The space exploration program in the Soviet Union officially existed from 1955 to 1991, but in fact, the development was carried out before that. During this period, Soviet designers, engineers and scientists have achieved such successes as launching the first satellite, manned space flight for the first time in the world, astronaut's first spacewalk - and these are only the most famous facts. The USSR’s space race was clearly won, but the political situation — the collapse of the Union — prevented the implementation of the space program.
Dreams of Russian explorers about space
The first manned ship could not appear in a country where no one was interested in distant space. Flights to distant planets and stars occupied Russian people even before the revolution. The brilliant revolutionary inventor, the organizer of the assassination attempt on Emperor Alexander II, Nikolai Kibalchich, sentenced to death, did not write letters to his relatives or petition for clemency in the cell, but drew outline of the jet apparatus, knowing that these papers could be kept in the prison archive.
Advanced people in Russia at all times dreamed of space. Even a special direction in philosophy has formed - Russian cosmism. Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, the founder of Russian cosmonautics, also belongs to philosophers-cosmists. He not only determined the theoretical foundations of space flights, but also gave a philosophical justification for the development of space by mankind. Tsiolkovsky overtook his time, so that in the West at that time they simply did not understand it and forgot it. In the sixties, major Western scholars began to put forward projects that coincided with the thoughts of Konstantin Eduardovich, but they took the authorship entirely. Today, the name of the scientist is almost deleted from history in the West.
In 1917, the ideas of Konstantin Tsiolkovsky became widespread among the intelligentsia. A fan of his ideas was the closest ally of Vladimir Lenin, Alexander Bogdanov. He wrote two popular science fiction novels about the expedition to Mars - “Engineer Manny” and “Red Star”. The author, wanting to acquaint readers with the idea of building socialism, transferred the scene to Mars. He described what socialism should be. The influence of Alexander Bogdanov’s novels on contemporaries was very strong. Even Aelita by A. Tolstoy (the story of the flight of two enthusiasts to Mars on a makeshift rocket) was written under the influence of books about Mars.
Tsarist Russia did not need space, but the revolution gave the chance for the Molniya launch vehicle, the first man to fly into space and launch by satellite. Alexander Bogdanov not only showed what socialism should be like, and set a goal for a revolutionary-minded society, but also indicated a completely new direction of development - to rise to the stars. The enthusiasm for building a new type of society for the young Soviet state turned out to be inextricably linked with interest in outer space. There is even a legend that the red star on the emblem is Mars.
The first steps and goals of Soviet engineers
For the first time after the revolution, Soviet engineers lived on the idea of creating real technical means to overcome interplanetary spaces. By the twenties, it became obvious that only rocket technology with rocket propulsion was suitable for space exploration. The figure, who played an exceptional role in the Soviet space program, was the teacher of the Moscow Aviation Institute, Friedrich Arturovich Zander. The engineer was ill with severe tuberculosis, but managed to found a group of researchers, lay the foundations of rocket astrodynamics, theoretical calculations of jet engines, spacecraft durations, put forward the concept of a space plan, prove several ideas that are used in almost all modern spacecraft.
Almost all the development of technology in the future was based on the work of Zander. The Moscow group of researchers included Sergei Pavlovich Korolev. The main idea at the beginning of the work was the construction of a spaceship for flight to Mars (as Friedrich Zander dreamed), which was supposed to be inhabited, and as an intermediate, but no less important stage (as Konstantin Tsiolkovsky thought) - to the Moon. But reality has shown that until the completion of the industrialization program, this cannot be realized in any way. Therefore, work was carried out in other directions. Soviet scientists supposed to use rockets to study the upper atmosphere and in military affairs.
The birth of the space program
The development of the Soviet space program was led by the development of technology after the war. The space exploration program appeared as a logical and natural continuation of defense projects. A plan for manned space flight was proposed to Joseph Stalin in 1946, but the implementation of the project was postponed because it was necessary to rebuild the country. The head of state did not forget the plans for space exploration, and the plan for the creation of R-7, the basis of Soviet cosmonautics, was signed and accepted for execution a few weeks before the death of Stalin. It was planned to create an intercontinental ballistic missile and for the first time send a person into near-Earth space.
At that time, the USSR was already able to create a nuclear bomb, but it could not become a real weapon without technical means of delivery to the target. The Americans then began to produce heavy B-52 bombers and surrounded the Soviet Union with military bases from which any city could be freely hit. Large American cities were out of the reach of Soviet bombers. The territory of the United States remained inaccessible to strike if necessary. Moreover, the plans for delivering nuclear strikes against the USSR were well known, so it was necessary to develop and technically implement such a bomb delivery system that could reach the other hemisphere. Therefore, the development of the rocket industry received the highest possible funding.
The first real steps for the atmosphere
In the process of creating missiles were test launches, which were used to study the upper atmosphere. For this, even a special geophysical rocket was designed. Almost all the equipment in front of the rocket that first entered low Earth orbit was geophysical. The more powerful the rockets became, the higher they could rise into the upper atmosphere, which differed little from near-Earth space. The P-5 (P- “rocket”, hereinafter referred to as the model number) could go into near-Earth space along a ballistic trajectory, but was not yet suitable for launching a satellite, and P-7 put the first person into orbit in space. All work was carried out within the walls of OKB-1 (today it is the S. Korolev Rocket and Comic Corporation Energy).
The Americans were in no hurry to develop powerful missiles. In the United States, there was a B-52 carrier aircraft, and even American scientists noisily announced that they were going to launch the first satellite in the near future. It was believed that the launch would be a demonstration of absolute superiority over Soviet science. This event was planned to coincide with the international year of geophysics, but a series of failures haunted the researchers. Not in a hurry with the development, and for the reason that US intelligence did not know how successfully work was being carried out in the USSR. At the same time, Soviet scientists also planned to launch an artificial satellite. The Soviet satellite with respect to the design was made very interesting. The shell was an atomic bomb shell with a remote filling, and inside the first satellite there was a regular radio transmitter.
Political significance of launching the first satellite
The satellite, developed in the Soviet Union, weighed almost a centner, and the Americans presented models commensurate in size with an orange. The second satellite became the first biological in the world, in the hermetic cabin of which in 1957 the dog Laika flew into space. The weight of the third satellite was one and a half tons. It was the first scientific laboratory in the near-Earth space in the world. The satellite was launched in 1958 for research. For the Soviet Union, the launch of three consecutive satellites was a success and a testament to the superiority of the Soviet economic system. For the United States, the immediate task was to rehabilitate ourselves in space.
Further detail
The Soviet space program for a long time really existed only in the minds of engineers and scientists employed in OKB-1. These plans wore a completely abstract character. But when it became clear that the satellite would be launched in the near future, Sergey Korolev wrote a letter in which he invited academics to express an opinion on the goals and tasks that can be solved in the course of research carried out on board an artificial satellite. The assumptions of those scientists who approached the issue without jokes became the main provisions of the Vostok space program. All assumptions are grouped into sections:
- extra-atmospheric astronomy;
- the study of the planet and space in the interests of meteorology, cartography and geophysics;
- study of the atmosphere (upper layers) and near-Earth space;
- study of the moon and the cosmic bodies of the solar system.
Subsequently, the program was supplemented and detailed.
Manned Expedition to Mars
Soviet engineers left no idea of flying to Mars. Sergei Korolev, for example, calculated specific steps that methodically and consistently led to the exploration of Mars. Space exploration for the Soviet state became a continuous process and completely distracted from the pursuit of records, spending money on quick results to the detriment of the main thing. But for the implementation of such a large-scale project, it was necessary to obtain preliminary scientific information about Mars. It was impossible to find out something using astronomical methods, so it was necessary to fly to Mars. Astronavigation posed a completely new question: is it possible to send the first manned spacecraft to Mars? Another option was a flight to the planet automatic interplanetary station.
A preliminary review of the issue showed that such a project is extremely expensive. It was necessary not only to launch a spacecraft of the USSR towards Mars, but also to ensure its return, the safety of astronauts. With an automatic station, everything is simpler and cheaper. Engineers understood that sooner or later a person would have to fly. Therefore, in parallel, the development of life support systems was carried out, which could work for a long time to provide people with air and water during the flight. It was necessary to find out the effect on a person of all the factors of flight into space and, if possible, neutralize them. The task was to create efficient engines for spacecraft of the USSR, but with such a starting mass of the ship was too large.
The practical tasks of the space program
The goals of the Soviet space program in the minds of leading engineers, designers and researchers were still elevated and distant. Almost in the process of implementing the program, it was necessary to provide satellites with reliable radio communications with all parts of the USSR (several satellites are cheaper than building a permanent network of stations), to study the meteorological situation on a global scale in order to prevent disasters, observe natural resources, and produce unique materials in space, create military satellites and space intelligence to know about the preparation of plans against the USSR and, if necessary, provide a counterattack.
To perform these tasks, it was necessary to create a set of vehicles that can provide the satellite in orbit, communications and subsequent delivery back to Earth. So, Soviet designers were required to develop transport spaceships, create a permanent station where, under normal conditions, one could carry out the entire large-scale research complex (biomedical, military, technological and others, up to the fundamental scientific study of space), study the behavior of materials in zero gravity. Then no one knew what would happen under the influence of vacuum and radiation. It became obvious that many complex tasks necessarily require the presence of a person, that is, the creation of a permanent station is necessary. Mars turned out to be one of the distant goals of the Soviet space program.
The first manned space flight
After the launch of the USSR, the first satellite, the United States could rehabilitate only the first manned space flight. At that time, the Soviet Union already had a fairly powerful R-7 rocket, so immediately after the launch of the satellite, an orbital flight with a person on board the ship began to be planned. After the satellite’s first launch, the others were biological. The first land animals flew into space. A photograph of Laika was printed in the front pages of all the newspapers in the world. The next "astronauts" were Squirrel and Strelka. During these launches, a scientific program was worked out, and the problem of the spacecraft returning to Earth with a soft landing was solved. The Soviet space program could now begin to solve the problem of manned space flight.
When everything was worked out, on April 12, 1961, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome , the Vostok spacecraft launched with a man on board, made a full flyby of the Earth and landed on the territory of the USSR. The first cosmonaut was Yuri Gagarin. The second flight was made by German Titov on August 7, 1961. He was in orbit for more than 25 hours 11 minutes. The first female astronaut flew on the Vostok-62 ship in 1963. After such a breakthrough, the United States actively joined the space race. In the USSR, active work continued, because it was necessary to explore the near space. This required the creation of ships that could accommodate not one but several people, performing not only piloting, but also some experiments. The first triple ship launched in 1964.
New launchers based on ICBMs
Space flights could only afford a country with a powerful technological base, a strong economy and advanced science. The successes of the Soviet space program were the result of good governance. To reduce the cost of flights, for example, it turned out due to organizational measures. Therefore, all Soviet technology was standardized and could be successfully used both in the civilian and military spheres, which ensured its highest efficiency. For the first time in history, this approach was taken by Joseph Stalin. He approved plans during the implementation of which the USSR created both a nuclear missile shield against US aggression and a series of various missiles - intercontinental, operational tactical, medium-range, geophysical and so on. The first full-fledged missile that could carry any load was the very R-7. The R-7 put into orbit an artificial satellite and a spaceship with a man on board. Experience with the "seven" will create several different missiles based on ICBMs. According to this scheme, the Proton and Zenit launch vehicles and the Ergia-Volcan launch vehicle module were created.
Soviet satellites for every taste
The very first Soviet satellite made it possible to study the environment in which spacecraft will operate in the future and the effects of various flight factors (from various radiations to the hypothetical danger of meteorites). The following special biosatellites with returning capsules began to perform another task - to study the effects of space flight on living organisms, because you had to know what to prepare astronauts for and what to protect them from during flights. It is expected that it will not be possible to carry out various experiments on one satellite, and it is too expensive to do individual satellites for each task. That is, it was necessary to develop serial platforms designed to perform a specific type of experiment. Such platforms are Cosmos and Intercosmos. For heavy Soyuz carriers, the space program involved the use of Protons.
With the launches of the Cosmos satellite, cooperation between the countries of the socialist camp in space exploration began. The main task of the Cosmos-261 satellite, for example, was to conduct an experiment involving satellite measurements. The USSR, the German Democratic Republic, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and specialists from France and the USA took part in this work. The apparatus of a completely new type was Intercosmos-15, which was intended for large-scale research. , . «-18» «», .
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When the country was actively preparing for the development of near space, it was time to move on to a prolonged stay of a person in a space station. Engineers did not abandon plans to send a man to Mars, and later into deep space. Part of the experiments (mainly in a confined space) could be organized on Earth, which was done in the sixties and seventies. Soviet experiments became a source of invaluable scientific material, which made it possible to develop a number of technologies for constructing life-supporting systems. Biomedical problems could be investigated only in orbit. Therefore, Soviet developers created several biosatellites in which the processes occurring in the organisms of animals that entered orbit were studied.
Specialized space objects
Actively developed and special facilities. The first communications satellites were, for example, Lightning. Lightning 1 was launched in 1965. The Probe station became a specialized apparatus, on which the nodes of spacecraft were tested, various flight modes were worked out. Several Zond stations circled the Earth’s natural satellite and photographed the far side of the Moon, returned and sat down gently on Earth. Fundamentally new "Probes-5-7" could study the radiation environment, take pictures of the Earth and the Moon, study the multiply charged component of cosmic rays, conduct some biological experiments, photometer some stars and so on.
The Luna station and automatic interplanetary stations received the first images of the comet's nucleus in the world. The reusable spacecraft Buran was created as a vehicle as part of the Mir and Mir-2 complexes. "Buran" was created taking into account the shortcomings of the American Shuttle system. With the same "Mir" and "Mir-2" the transport ship "Dawn" was to be used. The Soviet space program was actively engaged in its development in 1985-1989, but the project was curtailed due to lack of funding. Development was carried out, but production was never started. But there were moon rovers, vehicles that were the first in the world to reach the moon, interplanetary flights to Mars and Venus, orbital stations and spacecraft with reusable systems.
Some unrealized projects
Due to the collapse of the USSR, many programs remained incomplete. By the nineties, domestic science came close to industrial production in space, cheaper and more efficient than on Earth even now. On the approach was a mass of technologies that were supposed to revolutionize science and technology, but the projects were not implemented. Today, Russia's space program is not as successful as the Soviet one. But it is good that at least some steps are being taken in this area. For example, everyone knows where the Vostochny spaceport, from which the launches are located, is located. The construction of the facility was completed in 2016. The launch complex is designed to carry out international and commercial programs. Where is the Vostochny spaceport located? The facility is located in the Amur Region, near the city of Tsiolkovsky. Implementation of the space program of the Russian Federation also includes the NPO Energia named after academician S. P. Korolev, the former special design bureau under the leadership of Korolev.