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********************* Russia Aerospace Guide *********************
------------------------------------------------------------------
No. 4, August 1994
This document may be copied only in its
entirety with no changes. No fee may be charged for distribution.
No broadcast distribution please.
Content
---------------------------------------------
Launch Tours
Commercialization of the Russian Space Programs
Russtel
General Space Corporation
Victory
Russian Military Almanac
AIAA-NIS Subcommittee
Apollo-11 Bloopers
Spacecraft Delayed
Institute of Control Sciences
CSPACE Press Announces Purchase of "Countdown" Magazine
Astronaut Readdy to Replace Cameron as NASA Manager in Russia
Commercialization
RFE/RL Daily Report
BISNIS Newsletter
LK Development
More Red Mercury
Russian Publications
Apogee
Popular Science
Reviews: Seize the Moment
Help Requested in Vostok Research
---------------------------------------------
Editors Note
Many thanks to everyone for writing and I'm sorry for the
delay in getting some of these items into print, but I think this
is the best issue yet. As you can see I'm still playing with the
format of the newsletter, comments are always welcome. Note I've
started consolidating contact information of contributers at the
end. Many of you have made multiple contributions to this issue.
If you write up the information I'll give you the by-line,
otherwise if I write up the final text I'll list you as a
contributer.
***** News *****
Launch Tours - Dennis Newkirk
Cosmodrome/Spaceport Enterprises has scheduled a tour of
Baykonur to see the launch of Soyuz TM-20 and tour major
facilities of the cosmodrome. Tours of the Kaliningrad Control
Center, the NPO Energia museum, Star City, the Kremlin, etc. are
also included. The tour is scheduled to depart New York Sept. 30
and return Oct. 7. Cost - $2800, for a limited time. For more
information contact: Cosmodrome/Spaceport Enterprises, 24 Sheridan
St., Lawrence, MA 01841, Phone/FAX 508-975-8582, by Aug. 15.
---------------
Commercialization of the Russian Space Programs - Saunders Kramer
"Commercialization of the Russian Space Programs" is a
session of the AAS 40th Anniversary meeting Nov 14-16 1994, at the
Hyatt Regency in Crystal City, Arlington, VA. The theme of the
meeting is 'Partners in Space ... 2001'. For information contact:
AAS 6352 Rolling Mill Place, Suite 102, Springfield, VA 22152. Ph:
703-866-0020 FAX: 703-866-3526.
---------------
Russtel - Dennis Newkirk
Check the August 1994 Satellite Communications magazine
(subscriptions: 615-377-3322) a short interview with Jim Hickman,
Director General of Russtel - a joint venture of the Union of
Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, Marathon Earth, Rostelecom, and
Kometa to supply data and video services to Russia via Russian
facilities.
---------------
General Space Corporation - Dennis Newkirk
General Space Corp. was established in 1993 to provide a
commercial space station based on a Salyut spacecraft in a 51°
inclination orbit. Transport is be be arranged between Soyuz,
Progress or NASA shuttle. Experiment data sales to the US
government are also projected. They are currently establishing
contacts and negotiating prices and surveying potential customers
and seeking capital. For complete information contact: General
Space Corporation, 7311 Galveston Road, Suite 600, Houston, Texas
77034, (713) 333-8345, JamieFloyd@AOL.com
---------------
Victory - Dennis Newkirk
The Wall Street Journal (Aug 8, 1994) reviewed the book
"Victory" by Peter Schweizer, Atlantic Monthly Press, 1994, pp.
284, $22. The book is about the 'winning' of the cold war and its
acceleration by economic warfare for the most part organized by
Reagan administration policies. It sounds like there are some
interesting stories in it.
---------------
Russian Military Almanac - Dennis Newkirk
Check the June Air Force Magazine for the article
"Organization of the Russian Military Forces" by Tamar Mehuron,
Harriet Fast Scott, William F. Scott (authors of the wonderful
'The Armed Forces of the USSR'), and David Markov. The article
covers the current status, statistics, org charts and some of the
background of changes since the breakup of the USSR.
---------------
AIAA - NIS Subcommittee - Dennis Newkirk
Another meeting of the AIAA Newly Independent States
subcommittee was held July 18 in Washington D.C.. The agenda was
as follows:
Introduction: Dick Opsahl, Chairman
Perspective from the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Sally
Horn, Director for Cooperation Threat Reduction, DoD, Invited
- Nunn-Lugar Act
- Gore/Chernomyrdin Commission
- Kazakstan
Department of Commerce Initiatives/Nunn-Lugar Act, Donald Stanton,
US-Russia Defense Conversion Subcommittee, DoC
- Russian List of 83 Defense Converstion Projects
Department of Commerce Initiatives/Kazakstan, David Gilmore, US-
Russia Defense Conversion Subcommittee, DoC
Department of Commerce Initiatives/Ukraine, Maurice Cook, US-
Russia Defense Conversion Subcommittee, DoC
SAIC US/Russian Activities, William Chadsey, Senior Vice
President, Science Applications International Corp.
For info on the subcommittee contact Joanne Padron at the AIAA,
370 L'Efant Promenade, SW, Washington D.C. 20024-2518, Ph: 202-
646-7404, FAX: 202-646-7508.
---------------
Apollo-11 Bloopers - James Oberg
Re the barrage of Apollo-11 25th anniversary TV specials and
the bizarre visual errors in them, ranging from the sublime to the
ridiculous, I've been commissioned to do a review article
describing the more egregious errors, which will be reprinted here
once it appears in print first, next week.
Why do the producers of these shows demonstrate such contempt
or carelessness in their "re-scripting" space history to make it
more visually striking?
Examples:
Program teaser showing Armstrong on LM ladder, then dropping
to surface and immediately saying "One small step..." speech,
instead of actually being on LM footpad, describing it, saying
he's about to step off the pad, then the speech. Showing wrong
program spacecraft, e.g. Gemini splashdown for a Mercury
splashdown, Gemini re-entry camera view for Apollo trans-lunar
rocket burn view, showing wrong Russian rockets, showing Titan and
Jupiter explosions when talking about Mercury-Atlas problems.
Others were more subtle: the "flying bedstead" accident at
Ellington where Armstrong had to eject to save his life -- the
film shown on Turner's "Moonshot" was of another pilot's ejection
(Algranti), but since it had a more spectacular crash and
explosion, it apparently was preferable as "theatre" even though
when presented as Armstrong's accident, it was a fraud.
I'm not talking about the inanities in the Hollywood version
of "The Right Stuff", since that was so clearly a cinematic semi-
fictional cartoon. I'm talking about the pseudo-documentaries
being shown now about the 'Moon Race'.
No news program would dare show the Bulgaria-Germany soccer
match as visual for Brazil-Romania, for example, or show George
Bush inauguration crowds for Clinton's inauguration, or show B-
52's bombing Germany in a WW2 overview. So why then do they think
they are allowed that kind of nonsense regarding spaceflight
history? Does that make "Hollywood Documentary" another classic
oxymoron, like "congressional ethics"?
Examples, comments, and contributions are solicited. Please
e-mail me directly, please. [Ed: See the Aug. 8th Wall Street
Journal for associated article]
---------------
Spacecraft Displayed - James Oberg
At the AstroHall here in Houston for the Apollo-XI-25th,
there were two Russian Vostok-class observation satellites on
display. One was called a 'Resurs' and the other was called the
"military spy satellite". Both had allegedly flown in space in
1992, had been diverted to the Sotheby's space auction in late
1993, but had arrived in NY too late. So they are still in the
possession of 'Space Commerce Corporation', for sale.
The 'spy satellite' had two large (about 38 cm) optically
flat circular windows, with the camera packages still inside. They
were off center somewhat because of the volume occupied by the
parachute compartment, standard Vostok design.
Also on display was a very nice Proton launch pad model,
about 12 by 20 ft on the sides. The launch umbilical connector
through the clamshell at the base even worked when I fiddled with
it by hand. I took some pictures of it, too, and may have further
access to it if anyone has specific requests.
---------------
Institute of Control Sciences - Charles Radley
My colleague, Dr. Dennis Serebryakov, of the Institute of Control
Problems in Moscow, informs me that his Institute plans to publish
a magazine called "Russian Technology". Initially the magazine
will be in the Russian language. However, they are looking for a
western business partner, preferably an established publishing
company, to grant the English language rights to, subject to
agreement of terms.
Dr. Serebryakov will be sending me some sample copies of the
magazine via a mail forwarding service from St.Petersburg to
Finland. If anybody would like to see the magazine with a view to
evaluating the English language rights, please contact me.
The English language version would be typeset in Moscow, and
the files transmitted electronically to be printed and mailed by
the franchisee.
Here is information about the Institute:
Contact person: Dennis Serebryakov
The research team of five members from the Institute of
Control Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences (prof. Eugene
Maslov, D.Sc.(Eng.), - the leader of the team; prof. Eugene
Rubinovich, D.Sc.(Eng.) - the leader researcher) propose
theoretical and applied investigations in the fields of
differential games with incomplete information, stochastic
control problems, filtration theory.
More detailed :
1. Creation new effective algorithms of optimal control for
the observation process in discrete-continuous stochastic systems
(including multi-channel radar systems and others remote control
systems).
2. Trajectory control of the observation process (control of
the trajectory of a mobile observer in oder to improve a quality
of the observations).
3. Impulse control problems of the flight dynamics.
4. Elaboration of the methods of optimal linear filtration
for jump stochastic processes.
5. Investigation of pursuit-evasion differential and search
games with incomplete information, in particular, under man-made
information disturbances (including false targets putting,
suppression of the channel of observation, programmed fashion of
the players motion, random noise presence in observations and
so on).
INSTITUTE OF CONTROL SCIENCES, LABORATORY NO.8.
Over the past four decades the team of Laboratory No.8 has been
engaged in the various fields of analytical and experimental
study, design process and flight testing of certain air-born
systems of high-energy space rockets. The experience gained has
taken the form of theoretical achievements in computer-oriented
procedures of data handling, methods of nearly-optimal fault-
tolerant control algorithms, models of booster-stage and
navigation dynamics, etc. As a practical outcome, the majority of
developed methods was implemented and successfully tested as a
software, used in on-board computers and ground-support systems. A
brief summary of the main theoretical trends and practical
applications is listed below.
LITERATURE
1. Petrov B.N., Portnov-Sokolov Yu.P., Andrienko A.Ya., Ivanov
V.P., "On-board systems of terminal control," [in Russian]
Mashinostroenie(1983).
2. Petrov B.N., Portnov-Sokolov Yu.P., Andrienko A.Ya., "Control
aspects of efficient rocket propulsion systems," Acta
Astronautica, v.4, 1977.
3. Petrov B.N., Portnov-Sokolov Yu.P., Andrienko A.Ya., and
others, "Problem of on-board termonal control systems of new
generation," Control science and technology of society, IFAC
Congress, Kyoto, 1981.
4. Petrov B.N., Portnov-Sokolov Yu.P., Andrienko A.Ya., Ivanov
V.P., "On the reduction of the loss of terminal control accuracy
under contingent operating conditions," Proceedings of XII
Int.Symp. of Space Tech.&Sci., 1977.
5. Portnov-Sokolov Yu.P., Ivanov V.P., "Reconfiguration of on-
board control algorithms," Preprints of Joint IFAC/ESA Symposium
"Automatic Control in Space," Noordijkerhout, Netherlands, 5-9
July 1985.
6. Volkov V.Ya., Gladkov Yu.M., "Additive decomposition of finite
processes," Preprints of 2nd IFAC Symposium "Stochastic Control,"
Vilnus, USSR, 19-23 May 1986.
7. Zavadskii V.K., "Two-level filtering in terminal systems,"
Automation and Remote Control," v.40, No.1, Jan. 1979.
8. Zavadskii V.K., "Constrained optimal control in terminal
systems with prediction," Automation and Remote Control," v.52,
No.9, Sep. 1979
---------------
CSPACE PRESS ANNOUNCES PURCHASE OF "COUNTDOWN" MAGAZINE
- Glen Swanson
GRAND RAPIDS, MI., June 27, 1994--CSPACE PRESS, Inc., announces
completion of the formal purchase of Countdown magazine from Main
Stage Publications of Athens, Ohio.
Founded by Dixon P. Otto, Countdown has grown to become
the leading magazine dedicated to covering the space shuttle
program, offering continuous coverage of every launch since 1983.
NOW under new ownership, the new Countdown continues in this
tradition under a larger bimonthly format expanded to include
additional contemporary space topics. Each colorful issue contains
over 40 pages of feature articles focusing on the space shuttle
program plus reviews, rare photos, exclusive interviews, valuable
resources and more on space exploration and international space
developments.
As publisher of Quest, the world's only magazine dedicated to
the history of spaceflight, CSPACE Press brings to Countdown a
wealth of resources in the field of spaceflight journalism. Now in
its third year of publication, Quest has received worldwide
acclaim for its detailed articles chronicling past international
achievements in the fields of both manned and unmanned
spaceflight.
'We welcome the new challenges offered by Countdown" says
CSPACE president Glen E. Swanson. 'Through this new acquisition,
we now offer two unique spaceflight magazines which together'
offer the most complete coverage of the past, present and future
of space exploration found anywhere On Earth!"
For more information or to request review copies of Quest and
Countdown, contact Glen E. Swanson at: CSPACE PRESS, P.O. Box
9331, Grand Rapids, MI 49509-0331. Ph. 616-452-5500, Fax 616-452-
5538
---------------
ASTRONAUT READDY TO REPLACE CAMERON AS NASA MANAGER IN RUSSIA
NASA HQ, RELEASE: 94-115
Astronaut William F. Readdy will replace Kenneth D. Cameron
(Colonel, USMC) as NASA manager of operational activities at Star
City, Russia. As Director of Operations, Russia, Readdy will work
with Russian trainers, engineers and flight controllers to support
the training of NASA astronauts at Gagarin Cosmonaut Training
Center, Star City, and to enhance continued cooperation between
NASA and Russia's Space Agency (RSA).
Readdy's primary responsibilities will include the support of
U.S. astronauts and their families currently living in Star City.
He also will monitor the current training program as well as
develop a syllabus for Shuttle crews training to dock with the Mir
space station. In addition, he will establish and maintain the
operational relationships required to help develop plans and
procedures which support the long-term, joint operations between
NASA, RSA and Star City.
Readdy will join fellow astronauts Norman E. Thagard, M.D.,
and Bonnie J. Dunbar, Ph.D., who have been training in Star City
since February as the prime and backup crew members for a 3-month
flight aboard Mir. Thagard is scheduled to be launched aboard a
Soyuz spacecraft March 1, 1995. Following his three-month stay on
Mir, the crew of mission STS-71, which will include Dunbar as a
mission specialist, will dock Space Shuttle Atlantis to Mir. It
will be the first of up to 10 Shuttle visits that will be made to
the Russian space station during the 1995-1997 time frame.
Readdy has flown on two Shuttle missions, STS-42 in January
1992 and STS-51 in September 1993 -- both aboard Discovery. On the
STS-42 flight, Readdy participated in various scientific
experiments carried out as part of the first International
Microgravity Laboratory (IML-1) mission. As the pilot of STS-51,
Readdy participated in the deployment of the Advanced
Communications Technology Satellite (ACTS), and the deployment and
retrieval of the Astro SPAS (Shuttle Pallet Satellite). He also
helped supervise a seven-hour spacewalk designed to evaluate tools
and techniques used during the Hubble Space Telescope servicing
mission and on future space missions.
A Captain in the U.S. Naval Reserve, Readdy earned a bachelor
of science degree in aeronautical engineering from the Naval
Academy in 1974. Cameron also has flown twice on the Shuttle. His
first flight was on Atlantis' STS-37 mission in 1991 to deploy the
Compton Gamma Ray Observatory. His second mission was on
Discovery's STS-56 flight in 1993 to continue studies of the
Earth's atmosphere as part of a series of missions called
Atmospheric Laboratory for Applications and Science (ATLAS).
Cameron will return to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, and
is expected to command another Shuttle mission in the near future.
---------------
Commercialization - Saunders Kramer
The following are areas/programs in the process of
commercialization:
Gorizont, lease/purchase to Rimsat of Fort Wayne, IN. Rimsat
is now leasing 3 Gorizont satellites (Nos. 28,29,30) for
broadcast to western Pacific and Asia.
Contract with United Arab Emirates for satellite imagery
system with 0.8 m resolution.
"Signal" cellular telephony for use within Russian territory
using 48 LEO satellites. commence 1995 (system wiIl be 'turned
off' when outside of Russia). Russia does not wish to deal with
multiple bureaucracies for planet-wide use of system.
Lockheed-Khrunichev-Energiya International is in place and
operating for 'purchasing' Proton launchers for satellite
emplacement. Look for limits on number of Protons arranged for
LKEI to disappear before the year 2000 as originally agreed upon
by U.S. etc.
Elekon, a German-Russian 'telephony' system to be initiated
in 1995 for data transmission and vehicle (i.e., trucks) locating.
LEO satellites; number in system not clear.
Continued contractual arrangements for microgravity
experiments to be conducted aboard MIR and aboard various robotic
spacecraft: i.e., Biocan carried aboard Foton 6 (June 14, 1994)
for the ESA.
---------------
RFE/RL Daily Report - Dennis Newkirk
The RFE/RL Daily Report is published by the Radio Free
Europe/Radio Liberty Research Institute. The report is published
Monday-Friday as a digest of the latest news in Russia, Central
Asia, Transcaucasia, and Eastern Europe. They also publish
monographs, a weekly journal, and other periodicals.
Subscriptions can be made by subscribing to RFERL-L at
LISTSERV@UBVM.CC.BUFFALO.EDU. It is also available by mail and
FAX. Contact in North America: Mr. Brian Reed, RFE/RL, Inc., 1201
Connecticut Ave., NW, Washington, D.C., 20036, Ph: 202-457-6912 or
6907, FAX: 202-457-6992 or 828-8783, RI-DC@RFERL.ORG Contact
outside North America: Ms. Helga Hofer, Publications Dept. RFE/RL,
Oettingenstrasse 67, 80538 Munich, Germany, Ph: 49 89 2102-2631 or
2624, FAX: 49 89 2102-2648, PD@RFERL.ORG
---------------
BISNIS Newsletter - Dennis Newkirk
The BISNIS newsletter is published by the US Dept. of Commerce
International Trade Administration as a report on export and joint
venture opportunities news from the Dept of Commerce US and
Foreign Commercial Service, the European Bank for Reconstruction
and Development and the World Bank.
For instance, the May issue has an item from NPO
Machinostroyeniya about opportunities for suppliers of vapor
deposition manufacturing equipment for solar panel production.
Contact: BISNIS, US Department of Commerce, Room 7413, Washington,
D.C. 20230, Ph: 202-482-4655, FAX: 202-482-2293.
---------------
LK Development - Dennis Newkirk
Peter Gorin has brought to my attention a copy of V.M.
Filin's "vospominani' o lunnom korable", izdatelbstvo, kulbtura,
1992, pp. 77, ISBN 5-7158-0050-1. I haven't translated much of it
yet but you are probably familiar with extracts published in JPRS
over the last couple years. The book features several pages of
nice drawings and photos of design options.
---------------
More Red Mercury - Dennis Newkirk
A source that sums up a lot of information in a authoritative
manner can be found in Janes "International Defense Review", Vol.
No. 27, June 1994. p. 79-81. "Red Mercury: Is there a pure fusion
bomb for sale?" by Dr. Frank Barnaby. Also, see the Sunday Times
July 24 issue cover story "Britain's Gulf war ally helped Saddam
build nuclear bomb" by Marie Colvin about Saudi Arabia's aid of
Iraq's nuclear bomb program including an attempted 1990 purchase
of Red Mercury for $75 million.
---------------
Russian Publications - Dennis Newkirk
Most of the old timers well know Victor Kamkin's books (4950-
56 Boiling Brook Parkway, Rockville, MD 20852, Ph: 301-881-5973).
But I recently was pointed to Eastview Publications by Rex Hall.
Eastview might offer the best selection of Russian reading
materials in the USA. After I called they sent me a hand full of
catalogs of Maps, Periodicals, and Books (hundreds of pages in
all). They also offer electronic publications, a FAX service for
popular newspapers, and other special services. Contact: East View
Publications, 3020 Harbor Lane North, Minneapolis, MN 55447, Ph:
612-550-0961 or 800-477-1005, FAX: 612-559-2931, E-mail:
eastview@mr.net
---------------
Apogei - Dennis Newkirk
One of Glen Swanson's contributers found the Apogee
newspaper, published for 3 years as a companion to Propellor from
the MAI, Moscow. Apogee is devoted to spaceflight matters past,
present, and future. Contact: Editor - Dmitry Pieson, Ph: 095-158-
8970, FAX: 095-267-9893 FOR MTI/PIESON
---------------
Popular Science - Dennis Newkirk
Popular Science magazine has a nice special issue dedicated
to Russian science and technology dated August 1994. There are
articles on aviation, space and new products.
Reviews
---------------------------------------------
Seize the Moment - Charles Radley
"Seize the Moment" by Helen Sharman and Christopher Priest.
Foreword by Arthur C. Clarke. Published in Britain by Victor
Gollancz. So far not published in the USA.
The book is an autobiographical account by Helen Sharman, who
flew aboard a Soyuz spacecraft and spent one week aboard the Mir
space station in May 1991, as part of "Project Juno", a commercial
venture to put the first British person into space. She was the
first native English speaker to fly on a Soviet mission, and
therefore the book presents a unique insight for English speakers
to appreciate the process of training for and flying about a
Soviet space mission.
The book has 11 chapters, which alternate chronologically.
1. 8 minutes and 50 seconds: The Launch
2. 26 years: One Small Life
3. 2 days: Soyuz
4. 13,000 to 4: Selection process
5. 6 Days of World Peace: Mir - Home, Sweet Home
6. 4 to 2: Selection for Training
7. 364 kilometres and 51.6°: Looking Back on Earth
8. 3 Days and 3 Hours: Preparing for Russia
9. 12 experiments, 125,000 Seeds and Some Snails: Work in Space
10. 18 months: Training
11. 25 minutes: Landing
Epilogue
The book is basically the personal diary of Helen Sharman.
How she came to be selected for the mission, the training in
Moscow, and the flight itself. Description of life in Star City
was interesting. The test and training they underwent, and
general aspects of daily life in Moscow. Public transport was
restrictive, so Sharman eventually bought a car. She registered it
with the Moscow license bureau who had difficulty assigning her a
license category. Sharman was not a test pilot, a scientist from
the confectionery industry with no aerospace background, hence her
perspective is quite revealing. She focuses on details which
"professional" astronauts tend not to address. She was launched
with Sergei Krikalev and Anatole Artsebarski. The sensation of
first experiencing zero-g:
"At 530 seconds the third stage cut out and was jettisoned.
It did not happen gradually. One moment it was burning
ferociously behind me, in the next it stopped completely.
One moment I was being pressed hard into my seat and in the
next I was not. I had been straining against the g-force
without realizing I had been doing so; then I stopped
straining. Quite involuntarily, I said, "Ugh!" Beside me,
Sergei and Tolya said, "Uhh!"
The talisman was no longer tense against its string. It
hovered by the hatch, the string snaking loosely towards it.
It had suddenly become, as we had suddenly become,
weightless".
There follows an interesting account of what it is actually
like to leave and work with the four other cosmonauts aboard Mir.
Sharman returned to Earth with different companions to the two who
she launched with. Her role during re-entry was important
because she had only been exposed to a few days of zero-g, unlike
Viktor Afanasyev and Musa Manarov who had been up for several
months.
The landing she described was the most harrowing part of the
flight. The spacecraft hit the ground and bounced several times.
"I discovered the nasty truth about being strapped into a
space suit: you can be protected from most major jolts, but
the one thing that you can't do is strap your head inside
the helmet. When we bounced forward my face hit the visor.
The microphone was there in front of my chin, and my lips
became much more intimately involved with this than intended!
My only injury was some minor bruising to the face."
After the landing cosmonaut Musa Manarov was at the bottom of
the spacecraft, covered in loose objects which the crew had been
holding but lost grip of during the landing. The book is very
interesting, and well worth reading if you can get a hold of a
copy from Britain. There is no word on when or if the book will
be published in the USA.
Wanted/Questions/Corrections
---------------------------------------------
- Anyone interested in attending an informal meeting of
Soviet/Russian space researchers at the launch of the shuttle Mir
docking mission in 1995 please contact Dennis Newkirk at the
address below. My preference is to keep this to an informal
meeting lasting the rest of the day after or before the launch at
a nearby hotel, preferably one with a good restaurant. A date will
not be set, this only applies to the actual launch day regardless
of any delays. This is only a tentative plan, other ideas welcome.
- An AP news report on the Russian economy the week of Aug. 1
stated that the space pavilion had been filled with used western
luxury cars although a portrait of Gagarin still hangs on the
wall. Other pavilions also have been taken over by consumer
electronics sales. Can anyone confirm this?
Contact the Guide (see below)
---------------------------------------------
Help Requested in Vostok Research Michael J. Mackowski
I am an amateur space historian who specializes in scale
model building. In order to share the results of my research, I
publish a series of booklets ("Space In Miniature") for scale
model builders and artists that describes the physical appearance
of various spacecraft programs so they can create more accurate
renderings. My latest project is on Soviet/Russian spacecraft.
As part of this, I am trying to determine the exterior finish and
interior colors of the Vostok and Voskhod spacecraft. I have
researched this as best I can, and have come up with conflicting
information. Any help from readers would be greatly appreciated
and acknowledged in my publication.
EXTERIOR FINISH:
My query can be divided into two areas: the spherical
descent module and the equipment module below it. The Vostok
descent module had an ablative material covering it. It took the
form of a flat white material applied in a hexagonal pattern, with
obvious bare metal areas around the edges of the crew and
parachute hatches. This is obvious in several photos. Other
photos, however, show the descent module to be covered by a shiny
metallic film. This is not the bare metal of the spherical
pressure vessel, but apparently a thin layer (foil or tape)
applied in many pieces. My question is, what is the correct on-
orbit appearance? The white hexagonal ablator or the shiny
metallic film?
My conjecture is that the shiny metallic film was applied as
a thermal radiator to keep the pressurized compartment cool,
particularly on longer missions. It is probably applied over the
white ablative material. Since the Vostok 1 mission was only one
orbit, and all subsequent missions, including all of the Voskhod
flights, were about a day in duration, it may be possible that
only the Vostok 1 capsule flew without the metallic film, since it
did not require the thermal finish for such a short flight. This
would explain the differences in vintage photos of assembly line
vehicles and museum pieces.
For the equipment module, my question involves whether any
thermal blankets were used on the ring of oxygen and nitrogen
tanks. Most of the referenced photos (see list below) show the
tanks to be painted green. Is this indeed the case for the real
vehicles, or is this a simplification (a representation of green
fabric thermal blankets) for display purposes? Recall that none
of the more recent Soviet spacecraft (Soyuz, Salyut, Mir, etc.)
put on public exhibit ever have the blankets installed. Instead,
they are painted a dark green color, similar to that of the
blanket material. This might explain the photos of Vostok museum
artifacts, but some of the "assembly line" photos also seem to
show a dark color on the tanks. A few pictures, however, show the
tanks to be bare metallic, but these also generally have some of
the tanks missing, a sign that this spacecraft is not completely
assembled.
My explanation is that the Russians probably simply used a
paint on the tanks for the real space vehicles, as I have seen no
photos showing blankets covering the entire equipment module of an
old Vostok. Note that photos of 1980s-vintage Vostok-derived
vehicles have these broader blankets (refs. 12 & 13). This may be
a recent development, however, and be related to the much longer
flight durations.
The list below notes various published photos and what they
show.
References:
Ref. 1. Russians in Space, Evgeny Riabchikov, 1971
a.plate 50. Vostok capsule being installed on the equipment
module show only a flat metallic pressure vessel.
b.plate 51. A Vostok later in the assembly phase showing the hex
pattern on the ablator.
c.plate 60. Gagarin's capsule after landing shows the beat-up and
charred ablator. Note that other photos of Vostok capsules on the
ground or after flight show bits of the shiny metallic film
pealing off. None are evident in this photo, but that could be
due to the poor quality of the photo.
Ref. 2. Handbook of Soviet Manned Space Flight, N. Johnson, 1980
p. 22 Vostok under construction looks smooth and white
Ref. 3 Manned Spaceflight Log, Tim Furniss, 1983
a. p. 11 Noted as a "Vostok replica", this vehicle has the shiny
metallic finish applied.
b. p. 16 Vostok during final assembly, shows white hex ablator
Ref. 4 Cosmic Era, (Soviet postcard set of painting of space
themes, 1982) A painting of Vostok in orbit shows the white
ablator with the hex pattern.
Ref. 5 New Voyager magazine, 'Red Star In Orbit,' M. Irvine,
Autumn 1982
p. 59 Photo of Vostok displayed at the (1975?) Paris Air Show and
apparently later permanently displayed at the Moscow Exhibition of
Economic Achievement. Shows shiny metallic finish.
Ref. 6 Journal of the British Interplanetary Society, Jan. 1985
p. 6 Novosti photo of an actual (?) spacecraft. Shiny metallic
Ref. 7 Encyclopedia of Soviet Spacecraft, Douglas Hart, 1987
a. p. 153 This is apparently the same museum artifact as in ref.
5. It displays a shiny metallic finish.
b. p. 152 Captioned as "Vostok craft at assembly stage", this is a
nearly identical photos as ref. 5a, except for a small name
placard placed on the vehicle. It does appear to be a real
vehicle in the integration process. Shows the shiny metallic
finish, obvious applied in a film in sections or pieces, with no
hex patterns. The ring of tanks are not painted (some appear to
be missing) and they have a flat metallic finish. (Does this mean
the tanks are painted later? Or are there green blankets
installed on each one? Or all as a group? Or not at all? Or the
entire equipment module (as with Soyuz)?
c. p. 154 Shows a capsule after reentry, displayed in a museum.
There is charred and shredded metallic film apparent, but no
ablative honeycomb. Did they change the ablative design at some
point?
Ref. 8 Aviation Week & Space Technology, Feb. 9, 1987
p. 26 Photo of an unidentified Vostok (or derivative, as there are
two portholes on the hatch) shows a shiny metallic finish. But
some pieces are missing so it may not be completely assembled.
Ref. 9 The Soviet Manned Space Program, P. Clark, 1988
a. p. 26 Voskhod appears smooth, gray or white. No hex pattern.
Same photo appears in Spaceflight, Jan. 1983, p. 43.
Ref. 10 Space Markets magazine, 'Vostok Variants for Commercial
Users,' P. Clark, 5/89
p. 308 Shiny metallic finish on this Photon variant.
Ref. 11 Spaceflight magazine, Nov. 1993
p. 383 This apparent museum artifact has the shiny metallic
finish.
Ref. 12 Cosmonautics 1990, Y. Semenov, et. al., 1991
p. 17 Photon vehicle has greenish thermal blankets covering the
entirely of both a descent and equipment modules.
Ref. 13 Cosmonautics 1991, Y. Semenov, et. al., 1992
p. 13 Resurs-F vehicle has a shiny descent module with blankets on
the tanks only.
INTERIOR:
The question here regards the color of the interior walls in the
Vostok and Voskhod capsules. In photos taken recently of museum
artifacts, including Gagarin's actual capsule, the material
covering the walls appears to be an orange-brown fabric. Vintage
photos taken during the mission (refs 7d, 9b and 9d) show the
walls to be white or light gray. In correspondence with
researcher Peter Gorin, he suggests the original white color is
correct, as the material was a spongy foam that discolors to brown
with time. This would be consistent with the difference in the
old and new photos, and is an explanation I find quite acceptable.
References
Ref. 5 New Voyager magazine, 'Red Star In Orbit,' M. Irvine,
Autumn 1982. This article modeling the Vostok describes the
vehicles at the museum in Moscow. It is described to have a light
buff color.
Ref. 7 Encyclopedia of Soviet Spacecraft, Douglas Hart, 1987
d. p. 145 Photo shows either the real Voskhod 1 or a trainer with
the crew inside. Interior is white.
e. p. 146-7 Photo of Voskhod 1, but no date is given. Interior
color is orange-brown. Is this a vintage photo or a photo taken
recently in a museum?
Ref. 9 The Soviet Manned Space Program, P. Clark, 1988
b. p. 19 Flight vehicle; appears white or gray.
c. p. 20 Mock-up or display vehicle; gray.
d. p. 28 Flight Voskhod, appears white.
e. p. 31 Voskhod trainer appears tan or brown.
Any help anyone could provide in clearing up these confusing
references would be greatly appreciated and acknowledged in any
publication that might result.
---------------
****** Contributers ******
---------------------------------------------
Rex Hall
Peter Gorin
Saunders Kramer
Michael Mackowski
Editor, Space In Miniature,
CompuServe 71571.330
James Oberg
jamesoberg@aol.com
Charles Radley
Tranquest Corporation, Ph: 216-888-3991 Fax: 216-888-3992,
Internet : http://rogue.northwest.com/~charles
Glen Swanson
NASA
General Space Corporation
General Space Corporation, 7311 Galveston Road, Suite 600,
Houston, Texas 77034, (713) 333-8345, JamieFloyd@AOL.com
---------------------------------------------
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