express probes. India, which has recently entered the pool of space powers, also does not shy away from this tradition and names its ships without frills, but in Hindi, which gives the names a national flavor - "Chandrayan" (lunar ship) and "Mangalyaan" (Martian ship).
Assembling the Mars Express apparatus. Photo: ESA
ESAPerhaps, uttering tricky words without any explanation, professional rocketeers (and those who are among them) see themselves as a separate intellectual caste. But what about an ordinary person who, being interested in rockets and space, is trying to master an article strewn with incomprehensible abbreviations on the fly? What is BOKZ, SOTR or DPK? What is "crumpled gas" and why did the rocket "gone over the hill", while the carrier and the spacecraft - two completely different products - bear the same name "Soyuz"? By the way, BOKZ is not Albanian boxing, but block for determining the coordinates of stars(colloquially - a star tracker), SOTR is not a violent abbreviation of the expression "I will erase into powder", but thermal management system, and WPC is not a furniture "wood-polymer composite", but the most rocket (and not only) drain safety valve. But what if there are no transcripts in the footnote or in the text? This is a problem ... And not so much the reader as the “writer” of the article: they won’t read it a second time! To avoid this bitter fate, we undertook the modest task of compiling a short dictionary of rocket and space terms, abbreviations and names. Of course, he does not pretend to be complete, and in some places - and the severity of the wording. But, we hope, it will help the reader interested in astronautics. And besides, the dictionary can be supplemented and refined endlessly - after all, the cosmos is endless! ..
Apollo- the American program of landing a man on the moon, which also included test flights of astronauts on a three-seat spacecraft in near-Earth and lunar orbit in 1968-1972.
Ariane-5- the name of a European disposable heavy-class launch vehicle designed to launch payloads into low-Earth orbits and departure trajectories. From June 4, 1996 to May 4, 2017, it completed 92 missions, of which 88 were completely successful.
Atlas V- the name of a series of American disposable medium-class launch vehicles created by Lockheed Martin. From August 21, 2002 to April 18, 2017, 71 missions were completed, 70 of them were successful. It is mainly used to launch spacecraft on orders from US government departments.
ATV(Automated Tranfer Vehicle) is the name of a European disposable automatic transport vehicle designed to supply the ISS with cargo and flew from 2008 to 2014 (five missions completed).
BE-4(Blue Origin Engine) is a powerful liquid propellant propulsion engine with a thrust of 250 tf at sea level, powered by oxygen and methane, and has been developed since 2011 by Blue Origin for installation on promising Vulcan and New Glenn launch vehicles. It is positioned as a replacement for the Russian RD-180 engine. The first comprehensive firing tests are scheduled for the first half of 2017.
CCP(Commercial Crew Program) - a modern state American commercial manned program, conducted by NASA and facilitating the access of private industrial firms to technologies for the study and exploration of space.
CNSA(China National Space Agency) is the English abbreviation of the state agency that coordinates the work on the study and development of outer space in China.
CSA(Canadian Space Agency) is a government agency that coordinates space exploration in Canada.
Cygnus- the name of the American disposable automatic transport vehicle created by Orbital to supply the ISS with supplies and cargo. From September 18, 2013 to April 18, 2017, eight missions were completed, seven of them were successful.
Delta IV- the name of a series of American disposable launch vehicles of medium and heavy classes, created by Boeing under the EELV program. From November 20, 2002 to March 19, 2017, 35 missions were carried out, 34 of them were successful. It is currently used exclusively for launching spacecraft on orders from US government departments.
Dragon- the name of a series of American partially reusable transport vehicles developed by the private company SpaceX under a contract with NASA as part of the CCP program. It is capable of not only delivering cargo to the ISS, but also returning them back to Earth. From December 8, 2010 to February 19, 2017, 12 unmanned ships were launched, 11 of them were successful. The start of flight tests of the manned version is scheduled for 2018.
dream chaser- the name of an American reusable transport orbital rocket plane, developed since 2004 by Sierra Nevada to supply orbital stations with supplies and cargo (and in the future, in a seven-seat version, for crew change). The start of flight tests is scheduled for 2019.
EELV(Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle) - a program for the evolutionary development of disposable launch vehicles for use (primarily) in the interests of the US Department of Defense. As part of the program, which began in 1995, the launch vehicles of the Delta IV and Atlas V families were created; since 2015 they have been joined by the Falcon 9.
EVA(Extra-Vehicular Activity) - the English name for extravehicular activity (VKD) of astronauts (work in outer space or on the surface of the moon).
FAA(Federal Aviation Administration) - The Federal Aviation Administration, which regulates the legal issues of commercial space flight in the United States.
Falcon 9- the name of a series of American partially reusable medium-class carriers created by the private company SpaceX. From June 4, 2010 to May 1, 2017, 34 missile launches of three modifications were carried out, 31 of them were completely successful. Until recently, the Falcon 9 served both to launch Dragon unmanned cargo ships into orbit to supply the ISS, and for commercial launches; is now included in the program for launching spacecraft into orbit by order of the US government departments.
Falcon Heavy- the name of an American partially reusable heavy-class launch vehicle developed by SpaceX based on the Falcon-9 launch vehicle stages. The first flight is scheduled for autumn 2017.
Gemini - the name of the second American manned space program, during which astronauts on a two-seat spacecraft made near-Earth flights in 1965-1966.
H-2A (H-2B)- variants of a Japanese disposable medium-class launch vehicle designed to launch payloads into low-Earth orbits and departure trajectories. From August 29, 2001 to March 17, 2017, 33 launches of the H-2A variant (of which 32 were successful) and six launches of the H-2B (all successful) were performed.
HTV(H-2 Transfer Vehicle), also known as Kounotori, is the name of a Japanese automatic transport vehicle designed to supply the ISS with cargo and has been flying since September 10, 2009 (six missions completed, three remaining according to the plan).
JAXA(Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) is an agency that coordinates space exploration activities in Japan.
Mercury- the name of the first American manned space program, during which astronauts on a single-seat spacecraft made near-Earth flights in 1961-1963.
NASA(National Aeronautics and Space Administration) is a government agency that coordinates aviation and space exploration in the United States.
New Glenn is the name of a partially reusable heavy-duty launch vehicle being developed by Blue Origin for commercial launches and use in the lunar transport system. Announced in September 2016, the first launch is planned for 2020-2021.
Orion MPCV(Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle) is the name of the multifunctional manned spacecraft developed by NASA as part of the Exploration program and designed for astronaut flights to the ISS and beyond low Earth orbit. The start of flight tests is scheduled for 2019.
skylab- the name of the first American space station, on which three expeditions of astronauts worked in 1973-1974.
SLS(Space Launch System) is the name of the American family of super-heavy launch vehicles developed by NASA as part of the Exploration program and designed to launch elements of space infrastructure (including manned Orion spacecraft) on departure trajectories. The start of flight tests is scheduled for 2019.
SpaceShipOne(SS1) is the name of an experimental reusable suborbital rocket plane, created by Scaled Composites, which became the first non-state manned vehicle to overcome the Karman line and reach space. Theoretically, it was supposed to carry a crew of three, in fact it was controlled by one pilot.
SpaceShipTwo(SS2) is the name of a reusable multi-seat (two pilots and six passengers) suborbital rocket plane manufactured by Virgin Galactic, designed for short tourist trips into space.
space shuttle, otherwise STS (Space Transportation System) - a series of American reusable manned transport spacecraft, created by order of NASA and the Department of Defense under the state program and made 135 missions to near-Earth space from 1981 to 2011.
Starliner (CST-100)- the name of an American partially reusable manned transport vehicle developed by Boeing under a contract with NASA under the CCP program. The start of flight tests is scheduled for 2018.
ULA(United Launch Alliance) - "United Launch Alliance", a joint venture established in 2006 by Lockheed Martin and Boeing to cost-effectively operate Delta IV and Atlas V launch vehicles.
Vega- the name of a European light-class launch vehicle developed in international cooperation with the decisive participation of Italy (Avio) for launching payloads into near-Earth orbits and departure trajectories. From February 13, 2012 to March 7, 2017, nine missions were completed (all were successful).
Vulcan- the name of a promising American rocket designed to replace Delta IV and Atlas V carriers. It has been developed since 2014 by the United Launch Alliance ULA. The first launch is planned for 2019.
X-15- an American experimental rocket plane, created by North American by order of NASA and the Ministry of Defense to study the conditions of flight at hypersonic speeds and entry into the atmosphere of winged vehicles, evaluate new design solutions, heat-shielding coatings and psychophysiological aspects of control in the upper atmosphere. Three rocket planes were built, which made 191 flights in 1959-1968, setting several world speed and altitude records (including 107,906 m on August 22, 1963).
Ablation— the process of entrainment of mass from the surface of a solid by a flow of incoming gas, accompanied by the absorption of heat. Underlies ablative thermal protection, protecting the structure from overheating.
"Angara"- the name of the Russian spacecraft, as well as a family of disposable modular launch vehicles of light, medium and heavy classes, designed to launch payloads into near-Earth orbits and departure trajectories. The first launch of the Angara-1.2PP light rocket took place on July 9, 2014, the first launch of the Angara-A5 heavy carrier took place on December 23, 2014.
Apogee- the point of the satellite's orbit (natural or artificial) that is farthest from the center of the Earth.
Aerodynamic quality is a dimensionless quantity, the ratio of the lift force of an aircraft to the drag force.
ballistic trajectory- the path along which the body moves in the absence of aerodynamic forces acting on it.
Ballistic missile - an aircraft that, after turning off the engine and leaving the dense layers of the atmosphere, flies along a ballistic trajectory.
"East"- the name of the first Soviet single-seat manned spacecraft, on which cosmonauts flew in the period from 1961 to 1963. Also - the open name of a series of Soviet disposable light-class launch vehicles, created on the basis of the R-7 intercontinental ballistic missile and used from 1958 to 1991.
"Sunrise"- the name of the multi-seat modification of the Soviet manned spacecraft "Vostok", on which the astronauts made two flights in 1964-1965. Also - the open name of a series of Soviet disposable medium-class launch vehicles used from 1963 to 1974.
Gas rocket engine(gas nozzle) - a device that serves to convert the potential energy of a compressed working fluid (gas) into thrust.
Hybrid rocket engine(GRD) - a special case of a chemical jet engine; a device that uses to create thrust the chemical energy of the interaction of fuel components that are in a different state of aggregation (for example, a liquid oxidizer and solid fuel). The engines of SpaceShipOne and SpaceShipTwo rocket planes are built on this principle.
Gnomon- an astronomical instrument in the form of a vertical stand, which allows, by the smallest length of the shadow, to determine the angular height of the sun in the sky, as well as the direction of the true meridian. A photognomon with a color calibration scale served to document lunar soil samples collected during the Apollo missions.
ESA(European Space Agency) is an organization that coordinates the activities of European states in the study of outer space.
Liquid propellant rocket engine(LRE) - a special case of a chemical jet engine; a device that uses the chemical energy of the interaction of liquid fuel components stored on board the aircraft to create thrust.
Capsule- one of the names of the wingless descent vehicle of artificial satellites and spacecraft.
spacecraft- the general name of various technical devices designed to perform targeted tasks in outer space.
Space rocket complex(CRC) is a term that characterizes a set of functionally related elements (technical and launch complex of the cosmodrome, measuring instruments of the cosmodrome, ground control complex of the spacecraft, launch vehicle and upper stage) that ensure the launch of the spacecraft to the target trajectory.
Karman Line- the internationally agreed conditional boundary of space, which lies at an altitude of 100 km (62 miles) above sea level.
"World"- the name of the modular Soviet / Russian orbital space station, which flew in 1986-2001, receiving numerous Soviet (Russian) and international expeditions.
ISS(International Space Station) is the name of a manned complex that was created in low Earth orbit by the efforts of Russia, the USA, Europe, Japan and Canada to conduct scientific research related to the conditions of a long stay of a person in outer space. English abbreviation for ISS (International Space Station).
Multi-stage (composite) rocket- a device in which, as the fuel is used up, there is a sequential discharge of used and unnecessary structural elements (stages) for further flight.
Smooth landing— contact of the spacecraft with the surface of a planet or other celestial body, in which the vertical speed allows to ensure the safety of the structure and systems of the vehicle and/or comfortable conditions for the crew.
Orbital inclination- the angle between the plane of the orbit of a natural or artificial satellite and the plane of the equator of the body around which the satellite revolves.
Orbit- a trajectory (most often elliptical), along which one body (for example, a natural satellite or a spacecraft) moves relative to the central body (the Sun, the Earth, the Moon, etc.). In a first approximation, a near-Earth orbit is characterized by such elements as inclination, height of perigee and apogee, and period of revolution.
first cosmic speed- the smallest speed that must be given to the body in a horizontal direction near the surface of the planet, so that it enters a circular orbit. For the Earth - about 7.9 km / s.
Overload is a vector quantity, the ratio of the sum of the thrust and/or aerodynamic force to the weight of the aircraft.
Perigee is the point in the orbit of a satellite that is closest to the center of the Earth.
Period of circulation- the period of time during which the satellite makes a complete revolution around the central body (Sun, Earth, Moon, etc.)
Manned transport ship of the new generation (PTK NP) "Federation"- a reusable four-six-seat spacecraft developed by the Energia Rocket and Space Corporation to provide access to space from Russian territory (from the Vostochny cosmodrome), deliver people and cargo to orbital stations, fly into polar and equatorial orbit, explore the moon and land on it . It is being created as part of FKP-2025, the start of flight tests is scheduled for 2021, the first manned flight with docking with the ISS should take place in 2023.
"Progress"- the name of a series of Soviet (Russian) unmanned automatic vehicles for the delivery of fuel, cargo and supplies to the space stations "Salyut", "Mir" and the ISS. From January 20, 1978 to February 22, 2017, 135 ships of various modifications were launched, of which 132 were successful.
"Proton-M" is the name of a Russian disposable heavy-class launch vehicle designed to launch payloads into low-Earth orbits and take-off trajectories. Created on the basis of "Proton-K"; the first flight of this modification took place on April 7, 2001. Until June 9, 2016, 98 launches were made, of which 9 were completely and 1 were partially unsuccessful.
Upper block(RB), the closest Western equivalent in meaning - "upper stage" (upper stage), - the stage of the launch vehicle, designed to form the target trajectory of the spacecraft. Examples: Centaur (USA), Breeze-M, Fregat, DM (Russia).
launch vehicle- at present, the only means of launching a payload (satellite, probe, spacecraft or automatic station) into outer space.
Super heavy launch vehicle(RN STK) is the code name of a Russian development project designed to create a means of launching space infrastructure elements (including manned spacecraft) on departure trajectories (to the Moon and Mars).
Various proposals for the creation of a super-heavy class carrier based on the modules of the Angara-A5V, Energia 1K and Soyuz-5 rockets. Graphics by V. Shtanin
Solid propellant rocket engine(RDTT) - a special case of a chemical jet engine; a device that uses the chemical energy of the interaction of solid propellant components stored on board an aircraft to create thrust.
rocket plane- a winged aircraft (aircraft) using a rocket engine for acceleration and / or flight.
RD-180- a powerful propulsion liquid-propellant rocket engine with a thrust of 390 tf at sea level, running on oxygen and kerosene. It was created by the Russian NPO Energomash by order of the American company Pratt and Whitney for installation on carriers of the Atlas III and Atlas V families. It has been mass-produced in Russia and has been supplied to the USA since 1999.
Roscosmos- the short name of the Federal Space Agency (in the period from 2004 to 2015, from January 1, 2016 - the state corporation "Roscosmos"), a state organization that coordinates work on the study and development of outer space in Russia.
"Firework"- the name of a series of Soviet long-term orbital stations that flew in near-Earth orbit from 1971 to 1986, receiving Soviet crews and cosmonauts from the countries of the socialist community (Interkosmos program), France and India.
"Union"- the name of a family of Soviet (Russian) multi-seat manned spacecraft for flights in near-Earth orbit. From April 23, 1967 to May 14, 1981, 39 ships flew with a crew on board. Also, the open name for a series of Soviet (Russian) disposable medium-class launch vehicles used to launch payloads into low-Earth orbits from 1966 to 1976.
Soyuz-FG- the name of the Russian disposable medium-class launch vehicle, which since 2001 has been delivering ships - manned (Soyuz families) and automatic (Progress) - into low Earth orbit.
"Soyuz-2"- the name of a family of modern Russian disposable launch vehicles of light and medium class, which since November 8, 2004 have been launching various payloads into near-Earth orbits and departure trajectories. In the Soyuz-ST versions, from October 21, 2011, it is launched from the European Kourou spaceport in French Guiana.
Soyuz T- the name of the transport version of the Soviet manned spacecraft Soyuz, which from April 1978 to March 1986 made 15 manned flights to the Salyut and Mir orbital stations.
Soyuz TM- the name of a modified version of the Soviet (Russian) transport manned spacecraft "Soyuz", which from May 1986 to November 2002 made 33 manned flights to the Mir orbital stations and the ISS.
Soyuz TMA- the name of the anthropometric version of the modification of the Russian Soyuz transport spacecraft, created to expand the allowable range of height and weight of crew members. From October 2002 to November 2011 he made 22 manned flights to the ISS.
Soyuz TMA-M- further modernization of the Russian transport spacecraft Soyuz TMA, which from October 2010 to March 2016 performed 20 manned flights to the ISS.
Soyuz MS- the final version of the Russian transport spacecraft Soyuz, which made its first mission to the ISS on July 7, 2016.
suborbital flight- movement along a ballistic trajectory with a short-term exit into outer space. In this case, the flight speed can be either less or more than the local orbital one (remember the American probe Pioneer-3, which had a speed higher than the first space one, but still fell to Earth).
"Tiangun" is the name of a series of Chinese manned orbital stations. The first one (Tyangun-1 laboratory) was launched on September 29, 2011.
"Shenzhou"- the name of a series of modern Chinese three-seat manned spacecraft for flights in near-Earth orbit. From November 20, 1999 to October 16, 2016, 11 ships were launched, 7 of them with astronauts on board.
Chemical jet engine- a device in which the energy of the chemical interaction of the fuel components (oxidizer and fuel) is converted into the kinetic energy of a jet stream that creates thrust.
Electric rocket engine(EP) is a device in which, to create thrust, the working fluid (usually stored on board an aircraft) is accelerated using an external supply of electrical energy (heating and expansion in a jet nozzle or ionization and acceleration of charged particles in an electric (magnetic) field).
The ion electric rocket engine has low thrust, but high efficiency due to the high speed of the expiration of the working fluid.
Emergency Rescue System- a set of devices for rescuing the spacecraft crew in the event of a launch vehicle failure, i.e., in the event of a situation in which it is impossible to reach the target trajectory.
suit- an individual sealed suit that provides conditions for the work and life of an astronaut in a rarefied atmosphere or in outer space. There are emergency and rescue suits for extravehicular activities.
Descent (return) vehicle- a part of a spacecraft intended for descent and landing on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body.
Specialists of the search and rescue group examine the descent vehicle of the Chinese Chang'e-5-T1 probe, which returned to Earth after flying around the moon. Photo by CNSA
thrust- reactive force that sets in motion an aircraft on which a rocket engine is installed.
Federal space program(FKP) is the main document of the Russian Federation that defines the list of the main tasks in the field of civil space activities and their financing. Compiled for a decade. The current FKP-2025 is valid from 2016 to 2025.
"Phoenix"- the name of the development work within the framework of FKP-2025 to create a medium-class launch vehicle for use as part of the Baiterek, Sea Launch and STK launch vehicles.
Characteristic speed (XC, ΔV) is a scalar value that characterizes the change in the energy of the aircraft when using rocket engines. The physical meaning is the speed (measured in meters per second) that the device will acquire, moving in a straight line only under the action of traction at certain fuel costs. It is used (among other things) to estimate the energy costs required to perform rocket-dynamic maneuvers (required CS), or available energy, determined by the onboard fuel or working fluid supply (available CS).
Removal of the launch vehicle "Energia" with the orbital ship "Buran"
"Energy" - "Buran"- Soviet KRK with a super-heavy class launch vehicle and a reusable winged orbital ship. It has been developed since 1976 as a response to the American Space Shuttle system. In the period from May 1987 to November 1988, he made two flights (with a mass-dimensional analogue of the payload and with an orbital ship, respectively). The program closed in 1993.
ASTP(experimental flight "Apollo" - "Soyuz") - a joint Soviet-American program, during which in 1975 the manned spacecraft "Soyuz" and Apollo made a mutual search, docking and joint flight in near-Earth orbit. Known as ASTP (Apollo-Soyuz Test Project) in the USA.
