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title: "1980 Plesetsk launch pad disaster"
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source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1980_Plesetsk_launch_pad_disaster"
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The 1980 Plesetsk launch pad disaster was the explosion of a Vostok-2M rocket carrying a Tselina-D satellite during fueling at Site 43/4 of the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in the town of Mirny in the Soviet Union at 19:01 local time (16:01 UTC) on 18 March 1980, two hours and fifteen minutes before the intended launch time. Forty-four people were killed in the initial fire and four more soon died in the hospital from burns. It is the third deadliest space exploration-related disaster in history.
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== Sequence of events ==
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On 17 March the rocket was installed at the launch site. Various preliminary tests conducted before the fueling went as expected and without problem. The Vostok-2M had been flying for 16 years with only a single in-flight failure and this vehicle, S/N 78055-330, would have been the 70th one launched. The launch of the rocket was scheduled to take place at 21:16 on 18 March. Several hours before the intended launch, the tanks were filled with RP-1 at 19:00 and preceded by the addition of liquid oxygen and liquid nitrogen to side tanks. After the addition of hydrogen peroxide was completed, a huge explosion at the site was witnessed at 19:01 MSK; 44 people in the area were killed and another 43 required hospitalization for burns, four of whom later died while in the hospital. Many of the survivors suffered severe burns and lung damage. Over 80% of surviving eyewitnesses to the disaster reported that the first explosion originated from the Block E stage. Fire crept down the side of the rocket and rapidly ignited the core stage and strap-ons. The 300 tons of fuel destroyed the launch pad and surrounding area. The intense heat of the fire caused the metal support structures on LC-43/4 to glow red. The pad was left a twisted mass of rubble. It took a few days to remove all the dead from the pad area during which time small fires continued to burn. LC-43/4 was not used again for four years. Another Vostok-2M vehicle successfully launched a Tselina-D satellite from LC-43/3 on 4 June and completed the mission the 18 March launch was supposed to have done.
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== Aftermath ==
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=== Initial investigation ===
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The official investigation responsible for determining the cause of the disaster headed by Leonid Smirnov assigned blame to the crew that was killed at the site of the fire by specifically stating the official cause as "explosion (inflammation) of material soaked in liquid oxygen as a result of unauthorized actions of one of the members of the ground crew." The investigative committee was under political pressure to blame the launch crews, many of whom were dead and couldn't defend themselves, rather than the workforce at the Khrunichiev plant in Samara where R-7 vehicles were assembled. However, less than a year later, on 23 July 1981 after a second disaster of the same cause was narrowly avoided, it was discovered that a design flaw in the fuel filters of the rocket were likely the cause of the 1980 disaster, although it was impossible to confirm which type of filters were used in the rocket that exploded. The catalytically active lead solder on the filters would cause an explosion upon contact with hydrogen peroxide.
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=== Cover-up ===
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The disaster was not reported in Soviet media at the time and was not publicly admitted to until the glasnost era nine years later. Pravda reported that the launch of the rocket was a success and did not say anything about the explosion. It was only in 1999, almost two decades after the disaster, that an investigative committee ruled that the cause of the disaster was "probably" use of lead solder in the fuel filters.
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== Footnotes ==
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== References ==
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The Aggregat series (From the German for "Aggregate" or "Assembly") was a set of ballistic missile designs developed in 1933–1945 by a research program of Nazi Germany's Army (Heer). Its greatest success was the A4, more commonly known as the V2.
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== A1 (1933) ==
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The A1 was the first rocket design in the Aggregat series. It was designed in 1933 by Wernher von Braun at the German Army research program at Kummersdorf headed by Colonel Dr Walter Dornberger. The A1 was the grandfather of most modern rockets. The rocket was 1.4 metres (4 ft 7 in) long, 30.5 centimetres (12 in) in diameter, and had a takeoff weight of 150 kilograms (330 lb). The engine, designed by Arthur Rudolph, used a pressure-fed rocket propellant system burning ethanol and liquid oxygen, and produced 2.9 kN (660 lbf) of thrust for 16 seconds. The LOX tank was located within the fuel tank and insulated with a fiberglass material. The rocket was stabilized by a 40 kg (88 lb) 3 axes gyroscope system in the nose, supplied by Kreiselgeräte GmbH. The rocket could not be rotated for stability as with a ballistic shell, as centrifugal force would force the liquid fuel to rise up along the walls of their tanks, which made feeding propellants to the combustion chamber difficult. Although the engine had been successfully test fired, the first flight attempt blew up on the launching pad on 21 December 1933, half a second after ignition. The cause was a buildup up of propellants before ignition of its engine. Since the design was thought to be unstable, no further attempts were made, and efforts moved to the A2 design. The A1 was too nose-heavy, and to compensate, the gyroscope system was moved to the middle of the A2, between the oxygen and ethanol tanks.
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== A2 (1934) ==
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Static tests and assembly were completed by 1 October 1934. Two A2s were built for a full-out test, and were named after a Wilhelm Busch cartoon, Max and Moritz. On 19 and 20 December 1934, they were launched in front of senior Army officers on Borkum island in the North Sea. They reached altitudes of 2.2 and 3.5 kilometres (1.4 and 2.2 mi). The A2s had the same dimensions as the A1, and the same engine, but separate propellant tanks. The cylindrical regeneratively cooled combustion chamber was welded inside the ethanol tank. The mushroom-shaped injector system consisted of fuel and oxidizer jets pointing at one another. Propellants were pressurized from a nitrogen tank, a system which was also used for the A3 and A5.
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== A3 (1935–1937) ==
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Development of the A3 can be traced at least to February 1935 when Major Ernst Ritter von Horstig sent General der Artillerie Karl Becker a budget of almost half a million marks for the construction of two new test stands at Kummersdorf. Included were mobile test rigs, small locomotives, and office and storage space. The A3 plans called for a rocket with an inertial guidance system and a 15 kN (3,300 lb) thrust engine.
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In March 1936, Generaloberst Werner von Fritsch witnessed a static firing of an A3 engine at Kummersdorf, and was sufficiently impressed to lend his support to the rocket program. Like the earlier A1 and A2 rockets, the A3 used a pressure-fed propellant system, and the same liquid oxygen and 75% ethanol mixture as the earlier designs. It generated its 14.7 kN (3,300 lb) for 45 seconds. It used a three-gyroscope system to deflect tungsten alloy jet vanes. The design was finished in early 1936 and further modifications that made the rocket stable at supersonic velocities were finalized later that year.
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The shape of the rocket was based on the 8-mm rifle bullet, in anticipation of supersonic flight. The rocket was 6.7 metres (22 ft) in length, 0.70 metres (2.3 ft) feet in diameter, and weighed 750 kg (1,650 lb) when fueled. Fins were included, for "arrow stability", structurally anchored by an antenna ring. The stabilized platform used a pitch gyro and a yaw gyro, connected to pneumatic servos, which stabilized the platform along the pitch and yaw axes. Electrical carriages on the platform acted as integrating accelerometers. These signals were mixed with those from the SG-33 system, to drive the molybdenum-tungsten jet vane control servomotors. The SG-33 was fixed to the rocket, not the stabilized platform, and used three rate gyros to sense roll, pitch and yaw deviations. Two of the jet vanes rotated in the same direction for pitch and yaw control, and in opposite directions for roll control. The guidance and control system was designed by Fritz Mueller, based on Johannes Maria Boykow's ideas, the technical director of Kreiselgeräte GmbH ("Gyro Instruments Limited").
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The A3 engine was a scaled-up version of the A2, but with a mushroom-shaped injector at the top of the combustion chamber, based on a design by Walter Riedel. Ethanol was sprayed upwards to mix with the oxygen sprayed downward from jets at the top of the chamber. This increased efficiency and generated higher temperatures.
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This was the first of the Aggregat rockets to be launched from the Peenemünde area. As part of Operation Lighthouse the first A3 was launched on 4 December 1937, but suffered problems with premature parachute deployment and engine failure, and crashed close to the takeoff point. The second launch on 6 December 1937 suffered similar problems. The parachute was disabled in the third and fourth rockets launched on 8 and 11 December 1937, but these, too, experienced engine failures, though the lack of parachute drag allowed them to crash further from the launch site. They reached altitudes between 760 and 910 metres (2,500 and 3,000 ft), before falling into the sea.
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According to another source, one A3 reached a maximum downrange of 12 km (7.5 mi) and maximum altitude of 18 km (11 mi).
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With each launch a failure, von Braun and Dornberger looked for the cause. At first there was some thought of an electrostatic charge that prematurely set off the parachute, but this was largely disproved. Ultimately, the failures were attributed to the inadequate design of the rocket's experimental inertial guidance system and minor instabilities in the body and fin design. The control system was found to be unable to keep the rocket from turning with a wind greater than 3.7 metres per second (12 ft/s). The stable platform gyros were limited to a 30 degree range of motion, and when the platform tumbled, the parachutes deployed. The jet vanes needed to move faster, and have a larger control force, to stop the rolling. The fins were redesigned in the A5, when it was realized an expanding jet plume as the rocket gained altitude, would have destroyed the A3 fin stabilizing antenna ring.
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After this unsuccessful series of launches, the A3 was abandoned and A4 work postponed, while work on the A5 commenced.
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According to Dornberger, the A3 "...had not been equipped to take any payload. It was a purely experimental missile." Similarly, the A5 was to be "for research purposes only."
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=== Specifications ===
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Length: 6.74 m (22 ft 1 in)
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Diameter: 0.68 m (2 ft 3 in)
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Finspan: 0.93 m (3 ft 1 in)
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Launch mass: 748 kg (1,649 lb)
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Fuel: Ethanol and liquid oxygen
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Liftoff thrust: 14.7 kN
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== A5 (1938–1942) ==
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The A5 played a vital role in testing the aerodynamics and technology of the A4. Its rocket motor was identical to the A3, but with a new control system provided by Siemens, was 5.825 m (19.11 ft) long, with a diameter of 0.78 m (2.6 ft) and a takeoff weight of 900 kg (2,000 lb). The A5 was fitted with a Brennschluss receiving set, a parachute recovery system, could stay afloat in water for up to two hours, and was painted yellow and red, aiding recovery. New tail surfaces were tested in the Zeppelin Aircraft Works subsonic tunnel and the supersonic tunnel in Aachen. The internal vanes were now made of graphite instead of molybdenum. Uncontrolled A5s were launched from Griefswalder Oie in late 1938. Models that were 1.5 meters (5 ft) long and 20 centimeters (8 in) in diameter were dropped from Heinkel He 111s starting in September 1938, testing supersonic speeds in the absence of a supersonic wind tunnel. Hellmuth Walter also made models of the A5m which included a hydrogen peroxide motor, with potassium permanganate as a catalyst, and were test launched in March 1939. The final fin configuration was wider, curved outward to accommodate the expanding exhaust gases, included external air vanes, but no ring antenna.
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The A5, like the A3, was fueled with ethanol with liquid oxygen as an oxidant. The first successful guided flights were made in October 1939, with three of the first four flights using a Kreiselgeräte complete guidance and control system called SG-52. This used a 3-gyro stabilized platform for attitude control and a tilt program, whose signals were mixed with rate gyros, and fed to a control system connected to the jet vanes by aluminium rods. The Siemens Vertikant control system first flew on 24 April 1940. The Siemens system used three gyros, particularly 3 rate gyros providing stabilization, and hydraulic servomotors to move the jet vanes to correct pitch and yaw, and control roll. The Möller Askania, or Rechlin system, first flew on 30 April 1940, and used position gyros, a mixing system and a servo system. A5 testing included a guide plane system for lateral control, and a radio system for propulsion cutoff at a preselected speed, after which the rocket followed a ballistic trajectory. The A5s reached a height of 12 km (7.5 mi) and a range of 18 kilometres (11 miles). Up to 80 launches by October 1943 developed an understanding of the rocket's aerodynamics, and tests of a better guidance system. The aerodynamic data resulted in a fin and rudder design that was basically the same one used for the A4.
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At the conclusion of the A5 testing, Dornberger stated, "I now knew that we should succeed in creating a weapon with far greater range than any artillery. What we had successfully done with the A5 must be equally valid, in improved form, for the A4."
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== A4/V-2 rocket (1942–1945) ==
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In the late 1920s, Karl Becker realised that a loophole in the Treaty of Versailles allowed Germany to develop rocket weapons. General Becker was very influential during the development of the A4 until he committed suicide on 8 April 1940 following criticism from Adolf Hitler.
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The A4 was a full-sized design with a range of about 320 kilometres (200 mi), an initial peak altitude of 89 kilometers (55 mi) and a payload of about 1,000 kg (2,200 lb). Versions of the A4 were used in warfare. They included the first ballistic missile and the first projectile to reach outer space.
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The propellants of choice continued to be liquid oxygen, with a 75% ethanol and 25% water mixture. The water reduced the flame temperature, acted as a coolant, and reduced thermal stress.
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This increase in capability came from a redesign of the A3 engine, now known as the A5, by Walter Thiel. It became clearer that von Braun's designs were turning into useful weapons, and Dornberger moved the team from the artillery testing grounds at Kummersdorf (near Berlin) to Peenemünde, on the island of Usedom on Germany's Baltic coast, to provide more room for testing and greater secrecy. This version was reliable, and by 1941 the team had fired about 70 A5 rockets. The first A4 flew in March 1942, flying about 1.6 kilometers (1 mi) and crashing into the water. The second launch reached an altitude of 11 kilometers (7 mi) before exploding. The third rocket, launched on 3 October 1942, followed its trajectory perfectly. It landed 193 kilometers (120 mi) away, and reached a height of 83 kilometers (52 mi). The highest altitude reached during the war was 174.6 kilometres (108.5 miles) on 20 June 1944.
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Production started in 1943 on the rocket. The missile testing ground at Blizna was quickly located by the Polish resistance movement, the Home Army (Armia Krajowa), thanks to reports from local farmers. Armia Krajowa field agents managed to obtain pieces of the fired rockets by arriving on the scene before German patrols. In early March 1944, British Intelligence Headquarters received a report of an Armia Krajowa agent (code name: "Makary") who had covertly surveyed the Blizna railway line and observed a freight car heavily guarded by SS troops containing "an object which, though covered by a tarpaulin, bore every resemblance to a monstrous torpedo". Subsequently, a plan was formed to make an attempt to capture a complete unexploded V-2 rocket and transport it to Britain. Around 20 May 1944, a relatively undamaged V-2 rocket fell on the swampy bank of the Bug River near the village of Sarnaki, and local Poles concealed it before German arrival. The rocket was then dismantled and smuggled across Poland. In late July 1944, the Polish resistance secretly transported parts of the rocket out of Poland in Operation Most III (Bridge III) for analysis by British intelligence.
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=== Projekt Schwimmweste ===
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In late 1943 German Labour Front (Deutsche Arbeitsfront/DAF) Director, Otto Lafferenz, proposed the idea of a towable watertight container which could hold an A4 rocket. This suggestion progressed to the design of a container of 500 tons displacement to be towed behind a U-boat. Once in firing position, the containers would be trimmed to drop their aft end to a vertical position for launch. The project was dubbed Projekt Schwimmweste (German for "Project Life Jacket") and the containers themselves referred to by the codename Prüfstand XII (German for "Test Rig XII"). Work on the containers was carried out by the Vulkanwerft, and a single example was completed by the end of the war, but never tested with a rocket launch.
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=== A4b/A9 ===
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In anticipation of the possibility that launch sites might be forced back into the Reich itself, von Braun and his colleagues were pressured to develop a longer-range version of the A4 known alternatively as A9 and A4b, the reason for the dual designation being that the A4 series had received "national priority"; the A4b designation ensured the availability of scarce resources.
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In June 1939, Kurt Patt of the Peenemünde Design Office, proposed wings for converting rocket speed and altitude into aerodynamic lift and range. As the rocket encountered thicker atmosphere on its descent phase, it would execute a pullout and enter a shallow glide, trading speed for distance. Patt also proposed the Flossengeschoss (fin projectile). Both concepts were used by Walter Dornberger when he drafted a memo for presentation to Hitler regarding the "America rocket" on 31 July 1940.
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Design studies on the A9 began in 1940. In addition to its wings, the A9 would have been somewhat larger than the A4 and its engine would have produced about 30% more thrust. Following wind tunnel testing of models, the design was subsequently modified to replace the wings with fuselage strakes, as the tests showed that these provided better lift at supersonic speeds and also solved the problem of transonic shift of the center of lift.
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Development was suspended in 1941, but in 1944 several V-2s were modified to an approximation of the A9 configuration under the designation A4b. It was calculated that by fitting wings, the A4's range would be extended to 800 km (500 mi) , allowing targets in Britain to be attacked from launch sites within Germany. It was intended that following launch the curve of the A4b's trajectory would become shallower and the rocket would glide toward its target. It was anticipated that interception by enemy aircraft at the end of the glide phase would be almost impossible, as over the target the A4b was intended to enter a near vertical dive, leaving little time for interception.
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The A4b concept was tested by fitting swept back wings to two A4s launched from Blizna. Little development work had been carried out, and the first launch on 27 December 1944 was a complete failure. The second launch attempt, on 24 January 1945, was partially successful, in that the wing broke off, but the A4b still managed to become the first winged guided missile to break the sound barrier and attain Mach 4.
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== Variations – Planned, not built ==
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=== A6 ===
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A6 was a designation applied to a variant of the A5 test rocket which used different propellants.
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Some sources indicate that it was also applied to a speculative proposal for a piloted aerial reconnaissance version of the A4b winged variant of the A4. This A6 was initially proposed to the German Air Ministry as an uninterceptable reconnaissance craft. It would be launched vertically by rocket, taking it to an apogee of 95 km (59 mi); after re-entering the atmosphere it would enter a supersonic glide phase, when its single ramjet would be ignited. It was hoped that this would provide 15 to 20 minutes of cruise at 2,900 km/h (1,800 mph) and would allow the aircraft to return to its base and make a conventional runway landing assisted by a drag chute. However, the Air Ministry had no requirement for such an aircraft and the proposal was rejected. Similar concepts (though uncrewed) were produced after the war in the form of the US SM-64 Navaho missile and the USSR's Burya, both intercontinental cruise missiles with ramjet propulsion.
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=== A7 ===
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The A7 was a winged design that was never fully constructed. It was worked on between 1940 and 1943 at Peenemünde for the Kriegsmarine. The A7 was similar in structure to the A5, but had larger tail unit fins (1.621 m2) in order to obtain greater range in gliding flight. Two unpowered models of the A7 were dropped from aeroplanes in order to test flight stability; no powered test was ever performed. The finished rocket should have produced a takeoff thrust of 15 kN (3,400 lb) and a takeoff weight of 1,000 kg (2,200 lb). The design had a diameter of 0.38 m (1.2 ft) and a length of 5.91 m (19.4 ft).
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=== A8 ===
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The A8 was a proposed "stretched" variant of the A4, to use storable rocket propellants (most likely nitric acid and kerosene). The design never reached the prototype stage, but further design work was carried out after the war by a German rocket team in France as the "Super V-2". The project was eventually cancelled, but led to the French Véronique and Diamant rocket projects.
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=== A9/A10 ===
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It was proposed to use an advanced version of the A9 to attack targets on the US mainland from launch sites in Europe, for which it would need to be launched atop a booster stage, the A10.
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Design work on the A10 began in 1940, for a projected first flight to take place in 1946. The initial design was carried out by Ludwig Roth und Graupe and was completed on 29 June 1940. Hermann Oberth worked on the design during 1941, and in December 1941 Walter Thiel proposed that the A10 use an engine composed of six bundled A4 engines, which it was thought would give a total thrust of 1,800 kN (400,000 lb).
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Work on the A10 was resumed in late 1944 under the Projekt Amerika codename, and the A10's design was amended to incorporate a cluster of six A4 combustion chambers feeding into a single expansion nozzle. This was later altered to a large single chamber and single nozzle. Test stands were constructed at Peenemunde for firings of the 2,000 kN (440,000 lb) thrust motor.
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It was considered that existing guidance systems would not be accurate enough over a distance of 5,000 km (3,100 mi), and it was decided to make the A9 piloted. The pilot was to be guided on his terminal glide towards the target by radio beacons on U-boats and by automatic weather stations landed in Greenland and Labrador.
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The final design of the A10 booster was approximately 20 m (66 ft) in height. Powered by a 1,670 kN (380,000 lb) thrust rocket burning diesel oil and nitric acid, during its 50-second burn it would have propelled its A9 second stage to a speed of about 4,300 km/h (2,700 mph). The A9 would then ignite and accelerate an additional 5,760 km/h (3,580 mph), reaching a speed of 10,080 km/h (6,260 mph), a peak altitude of 56 kilometres (35 mi), and covering 4,000 kilometres (2,500 mi) in about 35 minutes. The spent A10 would descend by brake flaps and parachute to be recovered in the sea and reused.
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=== A11 ===
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The A11 (Japan Rakete) was a design concept which would have acted as the first stage of a three-stage rocket, the other two stages being the A9 and A10.
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The A11 design was shown by von Braun to US officers in Garmisch-Partenkirchen; the drawing was published in 1946 by the US Army. The A11 was shown as using six of the large single-chamber engines proposed for the A10 stage, with a modified A10 second stage nested within the A11. The design also showed the winged A9, indicating a gliding landing or bombing mission. To achieve orbit, either a new "kick stage" would have been required, or the A9 would have to have been lightened. In either case, a payload of approximately 300 kg (660 lb) could have been placed in a low Earth orbit, roughly equivalent to the modern-day Electron rocket.
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=== A12 ===
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The A12 design if built would have been an orbital rocket. It was proposed as a four-stage vehicle, comprising A12, A11, A10 and A9 stages. Calculations suggested it could place as much as 10 tonnes (22,000 lb) of payload in low Earth orbit, comparable to the later Saturn I rocket of the Apollo program.
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The A12 stage itself would have weighed around 3,500 tonnes (7,700,000 lb) fully fueled, and would have stood 33 m (108 ft) high. It was to have been propelled by 50 A10 engines, fueled by liquid oxygen and ethanol.
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== References ==
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=== Citations ===
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=== Bibliography ===
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Barber, Murray R. (2017), V2 The A4 Rocket From Peenemünde To Redstone, Crecy Publications, ISBN 978-1-90653-753-1
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Huzel, Dieter K. (1981) [1962], Peenemünde to Canaveral (reprint ed.), Greenwood Press, ISBN 0-313-22928-7.
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Neufeld, Michael (1996), The Rocket and the Reich: Peenemünde and the Coming of the Ballistic Missile Era, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, ISBN 0-674-77650-X.
|
||||
Reuter, Claus (2000), The V2 and the German, Russian and American Rocket Program, German Canadian Museum, p. 87, ISBN 978-1-894643-05-4.
|
||||
|
||||
== Further reading ==
|
||||
"A1", Encyclopedia Astronautica, Astronautix, A2, A3, A5, A7, A8, A-9, A-10 engine, A9/A10/A11, A9/A10/A11/A12
|
||||
V2 EMW A4b die bemannte Rakete (in German), DE: Khiechhorn, archived from the original on 14 June 2011, retrieved 2 August 2007.
|
||||
"Neubau", Aggregat 2 (in German), DE, 9 January 2005{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link).
|
||||
"Aggregat 1", Aggregat 2, DE, 9 January 2005{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link). Technical discussion of the A1 (in German), by the same author as the above A2 site. The author has examined primary sources; based on them, he claims that widely repeated data about the A1 is mostly in error.
|
||||
Original drawings from the development of A4/V2 and others (in German), DE: Digipeer, 20,000.
|
||||
The A4 Rocket Part 1 (in German), DE: Bernd Leitenberger.
|
||||
The A4 Rocket Part 2 (in German), DE: Bernd Leitenberger.
|
||||
"Part Two", V2 (article), Aerospace museum, October 2004, archived from the original on 26 May 2005.
|
||||
Space (lecture), University of Oregon, archived from the original on 10 April 2005.
|
||||
A8 statistics, Friends-partners, archived from the original on 25 June 2013, retrieved 28 April 2005.
|
||||
Dornberger, Walter; Rees, Eberhard (1981), Peenemünde : die Geschichte der V-Waffen (in German), Germany: Bechtle, ISBN 3-7628-0404-4
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
"Reconstruction, restoration & refurbishment of a V-2 rocket", Nasa tech (spherical panoramas of the process and milestones){{citation}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link).
|
||||
44
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berkut_spacesuit-0.md
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data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berkut_spacesuit-0.md
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|
||||
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|
||||
title: "Berkut spacesuit"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berkut_spacesuit"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:30.988470+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
The Berkut (Russian Беркут, meaning golden eagle) is a space suit model developed to be used for extravehicular activity for the Voskhod 2 mission aboard a Voskhod spacecraft on the first spacewalk. It was developed by NPP Zvezda in 1964–1965. It was a modified SK-1 suit. It was only used by the Voskhod 2 crew.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Description ==
|
||||
The Berkut spacesuit had two pressurization settings, one at 0.27 atmospheres and the other at 0.40 atmospheres (nominal mode). Movement within the suit was seriously restricted.
|
||||
The suit includes: helmet, spacesuit, and protective clothing. The astronaut's life is maintained through the on-board life support system or the backpack-type automatic system. The safety harness has been used during spacewalks.
|
||||
The helmet of the suit cannot be rotated, and it has a quick-release buckle. It includes a hard hat, a lifting visor and a light filter. The helmet is made of aluminum alloy, the size does not affect the movement of the head. The visor of the helmet is made of aluminum alloy. A light filter similar to that on an aircraft is placed inside the helmet.
|
||||
The astronaut's suit has a three-layer shell - a load-bearing layer on the outside and two sealed layers (main layer and backup layer) on the inside.
|
||||
The protective clothing is a bodysuit made of durable fabric and has multiple layers of vacuum insulation.
|
||||
The automated system consists of a KP-55 oxygen device and three oxygen cylinders placed in a backpack. Before going into space, the astronaut must put on the backpack and secure it to the spacesuit using a suspension system. Oxygen from the cylinders is directed into the helmet, then into the shell of the spacesuit and then released into the environment. A backup oxygen supply system is also provided - through a hose from the gas cylinders installed in the air chamber. This system is capable of regulating the pressure in the spacesuit.
|
||||
The safety harness is 7 m long and includes shock absorbers, steel cables, emergency oxygen supply tubes, and electrical wires.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Specifications ==
|
||||
Name: Berkut Spacesuit
|
||||
Derived from: SK-1 spacesuit
|
||||
Manufacturer: NPP Zvezda
|
||||
Missions: Voskhod 2
|
||||
Function: Intra-vehicular activity (IVA) and orbital Extra-vehicular activity (EVA)
|
||||
Operating Pressure: 400 hPa (5.8 psi)
|
||||
Suit Weight: 20 kg (44 lb)
|
||||
Backpack Weight: 21 kg (46 lb)
|
||||
Total Weight: 41 kg (90 lb)
|
||||
Primary Life Support: 45 minutes
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
Video of Voskod 2 mission (Russian)
|
||||
Photo of Berkut space suit at Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics in Moscow (38 & 39)
|
||||
Photo of outermost layer removed
|
||||
@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Peenemünde_in_World_War_II"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:12:34.486583+00:00"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:04.104306+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
60
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_the_Bezuidenhout-0.md
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data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_the_Bezuidenhout-0.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Bombing of the Bezuidenhout"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_the_Bezuidenhout"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:00.266246+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
The bombing of the Bezuidenhout (Dutch: bombardement op het Bezuidenhout) took place on 3 March 1945, when the Royal Air Force mistakenly bombed the Bezuidenhout neighbourhood in the Dutch city of The Hague, resulting in the death of 532 people.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Bombing ==
|
||||
On the morning of 3 March 1945, 51 medium and light bombers of the North American B-25 Mitchell and Douglas Boston types from No. 137 and No. 139 wings of the Second Tactical Air Force took off from Melsbroek near Brussels and Vitry in Northern France with a payload of 67,000 kg of high-explosive bombs.
|
||||
The British bombers were intended to bomb the Haagse Bos ("Forest of the Hague") district where the Germans had installed V-2 launching facilities that had been used to attack English cities. However, the pilots were issued with the wrong coordinates (vertical and horizontal interchanged), so the navigational instruments of the bombers had been set incorrectly, and combined with low fog and clouds which obscured their vision, the bombs were instead dropped on the Bezuidenhout residential neighbourhood. Eventually, a wind force of 9 instead of the expected 5 added to the catastrophe. All bombs missed the rocket installations in the 2.4×0.8 km2 (0.9×0.3 sq mi) forest target (Haagse Bos) by 1.2 km (0.7 mi) ("incorrect allowance for the wind"/"map-reading error"), and hit the Bezuidenhout neighbourhood instead.
|
||||
At 9:08 in the morning the 51 bombers dropped 67 tons of high-explosive bombs on the Bezuidenhout, wreaking widespread destruction.
|
||||
|
||||
"Everyone went out and into the street. You saw people running, running, running everywhere. But whichever way you ran, there was fire everywhere."
|
||||
At the time, the neighbourhood was more densely populated than usual with evacuees from The Hague and Wassenaar; tens of thousands were left homeless and had to be quartered in the Eastern and Central Netherlands.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Response ==
|
||||
Due to insufficient fire engines and firemen (as many of them had been either called up for forced labour in German industry or had gone into hiding to prevent being signed up) the resulting fire was largely unchecked, killing 511 people, including ten firemen at the Schenkkade. In total 532 people were killed by the bombing.
|
||||
|
||||
As soon as the British realised the extent of the damage, they dropped fliers over the neighbourhood expressing condolences for the civilians who were killed by their error. Trouw, the Dutch resistance newspaper, reported:
|
||||
|
||||
The horrors of the war are increasing. We have seen the fires in The Hague after the terrible bombings due to the V2-launching sites. We have seen the column of smoke, drifting to the south and the ordeal of the war has descended upon us in its extended impact. We heard the screaming bombs falling on (the) Bezuidenhout, and the missiles which brought death and misery fell only a hundred metres from us. At the same time we saw the launching and the roaring, flaming V2, holding our breath to see if the launch was successful, if not falling back on the homes of innocent people. It is horrible to see the monsters take off in the middle of the night between the houses, lighting up the skies. One can imagine the terrors that came upon us now that The Hague is a frontline town, bombed continuously for more than ten days. Buildings, burning and smouldering furiously, a town choking from smoke, women and children fleeing, men hauling furniture which they tried to rescue from the chaos. What misery, what distress.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Commemoration ==
|
||||
|
||||
The bombing is commemorated every year on the first Sunday after 3 March. In 2011, Mayor Jozias van Aartsen of The Hague as well as the Mayors of Wassenaar and Leidschendam-Voorburg (residents of both towns helped with firefighting and caring for the survivors) were present at the remembrance ceremony, which consisted of a church service, the laying of a wreath at the Monument of the human mistake (Dutch: Monument van de menselijke vergissing) and a remembrance concert in the Royal Conservatory of The Hague. A similar church service and concert were held in 2012.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Casualties, losses, and damage ==
|
||||
532 fatalities
|
||||
344 wounded
|
||||
30,000 people left homeless
|
||||
3,300 completely destroyed residences
|
||||
3,250 burned out residences
|
||||
3,241 damaged residences
|
||||
391 irreparably damaged residences
|
||||
290 completely destroyed businesses
|
||||
5 completely destroyed churches
|
||||
9 completely destroyed schools
|
||||
10 completely destroyed public buildings
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Gallery ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Further reading ==
|
||||
(in Dutch) Carlo Tinschert, Boodschap aan de bevolking van Den Haag – Oorzaken, gevolgen en nasleep van het mislukte bombardement op het Bezuidenhout, 3 maart 1945, Sdu Uitgevers, The Hague ISBN 9012111889
|
||||
(in Dutch) Extensive 2016 list of names of the citizens killed by the bombing
|
||||
(in Dutch) List of names of the citizens killed by the bombing
|
||||
(in Dutch) Organisation of the bombings of the Bezuidenhout
|
||||
21
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinema_Rex_bombing-0.md
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21
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinema_Rex_bombing-0.md
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@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Cinema Rex bombing"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinema_Rex_bombing"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:05.344579+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Cinema Rex was a cinema located at De Keyserlei 15 in Antwerp, Belgium. It opened in 1935 and was designed by Leon Stynen, a Belgian architect, modeled after large American movie theatres.
|
||||
On 16 December 1944 (the first day of the Ardennes Offensive), at 15:20, a V-2 rocket fired from The Netherlands (Hellendoorn) by the SS Werfer Battery 500 directly landed on the roof of the cinema during a showing of The Plainsman. There were approximately 1,100 people inside the cinema and the explosion killed 567 people including 296 Allied servicemen (194 further servicemen were injured) and 11 buildings in total destroyed. Up to 74 Belgian children were killed too.
|
||||
It took nearly a week to dig all the bodies out of the rubble. It was the single highest death total from a single rocket attack during the war. Following the attack all public performance venues were closed and the town council ordered that a maximum of 50 people were allowed to congregate in any one location.
|
||||
The theatre was re-built in 1947 but closed in 1993 and was demolished in 1995.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Further reading ==
|
||||
Serrien, Pieter (2016). Elke dag angst: de terreur van de V-bommen op België (1944-1945). Amsterdam: Horizon. ISBN 978-94-921-5958-8.
|
||||
38
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Datchworth-0.md
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38
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Datchworth-0.md
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@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Datchworth"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Datchworth"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:08.012801+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Datchworth is a village and civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. It lies 1 mile (1.6 km) south-east of Knebworth, its post town, and between the towns of Hertford, Stevenage and Welwyn Garden City. At the 2021 census the parish had a population of 1,513.
|
||||
Sited on the Roman road from St Albans to Puckeridge, the village has examples of Saxon clearings in several locations. Datchworth has a village green where there are two pubs (The Plough and The Tilbury) and a sports club.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Origins ==
|
||||
The name Datchworth is thought to originate from a Saxon lord called Daecca (pronounced Datcher), who settled here around the year 700 AD. 'Worth' comes from worthig, which means enclosure.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== History ==
|
||||
The arrival of the Normans gave Datchworth a written record in the Domesday Book. This included an account of the occupants and land values in the 11th century.
|
||||
Standing at the eastern side of Datchworth Green is the whipping post. Its last recorded use was on 27 July 1665 when two 'vagabonds' were publicly flogged. Stocks stood near the post too, but there is no trace of them now. The stocks are thought to have been removed in 1899, however, there are stocks located close to All Saints' Church.
|
||||
During the Second World War the last enemy-action incident of any kind on British soil occurred at 09:00 on 29 March 1945 when a V-1 flying bomb struck a nearby field in Woolmer Green Another landed at Iwade in Kent, an hour later, after being hit by anti-aircraft fire.
|
||||
The Datchworth Museum contains a collection of local artefacts. Located in a former smithy, the museum operates a limited opening schedule, being accessible from 2.00 p:m until 4.30 p:m on the third Sunday of every month. In 2022, the museum recorded a total of 30 visitors, making it the second least-visited tourist attraction in England.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Notable people ==
|
||||
Barry Norman — and his novelist wife Diana Narracott
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Notes ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
Datchworth website
|
||||
@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Ivan Ivanovich (Vostok programme)"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivan_Ivanovich_(Vostok_programme)"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:44.556334+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Ivan Ivanovich (Иван Иванович, the Russian equivalent of "John Doe") was the name given to a mannequin used in testing the Soviet Vostok spacecraft in preparation for its crewed missions.
|
||||
Ivan Ivanovich was made to look as lifelike as possible, with eyes, eyebrows, eyelashes, and a mouth. He was dressed in a cosmonaut suit and strongly resembled a dead person; for this reason, a sign reading "МАКЕТ" (Russian for "dummy") was placed under his visor so that anyone who found him after his missions would not think he was a corpse or an alien.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== First spaceflight ==
|
||||
Ivan first flew into space on Korabl-Sputnik 4 on 9 March 1961, accompanied by a dog named Chernushka, various reptiles, and 80 mice and guinea pigs, some of which were placed inside his body. To test the spacecraft's communication systems, an automatic recording of a choir was placed in Ivan's body – this way, any radio stations who heard the recording would understand it was not a real person. Ivan was also used to test the landing system upon return to Earth, when he was successfully ejected from the capsule and parachuted to the ground.
|
||||
His second space flight, Korabl-Sputnik 5, on 26 March 1961, was similar – he was again accompanied by a dog, Zvyozdochka, and other animals, which include guinea pigs, frogs, monkeys, mice, rats, and flies. He had a recording of a choir (and also a recipe for beetroot soup) inside him, and he safely returned to Earth. These flights paved the way for Vostok 1, the first crewed flight into space on 12 April 1961.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Other uses ==
|
||||
In 1993, Ivan was auctioned at Sotheby's, with the winning bid coming from a foundation belonging to US businessman Ross Perot. He fetched $189,500. Since 1997, he has been on loan to the National Air and Space Museum, where he was on display, still in his spacesuit, until 2017 when he was moved back into the private collection of Ross Perot.
|
||||
In 2006, the name Ivan Ivanovich was used as a nickname for SuitSat-1, a satellite made from a disused spacesuit, ejected from the International Space Station.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
Ivan Ivanovich's entry in Encyclopedia Astronautica
|
||||
@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korabl-Sputnik_1"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:23:15.087994+00:00"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:45.914035+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korabl-Sputnik_2"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:23:41.982817+00:00"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:48.482242+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
21
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korabl-Sputnik_3-0.md
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21
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korabl-Sputnik_3-0.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Korabl-Sputnik 3"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korabl-Sputnik_3"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:47.157564+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Korabl-Sputnik 3 (Russian: Корабль-Спутник 3 meaning Ship-Satellite 3) or Vostok-1K No.3, also known as Sputnik 6 in the West, was a Soviet spacecraft which was launched in 1960. It was a test flight of the Vostok spacecraft, carrying two dogs: Pcholka and Mushka ("little bee" and "little fly"; affectionate diminutives of "pchela" and "mukha", respectively), mice, rats, rabbits, flies, plants, as well as a television camera and scientific instruments.
|
||||
Soviet space plans for the next several months were ambitious and included Vostok missions, planetary probes, military reconnaissance, and scientific satellites but the first were given priority. However, the Mars shots ended up going first in October and only after those missions flew could the next Vostok test took place. There was still wrangling over the exact design of the Vostok ejection system, and it was eventually decided to eject the cosmonaut using an ejection seat from a relatively low altitude instead of an enclosed capsule as it had been originally envisioned. There was also the possibility that the Vostok's retrorocket could fail and leave the cosmonaut stuck in orbit. It was too late in the spacecraft's design phase to add a backup retrorocket, but the problem could be solved by putting the Vostok into a low enough orbit that it would decay in ten days; the spacecraft had enough consumables onboard to last that long.
|
||||
Korabl-Sputnik 3 was launched at 07:30:04 UTC on 1 December 1960, atop a Vostok-L carrier rocket flying from Site 1/5 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. It was successfully placed into low Earth orbit and Western observers quickly noticed that the orbit was lower than the previous Vostok test flights. All spacecraft systems functioned normally right up until reentry. On the 17th orbit, ground controllers issued the commands to perform the deorbit burn. The retrorocket activated but the capsule did not separate from the instrument module. The APO self-destruct system then activated followed by total loss of data. It was obvious that something went very wrong and the spacecraft had been destroyed, but it would take a while to figure out what it was.
|
||||
Analysis of telemetry data confirmed a malfunction of the infrared orientation sensor. The attitude control jets maneuvered Korabl-Sputnik 3 into the wrong orientation for reentry, resulting in an unpredictable landing point--Boris Chertok calculated that it would land somewhere in China. The flight control system missed the required time marker for the atmospheric entry measured by a G-force sensor, activating the APO and blowing the descent module to pieces. Both Pchyolka and Mushka were killed in the resulting disintegration. They were the last dogs to die in a Soviet space mission, after Laika, who was never intended to survive her Sputnik 2 flight, and Chaika and Lisichka, perishing after the rocket carrying their "Korabl Sputnik" spacecraft disintegrated 20 seconds into the flight. An official TASS announcement confirmed that Korabl-Sputnik 3 had been destroyed upon reentry.
|
||||
The backup Vostok spacecraft and booster were erected on LC-1 and on 22 December, the dogs Damka and Krasavka lifted off. All went well though the core stage burn. At T+304 seconds, a command was issued to the Blok E stage to begin pressurizing the fuel feed system for engine start. However, telemetry indicated that the command was never received. The Blok E engine activated at T+321 seconds but cut off after 111 seconds of operation instead of the intended 355 seconds and orbital velocity could not be attained. Sensing the loss of acceleration from the Blok E, the spacecraft system issued the normal command to separate from the rocket stage. It began to fall back to Earth and the increasing heat of reentry triggered the separation sequence between the instrument and descent modules.
|
||||
The descent module was tracked to a reentry point somewhere in north central Siberia some 3,000 kilometers (1,868 miles) downrange from the Baikonur launch complex. Engineer Fedor Vostokov was assigned to lead the recovery team due to his expertise in designing the cabin that housed the dogs. He met with a military explosives expert and they boarded an Il-18 aircraft and picked up a search and rescue team in Krasnoyarsk. The explosives expert was needed to disarm the potentially still live APO system in the capsule. An aerial search near Tura on December 23 failed to find any sign of the capsule but another attempt the next morning found that it had landed in a snow bank on a plateau, 60 kilometers (37 miles) from Tura.
|
||||
The rescue team waded through deep snow and frigid temperatures, below -30C, to the capsule. The cabin was still inside but the ejector mechanism had launched itself without taking the cabin with it for reasons unknown but possibly due to high G-loads during descent. The explosives expert quickly disconnected the wires for the APO system. Upon opening the GKZh container, Damka and Krasavka were found shivering but alive despite two days of being trapped in there. The other biological specimens had died as they were unable to handle the cold. The landing spot was at a latitude of 64N and there were less than 4 hours of daylight at this time of year so the rescue team had to get the capsule out of there before dark. An Mi-4 helicopter extracted the capsule but could barely handle its two ton bulk. It had to fly the capsule 600 kilometers (372 miles) to Turukhansk to be picked up by an An-12 transport aircraft (the An-12 could not land near Tura due to the lack of a suitable runway there).
|
||||
Postflight analysis found that the Blok E stage's gas generator had failed at T+425 seconds and resulted in premature engine shutdown. The flight also resulted in a redesign of the ejector seat to ensure it would work properly on crewed missions. As the dogs had otherwise been successfully recovered, Korolev believed the Soviet state media should acknowledge the aborted launch but Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev refused as he was unwilling to publicly admit to two unsuccessful missions in a row. The flight was not officially admitted to until the glasnost era of the late 1980s.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
16
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korabl-Sputnik_4-0.md
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16
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korabl-Sputnik_4-0.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Korabl-Sputnik 4"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korabl-Sputnik_4"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:49.779712+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Korabl-Sputnik 4 (Russian: Корабль-Спутник 4 meaning Ship-Satellite 4) or Vostok-3KA No.1, also known as Sputnik 9 in the West, was a Soviet spacecraft which was launched on 9 March 1961. Carrying the mannequin Ivan Ivanovich, a dog named Chernushka, some mice and the first guinea pig in space, it was a test flight of the Vostok spacecraft.
|
||||
|
||||
Korabl-Sputnik 4 was launched at 06:29:00 UTC on 9 March 1961, atop a Vostok-K carrier rocket flying from Site 1/5 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. It was successfully placed into low Earth orbit. The spacecraft was only intended to complete a single orbit, so it was deorbited shortly after launch, and reentered on its first pass over the Soviet Union. It landed at 08:09:54 UTC, and was successfully recovered. During the descent, the mannequin was ejected from the spacecraft in a test of its ejection seat, and descended separately under its own parachute.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
55
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korabl-Sputnik_5-0.md
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55
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korabl-Sputnik_5-0.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Korabl-Sputnik 5"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korabl-Sputnik_5"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:51.074103+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Korabl-Sputnik 5 (Russian: Корабль-Спутник 5 meaning Ship-Satellite 5) or Vostok-3KA No.2, also known as Sputnik 10 in the West, was a Soviet spacecraft which was launched in 1961, as part of the Vostok programme. It was the last test flight of the Vostok spacecraft design prior the first crewed flight, Vostok 1. It carried the mannequin Ivan Ivanovich, a dog named Zvezdochka ("Starlet", or "Little star"), frogs, monkeys, mice, rats, plants, television cameras and scientific apparatus.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Background ==
|
||||
|
||||
A spacecraft of the design Vostok 3KA had only been launched once before, which was on March 9, 1961. This mission was called Korabl-Sputnik 4, and it was a complete success. Prior to Korabl-Sputnik 4, the two previous missions in the Vostok programme were both launched in December 1960, and both ended in failure.
|
||||
Only days before the launch of Korabl-Sputnik 5, the cosmonaut team, which consisted of 20 men, experienced its first fatality. Cosmonaut candidate Valentin Bondarenko was killed in a fire during a training exercise in an oxygen-rich isolation chamber. It's not clear whether other cosmonauts were told of his death; the media didn't learn of Bondarenko's death - or even of his existence - until many years later, in 1986.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Mission ==
|
||||
|
||||
Korabl-Sputnik 5 was launched at 05:54:00 UTC on 25 March 1961, atop a Vostok-K carrier rocket flying from Site 1/5 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. It was successfully placed into low Earth orbit. As planned, the spacecraft completed a single orbit, and then reentered the atmosphere over the Soviet Union; the total flight time was approximately that of other single-orbit missions, so about 105 minutes. During the descent, the mannequin was ejected from the spacecraft in a successful test of its ejection seat, and descended separately under its own parachute, as it had done on the previous mission, Korabl-Sputnik 4. It landed at approximately 07:40 UTC, northeast of Izhevsk, near the Chaykovsky, Perm Krai.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Cosmonaut Communications Test/Hoax ===
|
||||
The mannequin carried a tape recording to test communication systems. In an attempt to avoid independent radio operators mistakenly believing the capsule was crewed, and especially to avoid the Americans thinking it was a crewed satellite reconnaissance mission, the recordings contained intentional giveaways. These included a musical choir and a male voice reading out the recipe for borscht, an Eastern European beetroot soup, as though the cosmonaut was preparing it. Making soup would not have been possible in zero gravity, and the Soviets figured "even the most gullible Western intelligence man knew you couldn't fit a choir in a Korabl-Sputnik satellite." Nonetheless, non-Russian speaking listeners who tuned in to the radio transmissions did initially and erroneously believe that there was a cosmonaut aboard. Alexei Leonov would later recall: "since no announcement of the flight had been released by our state news agency, TASS, rumors spread like wildfire that a crewed space flight had gone wrong and been covered up."
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Capsule recovery ===
|
||||
The landing occurred during a snowstorm, which caused delays in locating exactly where touchdown occurred. It was about 24 hours after landing when a recovery team arrived at the site. Local villagers assisted the team to the landing area, with the help of a horse-drawn sled. The recovery team noted that the spacecraft was still hot to touch, 24 hours after landing in five feet of snow. The nearby villages were suspicious of the recovery teams, believing that the mannequin was in fact a person who may have been badly injured.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Legacy ==
|
||||
The success of Korabl-Sputnik 5 was the final step required to get approval for a crewed mission. Vostok 3KA-2 was the key in the door for Gagarin's flight That crewed mission, known as Vostok 1, would occur on about April 12, 1961, carrying the world's first human space traveller, Yuri Gagarin. The spacecraft Gagarin used was a nearly identical model, called Vostok 3KA-3. A major difference between the 3KA-2 and 3KA-3 spacecraft was that the 3KA-2 version, like all uncrewed Vostok spacecraft, was equipped with a self-destruct system, in the event it reentered the atmosphere over foreign territory.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== 2011 Auction ===
|
||||
The re-entry module of the spacecraft Vostok 3KA-2 was auctioned at Sotheby's on 12 April 2011, the 50th anniversary of Gagarin's spaceflight, Vostok 1. The spacecraft was expected to sell for USD 2–10 million, and was sold for US$2,882,500.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== 2020 COVID-19 Vaccine ===
|
||||
On August 11, 2020 the Russian government announced the world's first release of a vaccine against COVID-19, referring to the vaccine as "Sputnik V" (Gam-COVID-Vac) to reflect Russia's previous victories in the Space Race.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
|
||||
Zond 5, another Soviet mission some mistakenly thought was crewed.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Notes ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
Asif. A. Siddiqi (2000). Challenge to Apollo: The Soviet Union and the Space Race, 1945-1974. NASA. SP-2000-4408. Part 1 (page 1-500), Part 2 (page 501-1011).
|
||||
Colin Burgess, Rex Hall (June 2, 2010). The first Soviet cosmonaut team: their lives, legacy, and historical impact. Praxis. p. 356. ISBN 978-0-387-84823-5.
|
||||
29
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosmos_57-0.md
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29
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosmos_57-0.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Kosmos 57"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosmos_57"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:32.268402+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Kosmos 57 (Russian: Космос 57 meaning Cosmos 57) was an uncrewed Soviet spacecraft launched on 22 February 1965. The craft was essentially an uncrewed version of Voskhod 2. Its primary mission was to test the Volga airlock. The test was successful, but the craft was lost shortly after. The spaceflight is designated under the Kosmos system, placing it with many other Soviet scientific and military satellites.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Mission ==
|
||||
The uncrewed craft was launched three weeks before Voskhod 2. The primary objective of Voskhod 2 was to conduct a spacewalk, which relied on the inflatable Volga airlock. Kosmos 57 was to test the performance of the airlock. The airlock opened and closed successfully and the craft was re-pressurized without flaw.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Destruction ==
|
||||
The uncrewed spacecraft was destroyed on its third orbit around Earth. Two ground stations, one in Klyuchi and the other in Yelizovo, sent simultaneous commands, instead of sequentially as planned, instructing the craft to depressurize its airlock. The craft interpreted this as an order to begin the descent and a propulsion error put the craft into a tumble. Approximately twenty-nine minutes later, the craft's automatic self-destruct function activated. The craft was completely destroyed to prevent sensitive information from literally falling into enemy hands. Over 100 pieces of the spacecraft were tracked, falling into the ocean between 31 March and 6 April 1965. No other test or backup spacecraft was built with an EVA port. The decision was made to go ahead with Voskhod 2 anyway, due to a one-year lead time to construct a replacement. Planned follow-on Voskhod missions were cancelled, including the Soviet Air Force version, long-duration one-man flight.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
|
||||
List of Kosmos satellites
|
||||
Overview at Encyclopaedia britannica
|
||||
Spacecraft launches in 1965, Overview
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Russian_human_spaceflight_missions"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:20:00.987370+00:00"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:52.421262+00:00"
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||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
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|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Soviet_human_spaceflight_missions"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:20:02.246241+00:00"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:53.858208+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
@ -0,0 +1,26 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "List of Vostok and Voskhod missions"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Vostok_and_Voskhod_missions"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:55.200785+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Vostok and Voskhod were two spacecraft flown by the Soviet Union. Between 1960 and 1966, Vostok and Voskhod performed 11 successful, 2 partially successful and 3 unsuccessful missions. There are allegations that the Soviets had sent more Vostok missions than what Russian officials said, which are excluded from this list.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Vostok missions ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Voskhod missions ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
Soviet space program
|
||||
Voskhod programme
|
||||
Vostok programme
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
36
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MW_18014-0.md
Normal file
36
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MW_18014-0.md
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@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "MW 18014"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MW_18014"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:15.798072+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
MW 18014 was a German A-4 test rocket launched on 20 June 1944, at the Peenemünde Army Research Center in Peenemünde. It was the first man-made object to reach outer space, attaining an apogee of 176 kilometres (109 mi), well above the Kármán line that was established later as the lowest altitude of space. It was a vertical test launch and was not intended to reach orbital velocity, so it returned and impacted Earth, making it the first sub-orbital spaceflight.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Background ==
|
||||
|
||||
Early A-4 rockets, despite being able to reach altitudes of 90 km, had suffered from multiple reliability problems. For example, a design fault in the forward part of the outer hull caused it to regularly fail mid-flight, resulting in the failure of as many as 70% of test launches. On one occasion, an A-4 rocket suffering from pogo oscillations during ascent veered 90° off course, then spiralled back down to its launch pit, killing four launch troops on site.
|
||||
The Peenemünde rocket team made a number of improvements to rectify the reliability problems during 1943 and the first half of 1944. Hindering the program were Allied raids as part of Operation Hydra, attempts to privatise the program during June 1944, frequent interference from the SS, and a two-week detention of technical director Wernher von Braun on 15 March 1944.
|
||||
Allied advances in Northern France, improvements of the Mittelwerk underground facility, where the A-4 rockets were produced, and improvements of the liquid-propellant formula renewed emphasis on Von Braun to address the A-4's reliability problems.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Records exceeded ==
|
||||
MW 18014 was part of a series of vertical test launches made during June 1944 designed to gauge the rocket's behaviour in vacuum. MW 18014 exceeded the altitude record set by one of its predecessors (launched on 3 October 1942) to attain an apogee of 176 km.
|
||||
MW 18014 was the first human-made object to cross into outer space, as defined by the 100 km Kármán line. This particular altitude was not considered significant at the time; the Peenemünde rocket scientists rather celebrated test launch V-4 in October 1942, first to reach the thermosphere. After the war, the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (World Air Sports Federation) defined the boundary between Earth's atmosphere and outer space to be the Kármán line.
|
||||
A subsequent A-4/V-2 launched as part of the same series of tests would exceed MW 18014's record, with an apogee of 189 km. The date of that launch is unknown because rocket scientists did not record precise dates during this phase.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Notes ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
Albert II, first mammal in space, 14 June 1949
|
||||
Sputnik 1, first orbital space flight, 4 October 1957
|
||||
Vostok 1, first manned space flight, 12 April 1961
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
91
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maisons-Alfort-0.md
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91
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maisons-Alfort-0.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Maisons-Alfort"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maisons-Alfort"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:10.497802+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Maisons-Alfort (French pronunciation: [mɛzɔ̃ alfɔʁ] ) is a commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 8.4 km (5.2 mi) from the centre of Paris.
|
||||
Maisons-Alfort is famous as the location of the National Veterinary School of Alfort. The Fort de Charenton, constructed between 1841 and 1845, has since 1959 housed the Commandement des Écoles de la Gendarmerie Nationale.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Name ==
|
||||
Originally, Maisons-Alfort was called simply Maisons. The name Maisons comes from Medieval Latin Mansiones, meaning "the houses".
|
||||
At the creation of the commune during the French Revolution, the name of the hamlet of Alfort was joined with the name of Maisons. The name Alfort comes from the manor built there by Peter of Aigueblanche, Bishop of Hereford (England), in the middle of the 13th century. The name of this Manor of Hereford was corrupted into Harefort, then Hallefort, and eventually Alfort. The National Veterinary School of Alfort was settled several centuries later in the manor and its estate.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== History ==
|
||||
On 1 April 1885, 40% of the territory of Maisons-Alfort was detached and became the commune of Alfortville.
|
||||
The Hôtel de Ville was officially opened in 1896.
|
||||
In 1905, Buffalo Bill stayed two months in Maisons-Alfort while his famous Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show performed in Paris.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== September 1944 explosion ===
|
||||
At 8.39am on 8 September 1944 a V-2 rocket landed and killed six people at Charentonneau, launched from Petites-Tailles, near Houffalize, in southeast Belgium by Lehr und Versuchsbatterie 444. This was the first destruction caused by a V-2 rocket.
|
||||
Later that day, a V-2 rocket from Wassenaar in the Netherlands, launched by 485 Artillerie Abteilung at 6.37pm, would hit Staveley Road in west London.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Demographics ==
|
||||
The population data in the table and graph below refer to the commune of Maisons-Alfort proper, in its geography at the given years. The commune of Maisons-Alfort ceded the commune of Alfortville in 1885.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Immigration ===
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Administration ==
|
||||
Maisons-Alfort is part of the arrondissement of Nogent-sur-Marne. It is the only commune of the canton of Maisons-Alfort.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Points of interest ==
|
||||
|
||||
École nationale vétérinaire d'Alfort
|
||||
Fort de Charenton
|
||||
Jardin botanique de l'École nationale vétérinaire d'Alfort
|
||||
Musée Fragonard d'Alfort
|
||||
Château de Réghat
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Education ==
|
||||
The commune has:
|
||||
|
||||
13 public preschools (écoles maternelles)
|
||||
12 public elementary schools
|
||||
Three private preschools and elementary schools: Ecole Privée Notre-Dame, Ecole et collège Privée Sainte-Thérèse
|
||||
Four public junior high schools: Collège Condorcet, Collège Edouard Herriot, Collège Jules Ferry, Collège Nicolas de Staël
|
||||
One private elementary and junior high school, Ecole et collège Privée Sainte-Thérèse
|
||||
Two public senior high schools/sixth-form colleges: Lycée Eugène Delacroix and Lycée Professionnel Paul Bert
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Personalities ==
|
||||
|
||||
Tariq Abdul-Wahad, basketball player
|
||||
Thomas N'Gijol, comedian
|
||||
Ladjie Soukouna, footballer
|
||||
Nicole Tourneur, novelist
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== International relations ==
|
||||
|
||||
Maisons-Alfort is twinned with Moers in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Transport ==
|
||||
Maisons-Alfort is served by three stations on Paris Métro Line 8: École Vétérinaire de Maisons-Alfort, Maisons-Alfort–Stade, and Maisons-Alfort–Les Juilliottes.
|
||||
It is also served by two stations on Paris RER D: Maisons-Alfort–Alfortville and Le Vert de Maisons.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
Communes of the Val-de-Marne department
|
||||
Charenton Metro-Viaduct
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
Official website
|
||||
Timeline of V2 attacks
|
||||
@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ chunk: 1/2
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mischgerät_(V-2_guidance_computer)"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:13:15.265733+00:00"
|
||||
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||||
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|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ chunk: 2/2
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mischgerät_(V-2_guidance_computer)"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:13:15.265733+00:00"
|
||||
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|
||||
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|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
32
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Big_Ben-0.md
Normal file
32
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Big_Ben-0.md
Normal file
@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Operation Big Ben"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Big_Ben"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:01.506900+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Operation Big Ben was the title given to the dive-bombing British Spitfire missions against German mobile V-2 rocket launch sites in Holland between October 1944 and April 1945, during World War II. The code word 'Big Ben' meant 'V2 Rocket' and was used by the Filter Room at Fighter Command and by the pilots of the mission; but the phrase 'Operation Big Ben' was not used in official documentation (none found since the release of former Top Secret papers from the National Archive from January 2004), even though pilots (such as Flt Lt Raymond Baxter, who went on to become the voice of the Farnborough Air Show and BBC TV's technology programme Tomorrow's World) identified the sorties under the name 'Operation Big Ben'.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Description ==
|
||||
The missions were specific: Spitfire Mark XVI's with clipped wings, flew in formations of four aircraft (some Mark IX and some Mark XIV were also used occasionally) and dive-bombed the sites, sometimes through breaks in heavy cloud. Each Spitfire carried a 250lb bomb under each wing and a 500lb bomb under the fuselage. Very occasionally, if they were pin-pointing locations further away, they would carry only the two 250lb bombs or the 500lb bomb in order to save on fuel.
|
||||
Although the operation has been the subject of two extensive books, the extent of the success of the missions is still not known. It is considered successful because it is appreciated that the Spitfires did destroy some of the mobile V2 launch sites, along with bridges, roads and railway tracks, which were crucial supply lines; but the operation didn't completely stop the rocket attacks.
|
||||
In interview about 'Operation Big Ben', Flt Lt Raymond Baxter said that it was the most difficult operation he ever took part in during the Second World War and insisted that unequivocally, the operation was called 'Operation Big Ben'.
|
||||
Over the ten years since the operation has been appreciated by aviation historians, a short CGI film has documented the missions, a limited-edition model of Raymond Baxter's Mark XVI Spitfire was produced (which he signed the plinth of each model) and two respected non-fiction books have become available.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Notes ===
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Sources ===
|
||||
|
||||
Irene Younghusband BBC Learning
|
||||
Operation Big Ben - the Anti-V2 Spitfire Missions 1944-45 (Spellmount, 2004)
|
||||
Wee Bit and Glenn Films
|
||||
Operation Big Ben - the Anti-V2 Spitfire Missions (Tempest, 2016)
|
||||
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|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Crossbow"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:12:38.446925+00:00"
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||||
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|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
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|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Crossbow"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:12:38.446925+00:00"
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|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
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|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Crossbow"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
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tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:12:38.446925+00:00"
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|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
53
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Most_III-0.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Operation Most III"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Most_III"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:14.500005+00:00"
|
||||
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|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Operation Most III (Polish for Bridge III) or Operation Wildhorn III (in British documents) was a World War II operation in which Poland's Armia Krajowa provided the Allies with crucial intelligence on the German V-2 rocket.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Background ==
|
||||
From November 1943 onwards, the Intelligence Division of the Polish Home Army (Armia Krajowa) obtained parts of the V-2 rocket, which was being tested at a missile launch site near Blizna, central Poland. The availability of parts increased from April 1944, when numerous test rockets fell near Sarnaki village, in the vicinity of the Bug River, south of Siemiatycze. On the night of 20 May 1944 a particularly intact rocket fell into the swampy banks of the Bug. Parts of the rocket were secured by the Armia Krajowa, and analyzed at its secret laboratories in Warsaw. The analysis was performed by Professor Janusz Groszkowski (radio and guidance), Marceli Struszyński (fuel), Bogdan Stefanowski (engine), Antoni Kocjan, and others.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Operation ==
|
||||
On the night of July 25, 1944, just past 10:00 p.m., a Royal Air Force (RAF) Dakota KG477 transport plane of No. 267 Squadron lifted off from Brindisi in southern Italy bound for an abandoned airfield in Poland near the village of Wał-Ruda. This airfield was code-named Motyl. The transport plane, which had been fitted with additional fuel tanks for a flight endurance of up to 18 hours, was piloted by a New Zealander, Flight Lieutenant Stanley G. Culliford, and co-piloted by a Polish native, Flight Lieutenant Kazimierz Szrajer. The plan was to land the plane in territory surrounded with German military units retreating westward under pressure by the Soviet army and obtain the V-2 missile components. At just past midnight, the Dakota circled above the landing location and the partisans (who had been previously informed through encrypted codes over BBC radio) recognized the transport plane. Upon the plane's landing, the partisans emerged from the woods nearby pulling carts with key V-2 components. Once the cargo was loaded, the pilots attempted to take off, but the wheels of the plane were lodged in the muddy ground.
|
||||
Hastily, the mud was shovelled away and another attempt was made to take off, but the wheels of the plane had sunk even deeper in the mud. Attempts to lodge sticks under the wheels were unsuccessful. Some partisans began digging around the wheels with their bare hands while others found wooden slats in the nearby woods that were subsequently wedged underneath the wheels. Finally the plane pulled out of the mud and was able to take off with the V-2 components before detection by German military units.
|
||||
Two days later the Dakota arrived in London. British scientists began devising a way to interfere with the guidance of the V-2 missile using radio waves, but it was discovered that the V-2 mechanism was not designed to "react to countermeasures by radio."
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Participants ==
|
||||
On the outgoing flight from Brindisi the aircraft had 4 passengers: Kazimierz Bilski, Jan Nowak-Jeziorański, Leszek Starzyński and Bogusław Wolniak.
|
||||
On the return flight, Jerzy Chmielewski, Józef Retinger, Tomasz Arciszewski, Tadeusz Chciuk, and Czesław Miciński were ferried from occupied Poland to Brindisi, Italy. It was intended that Antoni Kocjan (who had personally studied parts of V-2 missiles) would take part, but he was arrested by the Gestapo and therefore was replaced by Jerzy Chmielewski.
|
||||
The aircraft's crew included: F/Lt S.G. (George) Culliford (Captain), F/O Kazimierz Szrajer (Co-pilot and translator) (Polish), F/O J.P. Williams (Navigator), F/Sgt J. Appleby (Radio-operator).
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Media appearance ==
|
||||
Dramatisation of the events was published in the book They Saved London written by Bernard Newman in 1955. The book was later turned into a feature film Battle of the V-1.
|
||||
The operation was featured in the 1977 BBC TV series The Secret War, episode 3, "Terror Weapons", which included Janusz Groszkowski's memories of the operation.
|
||||
Operation Most III was one of the major plot elements in Frozen Flashes ("Gefrorene Blitze"), a GDR movie about the development of the V2 and the history of the resistance movement in Peenemünde during the Second World War and its attempt to sabotage the V-2 programme.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
Battle of the V-1
|
||||
Home Army and V1 and V2
|
||||
Polish contribution to World War II
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Bibliography ===
|
||||
Breuer, William B. (1993). Race to the Moon: America's Duel with the Soviets. Westport; Connecticut: Praeger Publishers. ISBN 0-275-94481-6
|
||||
Ordway, Frederick I., III. The Rocket Team. Apogee Books Space Series 36 (pp. 158, 173)
|
||||
(in Polish) Michał Wojewódzki, Akcja V-1, V-2, Warsaw 1984, ISBN 83-211-0521-1
|
||||
McGovern, James. Crossbow and Overcast. W. Morrow: New York, 1964. (p. 71)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
Peter Wieslaw Grajda: The Polish Canadian pilot, Kazimierz Szrajer and the German Rocket V2
|
||||
22
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Big_Ben-0.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Project Big Ben"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Big_Ben"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:02.789272+00:00"
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||||
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|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
"Big Ben" was the World War II code name for the British project to reconstruct and evaluate captured German missiles such as the V-2 rocket. On 31 July 1944, after the UK agreed to exchange Supermarine Spitfires for the wreckage of a V-2 in Sweden during World War II, experts at Farnborough began an attempt to reconstruct the missile.
|
||||
In late July 1944, Operation Most III the Polish resistance movement (Armia Krajowa) succeeded in capturing an intact V2 rocket near the Pustkow Testing Centre. It had been launched for a test flight, failed but did not explode and then retrieved still intact from the Bug River, and transferred secretly to London.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
V-1 and V-2 Intelligence
|
||||
Home Army and V1 and V2 — Polish resistance efforts.
|
||||
Operation Crossbow
|
||||
Operation Hydra (1943)
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
20
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_U-boat-0.md
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||||
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|
||||
title: "Rocket U-boat"
|
||||
chunk: 1/5
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_U-boat"
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||||
category: "reference"
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tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:17.134932+00:00"
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||||
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|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
The Rocket U-boat was a series of military projects undertaken by Nazi Germany during the Second World War. The projects, which were undertaken at Peenemünde Army Research Center, aimed to develop submarine-launched rockets, flying bombs and missiles. The Kriegsmarine (German Navy) did not use submarine-launched rockets or missiles from U-boats against targets at sea or ashore. These projects never reached combat readiness before the war ended.
|
||||
From May 31 to June 5, 1942, a series of underwater-launching experiments of solid-fuel rockets were carried out using submarine U-511 as a launching platform. The rocket system was first envisaged as a weapon against convoy escorts but with no effective guidance system, the arrangement was ineffective against moving targets and could only be used for shore bombardment. Development of this system ended in early 1943 because it decreased the U-boats' seaworthiness.
|
||||
Plans for the rocket U-boat involved an attack on New York City using newly invented V-2 rockets; Unmanned and unpowered containers with V-2 rockets inside were to be towed within range of the target by a conventional U-boat then set up and launched from its gyro-stabilized platform. With thoughts of hitting targets in the United States and in the United Kingdom, a 32 m (105 ft)-long container of 500-tons displacement was to be towed behind a submerged U-boat. The evacuation of Peenemünde in February 1945 brought an end to these developments. There are no records that these were tested with a rocket launch before Germany's final defeat. It is the forerunner and basis of modern ballistic missile submarines. After the war, the United States and the Soviet Union continued these projects with the assistance of captured German scientists. The US Navy fired Republic-Ford JB-2 flying bombs – reverse engineered versions of the German V-1 flying bomb – from submarines USS Cusk (SS-348) and USS Carbonero (SS-337) in a series of successful tests between 1947 and 1951. During Operation Sandy, a German V-2 rocket seized by the US Army was launched from the upper deck of the aircraft carrier USS Midway (CV-41) on September 6, 1947. In the Soviet Union, German scientists contributed to the development of GOLEM-1, a liquid-fueled rocket based on the V-2 rocket design and designed to be launched from a submarine-towed capsule.
|
||||
|
||||
== Background ==
|
||||
|
||||
The British Area Bombing Directive issued on February 14, 1942, focused on undermining "the morale of the enemy civil population and in particular the industrial workers". According to British philosopher A. C. Grayling, Lübeck, with its timbered medieval buildings, was chosen because the Royal Air Force (RAF) Air Staff "were eager to experiment with a bombing technique using a high proportion of incendiaries" to help them carry out the directive. The RAF was aware of using a high proportion of incendiaries during bombing raids was effective because cities such as Coventry had been subject to such attacks by the Luftwaffe during the Blitz. New heavy bombers, improved navigation and bombing systems, and new tactics led to a devastating increase in the effectiveness of the RAF's bombing offensive on Germany, starting with the bombing of Lübeck in March 1942. A series of follow-up attacks using a similar pattern, was mounted against Rostock between April 24 and 27, 1942.
|
||||
The destruction of Lübeck and Rostock came as a profound shock to the German leadership and population. Adolf Hitler was enraged and on April 14, 1942, he ordered "that the air war against England be given a more aggressive stamp. Accordingly, when targets are being selected, preference is to be given to those where attacks are likely to have the greatest possible effect on civilian life. Besides raids on ports and industry, terror attacks of a retaliatory nature [Vergeltungsangriffe] are to be carried out on towns other than London". In April and May 1942, the Luftwaffe designed the Baedeker Raids on British cities with the hope of forcing the Royal Air Force to reduce their actions. The Luftwaffe continued to target cities for their cultural value for the next two years. The Baedeker-type raids ended in 1944 as the Germans realized they were ineffective; unsustainable losses were being suffered for no material gain. January 1944 saw a switch to London as the principal target for retaliation. On January 21, the Luftwaffe mounted Operation Steinbock, an all-out attack on London using all of its available bomber force in the west. This too was largely a failure and German efforts were redirected toward the ports the Germans suspected were going to be used for the Allied invasion of Germany. Operation Steinbock was the last large-scale bombing campaign against England using conventional aircraft; thenceforth only the V-1 flying bomb and V-2 rockets – pioneering examples of cruise missiles and short-range ballistic missiles respectively – were used to strike British cities. The V-1 flying bomb – a pulsejet-powered cruise missile – and the V-2 rocket, a liquid-fueled ballistic missile, were long-range "retaliatory weapons" (German:Vergeltungswaffen) designed for strategic bombing, particularly terror bombing and the aerial bombing of cities, as retaliation for the Allied bombings against German cities.
|
||||
|
||||
In May 1942, following the relative failure of the Baedeker Raids, the development of flying bombs and rockets to target Britain accelerated. The V-1 flying bomb, which was developed by the Luftwaffe at Peenemünde Army Research Center, was the first of the so-called "Vengeance weapons" series. In July 1943, the V-1 flew 245 km (152 miles) and impacted within 1 km (0.62 miles) of its target. Ground-launched V-1s were propelled up a 49-m (160 ft)-long, inclined launch ramp consisting of eight modular sections 6 m (20 ft) long and a muzzle brake, to enable the missile to become airborne with an airflow strong enough to allow the pulse-jet engine to operate. The steam catapult accelerated the V-1 to a launch speed of 200 mph (320 km/h), well above the minimum operational speed of 150 mph (240 km/h). Its operational range was about 200 km (150 mi) and its maximum speed was about 640 km/h (400 mph).
|
||||
31
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_U-boat-1.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Rocket U-boat"
|
||||
chunk: 2/5
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_U-boat"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:17.134932+00:00"
|
||||
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|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
The V-2 rocket, with the technical name Aggregat 4 (A-4) – the world's first long-range guided ballistic missile – was developed by Wernher von Braun. The first successful test flight of a V-2 rocket took place on October 3, 1942; it reached an altitude of 84.5 kilometres (52.5 miles). The missile was powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine and used a 75% ethanol/25% water mixture for fuel and liquid oxygen for oxidizer. The fuel and oxidizer pumps were driven by a steam turbine, and the steam was produced using concentrated hydrogen peroxide with sodium permanganate as a catalyst.
|
||||
At launch, the V-2 rocket propelled itself for up to 65 seconds and a programmed motor held the inclination at the specified angle until engine shutdown, after which the rocket continued on a ballistic free-fall trajectory. The rocket reached a height of 80 km (50 mi) after shutting off the engine. Unlike the V-1, the V-2's speed and trajectory made it practically invulnerable to anti-aircraft guns and fighters as it dropped from an altitude of 100–110 km (62–68 mi) at approximately 3,550 km/h (2,210 mph) – up to three times the speed of sound at sea level. Its operational range was about 320 km (200 mi).
|
||||
On May 26, 1943, Germany decided to put both the V-1 and the V-2 into production. On September 29, 1943, Albert Speer publicly promised retribution against the mass bombing of German cities using a "secret weapon". On June 24, 1944, the Propagandaministerium (Reich Propaganda Ministry) announcement of the Vergeltungswaffe 1 guided missile implied there would be another such weapon.
|
||||
|
||||
== Development ==
|
||||
During World War II, several projects were undertaken by the German Navy at Peenemünde Army Research Center to develop submarine-launched rockets, flying bombs and missiles. These projects never reached combat readiness before the war ended and the German Navy did not use submarine-launched rockets or missiles.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Short-range rockets ===
|
||||
|
||||
According to Walter Dornberger, Ernst Steinhoff, the Director for Flight Mechanics, Ballistics, Guidance Control, and Instrumentation at Peenemünde Army Research Center, whose brother Kapitänleutnant Friedrich Steinhoff commanded the U-boat U-511, originated the idea of launching solid-propellant rockets from a submerged submarine. Ernst Steinhoff was in charge of working on submarine launched rockets.
|
||||
Tubular metal launch frames (Schwere Wurfgerät 41 (sWG 41)) carrying six 30 cm Wurfkörper 42 rockets were mounted on the submarine's upper deck with a 45° firing angle. From May 31 to June 5, 1942, under the code name "Project Ursel", a series of solid-fuel rocket launching experiments were carried out using submarine U-511 as a launching platform near the Greifswalder Oie.
|
||||
Successful firings from the surface were carried out on June 4, 1942, and from up to 15 m (49 ft) underwater with no effect on the missiles' accuracy. The rocket system was first envisaged as a weapon against convoy escorts but with no effective guidance system, the arrangement was ineffective against moving targets and could only be used for shore bombardment. The development of this system ended in early 1943 because it was found to decrease the U-boats' seaworthiness.
|
||||
From 1944 to 1945, the German Navy continued to develop and successfully tested various short-range rockets that could be launched from submerged submarines at depths of up to 100 m (330 ft) at the naval testing station operated by the Torpedoversuch Anstalt Eckernförde at Lake Toplitz near Bad Aussee, Austria. No official records on the deployment of these short-range rockets on German U-boats or their use against targets have been found.
|
||||
The first recorded attack on land-based targets using sea-based rockets was carried out by the US submarine USS Barb (SS-220) on June 22, 1944, against the Japanese town Shari. The USS Barb fired 12 5-inch rockets Mk 10 Mod 0, from 4,700 yd (4.3 km) offshore, using a rocket launcher Mk 51 Mod 0 installed on the deck of the submarine.
|
||||
|
||||
=== V-1 flying bombs ===
|
||||
In 1943, interest in the concept of sea-launched missiles was revived with the advent of the V-1 flying bomb; proposals were made to mount a V-1 and steam-operated launcher on a U-boat to strike targets at a much greater range than the 150 mi (240 km) that was possible from land-based sites. This proposal foundered because of inter-service rivalry; the V-1 was a Luftwaffe project.
|
||||
In September 1944, the Allies received intelligence reports suggesting Germany's Kriegsmarine was planning to use submarine-launched V-1s to attack cities on the east coast of the United States. A modified German submarine was spotted in a southern Norwegian port "showing a pair of rails extending from conning tower to the bow and terminating at a flat, rectangular surface", apparently modified to launch V-1s. No official records on the deployment of V-1 flying bombs on German U-boats have yet been found.
|
||||
|
||||
=== V-2 rockets ===
|
||||
In Autumn 1943, Deutsche Arbeitsfront director Bodo Lafferentz proposed to Dornberger the idea of a towable, watertight container that could hold a V-2 rocket. The project of sea-beased V-2 rockets was code-named "Apparat F"' and the development of towable containers was commonly referred to by the codename Prüfstand XII from late 1944. The container was unmanned and unpowered, and was intended to be towed into range of its target by a U-boat then set up and launched from its gyro-stabilized platform. A report of the Peenemünde research center dated January 19, 1945, summarized the objectives of Prüfstand XII:
|
||||
19
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_U-boat-2.md
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19
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Rocket U-boat"
|
||||
chunk: 3/5
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_U-boat"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:17.134932+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
This project opens up the possibility of attacking, with the Apparat F, off enemy coasts (for example, northern England or eastern America), very distant but strategically important targets that are currently out of range. In addition, it deceives the adversary about the real range of the missile and, at additional costs, offers new strategic and political opportunities.
|
||||
Important rocket scientists such as Klaus Riedel, Hans Hüter, Bernhard Tessman and Georg von Tiesenhausen were assigned to the project.
|
||||
Once in the firing position, the container's upper ballasts would be remotely emptied to reorient it from its horizontal towing position to its vertical launching position, with its bow emerging about 5 m (16 ft) above the surface. The container was stabilized using large rudders and was steered by a gyroscopic system. A three-person service team would leave the submarine in an inflatable boat while the firing control unit remained on board the submarine. The operators would open a hinged lid at the bow of the container to access to a servicing platform and connect the container to the submarine to power it. They would prepare the warhead and fuel the missile with liquid oxygen, ethanol and sodium permanganate for the turbopump from fuel tanks located in the container. The missile was prepared for launch from a service room located beneath the missile chamber. The V-2 would have been guided by rails and the empty space would accommodate the ballasts. The exhaust jet was deflected 180° using collecting funnels so the jet could exit upward. This deflection would reduce the rocket thrust and its radius of action of a sea-based V-2 rocket, requiring the u-boat to come dangerously close to the coast. The armed missile would have been ready to launch 30 minutes after reaching its firing position. After the launch, the container could be abandoned or towed back to the base.
|
||||
Initial calculations showed at any one time, a U-boat could tow three submerged containers at periscope depth and at a speed of 5 kn (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) An attack on US targets would require a 30-day journey to the launching position at an average speed of 10–12 knots (19–22 km/h; 12–14 mph). Type XXI U-boats, with a range of 15,500 nautical miles (28,700 km; 17,800 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced and 340 nmi (630 km; 390 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) submerged, were considered to be ideal submarines to perform such attacks on the US.
|
||||
Problems in the development of the V-2 delayed this project until November 1944. In January 1945, Dornberger submitted over a hundred detailed draft designs. A 300-ton prototype was built by Schichau-Werke GmbH. At the beginning of 1945, successful underwater towing trials were carried out with U-boat 1063.
|
||||
Although its design never reached the prototype stage, the Peenemünde engineers considered using the A-8 version of the V-2 rocket; this was a "stretched" variant that had a longer radius of action, and used nitric acid oxidizer and kerosene propellants pressurized with nitrogen if the losses of hydrogen peroxide could not be kept under 1% per day as planned. The A-8 variant called for 32 m (105 ft)-long containers weighing 500 tons. Under the code-name Projekt Schwimmweste ("Project Lifejacket"), confidential reports dated January 3, 1945, and January 19, 1945, indicate the Stetinner Vulkanwerft ("Vulkan Docks") was contracted to build three containers in Stetin by March 1945 and that four test firings with different firing configurations were planned.
|
||||
The evacuation of Peenemünde in February 1945 and the fall of Stettin to the Red Army in April 1945 brought an end to these developments, and there are no records these designs were tested with a rocket launch before Germany's final collapse. The fate of the containers after the war is uncertain. According to some sources, Soviet forces captured incomplete capsules and design information. The project may have continued with the assistance of German scientists, and led to the development of GOLEM-1, a liquid-fueled rocket based on the V-2 and designed to be launched from a submarine-towed capsule. According to Michael J. Neufeld, although generously described as a forerunner of the ballistic missile submarines, the idea of launching V2-rockets from canisters towed across the Atlantic Ocean by U-boats embodied the mood of desperation of Nazi Germany at the end of World War II, concluding; "it is hard to see how a few [V-2 rocket attacks on New York] would have done anything but make Americans more determined to take revenge on German cities". Frederick Ira Ordway III and Michael Sharpe considered this project "became a part of the history that may have been, given more time".
|
||||
|
||||
== Fears of rocket attacks on U.S. ==
|
||||
22
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_U-boat-3.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Rocket U-boat"
|
||||
chunk: 4/5
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_U-boat"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:17.134932+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Rumors of missile-armed submarines operating from Bergen with New York as the target – including one from Denmark and one from Sweden passed on by the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force – emerged at the end of 1944. . The British Admiralty discounted these reports and assessed while V-1s could be potentially mounted on Type IX submarines, the Germans were unlikely to devote scarce resources to such a project. In May 1945, the American press reported an attempted attack on New York on November 7, 1944 – the day of the presidential election – using a "jet-propelled or rocket-propelled weapon" launched from submarines. The US Navy said the report of the submarine attack was "without foundation"'.
|
||||
On November 29, 1944, German spies William Colepaugh and Erich Gimpel were landed in Maine by the Type IXC/40 U-boat U-1230 to gather intelligence on U.S. military and technology facilities. Colepaugh was arrested on December 6; during his interrogation, Colepaugh said German U-boats were being equipped with long-range rocket launchers. Supposedly, U-1230 was shadowed by a U-boat pack equipped with V-weapons with the intention of attacking New York City and Washington D.C. Although the U.S. took the threat seriously, it never materialized and Colepaugh's claim was later disproven.
|
||||
The Atlantic Fleet's commander Vice Admiral Jonas H. Ingram gave a press conference on January 8, 1945; he warned there was a threat of a missile attack and announced a large force had been assembled to counter seaborne missile launchers. In January 1945, German Minister of Armaments and War Production Albert Speer made a propaganda broadcast in which he said V-1s and V-2s "would fall on New York by February 1, 1945", increasing the U.S. Government's concern over the threat of attack.
|
||||
In response to this threat, the U.S. Navy conducted Operation Teardrop between April and May 1945 to sink German U-boats detected heading for the Eastern Seaboard, which were believed to be armed with V-1s or V-2s. Five of the seven Type IX submarines that stationed off the U.S. were sunk; four with their entire crews. Thirty-three U-546 crew members were captured. Following the end of the war in Europe, the submarines U-234, U-805, U-858 and U-1228 surrendered at sea before returning to bases on the U.S. east coast.
|
||||
After the German surrender, the U.S. Navy continued its efforts to determine whether the U-boats had carried missiles. The crews of U-805 and U-858 were interrogated and confirmed their U-boats were not fitted with missile-launching equipment. Kapitänleutnant Fritz Steinhoff, who had commanded U-511 during her rocket trials and was captured at sea when he surrendered U-873, was subjected to an abusive interrogation at Portsmouth by the interviewers of U-546's crew. On May 19, 1945, Steinhoff bled to death in his Boston jail cell from wrist wounds that may have been self-inflicted with the broken lens of his sunglasses. It is not known whether the Allies were aware of Steinhoff's involvement in the rocket trials. Six months after Steinhoff's death, his brother Ernst Steinhoff became one of the Operation Paperclip rocket scientists from Peenemünde who arrived in the U.S. to work at White Sands Missile Range.
|
||||
|
||||
== Post-war developments ==
|
||||
|
||||
=== Soviet Union ===
|
||||
After the war, Western experts were convinced the Soviet Union had developed the sea-going GOLEM 1 rocket from the V-2 rocket. The underwater-to-surface GOLEM-1, which was developed with the assistance of German scientists, is believed to have been a nuclear-capable, liquid-fueled (oxygen and alcohol), radio-inertial-guided rocket designed to be launched from a capsule towed by a submarine. The GOLEM-1 was a 53.8-foot (16.4 m) long rocket with a diameter of 5.41 ft (1.65 m) and a range of 395 mi (636 km). Two or three GOLEM-1 missiles could be towed in capsules by submerged submarines.
|
||||
The Soviet submarine B-67, a converted Project 611 (Zulu-IV class) submarine, in the White Sea on September 16, 1955, at 17:32, launched an R-11FM (SS-N-1 Scud-A), the naval variant of the R-11 Zemlya (SS-1b Scud-A); the first submarine-launched ballistic missile that was modeled on the Wasserfall, the anti-aircraft version of the V-2 rocket and was developed by engineer Victor Makeev. The missiles were too long to be contained in the submarine's hull and extended into the enlarged sail. To be fired, the submarine had to surface and raise the missile out of the sail. Five additional Project V611 and AV611 (Zulu-V class) submarines became the world's first operational ballistic-missile submarines with two R-11FM missiles each, entering service in 1956–57. Six Zulu-class submarines that were successfully modified to carry and launch three R-11FM missiles became known by their NATO reporting name of Golf class.
|
||||
Following this initial success, the R-11FM was further developed and the first underwater launch of a modified R-11FM rocket using solid instead of liquid fuel took place on December 26, 1956, from an immersed platform at a depth of 30 m (98 ft). With a range of 150 km (93 miles) and a payload of 967 kg (2,132 lb), the R-11FM rocket officially entered service in the Navy on February 20, 1959. The Soviet Union made its first successful underwater launch of a submarine ballistic missile in the White Sea on September 10, 1960, from the same converted Project 611 submarine that first launched the R-11FM.
|
||||
30
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_U-boat-4.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Rocket U-boat"
|
||||
chunk: 5/5
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_U-boat"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:17.134932+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
=== United States ===
|
||||
During Operation Sandy, for the first time, a German V-2 rocket seized in Germany by the U.S. Army at the end of the war was launched from a ship at sea, several hundred miles south of Bermuda. The launch took place on September 6, 1947, from the upper deck of the aircraft carrier USS Midway (CV-41). The first sea-based launch of a missile by the U.S. Navy occurred on February 12, 1947, from the upper deck of the submarine USS Cusk (SS-348). Codenamed "Loon", a naval version of the Republic-Ford JB-2, a reversed-engineered copy of the German V-1 flying bomb was successfully launched off Point Mugu, California. The JB-2 "Loon" was developed to be carried in watertight containers mounted on the aft deck of submarines. USS Carbonero (SS-337) was modified to provide mid-course guidance for JB-2 "Loon". These successful tests led to the development of submarine-launched cruise missiles. The U.S. Navy's success in adapting a variant of the V-1 to be launched from submarines also demonstrated the technically feasibility of the development by the German navy.
|
||||
|
||||
By 1953, the USS Tunny had been adapted into a true missile submarine but it was still an awkward process to launch the Regulus cruise missile, a nuclear-capable turbojet-powered, second-generation cruise missile that developed from the tests conducted with the German V-1 flying bomb. The submarine had to surface and the missile was manually loaded from storage onto a launch rail on the submarine's deck before it could be launched. The U.S.'s first operational ballistic missile submarine, USS George Washington, standing out into the Atlantic Missile Test Range, successfully conducted the first UGM-27 Polaris missile launch from a submerged submarine on July 20, 1960, establishing the nuclear deterrent role for missile submarines.
|
||||
In March 2010, Deputy Secretary of Defense William J. Lynn III, in a speech on missile defense, stated:
|
||||
|
||||
Although Project Laffarenz [sic] did not come to fruition, it illustrates how our adversaries will always be reaching for new and ingenious ways to cause us harm. Their tactics may make straightforward use of weapons systems we are prepared to defend against. But they may also marry high and low technologies in unexpected combinations, forcing us to quickly adapt.
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
USS Barb (SS-220)
|
||||
Japanese I-400-class submarine aircraft carrier
|
||||
Japanese Type AM submarine aircraft carrier
|
||||
Sea Dragon (rocket)
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
== Bibliography ==
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
Rocket U-Boat Program
|
||||
41
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SK-1_spacesuit-0.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "SK-1 spacesuit"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SK-1_spacesuit"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:56.519173+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
SK-1 is an initialism of "Skafandr Kosmicheskiy" # 1 (Скафандр Космический = "diving suit for space") is a spacesuit that was developed specially for Yuri Gagarin. As such, it is the first spacesuit ever used. After his successful flight on the Vostok 1 spacecraft, spacesuits of the SK series were used for space flights of other cosmonauts on Vostok spacecraft, in which the cosmonauts would eject and land separately from module.
|
||||
The SK-1 was used from 1961-1963.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== SK-2 (CK-2) ==
|
||||
Almost exactly the same as the SK-1 but designed for a woman, it was on June 16 through 19th in 1963 on Vostok 6.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Specifications ==
|
||||
Allowed ejections up to 8 km (26,000 ft).
|
||||
|
||||
Name: SK-1/SK-2 Spacesuit
|
||||
Manufacturer: NPP Zvezda
|
||||
Missions: Vostok 1 to Vostok 6
|
||||
Function: Intra-vehicular activity (IVA) and Ejection
|
||||
Operating Pressure: 270 to 300 hPa (3.9 to 4.4 psi)
|
||||
Suit Weight: 20 kg (44 lb)
|
||||
Primary Life Support: Vehicle Provided
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
Isaac Abramov & Ingemar Skoog (2003). Russian Spacesuits. Chichester, UK: Praxis Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-85233-732-X.
|
||||
Astronautix Sokol SK-1
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
Vita Germetika : A Brief History of Creating and Development of Soviet-Russian space suits - in Russian
|
||||
Museum of NPP Zvezda : photo of SK#1 space suit
|
||||
Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics in Moscow SK-1 Suit Picture (34 & 35)
|
||||
Zvezda History(Russian) Eng
|
||||
31
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mare's_Nest-0.md
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data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mare's_Nest-0.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "The Mare's Nest"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mare's_Nest"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:11.781422+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
The Mare's Nest is a 1964 book by English author David Irving, focusing on the German V-weapons campaign of 1944–45 and the Allied military and intelligence effort (Operation Crossbow) to counter it. The book covers both sides of the story – the Allied arguments over how to interpret intelligence concerning the status and existence of the V-weapons and the German debate over how to deploy the new weapons to make the most of their supposed capacity to reverse the tide of the war. During his research for the book, Irving discovered that the Allies had broken the German Enigma code, over a decade before that became public knowledge, but agreed to keep it secret. The Mare's Nest was well received by reviewers and those involved in Operation Crossbow and has been widely cited by authors writing about the V-weapons program.
|
||||
Retrospectively, the book is still praised for its extensive research but criticised for minimising the Nazi slave labour programmes of Mittelwerk and Nordhausen, about which Irving certainly knew.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Publication history ==
|
||||
The book was Irving's second, published the year after his best-seller The Destruction of Dresden, and had its origins in the success of that book. Irving had intended to return to studying for a degree but abandoned his plans when his publisher proposed that he should write two more books, covering the V-weapons programme and the life of Adolf Hitler. He discovered that Winston Churchill's scientific adviser, Lord Cherwell, had been closely involved in tracking the V-weapons and that Cherwell's papers were held at Nuffield College, Oxford. Irving was given full access to the archive and made a startling discovery: that the Allies had been reading the German codes, a fact that was still regarded as top secret. He began to fear that he would be denied access to the archive if the authorities realised that he had uncovered ULTRA, the Allies' wartime programme of decrypting the Enigma machine codes and other German codes and cyphers. As he later put it, he resorted to doing "the unthinkable. I began borrowing documents, taking them down to London to copy. But I always sedulously returned them."
|
||||
Irving nonetheless worked the secret material into his book, writing an entire chapter about Enigma in the first draft of The Mare's Nest. When it came to the attention of the authorities, "one night I was visited at my flat by men in belted raincoats who came and physically seized the chapter. I was summoned to the Cabinet Office, twelve men sitting around a polished table, where it was explained to me why [the information] was not being released and we appeal to you as an English gentleman not to release [it]." Irving cooperated and withdrew the chapter, but by this time he had copied enough material from Cherwell's archive to furnish several more books. ULTRA remained secret for another decade.
|
||||
The book's title comes from a phrase used by Lord Cherwell to describe the V-weapons; he was sceptical of the existence of the V-2 rocket, regarding it (wrongly, as it turned out) as technologically infeasible, and referred to it as a "mare's nest" (meaning a remarkable discovery which later turns out to be illusory).
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Reception ==
|
||||
The book was well received at the time by reviewers. Writing in The Economist, William Kimber called it "remarkable" for its coverage of both sides, Allied and German. He concluded that the book shows that the British reached the right conclusions, despite errors along the way, while the Germans hindered their own efforts with disputes between the army, air force, SS and civilian ministers. The Times noted that the book highlighted how the hunt for the V-weapons was punctuated by "conflicts of personality between scientists, intelligence officers, and Service leaders", while at the same time conveying "the efficiency of the British Intelligence Services at the lower level" even if the higher-level co-ordination was sometimes lacking. The Guardian's Clare Hollingworth noted that the book "provides some excellent quotations from intelligence documents, both British and German, as well as sketches of Peenemünde and of the [V-2 rocket]" and suggested that "perhaps scientists or soldiers engaged in rocketry" would find it useful.
|
||||
William Connor, under his pen-name Cassandra in The Daily Mirror, called it "one of the most fascinating books I have read for a long time". Duncan Sandys, who had chaired the Crossbow Committee responsible for co-ordinating the Allied response to the V-weapons, called it an "authoritative account of the V-weapon offensive" in his review for the London Evening Standard. He commended the author for having "successfully woven [his research] together into a coherent narrative, written in a brisk style", though he faulted Irving for having relied too heavily on Lord Cherwell's papers, with the result that he had treated "the problem as primarily one of scientific intelligence and [paid] insufficient attention to other more important aspects of the operation." Nonetheless, Sandys concluded, "students will find in The Mare's Nest a mine of important information, while much wider circles will enjoy David Irving's vivid presentation of a strange story."
|
||||
The book has been widely cited by authors covering the V-weapons programme. Even after Irving's reputation was destroyed after his exposure as a Holocaust denier, Michael J. Neufeld of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum has described The Mare's Nest as "the most complete account on both Allied and German sides of the V-weapons campaign in the last two years of the war."
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
Irving, David. The Mare's Nest (online ed.). Archived from the original on 27 May 2007.
|
||||
49
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-1_and_V-2_intelligence-0.md
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49
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-1_and_V-2_intelligence-0.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "V-1 and V-2 intelligence"
|
||||
chunk: 1/2
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-1_and_V-2_intelligence"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:19.838339+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Military intelligence on the V-1 and V-2 weapons developed by the Germans for attacks on the United Kingdom during the Second World War was important to countering them. Intelligence came from a number of sources and the Anglo-American intelligence agencies used it to assess the threat of the German V-weapons.
|
||||
The activities included use of the Double Cross System for counter-intelligence and the British (code named) "Big Ben" project to reconstruct and evaluate German missile technology for which Denmark, Poland, Luxembourg, Sweden, and the USSR provided assistance.
|
||||
German counter-intelligence ruses were used to mislead the Allies about V-1 launch sites and the Peenemünde Army Research Center which were targeted for attacks by the Allies.
|
||||
The Polish resistance Home Army (Armia Krajowa), which conducted military operations against occupying German forces, was also heavily involved in intelligence work. This included operations investigating the German Wunderwaffe: the V-1 flying bomb and the V-2 rocket. British intelligence received their first Polish report regarding the development of these weapons at Peenemünde in 1943.
|
||||
|
||||
== Early reports ==
|
||||
|
||||
By the summer of 1941 Home Army intelligence began receiving reports from its field units regarding some kind of secret tests being carried out by the Germans on the island of Usedom in the Baltic Sea. A special "Bureau" was formed within intelligence group "Lombard", charged with espionage inside the 3rd Reich and the Polish areas incorporated into it after 1939, to investigate the matter and to coordinate future actions. Specialized scientific expertise was provided to the group by the engineer Antoni Kocjan, "Korona", a renowned pre-war glider constructor. Furthermore, as part of their operations the "Bureau" managed to recruit an Austrian anti-Nazi, Roman Traeger (T-As2), who was serving as an NCO in the Wehrmacht and was stationed on Usedom. Trager provided the AK with more detailed information regarding the "flying torpedoes" and pinpointed Peenemünde on Usedom as the site of the tests. The information obtained led to the first report from the AK to the British which was purportedly written by Jerzy Chmielewski, "Rafal", who was in charge of processing economic reports the "Lombard" group obtained.
|
||||
|
||||
== Operation Most III ==
|
||||
|
||||
After V-2 flight testing began at the Blizna V-2 missile launch site (the first launch from there was on November 5, 1943), the AK had a unique opportunity to gather more information and to intercept parts of test rockets (most of which did not explode).
|
||||
The AK quickly located the new testing ground at Blizna thanks to reports from local farmers and AK field units, who managed to obtain on their own pieces of the fired rockets, by arriving on the scene before German patrols. In late 1943 in cooperation with British intelligence, a plan was formed to make an attempt to capture a whole unexploded V-2 rocket and transport it to Britain.
|
||||
At the time, opinion within British intelligence was divided. One group tended to believe the AK accounts and reports, while another was highly sceptical and argued that it was impossible to launch a rocket of the size reported by the AK using any known fuel.
|
||||
Then in early March 1944, British Intelligence Headquarters received a report of a Polish Underground worker (code name "Makary") who had crawled up to the Blizna railway line and saw on a flatcar heavily guarded by SS troops "an object which, though covered by a tarpaulin, bore every resemblance to a monstrous torpedo." The Polish intelligence also informed the British about usage of liquid oxygen in a radio report from June 12, 1944. Some experts within both British and Polish intelligence communities quickly realized that learning the nature of the fuel utilized by the rockets was crucial, and hence, the need to obtain a working example.
|
||||
|
||||
From April 1944, numerous test rockets were falling near Sarnaki village, in the vicinity of the Bug River, south of Siemiatycze. The number of parts collected by the Polish intelligence increased. They were then analyzed by the Polish scientists in Warsaw. According to some reports, around May 20, 1944, a relatively undamaged V-2 rocket fell on the swampy bank of the Bug near Sarnaki and local Poles managed to hide it before German arrival. Subsequently, the rocket was dismantled and smuggled across Poland. Operation Most III (Bridge III) secretly transported parts of the rocket out of Poland for analysis by British intelligence. The rocket parts and other pieces of cargo were transported hidden under hay in a horse pulled cart belonging to Jan Lechowicz.
|
||||
|
||||
== Impact on the course of the war ==
|
||||
While the early knowledge on a rocket by AK was quite a feat in pure intelligence terms, it did not necessarily translate into significant results on the ground. On the other hand, the AK did alert the British as to the dangers posed by both missile designs, which led them to allocate more resources to bombing production and launching sites and thus lessened the eventual devastation caused by them. Also, the Operation Hydra bombing raid on Peenemünde, purportedly carried out on the basis of Home Army intelligence, did delay the V-2 by six to eight weeks.
|
||||
|
||||
== Timeline ==
|
||||
Key
|
||||
PR — aerial photographic reconnaissance
|
||||
- exchange of early stray V2 rocket.
|
||||
— events regarding Nazi Germany V-weapon planning
|
||||
— locations in Occupied France (German: Nordfrankreich)
|
||||
— Polish reports of the Armia Krajowa
|
||||
— Reports gathered by the Luxembourg Resistance
|
||||
, — events regarding Anglo-American intelligence
|
||||
, , — military operations (RAF, US, Luftwaffe)
|
||||
|
||||
The day after Strategic Bombing Directive No. 4 ended the strategic air war in Europe, the use of radar was discontinued in the London Civil Defence Region for detecting V-2 launches. The last launches had been on March 27 (V-2) and March 29 (V-1 flying bomb).
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
Battle of the V-1
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
Notes
|
||||
30
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-1_and_V-2_intelligence-1.md
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30
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-1_and_V-2_intelligence-1.md
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@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "V-1 and V-2 intelligence"
|
||||
chunk: 2/2
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-1_and_V-2_intelligence"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:19.838339+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Bibliography
|
||||
Bowman, Martin W (1999-07-15). Mosquito Photo-Reconnaissance Units of World War 2. Bloomsbury USA. ISBN 978-1-85532-891-4 – via Google Books.
|
||||
Collier, Basil (1976) [1964]. The Battle of the V-Weapons, 1944-1945. Yorkshire: The Emfield Press. ISBN 978-0-7057-0070-2.
|
||||
Cooksley, Peter G (1979). Flying Bomb. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
|
||||
Garliński, Józef (1978). Hitler's Last Weapons: The Underground War against the V1 and V2. New York: Times Books.
|
||||
Gruen, Adam L (1998). "Preemptive Defense, Allied Air Power Versus Hitler's V-Weapons, 1943–1945". The U.S. Army Air Forces in World War II. pp. 4(Round 1), 5(Round 2). Archived from the original on 2009-07-05. Retrieved 2007-05-07.
|
||||
McGovern, James (1964). Crossbow and Overcast. New York: W. Morrow – via archive.org.
|
||||
Middlebrook, Martin (1982). The Peenemünde Raid: The Night of 17–18 August 1943. New York: Bobbs-Merrill.
|
||||
Ordway, Frederick I III; Sharpe, Mitchell R (1979). The Rocket Team. Apogee Books Space Series 36. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell. pp. 57, 114, 117, 174b–e, 251, 258d. ISBN 978-1-894959-00-1. Archived from the original (index) on 2012-03-04. Retrieved 2012-03-14.
|
||||
Jones, R. V. (1978). Most Secret War: British Scientific Intelligence 1939-1945. London: Hamish Hamilton. ISBN 978-0-241-89746-1.
|
||||
"Campaign Diary". Royal Air Force Bomber Command 60th Anniversary. UK Crown. Retrieved 2009-03-22.
|
||||
McKillop, Jack. "Combat Chronology of the USAAF". Archived from the original on 2007-06-10. Retrieved 2007-05-25.
|
||||
Zaloga, Steven J. (2008) [2007]. German V-Weapon Sites 1943-45. Fortress 72. New York: Osprey Publishing Ltd. ISBN 978-1-84603-247-9.
|
||||
(in Polish)Kostrzewa, Maria. “Transport Części Niemieckiej Rakiety V-2 Do Przybysławic.” Radłów Gmina, 26 July 2017, Transport części niemieckiej rakiety V-2 do Przybysławic - Oficjalna strona Miasta i Gminy Radłów. Accessed 26 June 2024.
|
||||
(in Polish)Kołodziej, Wincenty. “Mieczysław Adamczyk - Partyzant z Otfinowa.” PDF Article, czasopisma.marszalek.com.pl/images/pliki/ksm/08/ksm200419.pdf. Accessed 3 July 2025.
|
||||
|
||||
== Further reading ==
|
||||
Churchill 'Memoirs of the Second World War'
|
||||
Eisenhower 'European Crusade'
|
||||
V-2 Ballistic Missile 1942 - 52
|
||||
27
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-1_flying_bomb-0.md
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The V-1 flying bomb (German: Vergeltungswaffe 1, lit. 'Vengeance Weapon 1') was an early cruise missile. Its official Reich Aviation Ministry (RLM) name was Fieseler Fi 103 and its suggestive name was Höllenhund (hellhound). It was also known to the Allies as the buzz bomb or doodlebug and Maikäfer (maybug).
|
||||
The V-1 was the first of the Vergeltungswaffen (V-weapons) deployed for the terror bombing of London. It was developed at Peenemünde Army Research Center in 1942 by the Luftwaffe, and during initial development was known by the codename Kirschkern (cherry stone). Due to its limited range, the thousands of V-1 missiles launched into England were fired from launch sites along the French (Pas-de-Calais) and Dutch coasts or by modified Heinkel He 111 aircraft.
|
||||
The Wehrmacht first launched the V-1s against London on 13 June 1944, one week after (and prompted by) Operation Overlord, the Allied landings in France. At times more than one hundred V-1s a day were fired at south-east England, 9,521 in total, decreasing in number as sites were overrun until October 1944, when the last V-1 site in range of Britain was overrun by Allied forces. After this, the Germans directed V-1s at the port of Antwerp and at other targets in Belgium, launching another 2,448 V-1s. The attacks stopped only a month before the war in Europe ended, when the last launch site in the Low Countries was overrun on 29 March 1945.
|
||||
As part of Operation Crossbow, operations against the V-1, the British air defences consisted of anti-aircraft guns, barrage balloons and fighter aircraft, to intercept the bombs before they reached their targets, while the launch sites and underground storage depots became targets for Allied attacks including strategic bombing.
|
||||
In 1944 a number of tests of this weapon were apparently conducted in Tornio, Finland. On one occasion, several Finnish soldiers saw a German plane launch what they described as a bomb shaped like a small, winged aircraft. The flight and impact of another prototype was seen by Finnish frontline soldiers; they noted that its engine stopped suddenly, causing the V-1 to descend sharply, and explode on impact, leaving a crater 20–30 metres (66–98 ft) wide. These V-1s became known to Finnish soldiers as "flying torpedoes".
|
||||
|
||||
== Design and development ==
|
||||
In 1935 Paul Schmidt and Georg Hans Madelung submitted a design to the Luftwaffe for a flying bomb. It was an innovative design that used a pulse-jet engine, while previous work dating back to 1915 by Sperry Gyroscope relied on propellers. While employed by the Argus Motoren company, Fritz Gosslau developed a remote-controlled target drone, the FZG 43 (Flakzielgerät-43). In October 1939 Argus proposed Fernfeuer, a remote-controlled aircraft carrying a payload of one ton, that could return to base after releasing its bomb. Argus worked in co-operation with C. Lorenz AG and Arado Flugzeugwerke to develop the project. However, the Luftwaffe declined to award them a development contract. In 1940, Schmidt and Argus began cooperating, integrating Schmidt's shutter system with Argus' atomized fuel injection. Tests began in January 1941, and the first flight made on 30 April 1941 with a Gotha Go 145. On 27 February 1942 Gosslau and Robert Lusser sketched out the design of an aircraft with the pulse-jet above the tail, the basis for the future V-1.
|
||||
Lusser produced a preliminary design in April 1942, P35 Erfurt, which used gyroscopes. When submitted to the Luftwaffe on 5 June 1942, the specifications included a range of 300 km (186 miles), a speed of 700 km/h (435 mph), and capable of delivering a 500-kilogram (1⁄2-long-ton) warhead. Project Fieseler Fi 103 was approved on 19 June, and assigned code name Kirschkern and cover name Flakzielgerät 76 (FZG-76). Flight tests were conducted at the Luftwaffe's Erprobungsstelle coastal test centre at Karlshagen, Peenemünde-West.
|
||||
Erhard Milch, State Secretary in the Reich Ministry of Aviation and Inspector General of the Air force, awarded Argus the contract for the engine, Fieseler the airframe, and Askania the guidance system. By 30 August Fieseler had completed the first fuselage, and the first flight of the Fi 103 V7 took place on 10 December 1942, when it was airdropped by a Fw 200. Then on Christmas Eve, the V-1 flew 900 m (1,000 yd), for about a minute, after a ground launch. On 26 May 1943 Germany decided to put both the V-1 and the V-2 into production. In July 1943 the V-1 flew 245 kilometres (152 mi) and impacted within a kilometre (1,100 yards) of its target.
|
||||
The V-1 was named by Das Reich journalist Hans Schwarz Van Berkl in June 1944 with Hitler's approval.
|
||||
|
||||
== Description ==
|
||||
|
||||
The V-1 was designed under the codename Kirschkern (cherry stone) by Lusser and Gosslau, with a fuselage constructed mainly of welded sheet steel and wings built of plywood. The simple, Argus-built pulsejet engine pulsed 50 times per second, and the characteristic buzzing sound gave rise to the colloquial names "buzz bomb" or "doodlebug" (a common name for a wide variety of flying insects). It was known briefly in Germany (on Hitler's orders) as Maikäfer (May bug literally "May" + "chafer") and Krähe (crow).
|
||||
|
||||
=== Power plant ===
|
||||
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The Argus pulsejet's major components included the nacelle, fuel jets, flap valve grid, mixing chamber venturi, tail pipe, and spark plug. Compressed air rather than a fuel pump forced gasoline from the 640 L (140 imp gal; 170 US gal) fuel tank through the fuel jets which consisted of three banks of three atomizers. These nine atomizing nozzles were in front of the air inlet valve system where it mixed with air before entering the chamber. A throttle valve, connected to altitude and ram pressure instruments, controlled fuel flow. Schmidt's spring-controlled flap valve system provided an efficient straight path for incoming air. The flaps momentarily closed after each explosion, the resultant gas compressed in the venturi chamber, and its tapered portion accelerated the exhaust gases creating thrust. The operation proceeded at a rate of 42 cycles per second.
|
||||
Beginning in January 1941, the V-1's pulsejet engine was also tested on a variety of craft, including automobiles and an experimental attack boat known as the Tornado, in which a boat loaded with a 700 kg (1,543 lb) warhead was steered towards a target ship either by remote control or by a pilot who would leap out of the back at the last moment. The Tornado was assembled from surplus seaplane hulls connected in catamaran fashion. Ultimately insufficient Argus 014 pulse-jets were available as all production was allocated to the V-1 missile program. The engine made its first flight aboard a Gotha Go 145 on 30 April 1941.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Guidance system ===
|
||||
|
||||
The V-1 guidance system used a simple autopilot developed by Askania in Berlin to regulate altitude and airspeed. A pair of gyroscopes controlled yaw and pitch, while azimuth was maintained by a magnetic compass. Altitude was maintained by a barometric device. Two spherical tanks contained compressed air at 6.2 megapascals (900 psi), that drove the gyros, operated the pneumatic servomotors controlling the rudder and elevator, and pressurized the fuel system.
|
||||
The magnetic compass was located near the front of the V-1, within a wooden sphere. Shortly before launch, the V-1 was suspended inside the Compass Swinging Building (Richthaus). There the compass was corrected for magnetic variance and magnetic deviation. The RLM at first planned to use a radio control system with the V-1 for precision attacks, but the government decided instead to use the missile against London. Some flying bombs were equipped with a basic radio transmitter operating in the range of 340–450 kHz. Once over the channel, the radio would be switched on by the vane counter, and a 120-metre (400 ft) aerial deployed. A coded Morse signal, unique to each V-1 site, transmitted the route, and impact zone calculated once the radio stopped transmitting.
|
||||
|
||||
An odometer driven by a vane anemometer on the nose determined when the target area had been reached, accurate enough for area bombing. Before launch, it was set to count backwards from a value that would reach zero upon arrival at the target in the prevailing wind conditions. As the missile flew, the airflow turned the propeller, and every 30 rotations of the propeller counted down one number on the odometer. This odometer triggered the arming of the warhead after about 60 km (37 mi). When the count reached zero, two detonating bolts were fired. Two spoilers on the elevator were released, the linkage between the elevator and servo was jammed, and a guillotine device cut off the control hoses to the rudder servo, setting the rudder in neutral. These actions put the V-1 into a steep dive. While this was originally intended to be a power dive, in practice the dive caused the fuel flow to cease, which stopped the engine. The sudden silence after the buzzing alerted people under the flight path to the impending impact.
|
||||
Initially, V-1s landed within a circle 31 km (19 mi) in diameter, but by the end of the war, accuracy had been improved to about 11 km (7 mi), which was comparable to the V-2 rocket.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Warhead ===
|
||||
The warhead consisted of 850 kg (1,870 lb) of Amatol, 52A+ high-grade, blast-effective explosive with three fuses. An electrical fuse could be triggered by nose or belly impact. Another fuse was a slow-acting mechanical fuse allowing deeper penetration into the ground, regardless of the altitude. The third fuse was a delayed action fuse, set to go off two hours after launch.
|
||||
The purpose of the third fuse was to avoid the risk of this secret weapon being examined by the British. Its time delay was too short to be a useful booby trap but was instead meant to destroy the weapon if a soft landing had not triggered the impact fuses. These fusing systems were very reliable, and almost no dud V-1s were recovered.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Walter catapult ===
|
||||
|
||||
Ground-launched V-1s were propelled up an inclined launch ramp by an apparatus known as Dampferzeuger ("steam generator"), in which steam was generated when hydrogen peroxide (T-Stoff) was mixed with sodium permanganate (Z-Stoff).
|
||||
Designed by Hellmuth Walter KG, the "WR 2.3" Schlitzrohrschleuder consisted of a small gas generator trailer, where the T-Stoff and Z-Stoff combined, generating high-pressure steam that was fed into a tube within the launch rail box. A piston in the tube, connected underneath the missile, was propelled forward by the steam. It is a common misconception that the steam launch was to allow the engine to start running but the real reason was that the Argus had insufficient power to propel the V1 to a speed above its extremely high stall speed. The launch rail was 49 m (160 ft) long, consisting of eight modular sections, each 6 m (20 ft) long, and a muzzle brake. Production of the Walter catapult began in January 1944.
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== Further reading ==
|
||||
Haining, Peter (2002), The Flying Bomb War -Contemporary Eyewitness Accounts of the German V1 and V2 Raids On Britain 1942–1945, London: Robson Books, ISBN 978-1-86105-581-1
|
||||
Hellmold, Wilhelm (1991). Die V1: Eine Dokumentation. Augsburg, Germany: Weltbild Verlag GmbH. ISBN 3-89350-352-8.
|
||||
Henshall, Philip (2002). Hitler's V-Weapons Sites. United Kingdom: Sutton Publishing. ISBN 0-7509-2607-4.
|
||||
Kay, Anthony L. (1977), Buzz Bomb (Monogram Close-Up 4), Boylston, MA: Monogram Aviation Publications, ISBN 978-0-914144-04-5
|
||||
King, Benjamin; Kutta, Timothy (1998), Impact: The History of Germany's V-Weapons in World War II, New York: Sarpedon, ISBN 978-1-885119-51-3
|
||||
Ramsay, Winston (1990), The Blitz Then & Now, vol. 3, London: Battle of Britain Prints, ISBN 978-0-900913-58-7
|
||||
Young, Richard Anthony (1978), The Flying Bomb, Shepperton, UK: Ian Allan, ISBN 978-0-7110-0842-7. (1978, US, Sky Book Press, ISBN 978-0-89402-072-8)
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
A film clip of FZG 76 – V-1 is available for viewing at the Internet Archive
|
||||
V-1 Launch Site
|
||||
The V-Weapons, from Marshall Stelzriede's Wartime Story website with June 1944 UK/US news reports on V-1 attacks
|
||||
Fi-103/V-1 "Buzz Bomb", from the Luftwaffe Resource Center website, hosted by The Warbirds Resource Group; with 42 photos
|
||||
The Lambeth Archives, includes a sound recording of an incoming V-1, circa 1944
|
||||
Swedish site (in English) with text and many details of the V-1 cruise missile and its supporting hardware Archived 14 October 2011 at the Wayback Machine
|
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The Walter catapult accelerated the V-1 to a launch speed of 320 km/h (200 mph), well above the needed minimum operational speed of 240 km/h (150 mph). The V-1 reached the British coast at 550 km/h (340 mph), but continued to accelerate to 640 km/h (400 mph) by the time it reached London, as its 570 L (150 US gal) of fuel burned off.
|
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On 18 June 1943 Hermann Göring decided on launching the V-1, using the Walter catapult, in large launch bunkers, called Wasserwerk (the German word for "water works"), and lighter installations, called the Stellungsystem. The Wasserwerk bunker measured 215 m (705 ft) long, 36 m (118 ft) wide, and 10 m (33 ft) high. Four were initially to be built: Wasserwerk Desvres, Wasserwerk St. Pol, Wasserwerk Valognes, and Wasserwerk Cherbourg. Stellungsystem-I was to be operated by Flak Regiment 155(W), with 4 launch battalions, each having 4 launchers, and located in the Pas-de-Calais region. Stellungsystem-II, with 32 sites, was to act as a reserve unit. Stellungsystem-I and II had nine batteries manned by February 1944. Stellungsystem-III, operated by FR 255(W), was to be organized in the spring of 1944, and located between Rouen and Caen. The Stellungsystem locations included distinctive catapult walls pointed towards London, several J-shaped stowage buildings referred to as "ski" buildings as on aerial reconnaissance photographs the buildings looked like a ski on its side, and a compass correction building which was constructed without ferrous metal. In the spring of 1944, Oberst Schmalschläger had developed a more simplified launching site, called Einsatzstellungen (meaning ca. "deployed emplacement"). Less conspicuous, 80 launch sites and 16 support sites were located from Calais to Normandy. Each site took only two weeks to construct, using 40 men, and the Walter catapult only took 7–8 days to erect, when the time was ready to make it operational.
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||||
Once near the launch ramp, the wing spar and wings were attached and the missile was slid off the loading trolley, Zubringerwagen, onto the launch ramp. The ramp catapult was powered by the Dampferzeuger trolley. The pulse-jet engine was started by the Anlassgerät, which provided compressed air for the engine intake, and initial electrical supply for the engine spark plug, and autopilot. The Bosch spark plug was only needed to start the engine, while residual flame ignited further mixtures of gasoline and air, and the engine would be at full power after 7 seconds. The catapult would then accelerate the bomb above its stall speed of 320 km/h (200 mph), ensuring sufficient ram air.
|
||||
|
||||
== Operation Eisbär ==
|
||||
|
||||
Mass production of the FZG-76 did not start until the spring of 1944, and FR 155(W) was not equipped until late May 1944. Operation Eisbär, the missile attacks on London, commenced on 12 June. However, the four launch battalions could only operate from the Pas-de-Calais area, amounting to only 72 launchers. They had been supplied with missiles, Walter catapults, fuel, and other associated equipment since D-Day. None of the nine missiles launched on the 12th reached England, while only four did so on the 13th. The next attempt to start the attack occurred on the night of 15/16 June, when 144 missiles reached England, of which 73 struck London, while 53 struck Portsmouth and Southampton.
|
||||
Damage was widespread and Eisenhower ordered attacks on the V-1 sites as a priority. Operation Cobra forced a retreat from the French launch sites in August, with the last battalion leaving on 29 August. Operation Donnerschlag began from Germany on 21 October 1944.
|
||||
|
||||
== Operation and effectiveness ==
|
||||
|
||||
The first complete V-1 airframe was delivered on 30 August 1942, and after the first complete As.109-014 was delivered in September, the first glide test flight was on 28 October 1942 at Peenemünde, from under a Focke-Wulf Fw 200. The first powered trial was on 10 December, launched from beneath an He 111.
|
||||
The LXV Armeekorps z.b.V. ("65th Army Corps for special deployment) formed during the last days of November 1943 in France commanded by General der Artillerie z.V. Erich Heinemann was responsible for the operational use of V-1.
|
||||
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||||
The conventional launch sites could theoretically launch about 15 V-1s per day, but this rate was difficult to achieve on a consistent basis; the maximum rate achieved was 18. Overall, only about 25% of the V-1s hit their targets, the majority being lost due to a combination of defensive measures, mechanical unreliability, or guidance errors. At least six V-1s are known to have landed erroneously in Sweden. With the capture or destruction of the launch facilities used to attack England, the V-1s were employed in attacks against strategic points in Belgium, primarily the port of Antwerp.
|
||||
Launches against Britain were met by a variety of countermeasures, including barrage balloons and aircraft such as the Hawker Tempest and newly introduced jet Gloster Meteor. These measures were so successful that by August 1944 about 80% of V-1s were being destroyed The Meteors suffered from frequent cannon failures, and accounted for only 13 V-1s destroyed. In all, about 1,000 V-1s were destroyed by aircraft.
|
||||
The intended operational altitude was originally set at 2,750 m (9,000 ft), but repeated failures of a barometric fuel-pressure regulator led to the operational height being halved in May 1944, bringing V-1s into range of the 40 mm Bofors light anti-aircraft guns commonly used by Allied AA units.
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The trial versions of the V-1 were air-launched. Most operational V-1s were launched from static sites on land, but from July 1944 to January 1945, the Luftwaffe launched approximately 1,176 from modified Heinkel He 111 H-22s of the Luftwaffe's Kampfgeschwader 3 (3rd Bomber Wing, the so-called "Blitz Wing") flying over the North Sea. Apart from the obvious motive of permitting the bombardment campaign to continue after static ground sites on the French coast were lost, air launching gave the Luftwaffe the opportunity to outflank the increasingly effective ground and air defences put up by the British against the missile. To minimise the associated risks (primarily radar detection), the aircrews developed a tactic called "lo-hi-lo": the He 111s would, upon leaving their airbases and crossing the coast, descend to an exceptionally low altitude. When the launch point was neared, the bombers would swiftly ascend, fire their V-1s, and then rapidly descend again to the previous "wave-top" level for the return flight. Research after the war estimated a 40% failure rate of air-launched V-1s, and the He 111s used in this role were vulnerable to night-fighter attack, as the launch lit up the area around the aircraft for several seconds. The combat potential of air-launched V-1s dwindled during 1944 at about the same rate as that of the ground-launched missiles, as the British gradually took the measure of the weapon and developed increasingly effective defence tactics.
|
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||||
== Experimental, piloted, and long-range variants ==
|
||||
|
||||
=== Piloted variant ===
|
||||
|
||||
Late in the war, several air-launched piloted V-1s, known as Reichenbergs, were built, but these were never used in combat. Hanna Reitsch made some flights in the modified V-1 Fieseler Reichenberg when she was asked to find out why test pilots were unable to land it and had died as a result. She discovered, after simulated landing attempts at high altitude, where there was air space to recover, that the craft had an extremely high stall speed, and the previous pilots with little high-speed experience had attempted their approaches much too slowly. Her recommendation of much higher landing speeds was then introduced in training new Reichenberg volunteer pilots. For this she was awarded the Iron Cross First Class The Reichenbergs were air-launched rather than fired from a catapult ramp.
|
||||
It had the appearance of a standard V1 with the addition of cockpit, ailerons, landing skids and flight instruments. The pilot would have been airlifted by either Heinkel He 111 or a Focke-Wulf Fw 200. After release, the pilot would start the pulse jet engine, select a target, set the controls then bail out. The chances of survival were considered very small, yet many pilots volunteered. Possibly 175 of these piloted V1s were converted at Darmesbury after initial development by Deutsche Forschungsanstalt für Segelflug (DFS/German Research Institute for Sailplane Flight) at Ainring.
|
||||
When Hitler banned the use of the piloted V1, most converted models were scrapped. However, a few were captured by the Allied Technical Air Intelligence crews in Germany. At least one was sent to England, and two, possibly three, were sent to the US for inspection.
|
||||
Three different versions of the piloted FZG-76 were produced. The Reichenburg I was a one or two-seat unpowered glider intended for use as a training glider for pilot training. Reichenburg II was a single-seat FZG-76 fitted with a pulse jet power plant. A skid was fitted for dead stick landing to gain valuable flying experience. Reichenburg III was to be the operational piloted version of the V1, fitted with the amatol warhead in the nose. The front windscreen had 75 mm (3.0 in) thick bulletproof glass for pilot protection. The V1 pilot's kit consisted of a parachute, helmet and life vest. A small case contained two small flares in a waterproof container.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Air launch by Ar 234 ===
|
||||
There were plans, not put into practice, to use the Arado Ar 234 jet bomber to launch V-1s either by towing them aloft or by launching them from a "piggy back" position (in the manner of the Mistel, but in reverse) atop the aircraft. In the latter configuration, a pilot-controlled, hydraulically operated dorsal trapeze mechanism would elevate the missile on the trapeze's launch cradle about 2.4 m (8 ft) clear of the 234's upper fuselage. This was necessary to avoid damaging the mother craft's fuselage and tail surfaces when the pulsejet ignited, as well as to ensure a "clean" airflow for the Argus motor's intake. A somewhat less ambitious project undertaken was the adaptation of the missile as a "flying fuel tank" (Deichselschlepp) for the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter, which was initially test-towed behind an He 177A Greif bomber. The pulsejet, internal systems and warhead of the missile were removed, leaving only the wings and basic fuselage, now containing a single large fuel tank. A small cylindrical module, similar in shape to a finless dart, was placed atop the vertical stabiliser at the rear of the tank, acting as a centre of gravity balance and attachment point for a variety of equipment sets. A rigid towbar with a pitch pivot at the forward end connected the flying tank to the Me 262. The operational procedure for this unusual configuration saw the tank resting on a wheeled trolley for take-off. The trolley was dropped once the combination was airborne, and explosive bolts separated the towbar from the fighter upon exhaustion of the tank's fuel supply. A number of test flights were conducted in 1944 with this set-up, but inflight "porpoising" of the tank, with the instability transferred to the fighter, meant that the system was too unreliable to be used. An identical utilisation of the V-1 flying tank for the Ar 234 bomber was also investigated, with the same conclusions reached. Some of the "flying fuel tanks" used in trials utilised a cumbersome fixed and spatted undercarriage arrangement, which (along with being pointless) merely increased the drag and stability problems already inherent in the design.
|
||||
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=== F-1 version ===
|
||||
One variant of the basic Fi 103 design did see operational use. The progressive loss of French launch sites as 1944 proceeded and the area of territory under German control shrank meant that soon the V-1 would lack the range to hit targets in England. Air launching was one alternative utilised, but the most obvious solution was to extend the missile's range. Thus, the F-1 version developed. The weapon's fuel tank was increased in size, with a corresponding reduction in the capacity of the warhead. Additionally, the nose cones and wings of the F-1 models were made of wood, affording a considerable weight saving. With these modifications, the V-1 could be fired at London and nearby urban centres from prospective ground sites in the Netherlands. Frantic efforts were made to construct a sufficient number of F-1s in order to allow a large-scale bombardment campaign to coincide with the Ardennes Offensive, but numerous factors (bombing of the factories producing the missiles, shortages of steel and rail transport, the chaotic tactical situation Germany was facing at this point in the war, etc.) delayed the delivery of these long-range V-1s until February/March 1945. Beginning on 2 March 1945, slightly more than three weeks before the V-1 campaign finally ended, several hundred F-1s were launched at Britain from Dutch sites under Operation "Zeppelin". Frustrated by increasing Allied dominance in the air, Germany also employed F-1s to attack the RAF's forward airfields, such as Volkel, in the Netherlands.
|
||||
|
||||
=== FZG-76 version ===
|
||||
There was also a turbojet-propelled upgraded variant proposed, meant to use the Porsche 109-005 low-cost turbojet engine with about 500 kgf (1,100 lbf) thrust.
|
||||
|
||||
== Success of operations ==
|
||||
Almost 30,000 V-1s were made; by March 1944 they were each produced in 350 hours (including 120 for the autopilot), at a cost of just 4% of a V-2, which delivered a comparable payload. Approximately 10,000 were fired at England; 2,419 reached London, killing about 6,184 people and injuring 17,981. The greatest density of hits was received by Croydon, on the south-east fringe of London. Antwerp, Belgium was hit by 2,448 V-1s from October 1944 to March 1945.
|
||||
|
||||
== Intelligence reports ==
|
||||
|
||||
The codename "Flakzielgerät 76"—"Flak target apparatus" helped to hide the nature of the device, and some time passed before references to FZG 76 were linked to the V-83 pilotless aircraft (an experimental V-1) that had crashed on Bornholm in the Baltic and to reports from agents of a flying bomb capable of being used against London. Importantly, the Luxembourgish Resistance, as well as the Polish Home Army intelligence contributed information on V-1 construction and a place of development (Peenemünde). Initially, British experts were sceptical of the V-1 because they had considered only solid-fuel rockets, which could not attain the stated range of 210 kilometres (130 miles). However, they later considered other types of engine, and by the time German scientists had achieved the necessary accuracy to deploy the V-1 as a weapon, British intelligence had a very accurate assessment of it.
|
||||
|
||||
== Countermeasures in England ==
|
||||
|
||||
=== Anti-aircraft guns ===
|
||||
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|
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|
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|
||||
The British defence against German long-range weapons was known by the codename Operation Crossbow with Operation Diver covering countermeasures to the V-1. Anti-aircraft guns of the Royal Artillery and RAF Regiment redeployed in several movements: first in mid-June 1944 from positions on the North Downs to the south coast of England, then a cordon closing the Thames Estuary to attacks from the east. In September 1944 a new linear defence line was formed on the coast of East Anglia, and finally in December there was a further layout along the Lincolnshire–Yorkshire coast. The deployments were prompted by changes to the approach tracks of the V-1 as launch sites were overrun by the Allies' advance.
|
||||
On the first night of sustained bombardment, the anti-aircraft crews around Croydon were jubilant—suddenly they were downing unprecedented numbers of German bombers; most of their targets burst into flames and fell when their engines cut out. There was great disappointment when the truth was announced. Anti-aircraft gunners soon found that such small fast-moving targets were, in fact, very difficult to hit. The cruising altitude of the V-1, between 600 and 900 m (2,000 and 3,000 ft), meant that anti-aircraft guns could not traverse fast enough to hit the missile.
|
||||
The standard British QF 3.7-inch mobile gun could not cope with the altitude and speed of the V-1. However, the static version of the QF 3.7-inch, designed for a permanent concrete platform, had a faster traverse. The cost and delay of installing new permanent platforms for the guns was found to be unnecessary as a temporary platform devised by the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers and made from railway sleepers and rails was found to be adequate for the static guns, making them considerably easier to re-deploy as the V-1 threat changed.
|
||||
The development of the proximity fuze and of centimetric, 3 gigahertz frequency gun-laying radars based on the cavity magnetron helped to counter the V-1's high speed and small size. In 1944, Bell Labs started delivery of an anti-aircraft predictor fire-control system based on an analogue computer, just in time for the Allied invasion of Europe.
|
||||
These electronic aids arrived in quantity from June 1944, just as the guns reached their firing positions on the coast. Seventeen per cent of all flying bombs entering the coastal "gun belt" were destroyed by guns in their first week on the coast. This rose to 60 per cent by 23 August and 74 per cent in the last week of the month, when on one day 82 per cent were shot down. The rate improved from thousands of shells for every one V-1 destroyed to 100 for each. This mostly ended the V-1 threat. As General Frederick Pile put it in an April 5, 1946 article in the London Times: "It was the proximity fuse which made possible the 100 per cent successes that A.A. Command was obtaining regularly in the early months of last year...American scientists...gave us the final answer to the flying bomb."
|
||||
|
||||
=== Barrage balloons ===
|
||||
Eventually about 2,000 barrage balloons were deployed, in the hope that V-1s would be destroyed when they struck the balloons' tethering cables. The leading edges of the V-1's wings were fitted with Kuto cable cutters, and fewer than 300 V-1s are known to have been brought down by barrage balloons.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Interceptors ===
|
||||
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|
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|
||||
The Defence Committee expressed some doubt as to the ability of the Royal Observer Corps to adequately deal with the new threat, but the ROC's Commandant Air Commodore Finlay Crerar assured the committee that the ROC could again rise to the occasion and prove its alertness and flexibility. He oversaw plans for handling the new threat, codenamed by the RAF and ROC as "Operation Totter", which included a proposal whereby ROC posts would fire Snowflake illuminating rocket flares in order to alert RAF fighters to the presence of a V-1.
|
||||
Observers at the coast post of Dymchurch identified the very first of these weapons and within seconds of their report the anti-aircraft defences were in action. This new weapon gave the ROC much additional work both at posts and operations rooms. Eventually RAF controllers actually took their radio equipment to the two closest ROC operations rooms at Horsham and Maidstone, and vectored fighters direct from the ROC's plotting tables. The critics who had said that the Corps would be unable to handle the fast-flying jet aircraft were answered when these aircraft on their first operation were actually controlled entirely by using ROC information both on the coast and at inland.
|
||||
The average speed of V-1s was 550 km/h (340 mph) and their average altitude was 1,000 m (3,300 ft) to 1,200 m (3,900 ft). Fighter aircraft required excellent low altitude performance to intercept them and enough firepower to ensure that they were destroyed in the air (ideally, also from a sufficient distance, to avoid being damaged by the strong blast) rather than the V-1 crashing to earth and detonating. Most aircraft were too slow to catch a V-1 unless they had a height advantage, allowing them to gain speed by diving on their target.
|
||||
When V-1 attacks began in mid-June 1944, the only aircraft with the low-altitude speed to be effective against it was the Hawker Tempest. Fewer than 30 Tempests were available. They were assigned to No. 150 Wing RAF. Early attempts to intercept and destroy V-1s often failed, but improved techniques soon emerged. These included using the airflow over an interceptor's wing to raise one wing of the V-1, by sliding the wingtip to within 6 in (15 cm) of the lower surface of the V-1's wing. If properly executed, this manoeuvre would tip the V-1's wing up, over-riding the gyro and sending the V-1 into an out-of-control dive. At least sixteen V-1s were destroyed this way (the first by a P-51 piloted by Major R. E. Turner of 356th Fighter Squadron on 18 June).
|
||||
The Tempest fleet was built up to over 100 aircraft by September, and during the short summer nights the Tempests shared defensive duty with twin-engined de Havilland Mosquitos. Specially modified Republic P-47M Thunderbolts were also pressed into service against the V-1s; they had boosted engines (2,100 kW or 2,800 hp) and had half their .50 calibre (12.7 mm) machine guns and half their fuel tanks, all external fittings and all their armour plate removed to reduce weight. In addition, North American P-51 Mustangs and Griffon-engined Supermarine Spitfire Mk XIVs were tuned to make them fast enough. At night airborne radar was not needed, as the V-1 engine could be heard from 10 mi (16 km) away or more and the exhaust plume was visible from a long distance. Wing Commander Roland Beamont had the 20 mm cannon on his Tempest adjusted to converge at 300 yd (270 m) ahead. This was so successful that all other aircraft in 150 Wing were thus modified.
|
||||
The anti-V-1 sorties by fighters were known as "Diver patrols" (after "Diver", the codename used by the Royal Observer Corps for V-1 sightings). Attacking a V-1 was dangerous: machine guns had little effect on the V-1's sheet steel structure, and if a cannon shell detonated the warhead, the explosion could destroy the attacker.
|
||||
|
||||
In daylight, V-1 chases were chaotic and often unsuccessful until a special defence zone was declared between London and the coast, in which only the fastest fighters were permitted. The first interception of a V-1 was by F/L J. G. Musgrave with a No. 605 Squadron RAF Mosquito night fighter on the night of 14/15 June 1944. As daylight grew stronger after the night attack, a Spitfire was seen to follow closely behind a V-1 over Chislehurst and Lewisham. Between June and 5 September 1944, a handful of 150 Wing Tempests shot down 638 flying bombs, with No. 3 Squadron RAF alone claiming 305. One Tempest pilot, Squadron Leader Joseph Berry (501 Squadron), shot down 59 V-1s, the Belgian ace Squadron Leader Remy Van Lierde (164 Squadron) destroyed 44 (with a further nine shared), W/C Roland Beamont destroyed 31, and F/Lt Arthur Umbers (No. 3 squadron) destroyed 28. A Dutch pilot in 322 Squadron, Jan Leendert Plesman, son of KLM president Albert Plesman, managed to destroy 12 in 1944, flying a Spitfire.
|
||||
The next most successful interceptors were the Mosquito (623 victories), Spitfire XIV (303), and Mustang (232). All other types combined added 158. Even though it was not fully operational, the jet-powered Gloster Meteor was rushed into service with No. 616 Squadron RAF to fight the V-1s. It had ample speed but its cannons were prone to jamming, and it shot down only 13 V-1s.
|
||||
In late 1944 a radar-equipped Vickers Wellington bomber was modified for use by the RAF's Fighter Interception Unit as an airborne early warning and control aircraft. Flying at an altitude of 100 ft (30 m) over the North Sea at night, it directed Mosquito and Beaufighters charged with intercepting He 111s from Dutch airbases that sought to launch V-1s from the air.
|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
=== Disposal ===
|
||||
The first bomb disposal officer to defuse an unexploded V-1 was John Pilkington Hudson in 1944.
|
||||
In 2024 a remotely operated vehicle was sent into the Bay of Lübeck, off the northern coast of Germany, where large quantities of munitions were dumped during demilitarization after World War II. It recorded images of nine different V-1 missiles on the seabed “in various stages of degradation,” according to the resulting study, published in 2025. The study reported that thriving epifaunal communities were growing on the dumped munitions.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Deception ===
|
||||
To adjust and correct settings in the V-1 guidance system, the Germans needed to know where the V-1s were impacting. Therefore, German intelligence was requested to obtain this impact data from their agents in Britain. However, all German agents in Britain had been turned and were acting as double agents under British control.
|
||||
|
||||
On 16 June 1944 British double agent Garbo (Juan Pujol) was requested by his German controllers to give information on the sites and times of V-1 impacts, with similar requests made to the other German agents in Britain, Brutus (Roman Czerniawski) and Tate (Wulf Schmidt). If the Germans had been supplied these data, they would have been able to adjust their aim and correct any shortfall. However, the double agents would have been endangered because there was no plausible reason why they could not supply accurate data; the impacts would be common knowledge amongst Londoners and very likely reported in the press, which the Germans had ready access to through the neutral nations. As John Cecil Masterman, chairman of the Twenty Committee, commented, "If, for example, St Paul's Cathedral were hit, it was useless and harmful to report that the bomb had descended upon a cinema in Islington, since the truth would inevitably get through to Germany ..."
|
||||
While the British decided how to react, Pujol played for time. On 18 June it was decided that the double agents would report the damage caused by V-1s fairly accurately and minimise the effect they had on civilian morale. It was also decided that Pujol should avoid giving the times of impacts and should mostly report on those which occurred in the northwest of London, to give the impression to the Germans that they were overshooting the target area.
|
||||
While Pujol downplayed the extent of V-1 damage, trouble came from Ostro, an Abwehr agent in Lisbon who pretended to have agents reporting from London. He told the Germans that London had been devastated and had been mostly evacuated as a result of enormous casualties. The Germans could not perform aerial reconnaissance of London and believed his damage reports in preference to Pujol's. They thought that the Allies would make every effort to destroy the V-1 launch sites in France. They also accepted Ostro's impact reports. Due to Ultra, however, the Allies read his messages and adjusted for them.
|
||||
|
||||
A certain number of the V-1s fired had been fitted with radio transmitters, which had clearly demonstrated a tendency for the V-1 to fall short. Oberst Max Wachtel, commander of Flak Regiment 155 (W), which was responsible for the V-1 offensive, compared the data gathered by the transmitters with the reports obtained through the double agents. He concluded, when faced with the discrepancy between the two sets of data, that there must be a fault with the radio transmitters, as he had been assured that the agents were completely reliable. It was later calculated that if Wachtel had disregarded the agents' reports and relied on the radio data, he would have made the correct adjustments to the V-1's guidance, and casualties might have increased by 50 per cent or more.
|
||||
The policy of diverting V-1 impacts away from central London was initially controversial. The War Cabinet refused to authorise a measure that would increase casualties in any area, even if it reduced casualties elsewhere by greater amounts. It was thought that Churchill would reverse this decision later (he was then away at a conference); but the delay in starting the reports to Germans might be fatal to the deception. So Sir Findlater Stewart of Home Defence Executive took responsibility for starting the deception programme immediately, and his action was approved by Churchill when he returned.
|
||||
|
||||
== Effect ==
|
||||
The use of land-launched V-1s against Great Britain ended on 1 September after which the campaign continued using air-launched missiles. In total, 10,492 V-1s were launched against Britain, with a nominal aiming point of Tower Bridge. 7,500 incoming missiles were observed by the British defenders of which 1,847 were downed by fighters, 1,878 were destroyed by anti aircraft fire and 232 struck barrage balloons. 2,419 V-1s reached the London civil defence region, inflicting 6,184 fatalities and 17,981 serious injuries. On 28 March 1945, the last V-1 reached London.
|
||||
|
||||
== Assessment ==
|
||||
Unlike the V-2, the V-1 was a cost-effective weapon for the Germans as it forced the Allies to spend heavily on defensive measures and divert bombers from other targets. More than 25% of Combined Bomber Offensive's bombs in July and August 1944 were used against V-weapon sites, often ineffectively. In early December 1944, American General Clayton Bissell wrote a paper that strongly demonstrated the cost-effectiveness for the Germans of the V-1 when compared with conventional bombers. The following is a table he produced:
|
||||
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|
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|
||||
The statistics of this report, however, have been the subject of some dispute. The V-1 missiles launched from bombers were often prone to exploding prematurely, occasionally resulting in the loss of the aircraft to which they were attached. The Luftwaffe lost 77 aircraft in 1,200 of these sorties.
|
||||
Wright Field technical personnel reverse-engineered the V-1 from the remains of one that had failed to detonate in Britain and the Republic-Ford JB-2 was being delivered by early 1945. After the end of the war in Europe it was in consideration for use against Japan. General Hap Arnold of the United States Army Air Forces was concerned that this weapon would make his long-range bombers less important, since they were much cheaper and could be built of steel and wood, in 2,000 man-hours and approximate cost of US$600 (in 1943).
|
||||
|
||||
== Belgian attacks ==
|
||||
The attacks on Antwerp and Brussels began in October 1944, with the last V-1 launched against Antwerp on 30 March 1945. The shorter range improved the accuracy of the V-1 which was 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) deviation per 160 kilometres (99 mi) of flight, the flight level was also reduced to around 900 m (3,000 ft). The Port of Antwerp was one of the biggest in the world and was the main entrepot for Alled supplies further progression of Allied armies into Germany.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Countermeasures at Antwerp ===
|
||||
Both British (80th Anti-Aircraft Brigade) and US Army anti-aircraft batteries (30th AAA Group) were sent to Antwerp together with a searchlight regiment. The zone of command under the 21st Army Group was called "Antwerp-X" and given the object of protecting an area with a radius of 6,400 m (7,000 yd) covering the city and dock area. Initially attacks came from the south-east, accordingly a screen of observers and searchlights was deployed along the attack azimuth, behind which were three rows of batteries with additional searchlights.
|
||||
US units deployed SCR-584 radar units controlling four 90 mm guns per battery using an M9 director to electrically control the battery guns. British gun batteries were each equipped with eight QF 3.7-inch AA gun (94 mm) and two radar units, preferably the US SCR-584 with M9 director as it was more accurate than the British system. The radar was effective from 26,000 m (28,000 yd), the M9 director predicted the target location position based on course, height and speed which combined with the gun, shell and fuse characteristics predicted an impact position, adjusted each gun and fired the shell.
|
||||
In November attacks began from the north-east and additional batteries were deployed along the new azimuths, including the 184th AAA Battalion (United States) brought from Paris. Additional radar units and observers were deployed up to 64 km (40 mi) from Antwerp to give early warning of V-1 bombs approaching. The introduction of the VT fuse in January 1945 improved the effectiveness of the guns and reduced ammunition consumption. From October 1944 to March 1945, 4,883 V-1s were detected. Of these, only 4.5 percent fell into the designated protected area.
|
||||
|
||||
== Japanese developments ==
|
||||
In 1943 an Argus pulsejet engine was sent to Japan by German submarine. The Aeronautical Institute of Tokyo Imperial University and the Kawanishi Aircraft Company conducted a joint study of the feasibility of mounting a similar engine on a piloted plane. The resulting design was named Baika ("plum blossom") but bore no more than a superficial resemblance to the Fi 103. Baika never left the design stage, but technical drawings and notes suggest that, an air-launched version with the engine under the fuselage, a ground-launched version that could take off without a ramp and a submarine launched version with the engine moved forwards were considered.
|
||||
|
||||
== Post-war ==
|
||||
|
||||
=== France ===
|
||||
After reverse-engineering captured V-1s in 1946, the French began producing copies for use as target drones, starting in 1951. These were called the ARSAERO CT 10 and were smaller than the V-1. The CT 10 could be ground-launched using solid rocket boosters or air-launched from a LeO 45 bomber. More than 400 were produced, some of which were exported to the UK, Sweden, and Italy.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Soviet Union ===
|
||||
The Soviet Union captured V-1s when they overran the Blizna test range in Poland, as well as from the Mittelwerk. The 10Kh was their copy of the V-1, later called Izdeliye 10. Initial tests began in March 1945 at a test range in Tashkent, with further launches from ground sites and from aircraft of improved versions continuing into the late 1940s. The inaccuracy of the guidance system when compared with new methods such as beam-riding and TV guidance saw development end in the early 1950s.
|
||||
The Soviets also worked on a piloted attack aircraft based on the Argus pulsejet engine of the V-1, which began as a German project, the Junkers EF 126 Lilli, in the latter stages of the war. The Soviet development of the Lilli ended in 1946 after a crash that killed the test pilot.
|
||||
|
||||
=== United States ===
|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
The United States reverse-engineered the V-1 in 1944 from salvaged parts recovered in England during June. By 8 September, the first of thirteen complete prototype Republic-Ford JB-2, was assembled at Republic Aviation. The United States JB-2 was different from the German V-1 in only the smallest of dimensions, with only the forward pulsejet support pylon visibly differing in shape from the original German pilotless ordnance design. The wingspan was only 65 mm (2+1⁄2 in) wider and the length was extended less than 0.6 m (2 ft). The difference gave the JB-2 5.64 m2 (60.7 sq ft) of wing area versus 5.1 m2 (55 sq ft) for the V-1.
|
||||
A navalised version, designated KGW-1, was developed to be launched from LSTs as well as escort carriers (CVEs) and long-range 4-engine reconnaissance aircraft. Waterproof carriers for the KGW-1 were developed for launches of the missile from surfaced submarines. Both the USAAF JB-2 and Navy KGW-1 were put into production and were planned to be used in the Allied invasion of Japan (Operation Downfall). However, the surrender of Japan obviated the need for its use. After the end of the war, the JB-2/KGW-1 played a significant role in the development of more advanced surface-to-surface tactical missile systems such as the MGM-1 Matador and SSM-N-8 Regulus.
|
||||
|
||||
== Operators ==
|
||||
Nazi Germany
|
||||
Luftwaffe
|
||||
|
||||
== Surviving examples ==
|
||||
|
||||
Australia
|
||||
The Australian War Memorial in Canberra, Australia
|
||||
Belgium
|
||||
The Stampe en Vertongen Museum at Antwerp International Airport has a V-1 on display.
|
||||
|
||||
Canada
|
||||
Atlantic Canada Aviation Museum in Halifax, Nova Scotia
|
||||
Canadian War Museum, manned version Fieseler Fi 103R Reichenberg, collected by Farley Mowat
|
||||
Denmark
|
||||
The Danish War Museum (Krigsmuseet, formerly Tøjhusmuseet) in Copenhagen
|
||||
France
|
||||
The Grand Bunker Museum in Ouistreham, near Caen and Sword Beach, displays a V-1 flying bomb.
|
||||
Blockhaus d'Éperlecques, near Saint-Omer. Although this was intended as a V-2 launch site the museum on the site has a display devoted to the V-1, including a V-1 cruise missile and an entire launch ramp.
|
||||
Le Val Ygot at Ardouval, north of Saint-Saëns. Disabled by Allied bombing in December 1943, before completion. Remains of blockhouses, with recreated launch ramp and mock V1.
|
||||
La Coupole, near Saint-Omer, has a V-1 that it was lent by the Science Museum in London.
|
||||
The Overlord Museum in Colleville-sur-Mer, near the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial and Omaha Beach, displays a French copy of the V-1; actually a CT 10 target drone.
|
||||
Tosny Museum, near Les Andelys, displays a restored Fieseler 103 A1, launched on 13 June from Pont-Montauban base and crashed in the mud without exploding after flying 10 km.
|
||||
Germany
|
||||
Deutsches Museum in Munich
|
||||
The Netherlands
|
||||
Overloon War Museum in Overloon
|
||||
Museum Vliegbasis Deelen in Schaarsbergen
|
||||
National Military Museum in Soesterberg has a V1 and a V1 Reichenberg
|
||||
New Zealand
|
||||
Auckland War Memorial Museum, Auckland
|
||||
Museum of Transport and Technology, Auckland
|
||||
Sweden
|
||||
A V-1 in the Arboga Missile museum
|
||||
|
||||
Switzerland
|
||||
A restored original V-1 is on display, as well as one of only six worldwide remaining original Reichenberg (Re 4–27), at the Swiss Military Museum in Full
|
||||
United Kingdom
|
||||
|
||||
A reproduction V-1 is located at the Eden Camp in North Yorkshire.
|
||||
Fi-103 serial number 442795 is on display at the Science Museum, London. It was presented to the museum in 1945 by the War Office.
|
||||
A V-1 is on a partial ramp section, at the Imperial War Museum Duxford; the museum also has a partially recreated launch ramp with a mock–up V-1 displayed outside.
|
||||
A V-1 is on display with a V-2 at the RAF Museum Hendon, north London
|
||||
a V-1 is on display at the other RAF Museum site, Royal Air Force Museum Midlands in Shropshire
|
||||
A Fieseler Fi 103R Reichenberg—the piloted version of the V1—is usually on display at Headcorn (Lashenden) Airfield's Air Warfare Museum
|
||||
A V-1 is on display with a V-2 in the new Atrium of the Imperial War Museum, London
|
||||
The Aeropark at East Midlands Airport also has a V-1 on display.
|
||||
A V-1 replica and original launch rail and equipment is on display at the Kent Battle of Britain Museum
|
||||
A V-1 is on display at the RAF Manston History Museum
|
||||
A V-1 replica is displayed at The Muckleburgh Collection near Weybourne in Norfolk. According to the collection's website, the replica is displayed on a section of the original Peenemunde launch ramp.
|
||||
United States
|
||||
|
||||
A V-1 is on display at the US Army Air Defense Artillery Museum, Fort Sill, Oklahoma.
|
||||
FZG-76 is on display as a war memorial at the southwest corner of the Putnam County Courthouse in Greencastle, Indiana.
|
||||
The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
|
||||
A V-1 is on display at the Air Zoo in Portage, Michigan.
|
||||
The Cosmosphere in Hutchinson, Kansas has a V-1 display which consists of a post-war "hybrid" of German-machined and American parts. In particular, it has a JB-2 Loon-style forward engine support fairing.
|
||||
A V-1 is also located at the Fantasy of Flight aviation museum in Polk City, Florida
|
||||
V-1 #121536 is on display at the Pima Air and Space Museum, in Tucson, Arizona.
|
||||
A V-1 and Fieseler Fi 103R Reichenberg are on display at the Flying Heritage Collection in Everett, Washington.
|
||||
A V-1 is on display at the Military Aviation Museum in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
|
||||
A V-1 is on display at the Museum of Flight in Seattle, Washington.
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
Informational notes
|
||||
|
||||
Citations
|
||||
|
||||
=== Bibliography ===
|
||||
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|
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|
||||
The V-3 (German: Vergeltungswaffe 3, lit. 'Vengeance Weapon 3') was a German World War II large-caliber gun working on the multi-charge principle whereby secondary propellant charges are fired to add velocity to a projectile. Two full-size guns were built in the underground Fortress of Mimoyecques in northern France and permanently aimed at London, but they were rendered unusable by Allied bombing raids before completion. Two smaller guns were used to bombard Luxembourg from December 1944 to February 1945.
|
||||
The V-3 was also known as the Hochdruckpumpe ("High Pressure Pump", HDP for short), which was a code name intended to hide the real purpose of the project. It was also known as Fleißiges Lieschen ("Busy Lizzie").
|
||||
|
||||
== Description ==
|
||||
The gun used multiple propellant stages placed along the barrel's length in order to provide an additional boost. These were ignited by the hot gases that propelled the projectile as it passed them. Solid-fuel rocket boosters were used instead of explosive charges because of their greater suitability and ease of use. These were arranged in symmetrical pairs along the length of the barrel, angled to project their thrust against the base of the projectile as it passed. This layout spawned the German codename Tausendfüßler ("millipede").
|
||||
The barrel and side chambers were designed as identical sections to simplify production and allow damaged sections to be replaced. The entire gun would use multiple such sections bolted together. The smoothbore gun fired a fin-stabilized shell that depended upon aerodynamic forces rather than gyroscopic forces to prevent tumbling (as distinct from conventional rifled weapons which cause the projectile to spin).
|
||||
|
||||
== Background ==
|
||||
The basic idea of the multi-charge concept is that in a traditional single-charge gun the pressure in the barrel is at its peak when the charge is fired, and then continuously dwindles to some much lower value as the shell travels down the barrel and the combustion gasses expand. This requires a traditional gun to be much heavier at the breech end in order to successfully contain this pressure, and as the gun grows in power, the weight becomes untenable. The multi-charge concept uses a low-power initial charge and continues adding more charges as the shell moves along the barrel, resulting in a much more constant pressure as the shell moves. This reduces peak pressure and the need to have a heavy breech, as well as providing smoother acceleration.
|
||||
The origin of the multi-chamber gun dates back to the 19th century. In 1857, U.S. inventor Azel Storrs Lyman (1815–1885) was granted a patent on "Improvement in accelerating fire-arms", and he built a prototype in 1860 which proved to be unsuccessful. Lyman then modified the design in collaboration with James Richard Haskell, who had been working for years on the same principle.
|
||||
Haskell and Lyman reasoned that subsidiary propellant charges could increase the muzzle velocity of a projectile if the charges were spaced at intervals along the barrel of a gun in side chambers and ignited an instant after a shell had passed them. The "Lyman-Haskell multi-charge gun" was constructed on the instructions of the U.S. Army's Chief of Ordnance, but it did not resemble a conventional artillery piece. The barrel was so long that it had to be placed on an inclined ramp, and it had pairs of chambers angled back at 45 degrees discharging into it.
|
||||
It was test-fired at the Frankford Arsenal at Philadelphia in 1880 and was unsuccessful. The flash from the original propellant charge bypassed the projectile due to faulty obturation and prematurely ignited the subsidiary charges before the shell passed them, slowing the shell down. The best velocity that could be obtained from it was 335 metres per second (1,100 ft/s), inferior to the performance of a conventional RBL 7 inch Armstrong gun of the same period. New prototypes of multi-charge guns were built and tested, but Lyman and Haskell abandoned the idea.
|
||||
|
||||
During the same period, French engineer Louis-Guillaume Perreaux, one of the pioneers of the motorcycle, had been working on a similar project since before 1860. Perreaux was granted a patent in 1864 for a multi-chamber gun. In 1878, Perreaux presented his invention at the World Exhibition of Paris.
|
||||
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||||
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|
||||
|
||||
== Development ==
|
||||
In 1918, the French Army made plans for a very long range multi-chamber gun in response to the German Paris Gun. The Paris Gun was built by Friedrich Krupp AG and could bombard Paris from German lines over a distance of 125 kilometres (78 mi). The French initiative did not reach the prototype stage. It was discontinued and the plans archived when the retreat of the German armies and the armistice put an end to the bombardment.
|
||||
France collapsed in June 1940 at the beginning of World War II, and German troops acquired the plans of this long-range gun. In 1942, this patent attracted the attention of August Coenders, developer of the Röchling shell and chief engineer of the plants "Röchling Stahlwerk AG" in Wetzlar, Germany. Coenders thought that the gradual acceleration of the shell by a series of small charges spread over the length of the barrel might be the solution to the problem of designing very long range guns. The very strong explosive charge needed to project shells at a high speed was causing rapid degradation of the gun tubes of conventional guns.
|
||||
Coenders proposed the use of electrically activated charges to eliminate the problem of the premature ignition of the subsidiary charges as experienced by the Lyman-Haskell gun. Coenders built a prototype of a 20 mm multi-chamber gun using machinery readily available at the Wetzlar plant to produce tubes of this calibre for the Flak 38 anti-aircraft guns of 20 mm. The first tests were encouraging, but to get the support of the Ministry of arms, Hermann Röchling had to present to Albert Speer Coenders' project of a cannon capable of firing on London from the coast of the Pas-de-Calais. The project intended to use two batteries to crush London under a barrage of hundreds (per hour) of 140 kilograms (310 lb) shells with an explosive charge of 25 kilograms (55 lb).
|
||||
Speer told Adolf Hitler about the proposal in May 1943. After the Royal Air Force (RAF) bombed the Peenemünde rocket center on 17 August, Hitler agreed to Speer's suggestion that the gun be built without more tests. Coenders constructed a full-calibre gun at the Hillersleben proving ground near Magdeburg but, by the end of 1943, he had encountered severe problems both in putting the gun's basic principle into operation and in producing a feasible design for the shells that it was to fire. Even when everything worked, the muzzle velocity was just over 1,000 metres per second (3,300 ft/s), which was nowhere near what had been promised. Nonetheless, a proposal was made to build a single full-sized gun with a 150-metre (490 ft) barrel at Misdroy on the Baltic island of Wolin, near Peenemünde, while construction went ahead at the Mimoyecques site in France, which had already been attacked by the USAAF and the RAF. The Heereswaffenamt (Weapon Procurement Office) took control of the project by March 1944, and, with no good news from Misdroy, Coenders became one of the engineers working on the three chief problems: projectile design, obturation, and ignition of the secondary charges.
|
||||
|
||||
Six different companies produced satisfactory designs for projectiles, including Krupp and Škoda Works. Obturation problems were solved by placing a sealing piston between the projectile and the initial propellant charge, which prevented the flash from the charge from getting ahead of the projectile, and solved the problem of controlling the initiation of the secondary charges. By the end of May 1944 there were four designs for the 150 mm finned projectile, one manufactured by Fasterstoff (designed by Füstenberg) and three others by Röchling (Coenders), Bochumer (Verein-Haack), and Witkowitz Ironworks (Athem).
|
||||
Trials were held at Misdroy from 20–24 May 1944 with ranges of up to 88 km (55 mi) being attained. On 4 July 1944, the Misdroy gun was test-fired with 8 rounds; one of the 1.8 m (5.9 ft) long shells travelled 93 km (58 mi). The gun burst during the testing, putting an end to the tests.
|
||||
|
||||
== Mimoyecques site ==
|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
Major Bock of Festung Pioneer-Stab 27 (the fortification regiment of LVII Corps, Fifteenth Army, at the time based in the Dieppe area) was given the task of finding a suitable site for the HDP batteries following Hitler's decision that HDP guns should be sited in northern France to bombard London. A study in early 1943 concluded that a hill with a rock core would be most suitable, as the gun tubes could be placed in drifts (inclined tunnels) and support equipment and supplies located in adjacent tunnels. The guns would not be movable and would be permanently aimed at London.
|
||||
A suitable site was selected at a limestone hill about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) north of the Hidrequent quarries, near Mimoyecques in the Pas-de-Calais region of northern France behind Cap Gris Nez, where V-1 and V-2 launch sites were already under construction. The site was 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from the sea and 165 kilometres (103 mi) from London. It was code-named Wiese (meadow) and Bauvorhaben 711 (Construction Project 711), and Organisation Todt began construction in September 1943 with the building of railway lines to support the work, and began to excavate the gun shafts in October. The initial layout comprised two parallel facilities about 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) apart, each with five drifts which were to hold a stacked cluster of five HDP gun tubes, for a total of 50 guns. Both facilities were served by an underground railway tunnel and underground ammunition storage galleries.
|
||||
The eastern complex consisted of five drifts angled at 50 degrees reaching 105 metres (344 ft) below the hilltop. The five drifts exited the hilltop through a concrete slab 30 metres (98 ft) wide and 5.5 metres (18 ft) thick. Large steel plates protected the five openings, and each drift had a special armoured door. Extensive tunnels and elevator shafts supported the guns and, if the site had become operational, about 1,000 troops from Artillerie Abteilung 705 and supporting units would have been deployed at Mimoyecques. Artillerie Abteilung 705 had been organised in January 1944 under Oberstleutnant Georg Borttscheller to operate the Wiese gun complex.
|
||||
The plans were to have the first battery of five gun tubes ready for March 1944, and the full complex of 25 gun tubes by 1 October 1944. A failure occurred at the Misdroy proving ground in April 1944 after only 25 rounds had been fired and, as a result, the project was further cut back from five drifts to three, although work had begun on some of the other drifts.
|
||||
The site was finally put out of commission on 6 July 1944, when bombers of RAF Bomber Command's 617 Squadron (the famous "Dambusters") attacked using 5,400-kilogram (11,900 lb) "Tallboy" deep-penetration "earthquake" bombs.
|
||||
|
||||
== Luxembourg bombardment ==
|
||||
The project eventually came under the control of the SS, and SS General Hans Kammler ordered it to be ready for action in late 1944, assisted by Walter Dornberger. A battery was constructed of two shorter or "half-barrel" V-3 guns approximately 50 metres (160 ft) long with 12 side-chambers, and it was placed in the hands of the army artillery unit Artillerie Abteilung 705 under the command of Hauptmann (Captain) Patzig. These were sited in a wooded ravine of the Ruwer River at Lampaden about 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) southeast of Trier in Germany.
|
||||
The two guns were aimed west, resting on 13 steel support structures on solid wooden bases on a 34 degree slope. The city of Luxembourg (which had been liberated in September 1944) was at a range of about 43 kilometres (27 mi) and was designated Target No. 305. Concrete blockhouses were constructed between the two gun tubes, as well as ten smaller bunkers to hold projectiles and propellant charges.
|
||||
The assembly and mounting of the Lampaden guns coincided with the final preparations for the Battle of the Bulge. The supply of ammunition became problematic due to the state of the German railway network. Time had become critical, and it was decided to use a 150-millimetre (5.9 in) finned projectile with a discarding sabot, weighing 95 kilograms (209 lb) and carrying a 7–9 kg (15–20 lb) explosive charge. The propellant comprised a 5 kg (11 lb) main charge and 24 subsidiary charges for a total of 73 kg (161 lb).
|
||||
Following the commencement of the Ardennes Offensive on 16 December 1944, Hans Kammler received directives from OB West to initiate fire missions by the end of the month. The primary gun tube achieved operational readiness on 30 December 1944. Initial deployment consisted of two warm-up rounds followed by a sequence of five high-explosive shells, an event personally overseen by Kammler. The projectiles attained a muzzle velocity of approximately 935 m/s.
|
||||
A second gun tube was commissioned on 11 January 1945. Between late December and 22 February 1945, a total of 183 rounds were discharged. Of these, 142 rounds struck Luxembourg, resulting in 44 confirmed hits within the urban sector. The bombardment caused 10 fatalities and 35 injuries.
|
||||
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||||
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|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
== Fate ==
|
||||
One of the two Lampaden guns was dismantled on 15 February 1945, and firing ceased on 22 February, when US Army units had advanced to within 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) of the Lampaden site.
|
||||
A second battery of guns began to be deployed in January 1945 at Buhl, aimed at Belfort in support of the Operation Nordwind offensive. One gun was erected before the failure of the Nordwind offensive put the site at risk, and the equipment was removed before firing could begin.
|
||||
There were other proposals to deploy batteries to bombard London, Paris, Antwerp and other cities, but they were not implemented due to the poor state of the German railway network and a lack of ammunition. All four HDP guns were eventually abandoned at the Röchling works in Wetzlar and Artillerie Abteilung 705 was re-equipped with conventional artillery. The disassembled gun tubes, spare parts, and remaining ammunition were later captured by the US Army and shipped to the United States where they were tested and evaluated at the Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, and scrapped there in 1948.
|
||||
|
||||
== Museum ==
|
||||
The Mimoyecques museum provides public access to the underground galleries, which exhibit varying degrees of structural completion and historical bombardment damage. The site’s holdings include the remains of the original ordnance, a small-scale replica of the V-3 weapon system and authentic examples of the machinery, rail infrastructure, and tools utilized during the facility's operation. The site also contains memorials to the slave labourers who were forced by the Nazis to construct it and to the airmen killed in action during the destruction of the base.
|
||||
The Misdroy site also has a museum.
|
||||
|
||||
== Scale model ==
|
||||
Hugh Hunt of Cambridge University, together with explosives engineer Charlie Adcock, created a working scale model of the V-3 gun and was able to prove the ignition of the propellants was done by the advancing gas behind the projectile.
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
|
||||
Cross-Channel guns in the Second World War
|
||||
Project Babylon
|
||||
Project HARP
|
||||
Railgun
|
||||
|
||||
== References and notes ==
|
||||
Notes
|
||||
|
||||
Citations
|
||||
|
||||
Bibliography
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
HDP (Hochdruckpumpe) (in German)
|
||||
23
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|
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|
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|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
V-4 was the first mostly-successful launch of the Aggregat 4 rocket, later known as Vergeltungswaffe 2 (V-2). The launch occurred on the afternoon of 3 October 1942 and the rocket set a speed record of Mach 4, reached an apogee of 84.5 km (52.5 mi), thereby becoming the first artificial object to reach both the mesosphere and the thermosphere, surpassing the apogee of 42.3 km (26.3 mi) set by the Paris gun in 1918.
|
||||
|
||||
At the time, the V-4 launch was considered the first time a man-made object reached outer space (Geburtstag der Raumfahrt, "Birthday of spaceflight"). That evening, Walter Dornberger declared in a speech at Peenemunde, This third day of October, 1942, is the first of a new era in transportation, that of space travel ...
|
||||
In 1960, the World Air Sports Federation (FAI) defined a boundary for space at 100 km (62 mi) (approximately the highest possible altitude where an aircraft can fly at less than orbital velocity in order not to stall), while the United States' Air Force, NASA and Federal Aviation Administration consider 50 mi (80 km) the space boundary, the lower mesopause. The V-4 launch satisfied the present-day American definition, while it did not cross the FAI's 100 km line. The 100 km boundary was established much later however, and the V-4 trajectory did reach the Kármán altitude range (c. 83–100 km or 52–62 mi), of which the 100-kilometer boundary is simply a round-number approximation.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
List of V-2 test launches
|
||||
Spaceflight before 1951
|
||||
MW_18014 a V-2 launched 20 June 1944 reaching 176km, crossing into outer space
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
26
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|
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|
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|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
Viking 1 was the first of two spacecraft, along with Viking 2, each consisting of an orbiter and a lander, sent to Mars as part of NASA's Viking program. The lander touched down on Mars on July 20, 1976, the first successful Mars lander in history. Viking 1 operated on Mars for 2,307 days (over 61⁄4 years) or 2245 Martian solar days, the longest extraterrestrial surface mission until the record was broken by the Opportunity rover on May 19, 2010.
|
||||
|
||||
== Mission ==
|
||||
Following launch using a Titan/Centaur launch vehicle on August 20, 1975, and an 11-month cruise to Mars, the orbiter began returning global images of Mars about five days before orbit insertion. The Viking 1 Orbiter was inserted into Mars orbit on June 19, 1976, and trimmed to a 1,513 x 33,000 km, 24.66 h site certification orbit on June 21. Landing on Mars was planned for July 4, 1976, the United States Bicentennial, but imaging of the primary landing site showed it was too rough for a safe landing. The landing was delayed until a safer site was found, and took place instead on July 20, the seventh anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing. The lander separated from the orbiter at 08:51 UTC and landed at Chryse Planitia at 11:53:06 UTC. It was the first attempt by the United States at landing on Mars.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Orbiter ===
|
||||
The instruments of the orbiter consisted of two vidicon cameras for imaging, an infrared spectrometer for water vapor mapping, and infrared radiometers for thermal mapping. The orbiter primary mission ended at the beginning of solar conjunction on November 5, 1976. The extended mission commenced on December 14, 1976, after solar conjunction. Operations included close approaches to Phobos in February 1977. The periapsis was reduced to 300 km on March 11, 1977. Minor orbit adjustments were done occasionally over the course of the mission, primarily to change the walk rate — the rate at which the areocentric longitude changed with each orbit — and the periapsis was raised to 357 km on July 20, 1979. On August 7, 1980, Viking 1 Orbiter was running low on attitude control gas and its orbit was raised from 357 × 33,943 km to 320 × 56,000 km to prevent impact with Mars and possible contamination until the year 2019. Operations were terminated on August 17, 1980, after 1,485 orbits. A 2009 analysis concluded that, while the possibility that Viking 1 had impacted Mars could not be ruled out, it was most likely still in orbit. More than 57,000 images were sent back to Earth.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Lander ===
|
||||
|
||||
The lander and its aeroshell separated from the orbiter on July 20 at 08:51 UTC. At the time of separation, the lander was orbiting at about 5 kilometers per second (3.1 miles per second). The aeroshell's retrorockets fired to begin the lander de-orbit maneuver. After a few hours at about 300 kilometers (190 miles) altitude, the lander was reoriented for atmospheric entry. The aeroshell with its ablative heat shield slowed the craft as it plunged through the atmosphere. During this time, entry science experiments were performed by using a retarding potential analyzer, a mass spectrometer, as well as pressure, temperature, and density sensors. At 6 km (3.7 mi) altitude, traveling at about 250 meters per second (820 feet per second), the 16 m diameter lander parachutes deployed. Seven seconds later the aeroshell was jettisoned, and eight seconds after that the three lander legs were extended. In 45 seconds, the parachute had slowed the lander to 60 meters per second (200 feet per second). At 1.5 km (0.93 mi) altitude, retrorockets on the lander itself were ignited and, 40 seconds later at about 2.4 m/s (7.9 ft/s), the lander arrived on Mars with a relatively light jolt. The legs had honeycomb aluminum shock absorbers to soften the landing.
|
||||
|
||||
The landing rockets used an 18-nozzle design to spread the hydrogen and nitrogen exhaust over a large area. NASA calculated that this approach would mean that the surface would not be heated by more than 1 °C (1.8 °F), and that it would move no more than 1 millimeter (0.04 inches) of surface material. Since most of Viking's experiments focused on the surface material a more straightforward design would not have served.
|
||||
The Viking 1 lander touched down in western Chryse Planitia ("Golden Plain") at 22.697°N 312.05°E / 22.697; 312.05 at a reference altitude of −2.69 kilometers (−1.67 mi) relative to a reference ellipsoid with an equatorial radius of 3,397 kilometers (2,111 mi) and a flatness of 0.0105 (22.480° N, 47.967° W planetographic) at 11:53:06 UTC (16:13 local Mars time). Approximately 22 kilograms (49 lb) of propellants were left at landing.
|
||||
Transmission of the first surface image began 25 seconds after landing and took about four minutes (see below). During these minutes the lander activated itself. It erected a high-gain antenna pointed toward Earth for direct communication and deployed a meteorology boom mounted with sensors. In the next seven minutes the second picture of the 300° panoramic scene (displayed below) was taken. On the day after the landing the first color picture of the surface of Mars (displayed below) was taken. The seismometer failed to uncage, and a sampler arm locking pin was stuck and took five days to shake out. Otherwise, all experiments functioned normally.
|
||||
The lander had two means of returning data to Earth: a relay link up to the orbiter and back, and by using a direct link to Earth. The orbiter could transmit to Earth (S-band) at 2,000 to 16,000 bit/s (depending on distance between Mars and Earth), and the lander could transmit to the orbiter at 16,000 bit/s. The data capacity of the relay link was about 10 times higher than the direct link.
|
||||
46
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||||
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|
||||
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|
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|
||||
|
||||
The lander had two facsimile cameras; three analyses for metabolism, growth or photosynthesis; a gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer; an x-ray fluorescence spectrometer; pressure, temperature and wind velocity sensors; a three-axis seismometer; a magnet on a sampler observed by the cameras; and various engineering sensors.
|
||||
|
||||
The Viking 1 lander was named the Thomas Mutch Memorial Station in January 1981 in honor of Thomas A. Mutch, the leader of the Viking imaging team. The lander operated for 2,245 sols (about 2,306 Earth days or 6 years) until November 11, 1982 (sol 2600), when a faulty command sent by ground control resulted in loss of contact. The command was intended to uplink new battery charging software to improve the lander's deteriorating battery capacity, but it inadvertently overwrote data used by the antenna pointing software. Attempts to contact the lander during the next four months, based on the presumed antenna position, were unsuccessful. In 2006, the Viking 1 lander was imaged on the Martian surface by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
|
||||
|
||||
== Mission results ==
|
||||
Viking 1 operated on the surface of Mars for approximately six Earth years and 114 days – until November 11, 1982, when the lander was inadvertently sent a faulty command. The robotic sampler arm successfully scooped up soil samples and tested them with instruments such as the Gas chromatography–mass spectrometer. Atmospheric temperature recordings were as high as -14 C (7 F) at midday, and the predawn summer temperature was -77 C (-107 F). The landers had issues obtaining results from their seismometer.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Search for life ===
|
||||
Viking 1 carried a biology experiment whose purpose was to look for evidence of life. The Viking lander biological experiments weighed 15.5 kg (34 lbs) and consisted of three subsystems: the pyrolytic release experiment (PR), the labeled release experiment (LR), and the gas exchange experiment (GEX). In addition, independent of the biology experiments, Viking carried a gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer that could measure the composition and abundance of organic compounds in the Martian soil. The results were surprising and interesting: the spectrometer gave a negative result; the PR gave a negative result, the GEX gave a negative result, and the LR gave a positive result. Viking scientist Patricia Straat stated in 2009, "Our [LR] experiment was a definite positive response for life, but a lot of people have claimed that it was a false positive for a variety of reasons." Most scientists now believe that the data were due to inorganic chemical reactions of the soil; however, this view may be changing after the recent discovery of near-surface ice near the Viking landing zone. Some scientists still believe the results were due to living reactions. No organic chemicals were found in the soil. However, dry areas of Antarctica do not have detectable organic compounds either, but they have organisms living in the rocks. Mars has almost no ozone layer, unlike the Earth, so UV light sterilizes the surface and produces highly reactive chemicals such as peroxides that would oxidize any organic chemicals. The Phoenix Lander discovered the chemical perchlorate in the Martian soil. Perchlorate is a strong oxidant so it may have destroyed any organic matter on the surface. If it is widespread on Mars, carbon-based life would be difficult at the soil surface.
|
||||
|
||||
=== First panorama by Viking 1 lander ===
|
||||
|
||||
=== Viking 1 image gallery ===
|
||||
|
||||
== Test of general relativity ==
|
||||
|
||||
Gravitational time dilation is a phenomenon predicted by the theory of general relativity whereby time passes more slowly in regions of lower gravitational potential. Scientists used the lander to test this hypothesis, by sending radio signals to the lander on Mars, and instructing the lander to send back signals, in cases which sometimes included the signal passing close to the Sun. Scientists found that the observed Shapiro delays of the signals matched the predictions of general relativity.
|
||||
|
||||
== Orbiter shots ==
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
Exploration of Mars
|
||||
List of missions to Mars
|
||||
List of Mars orbiters
|
||||
Timeline of artificial satellites and space probes
|
||||
Viking lander biological experiments
|
||||
|
||||
== Notes ==
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
Viking 1 Mission Profile by NASA's Solar System Exploration
|
||||
Image – Viking 1 Approaches Mars
|
||||
45 years ago: Viking 1 Touches Down on Mars
|
||||
37
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|
||||
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|
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|
||||
|
||||
The Viking 2 mission was part of the American Viking program to Mars, and consisted of an orbiter and a lander essentially identical to that of the Viking 1 mission. Viking 2 was operational on Mars for 1281 sols (1,316 days; 3 years, 221 days). The Viking 2 lander operated on the surface for 1,316 days, or 1281 sols, and was turned off on April 12, 1980, when its batteries eventually failed. The orbiter worked until July 25, 1978, returning almost 16,000 images in 706 orbits around Mars.
|
||||
|
||||
== Mission profile ==
|
||||
The craft was launched on September 9, 1975. Following launch using a Titan/Centaur launch vehicle and a 333-day cruise to Mars, the Viking 2 Orbiter began returning global images of Mars prior to orbit insertion. The orbiter was inserted into a 1,500 x 33,000 km, 24.6 h Mars orbit on August 7, 1976, and trimmed to a 27.3 h site certification orbit with a periapsis of 1,499 km and an inclination of 55.2 degrees on August 9. The orbiter then began taking photographs of candidate landing sites, which were used to select the final landing site.
|
||||
The lander separated from the orbiter on September 3, 1976, at 22:37:50 UT and landed at Utopia Planitia. The normal procedure called for the structure connecting the orbiter and lander (the bioshield) to be ejected after separation. However, due to problems with the separation process, the bioshield remained attached to the orbiter. The orbit inclination was raised to 75 degrees on September 30, 1976.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Orbiter ===
|
||||
The orbiter's primary mission ended on October 5, 1976, at the beginning of solar conjunction. The extended mission commenced on December 14, 1976, after the solar conjunction. On December 20, 1976, the periapsis was lowered to 778 km, and the inclination raised to 80 degrees.
|
||||
Operations included close approaches to Deimos in October 1977, and the periapsis was lowered to 300 km and the period changed to 24 hours on October 23, 1977. The orbiter developed a leak in its propulsion system that vented its attitude control gas. It was placed in a 302 × 33,176 km orbit and turned off on July 25, 1978, after returning almost 16,000 images in about 700–706 orbits around Mars.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Lander ===
|
||||
|
||||
The lander and its aeroshell separated from the orbiter on September 3, 1976, at 19:39:59 UT. At the time of separation, the lander was orbiting at about 4 km/s. After separation, rockets fired to begin lander deorbit. After a few hours, at about 300 km attitude, the lander was reoriented for entry. The aeroshell with its ablative heat shield slowed the craft as it plunged through the atmosphere.
|
||||
|
||||
The Viking 2 lander touched down about 200 km west of the crater Mie in Utopia Planitia at 48.269°N 225.990°W / 48.269; -225.990 at an altitude of -4.23 km relative to a reference ellipsoid with an equatorial radius of 3,397.2 km and a flattening of 0.0105 (47.967°N 225.737°W / 47.967; -225.737 (Viking 2 landing site planetographic) planetographic longitude) at 22:58:20 UT (9:49:05 a.m. local Mars time).
|
||||
Approximately 22 kg (49 lb) of propellants were left at landing. Due to radar misidentification of a rock or highly reflective surface, the thrusters fired an extra time 0.4 seconds before landing, cracking the surface and raising dust. The lander settled down with one leg on a rock, tilted at 8.2 degrees. The cameras began taking images immediately after landing.
|
||||
The Viking 2 lander was powered by radioisotope generators and operated on the surface until its batteries failed on April 12, 1980.
|
||||
In July 2001, the Viking 2 lander was renamed the Gerald Soffen Memorial Station after Gerald Soffen (1926–2000), the project scientist of the Viking program.
|
||||
|
||||
== Results from the Viking 2 mission ==
|
||||
|
||||
=== Landing site soil analysis ===
|
||||
The regolith, referred to often as "soil", resembled those produced from the weathering of basaltic lavas. The tested soil contained abundant silicon and iron, along with significant amounts of magnesium, aluminum, sulfur, calcium, and titanium. Trace elements, strontium and yttrium, were detected.
|
||||
The amount of potassium was one-fifth of the average for the Earth's crust. Some chemicals in the soil contained sulfur and chlorine that were like those remaining after the evaporation of seawater. Sulfur was more concentrated in the crust on top of the soil than in the bulk soil beneath.
|
||||
The sulfur may be present as sulfates of sodium, magnesium, calcium, or iron. A sulfide of iron is also possible. The Spirit rover and the Opportunity rover both found sulfates on Mars.
|
||||
Minerals typical weathering products of mafic igneous rocks were found. All samples heated in the gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer (GCMS) gave off water.
|
||||
However, the way the samples were handled prohibited an exact measurement of the amount of water. But, it was around 1%. Studies with magnets aboard the landers indicated that the soil is between 3 and 7 percent magnetic materials by weight. The magnetic chemicals could be magnetite and maghemite, which could come from the weathering of basalt rock. Subsequent experiments carried out by the Mars Spirit rover (landed in 2004) suggest that magnetite could explain the magnetic nature of the dust and soil on Mars.
|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
=== Search for life ===
|
||||
Viking 2 carried a biology experiment whose purpose was to look for life. The Viking 2 biology experiment weighed 15.5 kg (34 lb) and consisted of three subsystems: the Pyrolytic Release experiment (PR), the Labeled Release experiment (LR), and the Gas Exchange experiment (GEX). In addition, independent of the biology experiments, Viking 2 carried a Gas Chromatograph/Mass Spectrometer (GCMS) that could measure the composition and abundance of organic compounds in the Martian soil.
|
||||
The results were unusual and conflicting: the GCMS and GEX gave negative results, while the PR and LR gave positive results. Viking scientist Patricia Straat stated in 2009, "Our (LR) experiment was a definite positive response for life, but a lot of people have claimed that it was a false positive for a variety of reasons."
|
||||
Many scientists believe that the data results were attributed to inorganic chemical reactions in the soil. However, this view may be changing due to a variety of discoveries and studies since Viking. These include the discovery of near-surface ice near the Viking landing zone, the possibility of perchlorate destruction of organic matter, and the reanalysis of GCMS data by scientists in 2018. Some scientists still believe the results were due to living reactions. The formal declaration at the time of the mission was that the discovery of organic chemicals was inconclusive.
|
||||
Mars has almost no ozone layer, unlike the Earth, so UV light sterilizes the surface and produces highly reactive chemicals such as peroxides that would oxidize any organic chemicals. The Phoenix Lander discovered the chemical perchlorate in the Martian soil. Perchlorate is a powerful oxidizing agent, which could have eradicated any organic material on the surface. Perchlorate is now considered widespread on Mars, making it hard to detect any organic compounds on the Martian surface.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Viking 2 lander image gallery ===
|
||||
|
||||
== Orbiter results ==
|
||||
|
||||
=== Viking program ===
|
||||
The Viking Orbiters led to significant discoveries about the presence of water on Mars. Huge river valleys were found in many areas. They showed that water floods carved deep valleys, eroded grooves into bedrock, and traveled thousands of kilometers. In the southern hemisphere, the presence of branched stream areas suggests that there was once rainfall.
|
||||
The images below are mosaics of many small, high-resolution images.
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
Exploration of Mars
|
||||
List of missions to Mars
|
||||
List of Mars orbiters
|
||||
Timeline of artificial satellites and space probes
|
||||
U.S. Space Exploration History on U.S. Stamps
|
||||
Viking lander biological experiments
|
||||
|
||||
== Notes ==
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
The Viking Mars Missions Education & Preservation Project, VMMEPP online exhibit.
|
||||
Viking 2 Mission Profile by NASA's Solar System Exploration
|
||||
45 years ago: Viking 1 Touches Down on Mars
|
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|
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||||
The Viking program consisted of a pair of identical American space probes, Viking 1 and Viking 2 both launched in 1975, and landed on Mars in 1976. The mission effort began in 1968 and was managed by the NASA Langley Research Center. Each spacecraft was composed of two main parts: an orbiter spacecraft which photographed the surface of Mars from orbit, and a lander which studied the planet from the surface. The orbiters also served as communication relays for the landers once they touched down.
|
||||
The Viking program grew from NASA's earlier, even more ambitious, Voyager Mars program, which was not related to the successful Voyager deep space probes of the late 1970s. Viking 1 was launched on August 20, 1975, and the second craft, Viking 2, was launched on September 9, 1975, both riding atop Titan IIIE rockets with Centaur upper stages. Viking 1 entered Mars orbit on June 19, 1976, with Viking 2 following on August 7.
|
||||
After orbiting Mars for more than a month and returning images used for landing site selection, the orbiters and landers detached; the landers then entered the Martian atmosphere and soft-landed at the sites that had been chosen. The Viking 1 lander touched down on the surface of Mars on July 20, 1976, more than two weeks before Viking 2's arrival in orbit. Viking 2 then successfully soft-landed on September 3. The orbiters continued imaging and performing other scientific operations from orbit while the landers deployed instruments on the surface. The program terminated in 1982.
|
||||
The project cost was roughly US$1 billion at the time of launch, equivalent to about $6 billion in 2024 dollars. The mission was considered successful and formed most of the body of knowledge about Mars through the late 1990s and early 2000s.
|
||||
|
||||
== Science objectives ==
|
||||
Obtain high-resolution images of the Martian surface
|
||||
Characterize the structure and composition of the atmosphere and surface
|
||||
Search for evidence of life on Mars
|
||||
|
||||
== Viking orbiters ==
|
||||
The primary objectives of the two Viking orbiters were to transport the landers to Mars, perform reconnaissance to locate and certify landing sites, act as communications relays for the landers, and to perform their own scientific investigations. Each orbiter, based on the earlier Mariner 9 spacecraft, was an octagon approximately 2.5 m (8.2 ft) across. The fully fueled orbiter-lander pair had a mass of 3,527 kg (7,776 lb). After separation and landing, the lander had a mass of about 600 kg (1,300 lb) and the orbiter 900 kg (2,000 lb). The total launch mass was 2,328 kg (5,132 lb), of which 1,445 kg (3,186 lb) were propellant and attitude control gas. The eight faces of the ring-like structure were 0.457 m (18 in) high and were alternately 1.397 and 0.508 m (55 and 20 in) wide. The overall height was 3.29 m (10.8 ft) from the lander attachment points on the bottom to the launch vehicle attachment points on top. There were 16 modular compartments, 3 on each of the 4 long faces and one on each short face. Four solar panel wings extended from the axis of the orbiter, the distance from tip to tip of two oppositely extended solar panels was 9.75 m (32 ft).
|
||||
|
||||
=== Propulsion ===
|
||||
The main propulsion unit was mounted above the orbiter bus. Propulsion was furnished by a bipropellant (monomethylhydrazine and nitrogen tetroxide) liquid-fueled rocket engine which could be gimballed up to 9 degrees. The engine was capable of 1,323 N (297 lbf) thrust, providing a change in velocity of 1,480 m/s (3,300 mph). Attitude control was achieved by 12 small compressed-nitrogen jets.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Navigation and communication ===
|
||||
An acquisition Sun sensor, a cruise Sun sensor, a Canopus star tracker and an inertial reference unit consisting of six gyroscopes allowed three-axis stabilization. Two accelerometers were also on board.
|
||||
Communications were accomplished through a 20 W S-band (2.3 GHz) transmitter and two 20 W TWTAs. An X band (8.4 GHz) downlink was also added specifically for radio science and to conduct communications experiments. Uplink was via S band (2.1 GHz). A two-axis steerable parabolic dish antenna with a diameter of approximately 1.5 m was attached at one edge of the orbiter base, and a fixed low-gain antenna extended from the top of the bus. Two tape recorders were each capable of storing 1280 megabits. A 381-MHz relay radio was also available.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Power ===
|
||||
The power to the two orbiter craft was provided by eight 1.57 m × 1.23 m (62 in × 48 in) solar panels, two on each wing. The solar panels comprised a total of 34,800 solar cells and produced 620 W of power at Mars. Power was also stored in two nickel-cadmium 30-A·h batteries.
|
||||
The combined area of the four panels was 15 square meters (160 square feet), and they provided both regulated and unregulated direct current power; unregulated power was provided to the radio transmitter and the lander.
|
||||
Two 30-amp·hour, nickel-cadmium, rechargeable batteries provided power when the spacecraft was not facing the Sun, during launch, while performing correction maneuvers and also during Mars occultation.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Main findings ===
|
||||
34
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|
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|
||||
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||||
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|
||||
|
||||
By discovering many geological forms that are typically formed from large amounts of water, the images from the orbiters caused a revolution in our ideas about water on Mars. Huge river valleys were found in many areas. They showed that floods of water broke through dams, carved deep valleys, eroded grooves into bedrock, and travelled thousands of kilometers. Large areas in the southern hemisphere contained branched stream networks, suggesting that rain once fell. The flanks of some volcanoes are believed to have been exposed to rainfall because they resemble those caused on Hawaiian volcanoes. Many craters look as if the impactor fell into mud. When they were formed, ice in the soil may have melted, turned the ground into mud, then flowed across the surface. Normally, material from an impact goes up, then down. It does not flow across the surface, going around obstacles, as it does on some Martian craters. Regions, called "Chaotic Terrain," seemed to have quickly lost great volumes of water, causing large channels to be formed. The amount of water involved was estimated to ten thousand times the flow of the Mississippi River. Underground volcanism may have melted frozen ice; the water then flowed away and the ground collapsed to leave chaotic terrain.
|
||||
|
||||
== Viking landers ==
|
||||
|
||||
Each lander comprised a six-sided aluminium base with alternate 1.09 and 0.56 m (43 and 22 in) long sides, supported on three extended legs attached to the shorter sides. The leg footpads formed the vertices of an equilateral triangle with 2.21 m (7.3 ft) sides when viewed from above, with the long sides of the base forming a straight line with the two adjoining footpads. Instrumentation was attached inside and on top of the base, elevated above the surface by the extended legs.
|
||||
Each lander was enclosed in an aeroshell heat shield designed to slow the lander down during the entry phase. To prevent contamination of Mars by Earth organisms, each lander, upon assembly and enclosure within the aeroshell, was enclosed in a pressurized "bioshield" and then sterilized at a temperature of 111 °C (232 °F) for 40 hours. For thermal reasons, the cap of the bioshield was jettisoned after the Centaur upper stage powered the Viking orbiter/lander combination out of Earth orbit.
|
||||
Astronomer Carl Sagan helped to choose landing sites for both Viking probes.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Entry, Descent and Landing (EDL) ===
|
||||
Each lander arrived at Mars attached to the orbiter. The assembly orbited Mars many times before the lander was released and separated from the orbiter for descent to the surface. Descent comprised four distinct phases, starting with a deorbit burn. The lander then experienced atmospheric entry with peak heating occurring a few seconds after the start of frictional heating with the Martian atmosphere. At an altitude of about 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) and traveling at a velocity of 900 kilometers per hour (600 mph), the parachute deployed, the aeroshell released and the lander's legs unfolded. At an altitude of about 1.5 kilometers (5,000 feet), the lander activated its three retro-engines and was released from the parachute. The lander then immediately used retrorockets to slow and control its descent, with a soft landing on the surface of Mars.
|
||||
|
||||
At landing (after using rocket propellant) the landers had a mass of about 600 kg.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Propulsion ===
|
||||
Propulsion for deorbit was provided by the monopropellant hydrazine (N2H4), through a rocket with 12 nozzles arranged in four clusters of three that provided 32 newtons (7.2 lbf) thrust, translating to a change in velocity of 180 m/s (590 ft/s). These nozzles also acted as the control thrusters for translation and rotation of the lander.
|
||||
Terminal descent (after use of a parachute) and landing used three (one affixed on each long side of the base, separated by 120 degrees) monopropellant hydrazine engines. The engines had 18 nozzles to disperse the exhaust and minimize effects on the ground, and were throttleable from 276 to 2,667 newtons (62 to 600 lbf). The hydrazine was purified in order to prevent contamination of the Martian surface with Earth microbes. The lander carried 85 kg (187 lb) of propellant at launch, contained in two spherical titanium tanks mounted on opposite sides of the lander beneath the RTG windscreens, giving a total launch mass of 657 kg (1,448 lb). Control was achieved through the use of an inertial reference unit, four gyros, a radar altimeter, a terminal descent and landing radar, and the control thrusters.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Power ===
|
||||
Power was provided by two radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG) units containing plutonium-238 affixed to opposite sides of the lander base and covered by wind screens. Each Viking RTG was 28 cm (11 in) tall, 58 cm (23 in) in diameter, had a mass of 13.6 kg (30 lb) and provided 30 watts of continuous power at 4.4 volts. Four wet cell sealed nickel-cadmium 8 Ah (28,800 coulombs), 28 volt rechargeable batteries were also on board to handle peak power loads.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Payload ===
|
||||
|
||||
==== Communications ====
|
||||
Communications were accomplished through a 20-watt S-band transmitter using two traveling-wave tubes. A two-axis steerable high-gain parabolic antenna was mounted on a boom near one edge of the lander base. An omnidirectional low-gain S-band antenna also extended from the base. Both these antennae allowed for communication directly with the Earth, permitting Viking 1 to continue to work long after both orbiters had failed. A UHF (381 MHz) antenna provided a one-way relay to the orbiter using a 30 watt relay radio. Data storage was on a 40-Mbit tape recorder, and the lander computer had a 6000-word memory for command instructions.
|
||||
37
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Viking program"
|
||||
chunk: 3/4
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viking_program"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:24.056801+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
==== Instruments ====
|
||||
The lander carried instruments to achieve the primary scientific objectives of the lander mission: to study the biology, chemical composition (organic and inorganic), meteorology, seismology, magnetic properties, appearance, and physical properties of the Martian surface and atmosphere. Two 360-degree cylindrical scan cameras were mounted near one long side of the base. From the center of this side extended the sampler arm, with a collector head, temperature sensor, and magnet on the end. A meteorology boom, holding temperature, wind direction, and wind velocity sensors extended out and up from the top of one of the lander legs. A seismometer, magnet and camera test targets, and magnifying mirror are mounted opposite the cameras, near the high-gain antenna. An interior environmentally controlled compartment held the biology experiment and the gas chromatograph mass spectrometer. The X-ray fluorescence spectrometer was also mounted within the structure. A pressure sensor was attached under the lander body. The scientific payload had a total mass of approximately 91 kg (201 lb).
|
||||
|
||||
=== Biological experiments ===
|
||||
|
||||
The Viking landers conducted biological experiments designed to detect life in the Martian soil (if it existed) with experiments designed by three separate teams, under the direction of chief scientist Gerald Soffen of NASA. One experiment turned positive for the detection of metabolism (current life), but based on the results of the other two experiments that failed to reveal any organic molecules in the soil, most scientists became convinced that the positive results were likely caused by non-biological chemical reactions from highly oxidizing soil conditions.
|
||||
|
||||
Although there was a pronouncement by NASA during the mission saying that the Viking lander results did not demonstrate conclusive biosignatures in soils at the two landing sites, the test results and their limitations are still under assessment. The validity of the positive 'Labeled Release' (LR) results hinged entirely on the absence of an oxidative agent in the Martian soil, but one was later discovered by the Phoenix lander in the form of perchlorate salts. It has been proposed that organic compounds could have been present in the soil analyzed by both Viking 1 and Viking 2, but remained unnoticed due to the presence of perchlorate, as detected by Phoenix in 2008. Researchers found that perchlorate will destroy organics when heated and will produce chloromethane and dichloromethane, the identical chlorine compounds discovered by both Viking landers when they performed the same tests on Mars.
|
||||
The question of microbial life on Mars remains unresolved. Nonetheless, on April 12, 2012, an international team of scientists reported studies, based on mathematical speculation through complexity analysis of the Labeled Release experiments of the 1976 Viking Mission, that may suggest the detection of "extant microbial life on Mars." In addition, new findings from re-examination of the Gas Chromatograph Mass Spectrometer (GCMS) results were published in 2018.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Camera/imaging system ===
|
||||
|
||||
The leader of the imaging team was Thomas A. Mutch, a geologist at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. The camera uses a movable mirror to illuminate 12 photodiodes. Each of the 12 silicon diodes are designed to be sensitive to different frequencies of light.
|
||||
Several broad band diodes (designated BB1, BB2, BB3, and BB4) are placed to focus accurately at distances between six and 43 feet away from the lander. A low resolution broad band diode was named SURVEY. There are also three narrow band low resolution diodes (named BLUE, GREEN and RED) for obtaining color images, and another three (IR1, IR2, and IR3) for infrared imagery.
|
||||
The cameras scanned at a rate of five vertical scan lines per second, each composed of 512 pixels. The 300 degree panorama images were composed of 9150 lines. The cameras' scan was slow enough that in a crew shot taken during development of the imaging system several members show up several times in the shot as they moved themselves as the camera scanned.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Mass Breakdown of Viking Landers ===
|
||||
|
||||
== Control systems ==
|
||||
The Viking landers used a Guidance, Control and Sequencing Computer (GCSC) consisting of two Honeywell HDC 402 24-bit computers with 18K of plated-wire memory, while the Viking orbiters used a Command Computer Subsystem (CCS) using two custom-designed 18-bit serial processors.
|
||||
|
||||
== Financial cost of the Viking program ==
|
||||
The two orbiters cost US$217 million at the time, which is about $1 billion in 2024 dollars. The most expensive single part of the program was the lander's life-detection unit, which cost about $60 million then or $400 million in 2024 dollars. Development of the Viking lander design cost $357 million. This was decades before NASA's "faster, better, cheaper" approach, and Viking needed to pioneer unprecedented technologies under national pressure brought on by the Cold War and the aftermath of the Space Race, all under the prospect of possibly discovering extraterrestrial life for the first time. The experiments had to adhere to a special 1971 directive that mandated that no single failure shall stop the return of more than one experiment—a difficult and expensive task for a device with over 40,000 parts.
|
||||
The Viking camera system cost $27.3 million to develop, or about $200 million in 2024 dollars. When the Imaging system design was completed, it was difficult to find anyone who could manufacture its advanced design. The program managers were later praised for fending off pressure to go with a simpler, less advanced imaging system, especially when the views rolled in. The program did however save some money by cutting out a third lander and reducing the number of experiments on the lander.
|
||||
Overall NASA says that $1 billion in 1970s dollars was spent on the program, which when inflation-adjusted to 2024 dollars is about $6 billion.
|
||||
|
||||
== Mission end ==
|
||||
47
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||||
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|
||||
title: "Viking program"
|
||||
chunk: 4/4
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viking_program"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:24.056801+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
The Viking program ended on May 21, 1983. To prevent an imminent impact with Mars the orbit of Viking 1 orbiter was raised on August 7, 1980, before it was shut down 10 days later. Impact and potential contamination on the planet's surface is possible from 2019 onwards.
|
||||
The Viking 1 lander was found to be about 6 kilometers from its planned landing site by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter in December 2006.
|
||||
|
||||
== Message artifact ==
|
||||
|
||||
Each 'Viking' lander carried a tiny dot of microfilm containing the names of several thousand people who had worked on the mission. Several earlier and later space probes had carried message artifacts, such as the Pioneer plaque and the Voyager Golden Record. Later probes also carried memorials or lists of names, such as the Perseverance rover which recognizes the almost 11 million people who signed up to include their names on the mission.
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
Exploration of Mars
|
||||
Life on Mars – Assessments of possible life on Mars
|
||||
List of missions to Mars
|
||||
Mars Science Laboratory – Robotic mission that deployed the Curiosity rover to Mars in 2012
|
||||
Mars Pathfinder – Mission including first robotic rover to operate on Mars (1997)
|
||||
Norman L. Crabill – NASA engineer (1926–2024)
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
== Further reading ==
|
||||
On Mars: Exploration of the Red Planet Archived February 5, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
|
||||
Viking Orbiter Views of Mars
|
||||
The Martian Landscape SP-425
|
||||
Analytical Chemistry feature article about the Viking spacecraft's scientific mission
|
||||
Viking '75 spacecraft design and test summary. Volume 1 Lander design – NASA Report Archived October 27, 2020, at the Wayback Machine
|
||||
Viking '75 spacecraft design and test summary. Volume 2 Orbiter design – NASA Report Archived October 27, 2020, at the Wayback Machine
|
||||
Viking '75 spacecraft design and test summary. Volume 3 Engineering test summary – NASA Report Archived October 28, 2020, at the Wayback Machine
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
NASA Mars Viking Mission Archived February 23, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
|
||||
Viking Mission to Mars (NASA SP-334) Archived August 7, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
|
||||
Solar Views Project Viking Fact Sheet
|
||||
Viking Mission to Mars Archived July 16, 2011, at the Wayback Machine Video
|
||||
A diagram of the Viking and its flight profile
|
||||
Article at Smithsonian Air and Space Website
|
||||
The Viking Mars Missions Education & Preservation Project (VMMEPP)
|
||||
VMMEPP Online exhibit
|
||||
45 years ago: Viking 1 Touches Down on Mars
|
||||
24
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voskhod_(rocket)-0.md
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|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Voskhod (rocket)"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voskhod_(rocket)"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:37.594702+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
The Voskhod rocket (Russian: Восход, lit. 'ascent/dawn') was Soviet medium-lift launch vehicle, a derivative of the R-7, an ICBM. The Voskhod rocket was designed for the human spaceflight programme but later used for launching Zenit reconnaissance satellites. It was essentially an 8K78/8K78M minus the Blok L stage and spec-wise was a halfway between the two boosters, with the former's older, lower-spec engines and the latter's improved Blok I design. Its first flight was on 16 November 1963 when it successfully launched a Zenit satellite from LC-1/5 at Baikonur. Boosters used in the Voskhod program had a man-rated version of the RD-0107 engine; this version was known as the RD-0108.
|
||||
Starting in 1966, the 11A57 adopted the standardized 11A511 core with the more powerful 8D74M first stage engines, however the Blok I stage continued using the RD-0107 engine rather than the RD-0110. Around 300 were flown from Baikonur and Plesetsk through 1976, almost all of them used to launch Zenit reconnaissance satellites (one exception was the Intercosmos 6 satellite in 1973).
|
||||
The newer 11A511U core had been introduced in 1973, but the existing stock of 11A57s took another three years to use up.
|
||||
The rocket had a streak of 86 consecutive successful launches between 11 September 1967 and 9 July 1970.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
Voskhod programme
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Notes ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
94
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voskhod_(spacecraft)-0.md
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|
||||
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|
||||
title: "Voskhod (spacecraft)"
|
||||
chunk: 1/2
|
||||
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|
||||
category: "reference"
|
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tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:38.922632+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
The Voskhod (Russian: Восход, lit. 'Sunrise') was a spacecraft built by the Soviet Union's space program for human spaceflight as part of the Voskhod programme. It was a development of and a follow-on to the Vostok spacecraft. Voskhod 1 was used for a three-man flight whereas Voskhod 2 had a crew of two. They consisted of a spherical descent module (diameter 2.3 metres (7.5 ft)), which housed the cosmonauts, and instruments, and a conical equipment module (mass 2.27 tonnes or 5,000 pounds, 2.25 m (7.4 ft) long, 2.43 m (8.0 ft) wide), which contained propellant and the engine system. Voskhod was superseded by the Soyuz spacecraft in 1967.
|
||||
|
||||
== Design ==
|
||||
The Voskhod spacecraft was, essentially, a Vostok spacecraft that had a backup solid fuel retrorocket added to the top of the descent module. The ejection seat was removed for more space and two or three crew couches were added to the interior at a 90° angle to that of the Vostok crew position. There was no provision for crew escape in the event of a launch or landing emergency.
|
||||
Lack of space meant that the three crew members of Voskhod 1 did not wear space suits. Both crew members wore spacesuits on the Voskhod 2 mission, as it involved an EVA and used an inflatable airlock. This allowed cosmonaut Alexei Leonov to exit and re-enter the craft. It was needed because the vehicle's electrical and environmental systems were air-cooled, and complete capsule depressurization would lead to overheating. The airlock weighed 250 kg (550 lb), was 70 cm (28 in) in diameter, 77 cm (30 in) high when collapsed for launch. When extended in orbit, it was 2.5 m (8.2 ft) long, had an internal diameter of 1 m (3 ft 3 in) and an external diameter of 1.2 m (3.9 ft). The second crew member wore a spacesuit as a precaution against accidental descent module depressurization. The airlock was jettisoned after use.
|
||||
The lack of ejection seats meant that the Voskhod crew would return to Earth inside their spacecraft, unlike the Vostok cosmonauts who ejected and parachuted down separately. Because of this, a new landing system was developed, which added a small solid-fuel rocket to the parachute lines. It fired as the descent module neared touchdown, providing a softer landing.
|
||||
A backup solid-fueled retrorocket was added to the top of the descent module in the event that the main retrorocket failed. This had not been necessary on Vostok as the orbit was low enough that the spacecraft's orbit would decay in ten days if the retrorocket failed, there being enough onboard consumables to sustain the cosmonaut that long. In any case, the Blok E equipped R-7 booster lacked sufficient lift capacity for a backup retrorocket. Since Voskhod was well below the maximum lift capacity of the larger Blok I equipped R-7, it would be put into a quite high orbit and not decay in ten days.
|
||||
Voskhod utilized the 11A57 booster, essentially the Molniya 8K78L with the Blok L stage removed to create a medium-lift LEO launcher, and later the launch vehicle for the Soyuz program.
|
||||
The spacecraft lacked any launch escape system, meaning that the crew would not survive a booster failure that occurred in the first 2.5 minutes of launch (after payload shroud jettison, the descent module could be detached). Although work had begun on an LES in 1962, it was not ready yet and so the engineers and cosmonauts had to gamble that the booster functioned properly during ascent, as by 1964, the R-7's success rate was improving but still not perfect.
|
||||
|
||||
== Vostok 3KV (1964) ==
|
||||
Also known as Voskhod. Adaptation of the Vostok spacecraft for three cosmonauts. This version flew twice, on 6 October 1964 uncrewed (as Kosmos 47) and on 12 October 1964 crewed as Voskhod 1.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Basic data ===
|
||||
Crew size: 3 (without spacesuits)
|
||||
Endurance: 14.0 days
|
||||
Overall length: 5.0 m
|
||||
Maximum diameter: 2.4 m
|
||||
Total mass: 5682 kg
|
||||
Propellant mass: 362 kg
|
||||
RCS total impulse: not available
|
||||
Primary engine thrust: 15.83 kN
|
||||
Main engine propellants: nitrous oxide/amine
|
||||
Total spacecraft delta V: 215 m/s
|
||||
Power: batteries, 24.0 kW total
|
||||
|
||||
=== Reentry module ===
|
||||
Crew size: 3
|
||||
Diameter: 2.3 m (sphere)
|
||||
Total mass: 2900 kg
|
||||
Attitude control: none
|
||||
Environment: oxygen + nitrogen at 1 atm
|
||||
Controls: as Vostok 3KA
|
||||
Navigation indicator: Globus IMP navigation instrument version 3
|
||||
Landing system: Sphere made ballistic reentry, with shield side seeking correct orientation by virtue of the center of gravity being aft of the center of the sphere.
|
||||
Parachutes: single with suspended retrorocket package for soft landing. Crew stayed within the capsule.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Equipment module ===
|
||||
Length: 2.3 m
|
||||
Maximum diameter: 2.4 m
|
||||
Total mass: 2300 kg
|
||||
Propellant mass: 275 kg
|
||||
Reaction control system
|
||||
Thrusters: not available
|
||||
Thrusters pressure: 59 PSI (4 bars)
|
||||
Propellant media: Cold gas (nitrogen) at 2200 PSI (150 bar)
|
||||
Propellants storage: 20 kg stored in 12 pressure bottles (5 + 5 + 2 for first, second and reserve)
|
||||
Specific impulse: not available
|
||||
Total impulse: not available
|
||||
Retro-rockets
|
||||
Thrust: 15.83 kN
|
||||
Propellant: nitrous oxide/amine
|
||||
Specific impulse: 266 seconds
|
||||
Delta V: 155 m/s
|
||||
Power: batteries, 24.0 kW total, 0.20 kW average
|
||||
|
||||
=== Landing retrorocket module (commonly known as landing rocket pack) ===
|
||||
Length: 0.6 m
|
||||
Maximum diameter: 0.3 m
|
||||
Total mass: 143 kg
|
||||
Propellant mass: 87 kg
|
||||
Thrust: 117.7 kN
|
||||
Propellant: solid
|
||||
Specific impulse: 224 seconds
|
||||
Delta V: 60 m/s
|
||||
|
||||
== Voskhod 3KD (1965) ==
|
||||
This version flew twice, on 22 February 1965 uncrewed (as Kosmos 57) and on 18 March 1965 crewed as the Voskhod 2 spacecraft.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Reentry Module ===
|
||||
Reentry Module: Voskhod SA. Also known as: Spuskaemiy apparat - Sharik (sphere).
|
||||
|
||||
Crew Size: 2
|
||||
Length: 2.3 m
|
||||
Diameter: 2.3 m
|
||||
Mass: 2900 kg
|
||||
Heat Shield Mass: 837 kg
|
||||
Recovery equipment: 151 kg
|
||||
Parachute deploys at 2.5 km altitude
|
||||
Crew lands in spacecraft. Touchdown rocket softens landing.
|
||||
Ballistic reentry acceleration: 8 g (78 m/s²)
|
||||
|
||||
=== Equipment Module ===
|
||||
Equipment Module: Voskhod PA. Also known as: Priborniy otsek.
|
||||
61
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voskhod_(spacecraft)-1.md
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61
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@ -0,0 +1,61 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Voskhod (spacecraft)"
|
||||
chunk: 2/2
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voskhod_(spacecraft)"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:38.922632+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Length: 2.25 m
|
||||
Diameter: 2.43 m
|
||||
Mass: 2300 kg
|
||||
Equipment in pressurized compartment
|
||||
RCS Propellants: Cold gas (nitrogen)
|
||||
RCS Propellants: 20 kg
|
||||
Main Engine (TDU): 397 kg
|
||||
Main Engine Thrust: 15.83 kN
|
||||
Main Engine Propellants: Nitrous oxide/amine
|
||||
Main Engine Propellant Mass: 275 kg
|
||||
Main Engine Isp: 266 s (2.61 kN·s/kg)
|
||||
Main Engine Burn Time: 60 seconds (typical retro burn = 42 seconds)
|
||||
Spacecraft delta V: 155 m/s
|
||||
Electrical System: Batteries
|
||||
Electric System: 0.20 average kW
|
||||
Electric System: 24.0 kW-h
|
||||
|
||||
=== Auxiliary Retrorocket Module ===
|
||||
Auxiliary Retrorocket Module: Voskhod KDU. Also known as: Engine unit
|
||||
|
||||
Length: 0.60 m
|
||||
Diameter: 0.25 m
|
||||
Mass: 143 kg
|
||||
Engine Thrust: 118 kN
|
||||
Engine Propellants: Solid
|
||||
Propellant Mass: 87 kg
|
||||
Engine Isp: 224 seconds (2.20 kN·s/kg)
|
||||
Spacecraft delta V: 60 m/s
|
||||
|
||||
== General data ==
|
||||
Total Mass: 5682 kg
|
||||
Total Length: 5.0 m
|
||||
Endurance: Supplies for 14 days in orbit
|
||||
Launch Vehicle: Voskhod 11A57
|
||||
Typical orbit: 163 km x 591 km, 64.8° inclination
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
|
||||
Voskhod 2
|
||||
Voskhod rocket
|
||||
Voskhod programme
|
||||
Spacecraft
|
||||
Voskhod Spacecraft Globus IMP navigation instrument
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
== Bibliography ==
|
||||
Siddiqi, Asif A. (2000). Challenge To Apollo: The Soviet Union and the Space Race, 1945–1974 (PDF). US: NASA. ISBN 1780393016.
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
Voskhod spacecraft on Zarya
|
||||
52
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voskhod_programme-0.md
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52
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@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Voskhod programme"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voskhod_programme"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:29.764037+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
The Voskhod programme (Russian: Восход, lit. 'ascent, dawn', IPA: [vɐsˈxot]) was the second Soviet human spaceflight project. Two one-day crewed missions were flown using the Voskhod spacecraft and rocket, one in 1964 and one in 1965, and two dogs flew on a 22-day mission in 1966.
|
||||
Voskhod development was both a follow-on to the Vostok programme and a recycling of components left over from that programme's cancellation following its first six flights. The Voskhod programme was superseded by the Soyuz programme.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Design ==
|
||||
|
||||
The Voskhod spacecraft was basically a Vostok spacecraft that had a backup, solid-fueled retrorocket added to the top of the descent module. As it was much heavier, the launch vehicle would be the 11A57, a Molniya 8K78M with the Blok L stage removed and later the basis of the Soyuz booster. The ejection seat was removed and two or three crew couches were added to the interior at a 90-degree angle to that of the Vostok crew position. However, the position of the in-flight controls was not changed, so the crew had to crane their heads 90° to see the instruments.
|
||||
In the case of Voskhod 2, an inflatable exterior airlock was also added to the descent module opposite the entry hatch. The airlock was jettisoned after use. This apparatus was needed because the vehicle avionics and environmental systems were air-cooled, and depressurization in orbit would cause overheating. A solid-fueled braking rocket was also added to the parachute lines to provide for a softer landing at touchdown. This was necessary because, unlike the Vostok, the Voskhod descent module landed with the crewmen still inside.
|
||||
Unlike Vostok and the later Soyuz, Voskhod had no launch abort system, meaning that the crew lacked any means of escape from a malfunctioning launch vehicle.
|
||||
Voskhod had a solid-fueled backup retrorocket on top of the capsule in case the main one failed (as it did on Voskhod 2). While Vostok lacked this feature, it was not considered a problem since the spacecraft would decay from orbit within 10 days. Relatively lightweight, Voskhod was well below the 11A57 booster's lift capacity, meaning that it launched into a much higher orbit and would not decay as quickly.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Flights ==
|
||||
The Voskhod flights, with launch dates:
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Uncrewed ===
|
||||
Kosmos 47 – Uncrewed test flight of the Voskhod hardware.
|
||||
Kosmos 57 – Uncrewed test flight, unsuccessful.
|
||||
Kosmos 110 – Uncrewed, sent two dogs, Veterok and Ugolyok, on a 22-day flight, launched 22 February 1966 and landed 16 March.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Crewed ===
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Cancelled ===
|
||||
Voskhod 3 – 19-day two-man mission to study long-term weightlessness with artificial gravity, medical, military and other experiments
|
||||
Voskhod 4 – 20-day single-man mission to study long-term weightlessness with artificial gravity, medical, military, and other experiments
|
||||
Voskhod 5 – 10-day two-woman mission with medical and other experiments and first female EVA-spacewalk
|
||||
Voskhod 6 – 15-day two-man mission with military and other experiments and multiple spacewalks to test new EVA jet belt
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Results ==
|
||||
While the Vostok programme was dedicated more toward understanding the effects of space travel and microgravity on the human body, Voskhod's two flights were more aimed towards spectacular firsts. Although achieving the first EVA ("spacewalk") became the main success of the programme, beating the American Project Gemini to put the first multiman crew in orbit was the objective that initially motivated the programme. After those goals were realized, the programme planned to focus on other advances the spacecraft could accomplish, such as longer duration and a second female flight. However, there were delays preparing for Voskhod 3, and during that time the Gemini programme accomplished most of what had been planned for future Voskhods. In the end, the Voskhod programme was abandoned, aided by a change in Soviet leadership which was less concerned about stunt and prestige flights, and this allowed the Soviet designers to concentrate on the Soyuz programme.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
Voskhod manned space project on Encyclopedia Astronautica
|
||||
23
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok-K-0.md
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23
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok-K-0.md
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@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Vostok-K"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok-K"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:27:00.506103+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
The Vostok-K (Russian: Восток meaning "East"), GRAU index 8K72K was an expendable carrier rocket used by the Soviet Union for thirteen launches between 1960 and 1964, six of which were crewed. It incorporated several modifications to the core and strap-ons to man-rate them and the Blok E stage also had the improved RD-0109 engine to correct some deficiences in the RD-0105 used on earlier 8K78s. It was a member of the Vostok family of rockets.
|
||||
The Vostok-K made its maiden flight on 22 December 1960, three weeks after the retirement of the Vostok-L. The third stage engine failed 425 seconds after launch, and the payload, a Korabl-Sputnik spacecraft, failed to reach orbit. The spacecraft was recovered after landing, and the two dogs aboard the spacecraft survived the flight.
|
||||
On 12 April 1961, a Vostok-K rocket was used to launch Vostok 1, the first human spaceflight, making Yuri Gagarin the first human to fly in space. All six crewed missions of the Vostok programme were launched using Vostok-K rockets. The first two Zenit reconnaissance satellites were also launched with the Vostok-K, but it was soon replaced in that capacity with the uprated Vostok-2 booster. After the conclusion of the Vostok program, there were two remaining 8K72Ks left; these were used to launch four Elektron scientific satellites on 30 January and 10 July 1964. There had been plans for additional Vostok missions after Vostok 6; had these flown, they would have used a booster based on the newer 8K74 core.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Launches ==
|
||||
Vostok-K was used for thirteen launches between 1960 and 1964, from Baikonur LC-1/5.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Notes ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
25
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok-L-0.md
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25
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok-L-0.md
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@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Vostok-L"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok-L"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:27:01.770063+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Vostok‑L (Russian: Восток, lit. 'East', GRAU index: 8K72) was a rocket used by the Soviet Union to conduct several early tests of the Vostok spacecraft.
|
||||
It was derived from the Luna rocket, with a slightly enlarged third stage to accommodate the larger payload. and was a member of the Vostok family of rockets.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Launches ==
|
||||
Four launches were conducted between 15 May and 1 December 1960, from Baikonur LC-1/5, three of which successfully reached orbit.
|
||||
The first flight, on 15 May 1960, carried the Korabl-Sputnik 1 spacecraft. The second launched on 28 July, however one of the booster engines exploded during launch, causing the booster to separate prematurely, 19 seconds after launch. The rocket broke up 30 seconds after liftoff, killing the two dogs that were aboard the spacecraft. The third flight successfully placed Korabl-Sputnik 2 into orbit on 19 August, whilst the fourth and final flight orbited Korabl-Sputnik 3 on 1 December.
|
||||
|
||||
The Vostok-L was replaced by an uprated version, the Vostok-K, which offered a greater payload capacity.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Notes ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
78
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_(rocket_family)-0.md
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78
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_(rocket_family)-0.md
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@ -0,0 +1,78 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Vostok (rocket family)"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_(rocket_family)"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:59.181896+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Vostok (Russian: Восток, lit. 'East') was a family of rockets derived from the Soviet R-7 Semyorka ICBM and was designed for the human spaceflight programme. This family of rockets launched the first artificial satellite (Sputnik 1) and the first crewed spacecraft (Vostok) in human history. It was a subset of the R-7 family of rockets.
|
||||
On March 18, 1980, a Vostok-2M rocket exploded on its launch pad at Plesetsk during a fueling operation, killing 48 people. An investigation into a similar – but avoided – accident revealed that the substitution of lead-based for tin-based solder in hydrogen peroxide filters allowed the breakdown of the H2O2, thus causing the resultant explosion.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Variants ==
|
||||
The major versions of the rocket were:
|
||||
|
||||
Luna 8K72 – used to launch the early Luna spacecraft
|
||||
Vostok-L 8K72 – Variant of the Luna, used to launch prototype Vostok spacecraft
|
||||
Vostok-K 8K72K – a refined version of the above. This was the version actually used for human spaceflight
|
||||
Vostok-2 8A92 – used for launching Zenit reconnaissance satellites throughout the 1960s
|
||||
Vostok-2M 8A92M – modified version for launching Meteor weather satellites into higher orbits.
|
||||
Soyuz/Vostok 11A110 – hybrid of Soyuz and Vostok rockets used as an interim for two launches
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Vostok 8K72K ===
|
||||
Source:
|
||||
|
||||
First Stage — Block B, V, G, D (four strap-on boosters)
|
||||
Gross mass: 43,300 kg
|
||||
Empty mass: 3,710 kg
|
||||
Thrust (vac): 4 x 99,000 kgf (971 kN) = 3.88 MN
|
||||
Isp: 313 seconds (3.07 km/s)
|
||||
Burn time: 118 s
|
||||
Isp(sl): 256 seconds (2.51 km/s)
|
||||
Diameter: 2.68 m
|
||||
Span: 8.35 m
|
||||
Length: 19.00 m
|
||||
Propellants: Lox/Kerosene
|
||||
Engines: 1 x RD-107-8D74-1959 per booster = 4
|
||||
Second Stage — Block A (core stage)
|
||||
Gross mass: 100,400 kg
|
||||
Empty mass: 6,800 kg
|
||||
Thrust (vac): 912 kN
|
||||
Isp: 315 seconds (3.09 km/s)
|
||||
Burn time: 301 s
|
||||
Isp(sl): 248 seconds (2.43 km/s)
|
||||
Diameter: 2.99 m
|
||||
Length: 28.00 m
|
||||
Propellants: Lox/Kerosene
|
||||
Engine: 1 x RD-108-8D75-1959
|
||||
Third Stage — Block E
|
||||
Gross mass: 7,775 kg
|
||||
Empty mass: 1,440 kg
|
||||
Thrust (vac): 54.5 kN
|
||||
Isp: 326 seconds (3.20 km/s)
|
||||
Burn time: 365 s
|
||||
Diameter: 2.56 m
|
||||
Span: 2.56 m
|
||||
Length: 2.84 m
|
||||
Propellants: Lox/Kerosene
|
||||
Engine: 1 x RD-0109
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Gallery ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
|
||||
Vostok 1
|
||||
Vostok programme
|
||||
Vostok spacecraft
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Notes ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
98
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_(spacecraft)-0.md
Normal file
98
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@ -0,0 +1,98 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Vostok (spacecraft)"
|
||||
chunk: 1/1
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_(spacecraft)"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:57.801546+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Vostok (Russian: Восток, lit. 'East') was a class of single-pilot crewed spacecraft built by the Soviet Union. The first human spaceflight was accomplished with Vostok 1 on April 12, 1961, by Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin.
|
||||
The Vostok programme made six crewed spaceflights from 1961 through 1963. This was followed in 1964 and 1965 by two flights of Vostok spacecraft modified for up to three pilots, identified as Voskhod. By the late 1960s, these were replaced with Soyuz spacecraft, which are still used as of 2025.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Development ==
|
||||
The Vostok spacecraft was originally designed for use both as a camera platform (for the Soviet Union's first spy satellite program, Zenit) and as a crewed spacecraft. This dual-use design was crucial in gaining Communist Party support for the program. The basic Vostok design has remained in use for some 40 years, gradually adapted for a range of other uncrewed satellites. The descent module design was reused, in heavily modified form, by the Voskhod program for their Voskhod capsule.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Design ==
|
||||
|
||||
The craft consisted of a spherical descent module (mass 2.46 tonnes, diameter 2.3 metres), which housed the cosmonaut, instruments and escape system, and a biconical instrument module (mass 2.27 tonnes, 2.25 m long, 2.43 m wide), which contained propellant and the engine system. On reentry, the cosmonaut would eject from the craft at about 7,000 m (23,000 ft) and descend via parachute, while the capsule would land separately. The reason for this was that the Vostok descent module made an extremely rough landing that could have left a cosmonaut seriously injured.
|
||||
The ejector seat also served as an escape mechanism in the event of a launch vehicle failure, which at this early phase of the space program was a common occurrence. If an accident occurred in the first 40 seconds after liftoff, the cosmonaut would eject from the spacecraft and parachute to Earth. From 40 to 150 seconds into launch, ground controllers could issue a manual shutdown command to the booster. When the launch vehicle fell to a low enough altitude, the cosmonaut would eject. Higher altitude failures after shroud jettison would involve detaching the entire spacecraft from the booster.
|
||||
One problem that was never adequately resolved was the event of a launch vehicle malfunction in the first 20 seconds, when the ejector seat would not have enough time to deploy its parachute. LC-1 at the Baikonour Cosmodrome had netting placed around it to catch the descent module should the cosmonaut eject while still on the pad, but it was of doubtful value since they would likely end up landing too close to the exploding booster. An accident in the initial seconds of launch also likely would have not put the cosmonaut in a position where they could make a survivable ejection and in all probability, this situation would have resulted in their death. A 2001 recollection by V.V. Molodsov stated that Chief Designer Sergei Korolev felt "absolutely terrible" about the inadequate provisions for crew escape on the Vostok during the opening seconds of launch.
|
||||
There were several models of the Vostok leading up to the crewed version:
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Vostok 1K ===
|
||||
Prototype spacecraft. This was used in the Korabl-Sputnik 2 mission, in which the first animals were recovered from orbit.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Vostok 2K ===
|
||||
Photo-reconnaissance and signals intelligence spacecraft. Later named Zenit spy satellite.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
=== Vostok 3KA ===
|
||||
The Vostok 3KA was the spacecraft used for the first human spaceflights. They were launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome using Vostok 8K72K launch vehicles. The first flight of a Vostok 3KA occurred on March 9, 1961. The first flight with a crew—Vostok 1 carrying Yuri Gagarin—took place on April 12, 1961. The last flight—Vostok 6 carrying the first woman in space, Valentina Tereshkova—took place on June 16, 1963.
|
||||
A total of 8 Vostok 3KA spacecraft were flown, 6 of them with a human crew.
|
||||
Specifications for this version are:
|
||||
Reentry Module: Vostok SA. SA stands for Spuskaemiy apparat - descent system. It was nicknamed "Sharik" (Russian: шарик, lit. 'little sphere').
|
||||
|
||||
Crew Size: 1
|
||||
Diameter: 2.3 m sphere
|
||||
Mass: 2,460 kg
|
||||
Heat Shield Mass: 837 kg
|
||||
Recovery equipment: 151 kg
|
||||
Parachute deploys at 2.5 km altitude
|
||||
Crew seat and provisions: 336 kg
|
||||
Crew ejects at 7 km altitude
|
||||
Ballistic reentry acceleration: 8 g (78 m/s²)
|
||||
|
||||
Equipment Module: Vostok PA. PA stands for Priborniy otsek - instrument section.
|
||||
|
||||
Length: 2.25 m
|
||||
Diameter: 2.43 m
|
||||
Mass: 2,270 kg
|
||||
Equipment in pressurized compartment
|
||||
RCS Thrusters: 16 x 5 N (8 + 8 for automatic + manual)
|
||||
RCS Thrusters pressure: 59 PSI (4 bars)
|
||||
RCS Propellants: Cold gas (nitrogen) at 2200 PSI (150 bar)
|
||||
RCS Propellants: 20 kg stored in 12 pressure bottles (5 + 5 + 2 for first, second and reserve)
|
||||
Main Engine(the S5.4) (TDU): 397 kg
|
||||
Main Engine Thrust: 15.83 kN
|
||||
Main Engine Propellants: RFNA/amine
|
||||
Main Engine Propellants: 275 kg
|
||||
Main Engine Isp: 266 s (2.61 kN·s/kg)
|
||||
Main Engine Burn Time: 1 minute (typical retro burn = 42 seconds)
|
||||
Spacecraft delta v: 155 m/s
|
||||
Electrical System: Batteries
|
||||
Electric System: 0.20 average kW
|
||||
Electric System: 24.0 kW·h
|
||||
Total Mass:4,730 kg
|
||||
Endurance: Supplies for 10 days in orbit
|
||||
Launch Vehicle: Vostok 8K72K
|
||||
Typical orbit: 177 km x 471 km, 64.9 inclination
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== Reentry ==
|
||||
The Vostok capsule had limited thruster capability. As such, the reentry path and orientation could not be controlled after the capsule had separated from the engine system. This meant that the capsule had to be protected from reentry heat on all sides, thus explaining the spherical design (as opposed to Project Mercury's conical design, which allowed for maximum volume while minimizing the heat shield diameter). Some control of the capsule reentry orientation was possible by way of positioning of the heavy equipment to offset the vehicle center of gravity, which also maximized the chance of the cosmonaut surviving g-forces while in a horizontal position. Even then, the cosmonaut experienced 8 to 9g.
|
||||
If the retrorocket failed, the spacecraft would naturally decay from orbit within ten days, and the cosmonaut was provided with enough food and oxygen to survive until that time.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
Voskhod (spacecraft)
|
||||
Zenit (satellite)
|
||||
Foton (space programs)
|
||||
Vostok 1
|
||||
Vostok rocket
|
||||
Spacecraft
|
||||
Single-person spacecraft
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
Vostok Specifications
|
||||
Vostok spacecraft on Encyclopedia Astronautica
|
||||
31
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_programme-0.md
Normal file
31
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_programme-0.md
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@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Vostok programme"
|
||||
chunk: 1/3
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_programme"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:41.879718+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
The Vostok programme ( VOST-ok, vost-OK; Russian: Восток, IPA: [vɐˈstok] , lit. 'East') was a Soviet human spaceflight project to put the first Soviet cosmonauts into low Earth orbit and return them safely. Competing with the United States Project Mercury, it succeeded in placing the first human into space, Yuri Gagarin, in a single orbit in Vostok 1 on April 12, 1961. The Vostok capsule was developed from the Zenit spy satellite project, and its launch vehicle was adapted from the existing R-7 Semyorka intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) design. The name "Vostok" was treated as classified information until Gagarin's flight was first publicly disclosed to the world press.
|
||||
The programme carried out six crewed spaceflights between 1961 and 1963. The longest flight lasted nearly five days, and the last four were launched in pairs, one day apart. This exceeded Project Mercury's demonstrated capabilities of a longest flight of just over 34 hours, and of single missions.
|
||||
Vostok was succeeded by two Voskhod programme flights in 1964 and 1965, which used three- and two-man modifications of the Vostok capsule and a larger launch rocket.
|
||||
|
||||
== Background ==
|
||||
|
||||
The world's first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, had been put into orbit by the Soviets in 1957. The next milestone in the history of space exploration would be to put a human in space, and both the Soviets and the Americans wanted to be the first.
|
||||
|
||||
== Cosmonaut selection and training ==
|
||||
|
||||
By January 1959, the Soviets had begun preparations for human spaceflight. Physicians from the Soviet Air Force insisted that the potential cosmonaut candidates be qualified Air Force pilots, arguing that they would have relevant skills such as exposure to higher g-forces, as well as ejection seat experience; also the Americans had chosen the Mercury Seven in April 1959, all of whom had aviation backgrounds. The candidates had to be intelligent, comfortable in high-stress situations, and physically fit.
|
||||
Chief designer of the Soviet space program, Sergei Korolev, decided that the cosmonauts must be male, between 25 and 30 years old, no taller than 1.75 meters, and weigh no more than 72 kilograms. The final specifications for cosmonauts were approved in June 1959. By September, interviews with potential cosmonauts had begun. Although the pilots were not told they might be flying into space, one of the physicians in charge of the selection process believed that some pilots had deduced this. Just over 200 candidates made it through the interview process, and by October a series of demanding physical tests were conducted on those remaining, such as exposure to low pressures, and a centrifuge test. By the end of 1959, 20 men had been selected. Korolev insisted on having a larger group than NASA's astronaut team of seven. Of these 20, five were outside the desired age range; hence, the age requirement was relaxed. Unlike NASA's astronaut group, this group did not particularly consist of experienced pilots; Belyayev was the most experienced with 900 flying hours. The Soviet spacecraft were more automated than the American counterparts, so significant piloting experience was not necessary.
|
||||
On January 11, 1960, Soviet Chief Marshal of Aviation Konstantin Vershinin approved plans to establish the Cosmonaut Training Center, whose exclusive purpose would be to prepare the cosmonauts for their upcoming flights; initially the facility would have about 250 staff. Vershinin assigned the already famous aviator Nikolai Kamanin to supervise operations at the facility. By March, most of the cosmonauts had arrived at the training facility; Vershinin gave a welcome speech on March 7, and those who were present were formally inducted into the cosmonaut group. By mid-June all twenty were permanently stationed at the center. In March the cosmonauts were started on a daily fitness regime, and were taught classes on topics such as rocket space systems, navigation, geophysics, and astronomy.
|
||||
Owing to the initial facility's space limitations, the cosmonauts and staff were relocated to a new facility in Star City (then known as Zelenyy), which has been the home of Russia's cosmonaut training program for over 60 years. The move officially took place on June 29, 1960.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Vanguard Six ===
|
||||
At the Gromov Flight Research Institute, a spacecraft simulator had been built, called the TDK-1. Owing to the inefficiency of training all 20 cosmonauts in the simulator, it was decided they would select six men who would go through accelerated training. This group, which would be known as The Vanguard Six, was decided on May 30, 1960, and initially consisted of Gagarin, Kartashov, Nikolayev, Popovich, Titov, and Varlamov. Alexei Leonov recalls that these six were the shortest of the group of 20.
|
||||
In July, shortly after relocation to Star City, two of the six were replaced on medical grounds. Firstly, during a centrifuge test of 8 g, Kartashov experienced some internal damage, causing minor hemorrhaging on his back. Despite Gagarin's requests for him to stay, the doctors decided to remove Kartashov from the group of six. Later in July, Varlamov was involved in a swimming accident. During a dive into a lake near the training center, he hit his head on the bottom, displacing a cervical vertebra. So by the end of July, the Vanguard Six were: Gagarin, Bykovskiy, Nelyubov, Nikolayev, Popovich, and Titov.
|
||||
By January 1961, these six had all finished parachute and recovery training, as well as three-day regimes in simulators. On January 17, the six participated in their final exams, including time spent in a simulator, and a written test. Based on these results, a commission, supervised by Kamanin, recommended the use of the cosmonauts in the following order: Gagarin, Titov, Nelyubov, Nikolayev, Bykovskiy, Popovich. At this stage Gagarin was the clear favorite to be the first man in space, not only based on the exams, but also among an informal peer evaluation.
|
||||
|
||||
== Missions ==
|
||||
26
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_programme-1.md
Normal file
26
data/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_programme-1.md
Normal file
@ -0,0 +1,26 @@
|
||||
---
|
||||
title: "Vostok programme"
|
||||
chunk: 2/3
|
||||
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_programme"
|
||||
category: "reference"
|
||||
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
|
||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:26:41.879718+00:00"
|
||||
instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Vostok 1, the first human spaceflight in April 1961, was preceded by several preparatory flights. In mid-1960, the Soviets learned that the Americans could launch a sub-orbital human spaceflight as early as January 1961. Korolev saw this as an important deadline, and was determined to launch a crewed orbital mission before the Americans launched their human suborbital mission. By April 1960, designers at Sergei Korolev's design bureau, then known as OKB-1, had completed a draft plan for the first Vostok spacecraft, called Vostok 1K. This design would be used for testing purposes; also in their plan was Vostok 2K, a spy satellite that would later become known as Zenit 2, and Vostok 3K, which would be used for all six crewed Vostok missions.
|
||||
Despite the very large geographical size of the Soviet Union, there were obvious limitations to monitoring orbital spaceflights from ground stations within the country. To remedy this, the Soviets stationed about seven naval vessels, or tracking ships, around the world. For each ground station or tracking ship, the duration of communications with an orbiting spacecraft was limited to between five and ten minutes.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Korabl-Sputnik 1 ===
|
||||
|
||||
The first Vostok spacecraft was a variant not designed to be recovered from orbit; the variant was also called Vostok 1KP (or 1P). At Korolev's suggestion, the media would call the spacecraft Korabl-Sputnik, ("Satellite-ship"); the name Vostok was still a secret codename at this point. This first Vostok spacecraft was successfully sent into orbit on May 15, 1960. Owing to a system malfunction, on the spacecraft's 64th orbit the thrusters fired and sent it into an even higher orbit. The orbit eventually decayed, and it re-entered the atmosphere several years later.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Vostok 1K ===
|
||||
|
||||
The next six launches were all of the Vostok 1K design, equipped with life-support facilities, and planned to be recovered after orbit. The first spacecraft launched on July 28, 1960 carried two space dogs named Chayka and Lisichka. An explosion destroyed the spacecraft shortly after launch, killing both dogs, and the mission was not given a name. The next mission, designated Korabl-Sputnik 2, was launched on August 19, 1960, carrying two more dogs, Belka and Strelka, as well as a variety of other biological specimens such as mice, insects, and strips of human skin. This mission was successful, and Belka and Strelka became the first living beings recovered from orbit. The spacecraft was only the second object ever to have been recovered from orbit, the first being the return capsule of the American Discoverer 13 the previous week. During the mission there was some concern for Belka and Strelka's health, after images of Belka vomiting had been obtained from the onboard cameras. The spacecraft and dogs were recovered following the 26-hour spaceflight, and extensive physiological tests revealed that the dogs were in good health. This represented a significant success for the Vostok programme.
|
||||
The success of Korabl-Sputnik 2 gave the designers confidence to put forward a plan leading to a human spaceflight. A document regarding a plan for the Vostok programme, dated September 10, 1960, and declassified in 1991, was sent to the Central Committee of the Communist Party, and approved by Premier Nikita Khrushchev. This document had been signed by the top leaders in the Soviet defence industry at the time, the most senior being Deputy Chairman Dmitriy Ustinov; this indicated the elevated importance of the document. The plan called for one or two more Vostok 1K flights, followed by two uncrewed Vostok 3K flights, followed by a crewed flight in December 1960.
|
||||
A major setback occurred on October 24, when a rocket explosion killed over 100 people, including Chief Marshal of Artillery Mitrofan Nedelin, in what is now called the Nedelin catastrophe. This was one of the worst disasters in the history of spaceflight. It involved a rocket that was not designed by Korolev, and was not necessary for the Vostok programme; the rocket was by rival designer Mikhail Yangel, intended to be a new generation of intercontinental ballistic missiles. It would be two weeks before work on the Vostok programme continued, and it was realised that the original target of a December crewed launch was unrealistic.
|
||||
On December 1, 1960, the next Vostok 1K spacecraft, called Korabl-Sputnik 3 by the press, was launched. It carried the two dogs Pchyolka and Mushka. After about 24 hours, the engines were intended to fire to begin re-entry, but they fired for less time than had been expected. This meant that the spacecraft would enter the atmosphere, but not over Soviet territory. For this reason the self-destruct system was activated, and the spacecraft and the two dogs were destroyed. At the time, the press reported that an incorrect altitude caused the cabin to be destroyed upon re-entry.
|
||||
The next Vostok 1K spacecraft was launched on December 22, 1960, but it was unnamed because it failed to reach orbit. It carried two dogs, named Kometa and Shutka. The third stage of the launch system malfunctioned, and the emergency escape system was activated. The spacecraft landed 3,500 kilometres downrange of the launch site. The resulting rescue operation took several days, in -40 °C conditions. After a few days, the dogs were both recovered alive, and the spacecraft was returned to Moscow a few weeks later. Despite Korolev's desire to announce this failure to the press, the State Commission vetoed the idea.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Vostok 3KA ===
|
||||
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|
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|
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|
||||
|
||||
The two uncrewed missions immediately preceding the first human flight used the same spacecraft design as in the crewed missions, a design called Vostok 3KA (or 3A). The only differences were that they would carry a single dog into orbit, a life-size mannequin would be strapped into the main ejection seat, and (unlike the crewed missions) they had a self-destruct system. The recent failures of Vostok 1K were not encouraging, but it was decided to proceed with launches of an automated variant of Vostok 3KA, the spacecraft design that would conduct a human spaceflight. The approval of a crewed mission was contingent upon the success of the two automated Vostok 3KA missions. Unlike the previous Vostok 1K flights, the two uncrewed Vostok 3KA flights were planned to last only a single orbit, to imitate the plan for the first human flight.
|
||||
The first of these uncrewed flights, Korabl-Sputnik 4, was launched on March 9, 1961. It carried the dog Chernushka into orbit, as well as a mannequin called Ivan Ivanovich, who wore a functioning SK-1 spacesuit. The dog was contained in a small pressurized sphere, which also contained 80 mice, several guinea pigs, and other biological specimens. Additional mice, guinea pigs, and other specimens were placed within the mannequin. After one orbit, the descent module successfully re-entered the atmosphere, the mannequin was safely ejected, and the dog and other specimens landed separately in the descent module by parachute. The spaceflight lasted 106 minutes, and the dog was recovered alive after landing. The mission was a complete success.
|
||||
On March 23, before the next mission, an accident occurred during training which led to the death of cosmonaut candidate Valentin Bondarenko. He was burned in a fire in an oxygen-rich isolation chamber, and died in a hospital eight hours after the incident. Bondarenko's death was the first known cosmonaut or astronaut fatality. It is not clear whether other cosmonauts were told of his death immediately; the media did not learn of Bondarenko's death – or even of his existence – until many years later, in 1986. Unsubstantiated reports of other cosmonaut deaths created the myth of the lost cosmonaut.
|
||||
|
||||
The next uncrewed flight, Korabl-Sputnik 5, was launched on March 25, two days after Bondarenko's death. Like the previous Vostok 3KA flight, it lasted for only a single orbit, carried a mannequin and many animals, which included frogs, plants, mice, rats, and a dog, Zvezdochka ("Starlet", or "Little star"). This mission was also a complete success, which was the final step required to get approval for a crewed mission. The re-entry module of the Korabl-Sputnik 5 spacecraft, also called Vostok 3KA-2, was auctioned at Sotheby's on April 12, 2011, the 50th anniversary of the first human spaceflight, Vostok 1. Evgeny Yurchenko, a Russian investment banker, paid $2,882,500 for the capsule.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Crewed flights ===
|
||||
|
||||
=== Cancelled missions ===
|
||||
One different (1963) and seven original (going through to April 1966) Vostok flights were originally planned:
|
||||
|
||||
Vostok 6A - pair to Vostok 5 group flight with female cosmonaut instead fulfilled Vostok 6 flight [1]
|
||||
Vostok 7 - 8-days high-altitude flight for radiological-biological studies with natural re-entry from orbit [2]
|
||||
Vostok 8 - pair to Vostok 9 10-days group high-altitude flight for extended scientific studies with natural re-entry from orbit [3]
|
||||
Vostok 9 - pair to Vostok 8 10-days group high-altitude flight for extended scientific studies with natural re-entry from orbit [4]
|
||||
Vostok 10 - 10-days high-altitude flight for extended scientific studies with natural re-entry from orbit [5]
|
||||
Vostok 11 - supplemental flight for extra-vehicular activity tests [6]
|
||||
Vostok 12 - supplemental flight for extra-vehicular activity tests [7]
|
||||
Vostok 13 - 10-days high-altitude flight for extended scientific studies with natural re-entry from orbit [8]
|
||||
All these original missions were cancelled in early 1964 and the components recycled into the Voskhod programme, which was intended to achieve more Soviet firsts in space.
|
||||
|
||||
== Notes ==
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
Asif. A. Siddiqi (2000). Challenge to Apollo: The Soviet Union and the Space Race, 1945-1974. NASA. SP-2000-4408. Part 1 (page 1-500), Part 2 (page 501-1011).
|
||||
Colin Burgess, Rex Hall (June 2, 2010). The first Soviet cosmonaut team: their lives, legacy, and historical impact. Praxis. p. 356. ISBN 978-0-387-84823-5.
|
||||
Rex Hall, David Shayler (May 18, 2001). The rocket men: Vostok & Voskhod, the first Soviet manned spaceflights. Springer. p. 350. ISBN 1-85233-391-X.
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
Korabl & Vostok Diary
|
||||
43
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|
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||||
Voyager 1 is a space probe launched by NASA on September 5, 1977, as part of the Voyager program, to study the outer Solar System and the interstellar space beyond the Sun's heliosphere. It was launched 16 days after its twin, Voyager 2. It communicates through the NASA Deep Space Network (DSN) to receive routine commands and to transmit data to Earth. Real-time distance and velocity data are provided by NASA and JPL. At a distance of 172.59 AU (25.8 billion km; 16.0 billion mi) as of March 2026, it is the most distant human-made object from Earth. Voyager 1 is also projected to reach a distance of one light day from Earth in November 2026.
|
||||
The probe made flybys of Jupiter, Saturn, and Saturn's largest moon, Titan. NASA had a choice of either conducting a Pluto or Titan flyby. Exploration of Titan took priority because it was known to have a substantial atmosphere. Voyager 1 studied the weather, magnetic fields, and rings of the two gas giants and was the first probe to provide detailed images of their moons.
|
||||
As part of the Voyager program and like its sister craft Voyager 2, the spacecraft's extended mission is to locate and study the regions and boundaries of the outer heliosphere and to begin exploring the interstellar medium. Voyager 1 crossed the heliopause and entered interstellar space on August 25, 2012, making it the first spacecraft to do so. Two years later, Voyager 1 began experiencing a third wave of coronal mass ejections from the Sun that continued to at least December 15, 2014, further confirming that the probe is in interstellar space.
|
||||
In 2017, the Voyager team successfully fired the spacecraft's trajectory correction maneuver (TCM) thrusters for the first time since 1980, enabling the mission to be extended by two to three years. Voyager 1 experienced successful revivals of several thrusters in 2018, 2019, and 2025.
|
||||
Voyager 1's extended mission is expected to continue to return scientific data for several more years. Its radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) may supply enough electric power to return engineering data until 2036. As of 2026, only two instruments are operational, the Plasma Wave Subsystem and magnetometer.
|
||||
|
||||
== Mission background ==
|
||||
A 1960s proposal for a Grand Tour to study the outer planets led NASA to begin work on a mission during the early 1970s. Initially, Voyager 1 was planned as Mariner 11 of the Mariner program. Due to budget cuts, the mission was reduced to a flyby of Jupiter and Saturn and renamed the Mariner Jupiter-Saturn probes. The name was changed to Voyager when the probe designs began to differ substantially from Mariner missions.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Spacecraft components ===
|
||||
|
||||
Voyager 1 was built by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). It has a bus shaped like a decagonal (ten-sided) prism. It has 16 hydrazine thrusters, three-axis stabilization gyroscopes, and referencing instruments to keep the probe's radio antenna pointed toward Earth. Collectively, these instruments are part of the Attitude and Articulation Control Subsystem (AACS), along with redundant units of most instruments and eight backup thrusters. The spacecraft also included 11 scientific instruments to study celestial objects such as planets as it travels through space.
|
||||
|
||||
==== Communication system ====
|
||||
The radio communication system of Voyager 1 was designed to be used up to and beyond the limits of the Solar System. It has a 3.7-meter (12 ft) diameter high-gain Cassegrain antenna to send and receive radio waves via the three Deep Space Network stations on the Earth. The spacecraft normally transmits data to Earth over Deep Space Network Channel 18, using a frequency of either 2.3 GHz or 8.4 GHz, while signals from Earth to Voyager are transmitted at 2.1 GHz.
|
||||
When Voyager 1 is unable to communicate with the Earth, its digital tape recorder (DTR) can record about 64 megabytes of data for later transmission. As of 2025, signals from Voyager 1 took more than 23 hours to reach Earth.
|
||||
|
||||
==== Power ====
|
||||
|
||||
Voyager 1 has three radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) mounted on a boom. Each MHW-RTG contains 24 pressed plutonium-238 PuO2 oxide spheres. The RTGs generated about 470 W of electric power at the time of launch, with the remainder being dissipated as waste heat. The power output of the RTGs declines over time due to the 87.7-year half-life of the fuel and degradation of the thermocouples. According to current plans, they may continue operating with at least one science instrument into the 2030s.
|
||||
|
||||
==== Computers ====
|
||||
Unlike Voyager's other instruments, the operation of the cameras for visible light is not autonomous, but is controlled by an imaging parameter table contained in one of the digital computers, the Flight Data Subsystem (FDS). Since the 1990s, most space probes have been equipped with completely autonomous cameras.
|
||||
The computer command subsystem (CCS) controls the cameras. The CCS contains fixed computer programs, such as command decoding, fault-detection and fault-correction routines, antenna pointing routines, and spacecraft sequencing routines. This computer is an improved version of the one that was used in the 1970s Viking orbiters.
|
||||
The Attitude and Articulation Control Subsystem (AACS) controls the spacecraft orientation. It keeps the high-gain antenna pointing towards Earth, controls attitude changes, and points the scan platform. The custom-built AACS systems on both Voyagers are the same.
|
||||
|
||||
==== Scientific instruments ====
|
||||
|
||||
== Mission profile ==
|
||||
|
||||
=== Timeline of travel ===
|
||||
|
||||
=== Launch and trajectory ===
|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
The Voyager 1 probe was launched on September 5, 1977, from Launch Complex 41 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, aboard a Titan IIIE launch vehicle. The Voyager 2 probe had been launched two weeks earlier, on August 20, 1977. Despite being launched later, Voyager 1 reached both Jupiter and Saturn sooner, following a shorter trajectory.
|
||||
Voyager 1's launch almost failed because Titan's LR-91 second stage shut down prematurely, leaving 1,200 pounds (540 kg) of propellant unburned. Recognizing the deficiency, the Centaur stage's on-board computers ordered a burn that was far longer than planned in order to compensate. Centaur extended its own burn and was able to give Voyager 1 the additional velocity it needed.
|
||||
At cutoff, the Centaur was only 3.4 seconds from propellant exhaustion. If the same failure had occurred during Voyager 2's launch a few weeks earlier, the Centaur would have run out of propellant before the probe reached the correct trajectory. Jupiter was in a more favorable position vis-à-vis Earth during the launch of Voyager 1 than during the launch of Voyager 2.
|
||||
Voyager 1's initial orbit had an aphelion of 8.9 AU (830 million mi), just a little short of Saturn's orbit of 9.5 AU (880 million mi). Voyager 2's initial orbit had an aphelion of 6.2 AU (580 million mi), well short of Saturn's orbit.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Flyby of Jupiter ===
|
||||
|
||||
Voyager 1 began photographing Jupiter in January 1979. Its closest approach to Jupiter was on March 5, 1979, at a distance of about 349,000 kilometers (217,000 miles) from the planet's center. Because of the greater photographic resolution allowed by a closer approach, most observations of the moons, rings, magnetic fields, and the radiation belt environment of the Jovian system were made during the 48-hour period that bracketed the closest approach. Voyager 1 finished photographing the Jovian system in April 1979.
|
||||
Information gathered by the Pioneer 10 spacecraft helped engineers design Voyager to better cope with the intense radiation around Jupiter. Still, shortly before launch, strips of kitchen-grade aluminium foil were applied to certain cables to improve radiation shielding.
|
||||
The discovery of ongoing volcanic activity on the moon Io was probably the greatest surprise. It was the first time active volcanoes had been seen on another body in the Solar System. It appears that activity on Io affects the entire Jovian system. Io appears to be the primary source of matter that pervades the Jovian magnetosphere – the region of space that surrounds the planet influenced by the planet's strong magnetic field. Sulfur, oxygen, and sodium, apparently erupted by Io's volcanoes and sputtered off the surface by the impact of high-energy particles, were detected at the outer edge of the magnetosphere of Jupiter. Once Voyager 1 passed within 5 RJ from the planet's center, it encountered the Io plasma torus. It received a radiation dosage one thousand times the lethal level for humans, the damage resulting in serious degradation of some high-resolution images of Io and Ganymede.
|
||||
The two Voyager space probes made a number of important discoveries about Jupiter, its satellites, its radiation belts, and its never-before-seen planetary rings. Voyager 1 also discovered two new moons of Jupiter, the first one being Metis, was discovered orbiting just outside the ring, making it the first of Jupiter's moons to be identified by a spacecraft. The second new satellite, Thebe, was discovered between the orbits of Amalthea and Io.
|
||||
On February 25, 1979, when Voyager 1 was 9.2 million kilometers from Jupiter it transmitted the first detailed image of the Great Red Spot back to Earth. Cloud details as small as 160 km across were visible. The colorful, wavy cloud pattern seen to the west (left) of the GRS is the spot's wake region, where extraordinarily complex and variable cloud motions are observed.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Flyby of Saturn ===
|
||||
|
||||
The gravitational assist trajectories at Jupiter were successfully carried out by both Voyagers, and the two spacecraft went on to visit Saturn and its system of moons and rings. Voyager 1 encountered Saturn in November 1980, with the closest approach on November 12, 1980, when the space probe came within 124,000 kilometers (77,000 mi) of Saturn's cloud-tops. The space probe's cameras detected complex structures in the rings of Saturn, and its remote sensing instruments studied the atmospheres of Saturn and its giant moon Titan.
|
||||
Voyager 1 found that about seven percent of the volume of Saturn's upper atmosphere is helium (compared with 11 percent of Jupiter's atmosphere), while almost all the rest is hydrogen. Since Saturn's internal helium abundance was expected to be the same as Jupiter's and the Sun's, the lower abundance of helium in the upper atmosphere may imply that the heavier helium may be slowly sinking through Saturn's hydrogen; that might explain the excess heat that Saturn radiates over energy it receives from the Sun. Winds blow at high speeds on Saturn. Near the equator, the Voyagers measured winds about 500 m/s (1,100 mph). The wind blows mostly in an easterly direction.
|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
The Voyagers found aurora-like ultraviolet emissions of hydrogen at mid-latitudes in the atmosphere, and auroras at polar latitudes (above 65 degrees). The high-level auroral activity may lead to the formation of complex hydrocarbon molecules that are carried toward the equator. The mid-latitude auroras, which occur only in sunlit regions, remain a puzzle, since bombardment by electrons and ions, known to cause auroras on Earth, occurs primarily at high latitudes. Both Voyagers measured the rotation of Saturn (the length of a day) at 10 hours, 39 minutes, 24 seconds.
|
||||
Voyager 1's mission included a flyby of Titan, Saturn's largest moon, which had long been known to have an atmosphere. Images taken by Pioneer 11 in 1979 had indicated the atmosphere was substantial and complex, further increasing interest. The Titan flyby occurred as the spacecraft entered the system to avoid any possibility of damage closer to Saturn compromising observations, and approached to within 6,400 km (4,000 mi), passing behind Titan as seen from Earth and the Sun.
|
||||
Voyager's measurement of the atmosphere's effect on sunlight and Earth-based measurement of its effect on the probe's radio signal were used to determine the atmosphere's composition, density, and pressure. Titan's mass was also measured by observing its effect on the probe's trajectory. The thick haze prevented any visual observation of the surface, but the measurement of the atmosphere's composition, temperature, and pressure led to speculation that lakes of liquid hydrocarbons could exist on the surface.
|
||||
Because observations of Titan were considered vital, the trajectory chosen for Voyager 1 was designed around the optimum Titan flyby, which took it below the south pole of Saturn and out of the plane of the ecliptic, ending its planetary science mission. Had Voyager 1 failed or been unable to observe Titan, Voyager 2's trajectory would have been altered to incorporate the Titan flyby, precluding any visit to Uranus and Neptune. The trajectory Voyager 1 was launched into would not have allowed it to continue on to Uranus and Neptune, but could have been altered to avoid a Titan flyby and travel from Saturn to Pluto, arriving in 1986.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Exit from the heliosphere ===
|
||||
|
||||
On February 14, 1990, Voyager 1 took the first "family portrait" of the Solar System as seen from outside, which includes the image of planet Earth known as Pale Blue Dot. Soon afterward, its cameras were deactivated to conserve energy and computer resources for other equipment. The camera software has been removed from the spacecraft, so it would now be complex to get them working again. Earth-side software and computers for reading the images are also no longer available.
|
||||
On February 17, 1998, Voyager 1 reached a distance of 69 AU (6.4 billion mi; 10.3 billion km) from the Sun and overtook Pioneer 10 as the most distant spacecraft from Earth. Traveling at about 17 km/s (11 mi/s), it has the fastest heliocentric recession speed of any spacecraft.
|
||||
As Voyager 1 headed for interstellar space, its instruments continued to study the Solar System. Jet Propulsion Laboratory scientists used the plasma wave experiments aboard Voyager 1 and 2 to look for the heliopause, the boundary at which the solar wind transitions into the interstellar medium. As of 2013, the probe was moving with a relative velocity to the Sun of about 61,197 kilometers per hour (38,026 mph).With the velocity the probe is currently maintaining, Voyager 1 is traveling about 523 million km (325 million mi) per year, or about one light-year per 18,000 years.
|
||||
|
||||
==== Termination shock ====
|
||||
|
||||
Scientists at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory believe that Voyager 1 entered the termination shock in February 2003. This marks the point where the solar wind slows to subsonic speeds. Some other scientists expressed doubt and discussed this in the journal Nature of November 6, 2003. The issue would not be resolved until other data became available, since Voyager 1's solar-wind detector ceased functioning in 1990. This failure meant that termination shock detection would have to be inferred from the data from the other instruments on board.
|
||||
In May 2005, a NASA press release said that the consensus was that Voyager 1 was then in the heliosheath. In a scientific session at the American Geophysical Union meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, on May 25, 2005, Ed Stone presented evidence that the craft crossed the termination shock in late 2004. This event is estimated to have occurred on December 15, 2004, at a distance of 94 AU (8,700 million mi) from the Sun.
|
||||
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|
||||
|
||||
==== Heliosheath ====
|
||||
On March 31, 2006, amateur radio operators from AMSAT in Germany tracked and received radio waves from Voyager 1 using the 20-meter (66 ft) dish at Bochum with a long integration technique. Retrieved data was checked and verified against data from the Deep Space Network station at Madrid, Spain. This seems to be the first such amateur tracking of Voyager 1.
|
||||
It was confirmed on December 13, 2010, that Voyager 1 had passed the reach of the radial outward flow of the solar wind, as measured by the Low Energy Charged Particle device. It is suspected that solar wind at this distance turns sideways because of interstellar wind pushing against the heliosphere. Since June 2010, detection of solar wind had been consistently at zero, providing conclusive evidence of the event. On this date, the spacecraft was approximately 116 AU (17.4 billion km; 10.8 billion mi) from the Sun.
|
||||
Voyager 1 was commanded to change its orientation to measure the sideways motion of the solar wind at that location in space in March 2011 (~33 years 6 months from launch). A test roll in February had confirmed the spacecraft's ability to maneuver and reorient itself. The course of the spacecraft was not changed. It rotated 70 degrees counterclockwise with respect to Earth to detect the solar wind. This was the first time the spacecraft had done any major maneuvering since the Family Portrait photograph of the planets was taken in 1990. After the first roll the spacecraft had no problem in reorienting itself with Alpha Centauri, Voyager 1's guide star, and it resumed sending transmissions back to Earth. Voyager 1 was expected to enter interstellar space "at any time". Voyager 2 was still detecting outward flow of solar wind at that point but it was estimated that in the following months or years it would experience the same conditions as Voyager 1.
|
||||
The spacecraft was reported at 12.44° declination and 17.163 hours right ascension, and at an ecliptic latitude of 34.9° (the ecliptic latitude changes very slowly), placing it in the constellation Ophiuchus as observed from the Earth on May 21, 2011.
|
||||
On December 1, 2011, it was announced that Voyager 1 had detected the first Lyman-alpha radiation originating from the Milky Way galaxy. Lyman-alpha radiation had previously been detected from other galaxies, but because of interference from the Sun, the radiation from the Milky Way was not detectable.
|
||||
NASA announced on December 5, 2011, that Voyager 1 had entered a new region referred to as a "cosmic purgatory". Within this stagnation region, charged particles streaming from the Sun slow and turn inward, and the Solar System's magnetic field is doubled in strength as interstellar space appears to be applying pressure. Energetic particles originating in the Solar System decline by nearly half, while the detection of high-energy electrons from outside increases 100-fold. The inner edge of the stagnation region is located approximately 113 AU from the Sun.
|
||||
|
||||
==== Heliopause ====
|
||||
NASA announced in June 2012 that the probe was detecting changes in the environment that were suspected to correlate with arrival at the heliopause. Voyager 1 had reported a marked increase in its detection of charged particles from interstellar space, which are normally deflected by the solar winds within the heliosphere from the Sun. The craft thus began to enter the interstellar medium at the edge of the Solar System.
|
||||
Voyager 1 became the first spacecraft to cross the heliopause in August 2012, then at a distance of 121 AU (1.12×1010 mi; 1.81×1010 km) from the Sun, although this was not confirmed for another year.
|
||||
As of September 2012, sunlight took 16.89 hours to reach Voyager 1, which was at a distance of 121 AU. The apparent magnitude of the Sun from the spacecraft was −16.3 (about 30 times brighter than the full Moon). The spacecraft was traveling at 17.043 km/s (10.590 mi/s) relative to the Sun. At this rate, it would need about 17,565 years to travel a single light-year. To compare, Proxima Centauri, the closest star to the Sun, is about 4.2 light-years (2.65×105 AU) distant. If the spacecraft was traveling in the direction of that star, it would take 73,775 years to reach it. Voyager 1 is heading in the direction of the constellation Ophiuchus.
|
||||
In late 2012, researchers reported that particle data from the spacecraft suggested that the probe had passed through the heliopause. Measurements from the spacecraft revealed a steady rise since May in collisions with high energy particles (above 70 MeV), which are thought to be cosmic rays emanating from supernova explosions far beyond the Solar System, with a sharp increase in these collisions in late August. At the same time, in late August, there was a dramatic drop in collisions with low-energy particles, which are thought to originate from the Sun.
|
||||
Ed Roelof, a space scientist at Johns Hopkins University and principal investigator for the Low-Energy Charged Particle instrument on the spacecraft, declared that "most scientists involved with Voyager 1 would agree that [these two criteria] have been sufficiently satisfied". However, the last criterion for officially declaring that Voyager 1 had crossed the boundary, the expected change in magnetic field direction (from that of the Sun to that of the interstellar field beyond), had not been observed (the field had changed direction by only 2 degrees), which suggested to some that the nature of the edge of the heliosphere had been misjudged.
|
||||
On December 3, 2012, Voyager project scientist Ed Stone of the California Institute of Technology said, "Voyager has discovered a new region of the heliosphere that we had not realized was there. We're still inside, apparently. But the magnetic field now is connected to the outside. So it's like a highway letting particles in and out." The magnetic field in this region was 10 times more intense than Voyager 1 encountered before the termination shock. It was expected to be the last barrier before the spacecraft exited the Solar System completely and entered interstellar space.
|
||||
34
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|
||||
|
||||
=== Interstellar medium ===
|
||||
In March 2013, it was announced that Voyager 1 might have become the first spacecraft to enter interstellar space, having detected a marked change in the plasma environment on August 25, 2012. However, until September 12, 2013, it was still an open question as to whether the new region was interstellar space or an unknown region of the Solar System. At that time, the former alternative was officially confirmed.
|
||||
In 2013, Voyager 1 was exiting the Solar System at a speed of about 3.6 AU (330 million mi; 540 million km) per year, which is 61,602 km/h, 4.83 times the diameter of Earth (12,742 km) per hour; whereas Voyager 2 is going slower, leaving the Solar System at 3.3 AU (310 million mi; 490 million km) per year. Each year, Voyager 1 increases its lead over Voyager 2.
|
||||
Voyager 1 reached a distance of 135 AU (12.5 billion mi; 20.2 billion km) from the Sun on May 18, 2016. On September 5, 2017, that had increased to about 139.64 AU (12.980 billion mi; 20.890 billion km) from the Sun, or just over 19 light-hours; at that time, Voyager 2 was 115.32 AU (10.720 billion mi; 17.252 billion km) from the Sun.
|
||||
Its progress can be monitored at NASA's website.
|
||||
|
||||
On September 12, 2013, NASA confirmed that Voyager 1 had reached the interstellar medium in August 2012 as previously observed. The generally accepted date of arrival is August 25, 2012 (approximately 10 days before the 35th anniversary of its launch), the date durable changes in the density of energetic particles were first detected. By this point, most space scientists had abandoned the hypothesis that a change in magnetic field direction must accompany a crossing of the heliopause; a new model of the heliopause predicted that no such change would be found.
|
||||
A key finding that persuaded many scientists that the heliopause had been crossed was an indirect measurement of an 80-fold increase in electron density, based on the frequency of plasma oscillations observed beginning on April 9, 2013, triggered by a solar outburst that had occurred in March 2012. Electron density is expected to be two orders of magnitude higher outside the heliopause than within.
|
||||
Weaker sets of oscillations measured in October and November 2012 provided additional data. An indirect measurement was required because Voyager 1's plasma spectrometer had stopped working in 1980. In September 2013, NASA released recordings of audio transductions of these plasma waves, the first to be measured in interstellar space.
|
||||
While Voyager 1 is commonly spoken of as having left the Solar System simultaneously with having left the heliosphere, the two are not the same. The Solar System is usually defined as the vastly larger region of space populated by bodies that orbit the Sun. The craft is presently less than one-seventh the distance to the aphelion of Sedna, and it has not yet entered the postulated position of the Oort cloud, the hypothetical source region of long-period comets, regarded by astronomers as the outermost zone of the Solar System.
|
||||
In October 2020, astronomers reported a significant unexpected increase in density in the space beyond the Solar System as detected by the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 space probes. According to the researchers, this implies that "the density gradient is a large-scale feature of the VLISM (very local interstellar medium) in the general direction of the heliospheric nose".
|
||||
In May 2021, NASA reported on the continuous measurement, for the first time, of the density of material in interstellar space and, as well, the detection of interstellar sounds for the first time.
|
||||
|
||||
== Future of the probe ==
|
||||
|
||||
=== Remaining lifespan ===
|
||||
|
||||
In December 2017, NASA fired all four of Voyager 1's trajectory correction maneuver (TCM) thrusters for the first time since 1980. The TCM thrusters were used in the place of a degraded set of jets to help keep the probe's antenna pointed towards Earth. Using the TCM thrusters allowed Voyager 1 to continue transmitting data to NASA for two to three more years.
|
||||
Due to the diminishing electrical power available, the Voyager team has had to prioritize which instruments to keep on and which to turn off. Heaters and other spacecraft systems have been turned off one by one as part of power management. The fields and particles instruments that are the most likely to send back key data about the heliosphere and interstellar space have been prioritized to keep operating. In 2023, engineers expected the spacecraft to continue operating at least one science instrument until around 2025. As of late April 2026, two instruments remain in operation.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Concerns with the orientation thrusters ===
|
||||
Some thrusters needed to control the attitude of the spacecraft and point its high-gain antenna in the direction of Earth are out of use due to clogging problems in their hydrazine lines. The spacecraft no longer has a backup available for its thruster system and "everything onboard is single-string," according to Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager at JPL, in an interview with Ars Technica. NASA has accordingly decided to modify the spacecraft's computer software in order to reduce the rate at which the hydrazine lines clog. NASA will first deploy the modified software on Voyager 2, which is less distant from Earth, before deploying it on Voyager 1.
|
||||
In September 2024, NASA performed a "thruster swap", switching from a clogged set of thrusters to less clogged ones that had not been used since 2018.
|
||||
In May 2025, the team was able to revive the backup thrusters used for roll motion that were unusable since 2004.
|
||||
27
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|
||||
|
||||
=== Communication issues ===
|
||||
In May 2022, NASA reported that Voyager 1 had begun transmitting "mysterious" and "peculiar" telemetric data to the Deep Space Network (DSN). It confirmed that the operational status of the craft remained unchanged, but that the issue stemmed from the Attitude Articulation and Control System (AACS). NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory published a statement on May 18, 2022, that the AACS was functional but sending invalid data.
|
||||
The problem was eventually traced to the AACS sending its telemetry through a computer that had been non-operational for years, resulting in data corruption. In August 2022, NASA transmitted a command to the AACS to use another computer, which resolved the problem. An investigation into what caused the initial switch is underway, though engineers have hypothesized that the AACS had executed a bad command from another onboard computer.
|
||||
Voyager 1 began transmitting unreadable data on November 14, 2023. On December 12, 2023, NASA announced that Voyager 1's flight data system was unable to use its telemetry modulation unit, preventing it from transmitting scientific data. On March 24, 2024, NASA announced that they had made significant progress on interpreting the data being received from the spacecraft. Engineers reported in April 2024 that the failure was likely in a memory bank of the Flight Data Subsystem (FDS), one of the three onboard computer systems, probably from being struck by a high-energy particle or that it simply wore out due to age. The FDS was not communicating properly with the telemetry modulation unit (TMU), which began transmitting a repeating sequence of ones and zeros indicating that the system was in a stuck condition. After a reboot of the FDS, communications remained unusable.
|
||||
The probe still received commands from Earth, and was sending a carrier tone indicating it was operational. Commands sent to alter the modulation of the tone succeeded, confirming that the probe was still responsive. The Voyager team began developing a workaround, and on April 20 communication of health and status was restored by rearranging code away from the defective FDS memory chip, three percent of which was corrupted beyond repair.
|
||||
Because the memory is corrupt, the code needed to be relocated, but there was no place for an extra 256 bits; the spacecraft's total memory is only 68 kilobytes. To make it work, the engineers deleted unused code, for example the code used to transmit the data from Jupiter, that cannot be used at the current transmission rate. All the data from the "anomaly period" is lost. On May 22, NASA announced that Voyager 1 "resumed returning science data from two of its four instruments", with work towards the others ongoing. On June 13, NASA confirmed that the probe returns data from all four instruments.
|
||||
In October 2024, the probe turned off its X-band radio transmitter that was used for communications with the DSN. It was caused by the probe's fault protection system that was activated after NASA turned on one of the heaters on October 16. The fault protection system lowered the transmission rate, but the engineers were able to find the signal. Later, on October 19, the transmission stopped; the fault protection system was triggered once again and switched to the S-band transmitter, that was previously used in 1981. NASA reported that the team reactivated the X-band transmitter and then resumed collecting data in mid-November.
|
||||
Between May 2025 and February 2026, Deep Space Station 43 in Canberra, Australia—the only antenna capable of sending commands to Voyager 1 and 2—was offline for major upgrades, with only limited operational windows in August and December 2025. This created a critical deadline for engineers to revive backup roll thrusters before full loss of communication.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Far future ===
|
||||
|
||||
Provided Voyager 1 does not collide with anything and is not retrieved, it is expected to reach the theorized Oort cloud in about 300 years and take about 30,000 years to pass through it.
|
||||
Though it is not heading towards any particular star, in about 40,000 years, it will pass within 1.6 light-years (0.49 parsecs; 100,000 astronomical units) of the star Gliese 445, which is in the constellation Camelopardalis and 17.1 light-years from Earth (as of 2010). That star is generally moving towards the Solar System at about 119 km/s (430,000 km/h; 270,000 mph).
|
||||
In 300,000 years, it will pass within less than 1 light-year of the M3V star TYC 3135–52–1.
|
||||
The New Horizons space probe will never pass it, despite being launched from Earth at a higher speed than either Voyager spacecraft. The Voyager spacecraft benefited from multiple planetary flybys to increase their heliocentric velocities, whereas New Horizons received only a single such boost, from its Jupiter flyby in 2007. As of 2018, New Horizons is traveling at about 14 km/s (8.7 mi/s), 3 km/s (1.9 mi/s) slower than Voyager 1, and New Horizons, being closer to the Sun, is slowing more rapidly. NASA says that: "The Voyagers are destined – perhaps eternally – to wander the Milky Way."
|
||||
|
||||
== Golden record ==
|
||||
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||||
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||||
date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:27:04.653048+00:00"
|
||||
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|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Both Voyager space probes carry a gold-plated audio-visual disc, a compilation meant to showcase the diversity of life and culture on Earth in the event that either spacecraft is ever found by any extraterrestrial discoverer. The record, made under the direction of a team including Carl Sagan and Timothy Ferris, includes photos of the Earth and its lifeforms, a range of scientific information, spoken greetings from people such as the Secretary-General of the United Nations (Kurt Waldheim) and a medley, "Sounds of Earth".
|
||||
It includes the sounds of whales, a baby crying, waves breaking on a shore, and a collection of music spanning different cultures and eras including works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Blind Willie Johnson, Chuck Berry and Valya Balkanska. Other Eastern and Western classics are included, as well as performances of indigenous and folk music from around the world. The record also contains greetings in 55 different languages. The project aimed to portray the richness of life on Earth and stand as a testament to human creativity and the desire to connect with the cosmos.
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
NASA Voyager website
|
||||
Voyager 1 Mission Profile by NASA's Solar System Exploration
|
||||
Where is Voyager? – Powered by NASA's Eyes on the Solar System – NASA/JPL
|
||||
Position of Voyager 1 (Live-Counter)
|
||||
Voyager 1 (NSSDC Master Catalog) Archived January 30, 2017, at the Wayback Machine
|
||||
Heavens-above.com: Spacecraft Escaping the Solar System – current positions and diagrams
|
||||
JPL Voyager Telecom Manual
|
||||
Voyager 1 Has Outdistanced the Solar Wind
|
||||
Gray, Meghan. "Voyager and Interstellar Space". Deep Space Videos. Brady Haran.
|
||||
31
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|
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|
||||
|
||||
Voyager 2 is a space probe launched by NASA on August 20, 1977, as a part of the Voyager program. It was launched on a trajectory towards the gas giants (Jupiter and Saturn) and enabled further encounters with the ice giants (Uranus and Neptune). The only spacecraft to have visited either of the ice giant planets, it was the third of five spacecraft to achieve Solar escape velocity, which allowed it to leave the Solar System. Launched 16 days before its twin Voyager 1, the primary mission of the spacecraft was to study the outer planets and its extended mission is to study interstellar space beyond the Sun's heliosphere.
|
||||
Voyager 2 successfully fulfilled its primary mission of visiting the Jovian system in 1979, the Saturnian system in 1981, Uranian system in 1986, and the Neptunian system in 1989. The spacecraft is currently in its extended mission of studying the interstellar medium. It is at a distance of 143.05 AU (21.4 billion km; 13.3 billion mi) from Earth as of February 2026.
|
||||
The probe entered the interstellar medium on November 5, 2018, at a distance of 119.7 AU (11.1 billion mi; 17.9 billion km) from the Sun and moving at a velocity of 15.341 km/s (34,320 mph) relative to the Sun. Voyager 2 has left the Sun's heliosphere and is traveling through the interstellar medium, though still inside the Solar System, joining Voyager 1, which reached the interstellar medium in 2012. Voyager 2 has begun to provide the first direct measurements of the density and temperature of the interstellar plasma.
|
||||
Voyager 2 is in contact with Earth through the NASA Deep Space Network. Communications are the responsibility of Australia's DSS 43 communication antenna, near Canberra.
|
||||
|
||||
== History ==
|
||||
|
||||
=== Background ===
|
||||
|
||||
In the early space age, it was realized that a periodic alignment of the outer planets would occur in the late 1970s and enable a single probe to visit Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune by taking advantage of the then-new technique of gravity assists. NASA began work on a Grand Tour, which evolved into a massive project involving two groups of two probes each, with one group visiting Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto and the other Jupiter, Uranus, and Neptune. The spacecraft would be designed with redundant systems to ensure survival throughout the entire tour. By 1972 the mission was scaled back and replaced with two Mariner program-derived spacecraft, the Mariner Jupiter-Saturn probes. To keep apparent lifetime program costs low, the mission would include only flybys of Jupiter and Saturn, but keep the Grand Tour option open. As the program progressed, the name was changed to Voyager.
|
||||
The primary mission of Voyager 1 was to explore Jupiter, Saturn, and Saturn's largest moon, Titan. Voyager 2 was also to explore Jupiter and Saturn, but on a trajectory that would have the option of continuing on to Uranus and Neptune, or being redirected to Titan as a backup for Voyager 1. Upon successful completion of Voyager 1's objectives, Voyager 2 would get a mission extension to send the probe on towards Uranus and Neptune. Titan was selected due to the interest developed after the images taken by Pioneer 11 in 1979, which had indicated the atmosphere of the moon was substantial and complex. Hence the trajectory was designed for optimum Titan flyby.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Spacecraft design ===
|
||||
Constructed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Voyager 2, whose bus is shaped like a decagonal prism, included 16 hydrazine thrusters, three-axis stabilization, gyroscopes and celestial referencing instruments (a Sun sensor, and a Canopus star tracker) to maintain pointing of the high-gain antenna toward Earth. Collectively these instruments are part of the Attitude and Articulation Control Subsystem (AACS) along with redundant units of most instruments and 8 backup thrusters. The spacecraft also included 11 scientific instruments to study celestial objects as it traveled through space.
|
||||
|
||||
==== Communications ====
|
||||
Built with the intent for eventual interstellar travel, Voyager 2 included a large, 3.7 m (12 ft) parabolic, high-gain antenna (see diagram) to transceive data via the Deep Space Network on Earth. Communications are conducted over the S-band (about 13 cm wavelength) and X-band (about 3.6 cm wavelength), providing data rates of up to 115.2 kilobits per second at the distance of Jupiter; this rates decreases according to inverse-square law as it travels farther away from Earth. When the spacecraft is out of line-of-sight and unable to communicate, a digital tape recorder (DTR) can record about 64 megabytes of data for transmission at another time.
|
||||
|
||||
==== Power ====
|
||||
|
||||
Voyager 2 is equipped with three multihundred-watt radioisotope thermoelectric generators (MHW RTGs). Each RTG includes 24 pressed plutonium oxide spheres. At launch, each RTG provided enough heat to generate approximately 157 W of electrical power. Collectively, the RTGs supplied the spacecraft with 470 watts at launch (halving every 87.7 years). They were predicted to allow operations to continue until at least 2020, and continued to provide power to five scientific instruments through the early part of 2023. In April 2023 JPL began using a reservoir of backup power intended for an onboard safety mechanism. As a result, all five instruments had been expected to continue operation through 2026. In October 2024, NASA announced that the plasma science instrument had been turned off, preserving power for the remaining four instruments.
|
||||
38
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||||
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|
||||
|
||||
==== Attitude control and propulsion ====
|
||||
Because of the energy required to achieve a Jupiter trajectory boost with an 825-kilogram (1,819 lb) payload, the spacecraft included a propulsion module made of a 1,123-kilogram (2,476 lb) solid-rocket motor and eight hydrazine monopropellant rocket engines, four providing pitch and yaw attitude control, and four for roll control. The propulsion module was jettisoned shortly after the successful Jupiter burn.
|
||||
Sixteen hydrazine Aerojet MR-103 thrusters on the mission module provide attitude control. Four are used to execute trajectory correction maneuvers; the others in two redundant six-thruster branches, to stabilize the spacecraft on its three axes. Only one branch of attitude control thrusters is needed at any time.
|
||||
Thrusters are supplied by a single 70-centimeter (28 in) diameter spherical titanium tank. It contained 100 kilograms (220 lb) of hydrazine at launch, providing enough fuel to last until 2034.
|
||||
|
||||
==== Scientific instruments ====
|
||||
|
||||
== Mission profile ==
|
||||
|
||||
=== Launch and trajectory ===
|
||||
The Voyager 2 probe was launched on August 20, 1977, by NASA from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral, Florida, aboard a Titan IIIE/Centaur launch vehicle. Two weeks later, the twin Voyager 1 probe was launched on September 5, 1977. However, Voyager 1 reached both Jupiter and Saturn sooner, as Voyager 2 had been launched into a longer, more circular trajectory.
|
||||
Voyager 1's initial orbit had an aphelion of 8.9 AU (830 million mi; 1.33 billion km), just a little short of Saturn's orbit of 9.5 AU (880 million mi; 1.42 billion km). Whereas, Voyager 2's initial orbit had an aphelion of 6.2 AU (580 million mi; 930 million km), well short of Saturn's orbit.
|
||||
In April 1978, no commands were transmitted to Voyager 2 for a period of time, causing the spacecraft to switch from its primary radio receiver to its backup receiver. Sometime afterwards, the primary receiver failed altogether. The backup receiver was functional, but a failed capacitor in the receiver meant that it could only receive transmissions that were sent at a precise frequency, and this frequency would be affected by the Earth's rotation (due to the Doppler effect) and the onboard receiver's temperature, among other things.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Encounter with Jupiter ===
|
||||
|
||||
Voyager 2's closest approach to Jupiter occurred at 22:29 UT on July 9, 1979. It came within 570,000 km (350,000 mi) of the planet's cloud tops.
|
||||
Jupiter's Great Red Spot was revealed as a complex storm moving in a counterclockwise direction. Other smaller storms and eddies were found throughout the banded clouds.
|
||||
Voyager 2 returned images of Jupiter, as well as its moons Amalthea, Io, Callisto, Ganymede, and Europa. During a 10-hour "volcano watch", it confirmed Voyager 1's observations of active volcanism on the moon Io, and revealed how the moon's surface had changed in the four months since the previous visit. Together, the Voyagers observed the eruption of nine volcanoes on Io, and there is evidence that other eruptions occurred between the two Voyager fly-bys.
|
||||
Jupiter's moon Europa displayed a large number of intersecting linear features in the low-resolution photos from Voyager 1. At first, scientists believed the features might be deep cracks, caused by crustal rifting or tectonic processes. Closer high-resolution photos from Voyager 2, however, were puzzling: the features lacked topographic relief, and one scientist said they "might have been painted on with a felt marker". Europa is internally active due to tidal heating at a level about one-tenth that of Io. Europa is thought to have a thin crust (less than 30 km (19 mi) thick) of water ice, possibly floating on a 50 km (31 mi)-deep ocean.
|
||||
Two new, small satellites, Adrastea and Metis, were found orbiting just outside the ring. A third new satellite, Thebe, was discovered between the orbits of Amalthea and Io.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Encounter with Saturn ===
|
||||
|
||||
The closest approach to Saturn occurred at 03:24:05 UT on August 26, 1981. When Voyager 2 passed behind Saturn, viewed from Earth, it uses its radio link to investigate Saturn's upper atmosphere, gathering data on both temperature and pressure. In the highest regions of the atmosphere, where the pressure was measured at 70 mbar (1.0 psi), Voyager 2 recorded a temperature of 82 K (−191.2 °C; −312.1 °F). Deeper within the atmosphere, where the pressure was recorded to be 1,200 mbar (17 psi), the temperature rose to 143 K (−130 °C; −202 °F). The spacecraft also observed that the north pole was approximately 10 °C (18 °F) cooler at 100 mbar (1.5 psi) than mid-latitudes, a variance potentially attributable to seasonal shifts (see also Saturn Oppositions).
|
||||
After its Saturn fly-by, Voyager 2's scan platform experienced an anomaly causing its azimuth actuator to seize. This malfunction led to some data loss and posed challenges for the spacecraft's continued mission. The anomaly was traced back to a combination of issues, including a design flaw in the actuator shaft bearing and gear lubrication system, corrosion, and debris build-up. While overuse and depleted lubricant were factors, other elements, such as dissimilar metal reactions and a lack of relief ports, compounded the problem. Engineers on the ground were able to issue a series of commands, rectifying the issue to a degree that allowed the scan platform to resume its function. Voyager 2, which would have been diverted to perform the Titan flyby if Voyager 1 had been unable to, did not pass near Titan due to the malfunction, and subsequently, proceeded with its mission to explore the Uranian system.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Encounter with Uranus ===
|
||||
26
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|
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|
||||
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The closest approach to Uranus occurred on January 24, 1986, when Voyager 2 came within 81,500 km (50,600 mi) of the planet's cloudtops. Voyager 2 also discovered 11 previously unknown moons: Cordelia, Ophelia, Bianca, Cressida, Desdemona, Juliet, Portia, Rosalind, Belinda, Puck and Perdita. The mission also studied the planet's unique atmosphere, caused by its axial tilt of 97.8°, and examined the Uranian ring system. The length of a day on Uranus as measured by Voyager 2 is 17 hours, 14 minutes. Uranus was shown to have a magnetic field that was misaligned with its rotational axis, unlike other planets that had been visited to that point, and a helix-shaped magnetic tail stretching 10 million km (6.2 million mi) away from the Sun.
|
||||
When Voyager 2 visited Uranus, much of its cloud features were hidden by a layer of haze; however, false-color and contrast-enhanced images show bands of concentric clouds around its south pole. This area was also found to radiate large amounts of ultraviolet light, a phenomenon that is called "dayglow". The average atmospheric temperature is about 60 K (−351.7 °F; −213.2 °C). The illuminated and dark poles, and most of the planet, exhibit nearly the same temperatures at the cloud tops.
|
||||
The Voyager 2 Planetary Radio Astronomy (PRA) experiment observed 140 lightning flashes, or Uranian electrostatic discharges with a frequency of 0.9-40 MHz. The UEDs were detected from 600,000 km (370,000 mi) of Uranus over 24 hours, most of which were not visible. However, microphysical modeling suggests that Uranian lightning occurs in convective storms occurring in deep troposphere water clouds. If this is the case, lightning will not be visible due to the thick cloud layers above the troposphere. Uranian lightning has a power of around 108 W, emits 1×10^7 J – 2×10^7 J of energy, and lasts an average of 120 ms.
|
||||
Detailed images from Voyager 2's flyby of the Uranian moon Miranda showed huge canyons made from geological faults. One hypothesis suggests that Miranda might consist of a reaggregation of material following an earlier event when Miranda was shattered into pieces by a violent impact.
|
||||
Voyager 2 discovered two previously unknown Uranian rings. Measurements showed that the Uranian rings are different from those at Jupiter and Saturn. The Uranian ring system might be relatively young, and it did not form at the same time that Uranus did. The particles that make up the rings might be the remnants of a moon that was broken up by either a high-velocity impact or torn up by tidal effects.
|
||||
In March 2020, NASA astronomers reported the detection of a large atmospheric magnetic bubble, also known as a plasmoid, released into outer space from the planet Uranus, after reevaluating old data recorded during the flyby.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Encounter with Neptune ===
|
||||
|
||||
Following a course correction in 1987, Voyager 2's closest approach to Neptune occurred on August 25, 1989. Through repeated computerized test simulations of trajectories through the Neptunian system conducted in advance, flight controllers determined the best way to route Voyager 2 through the Neptune–Triton system. Since the plane of the orbit of Triton is tilted significantly with respect to the plane of the ecliptic; through course corrections, Voyager 2 was directed into a path about 4,950 km (3,080 mi) above the north pole of Neptune. Five hours after Voyager 2 made its closest approach to Neptune, it performed a close fly-by of Triton, Neptune's largest moon, passing within about 40,000 km (25,000 mi).
|
||||
In 1989, the Voyager 2 Planetary Radio Astronomy (PRA) experiment observed around 60 lightning flashes, or Neptunian electrostatic discharges emitting energies over 7×108 J. A plasma wave system (PWS) detected 16 electromagnetic wave events with a frequency range of 50 Hz – 12 kHz at magnetic latitudes 7˚–33˚. These plasma wave detections were possibly triggered by lightning over 20 minutes in the ammonia clouds of the magnetosphere. During Voyager 2's closest approach to Neptune, the PWS instrument provided Neptune’s first plasma wave detections at a sample rate of 28,800 samples per second. The measured plasma densities range from 10–3 – 10–1 cm–3.
|
||||
Voyager 2 discovered previously unknown Neptunian rings, and confirmed six new moons: Despina, Galatea, Larissa, Proteus, Naiad and Thalassa. While in the neighborhood of Neptune, Voyager 2 discovered the "Great Dark Spot", which has since disappeared, according to observations by the Hubble Space Telescope. The Great Dark Spot was later hypothesized to be a region of clear gas, forming a window in the planet's high-altitude methane cloud deck.
|
||||
|
||||
== Interstellar mission ==
|
||||
|
||||
Once its planetary mission was over, Voyager 2 was described as working on an interstellar mission, which NASA is using to find out what the Solar System is like beyond the heliosphere. As of September 2023, Voyager 2 is transmitting scientific data at about 160 bits per second. Information about continuing telemetry exchanges with Voyager 2 is available from Voyager Weekly Reports.
|
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In 1992, Voyager 2 observed the nova V1974 Cygni in the far-ultraviolet, first of its kind. The further increase in the brightness at those wavelengths helped in the more detailed study of the nova.
|
||||
In July 1994, an attempt was made to observe the impacts from fragments of the comet Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 with Jupiter. The craft's position meant it had a direct line of sight to the impacts and observations were made in the ultraviolet and radio spectrum. Voyager 2 failed to detect anything, with calculations showing that the fireballs were just below the craft's limit of detection.
|
||||
On November 29, 2006, a telemetered command to Voyager 2 was incorrectly decoded by its on-board computer—in a random error—as a command to turn on the electrical heaters of the spacecraft's magnetometer. These heaters remained turned on until December 4, 2006, and during that time, there was a resulting high temperature above 130 °C (266 °F), significantly higher than the magnetometers were designed to endure, and a sensor rotated away from the correct orientation.
|
||||
On August 30, 2007, Voyager 2 passed the termination shock and then entered into the heliosheath, approximately 1 billion mi (1.6 billion km) closer to the Sun than Voyager 1 did. This is due to the interstellar magnetic field of deep space. The southern hemisphere of the Solar System's heliosphere is being pushed in.
|
||||
On April 22, 2010, Voyager 2 encountered scientific data format problems. On May 17, 2010, JPL engineers revealed that a flipped bit in an on-board computer had caused the problem, and scheduled a bit reset for May 19. On May 23, 2010, Voyager 2 resumed sending science data from deep space after engineers fixed the flipped bit.
|
||||
In 2013, it was originally thought that Voyager 2 would enter interstellar space in two to three years, with its plasma spectrometer providing the first direct measurements of the density and temperature of the interstellar plasma. However, Voyager project scientist Edward C. Stone and his colleagues said they lacked evidence of what would be the key signature of interstellar space: a shift in the direction of the magnetic field. Finally, in December 2018, Stone announced that Voyager 2 reached interstellar space on November 5, 2018.
|
||||
|
||||
Maintenance to the Deep Space Network cut outbound contact with the probe for eight months in 2020. Contact was reestablished on November 2, when a series of instructions was transmitted, subsequently executed, and relayed back with a successful communication message. On February 12, 2021, full communications were restored after a major ground station antenna upgrade that took a year to complete.
|
||||
In October 2020, astronomers reported a significant unexpected increase in density in the space beyond the Solar System as detected by the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2; this implies that "the density gradient is a large-scale feature of the VLISM (very local interstellar medium) in the general direction of the heliospheric nose".
|
||||
On July 18, 2023, Voyager 2 overtook Pioneer 10 as the second farthest spacecraft from the Sun.
|
||||
On July 21, 2023, a programming error misaligned Voyager 2's high gain antenna 2 degrees away from Earth, breaking communications with the spacecraft. By August 1, the spacecraft's carrier signal was detected using multiple antennas of the Deep Space Network. A high-power "shout" on August 4 sent from the Canberra station successfully commanded the spacecraft to reorient towards Earth, resuming communications. As a failsafe measure, the probe is also programmed to autonomously reset its orientation to point towards Earth, which would have occurred by October 15.
|
||||
|
||||
== Reductions in capabilities ==
|
||||
As the power from the RTG slowly reduces, various items of equipment have been turned off on the spacecraft. The first science equipment turned off on Voyager 2 was the PPS in 1991, which saved 1.2 watts.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Concerns with the orientation thrusters ===
|
||||
Some thrusters needed to control the correct attitude of the spacecraft and to point its high-gain antenna in the direction of Earth are out of use due to clogging problems in their hydrazine injector. The spacecraft no longer has backups available for its thruster system and "everything onboard is running on single-string" as acknowledged by Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager at JPL, in an interview with Ars Technica. NASA has decided to patch the computer software in order to modify the functioning of the remaining thrusters to slow down the clogging of the small diameter hydrazine injector jets. Before uploading the software update on the Voyager 1 computer, NASA will first try the procedure with Voyager 2, which is closer to Earth.
|
||||
|
||||
== Future of the probe ==
|
||||
The probe is expected to keep transmitting weak radio messages until at least the mid-2020s, more than 48 years after it was launched. NASA says that "The Voyagers are destined—perhaps eternally—to wander the Milky Way."
|
||||
Voyager 2 is not headed toward any particular star. The nearest star is 4.2 light-years away, and at 15.341 km/s, the spacecraft travels one light-year in about 19,541 years — during which time the nearby stars will also move substantially. In roughly 42,000 years, Voyager 2 will pass the star Ross 248 (10.30 light-years away from Earth) at a distance of 1.7 light-years. If undisturbed for 296,000 years, Voyager 2 should pass by the star Sirius (8.6 light-years from Earth) at a distance of 4.3 light-years.
|
||||
|
||||
== Golden record ==
|
||||
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Both Voyager space probes carry a gold-plated audio-visual disc, a compilation meant to showcase the diversity of life and culture on Earth in the event that either spacecraft is ever found by any extraterrestrial discoverer. The record, made under the direction of a team including Carl Sagan and Timothy Ferris, includes photos of the Earth and its lifeforms, a range of scientific information, spoken greetings from people such as the Secretary-General of the United Nations, and a medley, "Sounds of Earth", that includes the sounds of whales, a baby crying, waves breaking on a shore, and a collection of music spanning different cultures and eras including works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Blind Willie Johnson, Chuck Berry and Valya Balkanska. Other Eastern and Western classics are included, as well as performances of indigenous music from around the world. The record also contains greetings in 55 different languages. The project aimed to portray the richness of life on Earth and stand as a testament to human creativity and the desire to connect with the cosmos.
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
|
||||
Family Portrait
|
||||
The Farthest, a 2017 documentary on the Voyager program.
|
||||
List of artificial objects leaving the Solar System
|
||||
List of missions to the outer planets
|
||||
New Horizons
|
||||
Pioneer 10
|
||||
Pioneer 11
|
||||
Timeline of artificial satellites and space probes
|
||||
Voyager 1
|
||||
|
||||
== Notes ==
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
== Further reading ==
|
||||
"Saturn Science Results". Voyager Science Results at Saturn. Retrieved February 8, 2005.
|
||||
"Uranus Science Results". Voyager Science Results at Uranus. Retrieved February 8, 2005.
|
||||
Nardo, Don (2002). Neptune. Thomson Gale. ISBN 0-7377-1001-2
|
||||
JPL Voyager Telecom Manual
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
NASA Voyager website
|
||||
Voyager 2 Mission Profile by NASA's Solar System Exploration
|
||||
Voyager 2 (NSSDC Master Catalog) Archived January 31, 2017, at the Wayback Machine
|
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The Voyager program is an American scientific program that employs two interstellar probes, Voyager 1 and Voyager 2. They were launched in 1977 to take advantage of a favorable planetary alignment to explore the two gas giants Jupiter and Saturn and potentially also the ice giants, Uranus and Neptune—to fly near them while collecting data for transmission back to Earth. After Voyager 1 successfully completed its flyby of Saturn and its moon Titan, it was decided that Voyager 2 would continue on its pre-planned trajectory to fly by Uranus and Neptune.
|
||||
After the planetary flybys were complete, decisions were made to keep the probes in operation to explore interstellar space and the outer regions of the Solar System. On 25 August 2012, data from Voyager 1 indicated that it had entered interstellar space. On 5 November 2019, data from Voyager 2 indicated that it also had entered interstellar space. On 4 November 2019, scientists reported that on 5 November 2018, the Voyager 2 probe had officially reached the interstellar medium (ISM), a region of outer space beyond the influence of the solar wind, as did Voyager 1 in 2012. In August 2018, NASA confirmed, based on results by the New Horizons spacecraft, the existence of a "hydrogen wall" at the outer edges of the Solar System that was first detected in 1992 by the two Voyager spacecraft.
|
||||
As of 2026, both Voyagers are still in operation beyond the outer boundary of the heliosphere in interstellar space. As of 2024,Voyager 1 was moving with a velocity of 61,000 kilometers per hour (38,000 mph), or 17 km/s, (10.5 miles/second) relative to the Sun, and was 24.5 billion kilometers (164 AU) from the Sun. At the same time, Voyager 2 was moving with a velocity of 55,000 kilometers per hour (34,000 mph), or 15 km/s, relative to the Sun, and was 20.4 billion kilometers (12.7×10^9 mi) from the Sun.
|
||||
The two Voyagers are the only human-made objects to date that have passed into interstellar space — a record they will hold until at least the 2040s — and Voyager 1 is the farthest human-made object from Earth.
|
||||
|
||||
== History ==
|
||||
|
||||
=== Mariner Jupiter-Saturn ===
|
||||
|
||||
Voyager did things no one predicted, found scenes no one expected, and promises to outlive its inventors. Like a great painting or an abiding institution, it has acquired an existence of its own, a destiny beyond the grasp of its handlers.
|
||||
The two Voyager space probes were originally conceived as part of the Planetary Grand Tour planned during the late 1960s and early 70s that aimed to explore Jupiter, Saturn, Saturn's moon Titan, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto. The mission originated from the Grand Tour program, conceptualized by Gary Flandro, an aerospace engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, in 1964, which leveraged a rare planetary alignment occurring once every 175 years. This alignment allowed a craft to reach all outer planets using gravitational assists. The mission was to send several pairs of probes and gained momentum in 1966 when it was endorsed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. However, in December 1971, the Grand Tour mission was canceled when funding was redirected to the Space Shuttle program.
|
||||
In 1972, a scaled-down (four planets, two identical spacecraft) mission was proposed, utilizing a spacecraft derived from the Mariner series, initially intended to be Mariner 11 and Mariner 12. The gravity-assist technique, successfully demonstrated by Mariner 10, would be used to achieve significant velocity changes by maneuvering through an intermediate planet's gravitational field to minimize time towards Saturn. The spacecrafts were then moved into a separate program named Mariner Jupiter-Saturn (also Mariner Jupiter-Saturn-Uranus, MJS, or MJSU), part of the Mariner program, later renamed because it was thought that the design of the two space probes had progressed sufficiently beyond that of the Mariner family to merit a separate name.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Voyager probes ===
|
||||
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On March 4, 1977, NASA announced a competition to rename the mission, believing the existing name was not appropriate as the mission had differed significantly from previous Mariner missions. Voyager was chosen as the new name, referencing an earlier suggestion by William Pickering, who had proposed the name Navigator. Due to the name change occurring close to launch, the probes were still occasionally referred to as Mariner 11 and Mariner 12, or even Voyager 11 and Voyager 12.
|
||||
Two mission trajectories were established: JST aimed at Jupiter, Saturn, and enhancing a Titan flyby, while JSX served as a contingency plan. JST focused on a Titan flyby, while JSX provided a flexible mission plan. If JST succeeded, JSX could proceed with the Grand Tour, but in case of failure, JSX could be redirected for a separate Titan flyby, forfeiting the Grand Tour opportunity. The second probe, now Voyager 2, followed the JSX trajectory, granting it the option to continue on to Uranus and Neptune. Upon Voyager 1 completing its main objectives at Saturn, Voyager 2 received a mission extension, enabling it to proceed to Uranus and Neptune. This allowed Voyager 2 to diverge from the originally planned JST trajectory.
|
||||
The probes would be launched in August or September 1977, with their main objective being to compare the characteristics of Jupiter and Saturn, such as their atmospheres, magnetic fields, particle environments, ring systems, and moons. They would fly by planets and moons in either a JST or JSX trajectory. After completing their flybys, the probes would communicate with Earth, relaying vital data using their magnetometers, spectrometers, and other instruments to detect interstellar, solar, and cosmic radiation. Their radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) would limit the maximum communication time with the probes to roughly a decade. Following their primary missions, the probes would continue to drift into interstellar space.
|
||||
Voyager 2 was the first to be launched. Its trajectory was designed to allow flybys of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Voyager 1 was launched after Voyager 2, but along a shorter and faster trajectory that was designed to provide an optimal flyby of Saturn's moon Titan, which was known to be quite large and to possess a dense atmosphere. This encounter sent Voyager 1 out of the plane of the ecliptic, ending its planetary science mission. Had Voyager 1 been unable to perform the Titan flyby, the trajectory of Voyager 2 could have been altered to explore Titan, forgoing any visit to Uranus and Neptune. Voyager 1 was not launched on a trajectory that would have allowed it to continue to Uranus and Neptune, but could have continued from Saturn to Pluto without exploring Titan.
|
||||
During the 1990s, Voyager 1 overtook the slower deep-space probes Pioneer 10 and Pioneer 11 to become the most distant human-made object from Earth, a record that it will keep for the foreseeable future. The New Horizons probe, which had a higher launch velocity than Voyager 1, is travelling more slowly due to the extra speed Voyager 1 gained from its flyby of Saturn. Voyager 1 and Pioneer 10 are the most widely separated human-made objects anywhere since they are travelling in roughly opposite directions from the Solar System.
|
||||
In December 2004, Voyager 1 crossed the termination shock, where the solar wind is slowed to subsonic speed, and entered the heliosheath, where the solar wind is compressed and made turbulent due to interactions with the interstellar medium. On 10 December 2007, Voyager 2 also reached the termination shock, about 1.6 billion kilometres (1 billion miles) closer to the Sun than from where Voyager 1 first crossed it, indicating that the Solar System is asymmetrical.
|
||||
In 2010 Voyager 1 reported that the outward velocity of the solar wind had dropped to zero, and scientists predicted it was nearing interstellar space. In 2011, data from the Voyagers determined that the heliosheath was not smooth, but filled with giant magnetic bubbles. It was theorized that they formed when the magnetic field of the Sun became warped at the edge of the Solar System.
|
||||
In June 2012, scientists at NASA reported that Voyager 1 was very close to entering interstellar space, which was indicated by a sharp rise in high-energy particles from outside the Solar System. In September 2013, NASA announced that Voyager 1 had crossed the heliopause on 25 August 2012, making it the first spacecraft to enter interstellar space.
|
||||
In December 2018, NASA announced that Voyager 2 had crossed the heliopause on 5 November 2018, making it the second spacecraft to enter interstellar space.
|
||||
As of 2017 Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 continued to monitor conditions in the outer expanses of the Solar System. The Voyager spacecraft were expected to be able to operate science instruments through 2020, when limited power would require instruments to be deactivated one by one. It was expected that circa 2025 there would no longer be sufficient power to operate any scientific instruments.
|
||||
In July 2019, a revised power management plan was implemented for the two probes' dwindling power supplies.
|
||||
|
||||
== Spacecraft design ==
|
||||
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The Voyager spacecraft each weighed 815 kilograms (1,797 pounds) at launch, but after fuel usage are now about 733 kilograms (1,616 pounds). Of this weight, each spacecraft carries 105 kilograms (231 pounds) of scientific instruments. The identical Voyager spacecraft use three-axis-stabilized guidance systems that use gyroscopic and accelerometer inputs to their attitude control computers to point their high-gain antennas towards the Earth and their scientific instruments towards their targets, sometimes with the help of a movable instrument platform for the smaller instruments and the electronic photography system.
|
||||
The diagram shows the high-gain antenna (HGA) with a 3.7 m (12 ft) diameter dish attached to the hollow decagonal electronics container. There is also a spherical tank that contains the hydrazine monopropellant fuel.
|
||||
The Voyager Golden Record is attached to one of the bus sides. The angled square panel to the right is the optical calibration target and excess heat radiator. The three radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) are mounted end-to-end on the lower boom.
|
||||
The scan platform comprises: the Infrared Interferometer Spectrometer (IRIS) (largest camera at top right); the Ultraviolet Spectrometer (UVS) just above the IRIS; the two Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS) vidicon cameras to the left of the UVS; and the Photopolarimeter System (PPS) under the ISS.
|
||||
Only five investigation teams are still supported, though data is collected for two additional instruments.
|
||||
The Flight Data Subsystem (FDS) and a single eight-track digital tape recorder (DTR) provide the data handling functions.
|
||||
The FDS configures each instrument and controls instrument operations. It also collects engineering and science data and formats the data for transmission. The DTR is used to record high-rate Plasma Wave Subsystem (PWS) data, which is played back every six months.
|
||||
The Imaging Science Subsystem made up of a wide-angle and a narrow-angle camera is a modified version of the slow scan vidicon camera designs that were used in the earlier Mariner flights. The Imaging Science Subsystem consists of two television-type cameras, each with eight filters in a commandable filter wheel mounted in front of the vidicons. One has a low resolution 200 mm (7.9 in) focal length wide-angle lens with an aperture of f/3 (the wide-angle camera), while the other uses a higher resolution 1,500 mm (59 in) narrow-angle f/8.5 lens (the narrow-angle camera).
|
||||
Three spacecraft were built, Voyager 1 (VGR 77-1), Voyager 2 (VGR 77-3), and test spare model (VGR 77-2).
|
||||
|
||||
=== Scientific instruments ===
|
||||
|
||||
=== Computers and data processing ===
|
||||
There are three different computer types on the Voyager spacecraft, two of each kind, sometimes used for redundancy. They are proprietary, custom-built computers built from CMOS and TTL medium-scale CMOS integrated circuits and discrete components, mostly from the 7400 series of Texas Instruments. The total number of words among the six computers is about 32K. Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 have identical computer systems.
|
||||
The Computer Command System (CCS), the central controller of the spacecraft, has two 18-bit word, interrupt-type processors with 4096 words each of non-volatile plated-wire memory. During most of the Voyager mission the two CCS computers on each spacecraft were used non-redundantly to increase the command and processing capability of the spacecraft. The CCS is nearly identical to the system flown on the Viking spacecraft.
|
||||
The Flight Data System (FDS) is two 16-bit word machines with modular memories and 8198 words each.
|
||||
The Attitude and Articulation Control System (AACS) is two 18-bit word machines with 4096 words each.
|
||||
Unlike the other on-board instruments, the operation of the cameras for visible light is not autonomous, but rather it is controlled by an imaging parameter table contained in one of the on-board digital computers, the Flight Data Subsystem (FDS). More recent space probes, since about 1990, usually have completely autonomous cameras.
|
||||
The computer command subsystem (CCS) controls the cameras. The CCS contains fixed computer programs such as command decoding, fault detection, and correction routines, antenna-pointing routines, and spacecraft sequencing routines. This computer is an improved version of the one that was used in the Viking orbiter. The hardware in both custom-built CCS subsystems in the Voyagers is identical. There is only a minor software modification for one of them that has a scientific subsystem that the other lacks.
|
||||
According to Guinness Book of Records, CCS holds record of "longest period of continual operation for a computer". It has been running continuously since 20 August 1977.
|
||||
The Attitude and Articulation Control Subsystem (AACS) controls the spacecraft orientation (its attitude). It keeps the high-gain antenna pointing towards the Earth, controls attitude changes, and points the scan platform. The custom-built AACS systems on both craft are identical.
|
||||
It has been erroneously reported on the Internet that the Voyager space probes were controlled by a version of the RCA 1802 (RCA CDP1802 "COSMAC" microprocessor), but such claims are not supported by the primary design documents. The CDP1802 microprocessor was used later in the Galileo space probe, which was designed and built years later. The digital control electronics of the Voyagers were not based on a microprocessor integrated-circuit chip.
|
||||
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title: "Voyager program"
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source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyager_program"
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category: "reference"
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tags: "science, encyclopedia"
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date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:27:03.406597+00:00"
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instance: "kb-cron"
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---
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=== Communications ===
|
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The uplink communications are executed via S-band microwave communications. The downlink communications are carried out by an X-band microwave transmitter on board the spacecraft, with an S-band transmitter as a back-up. All long-range communications to and from the two Voyagers have been carried out using their 3.7-meter (12 ft) high-gain antennas. The high-gain antenna has a beamwidth of 0.5° for X-band, and 2.3° for S-band. (The low-gain antenna has a 7 dB gain and 60° beamwidth.)
|
||||
Because of the inverse-square law in radio communications, the digital data rates used in the downlinks from the Voyagers have been continually decreasing the farther that they get from the Earth. For example, the data rate used from Jupiter was about 115,000 bits per second. That was halved at the distance of Saturn, and it has gone down continually since then. Some measures were taken on the ground along the way to reduce the effects of the inverse-square law. In between 1982 and 1985, the diameters of the three main parabolic dish antennas of the Deep Space Network were increased from 64 to 70 m (210 to 230 ft) dramatically increasing their areas for gathering weak microwave signals.
|
||||
Whilst the craft were between Saturn and Uranus the onboard software was upgraded to do a degree of image compression and to use a more efficient Reed-Solomon error-correcting encoding.
|
||||
Then between 1986 and 1989, new techniques were brought into play to combine the signals from multiple antennas on the ground into one, more powerful signal, in a kind of an antenna array. This was done at Goldstone, California, Canberra (Australia), and Madrid (Spain) using the additional dish antennas available there. Also, in Australia, the Parkes Radio Telescope was brought into the array in time for the fly-by of Neptune in 1989. In the United States, the Very Large Array in New Mexico was brought into temporary use along with the antennas of the Deep Space Network at Goldstone. Using this new technology of antenna arrays helped to compensate for the immense radio distance from Neptune to the Earth.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Power ===
|
||||
|
||||
Electrical power is supplied by three MHW-RTG radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs). They are powered by plutonium-238 (distinct from the Pu-239 isotope used in nuclear weapons) and provided approximately 470 W at 30 volts DC when the spacecraft was launched. Plutonium-238 decays with a half-life of 87.74 years, so RTGs using Pu-238 will lose a factor of 1−0.5(1/87.74) = 0.79% of their power output per year.
|
||||
In 2011, 34 years after launch, the thermal power generated by such an RTG would be reduced to (1/2)(34/87.74) ≈ 76% of its initial power. The RTG thermocouples, which convert thermal power into electricity, also degrade over time reducing available electric power below this calculated level.
|
||||
By 7 October 2011 the power generated by Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 had dropped to 267.9 W and 269.2 W respectively, about 57% of the power at launch. The level of power output was better than pre-launch predictions based on a conservative thermocouple degradation model. As the electrical power decreases, spacecraft loads must be turned off, eliminating some capabilities. There may be insufficient power for communications by 2032.
|
||||
|
||||
== Voyager Interstellar Mission ==
|
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title: "Voyager program"
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chunk: 5/6
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source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyager_program"
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category: "reference"
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tags: "science, encyclopedia"
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date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:27:03.406597+00:00"
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instance: "kb-cron"
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---
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The Voyager primary mission was completed in 1989, with the close flyby of Neptune by Voyager 2. The Voyager Interstellar Mission (VIM) is a mission extension, which began when the two spacecraft had already been in flight for over 12 years. The Heliophysics Division of the NASA Science Mission Directorate conducted a Heliophysics Senior Review in 2008. The panel found that the VIM "is a mission that is absolutely imperative to continue" and that VIM "funding near the optimal level and increased DSN (Deep Space Network) support is warranted."
|
||||
The main objective of the VIM was to extend the exploration of the Solar System beyond the outer planets to the heliopause (the farthest extent at which the Sun's radiation predominates over interstellar winds) and if possible even beyond. Voyager 1 crossed the heliopause boundary in 2012, followed by Voyager 2 in 2018. Passing through the heliopause boundary has allowed both spacecraft to make measurements of the interstellar fields, particles and waves unaffected by the solar wind. Two significant findings so far have been the discovery of a region of magnetic bubbles and no indication of an expected shift in the Solar magnetic field.
|
||||
The entire Voyager 2 scan platform, including all of the platform instruments, was switched off in 1998. All platform instruments on Voyager 1, except for the ultraviolet spectrometer (UVS) have also been switched off.
|
||||
The Voyager 1 scan platform was scheduled to go off-line in late 2000 but has been left on to investigate UV emission from the upwind direction.
|
||||
UVS data are still captured but scans are no longer possible.
|
||||
Gyro operations ended in 2016 for Voyager 2 and in 2017 for Voyager 1. Gyro operations are used to rotate the probe 360 degrees six times per year to measure the magnetic field of the spacecraft, which is then subtracted from the magnetometer science data.
|
||||
On 14 November 2023, Voyager 1 stopped sending all telemetry and data, though the signal was still present. After months of experiments, made considerably more difficult by the 45 hour round trip time, the cause was traced to a bad memory chip. New software was written to avoid the bad memory block, and engineering data resumed on 20 April 2024. Science data from two instruments resumed in May 2024, and full recovery (of all science instruments that were still powered up) was in June 2024. For more details of this intricate operation, see Voyager 1.
|
||||
The two spacecraft continue to operate, with some loss in subsystem redundancy but retain the capability to return scientific data from a full complement of Voyager Interstellar Mission (VIM) science instruments.
|
||||
Both spacecraft also have adequate electrical power and attitude control propellant to continue operating and collecting science data through at least 2026. Though additional science instruments may need to be turned off, the spacecraft are expected to be able to communicate until 2036, in the absence of additional failures.
|
||||
|
||||
=== Mission details ===
|
||||
|
||||
By the start of VIM, Voyager 1 was at a distance of 40 AU from the Earth, while Voyager 2 was at 31 AU. VIM is in three phases: termination shock, heliosheath exploration, and interstellar exploration phase. The spacecraft began VIM in an environment controlled by the Sun's magnetic field, with the plasma particles being dominated by those contained in the expanding supersonic solar wind. This is the characteristic environment of the termination shock phase. At some distance from the Sun, the supersonic solar wind will be held back from further expansion by the interstellar wind. The first feature encountered by a spacecraft as a result of this interaction – between interstellar wind and solar wind – was the termination shock, where the solar wind slows to subsonic speed, and large changes in plasma flow direction and magnetic field orientation occur. Voyager 1 completed the phase of termination shock in December 2004 at a distance of 94 AU, while Voyager 2 completed it in August 2007 at a distance of 84 AU. After entering into the heliosheath, the spacecraft were in an area that is dominated by the Sun's magnetic field and solar wind particles. After passing through the heliosheath, the two Voyagers began the phase of interstellar exploration. The outer boundary of the heliosheath is called the heliopause. This is the region where the Sun's influence begins to decrease and interstellar space can be detected.
|
||||
Voyager 1 is escaping the Solar System at the speed of 3.6 AU per year 35° north of the ecliptic in the general direction of the solar apex in Hercules, while Voyager 2's speed is about 3.3 AU per year, heading 48° south of the ecliptic. The Voyager spacecraft will eventually go on to the stars. In about 40,000 years, Voyager 1 will be within 1.6 light years (ly) of AC+79 3888, also known as Gliese 445, which is approaching the Sun. In 40,000 years Voyager 2 will be within 1.7 ly of Ross 248 (another star which is approaching the Sun), and in 296,000 years it will pass within 4.6 ly of Sirius, which is the brightest star in the night-sky. The spacecraft are not expected to collide with a star for 1 sextillion (1020) years.
|
||||
In October 2020, astronomers reported a significant unexpected increase in density in the space beyond the Solar System, as detected by the Voyager space probes. According to the researchers, this implies that "the density gradient is a large-scale feature of the VLISM (very local interstellar medium) in the general direction of the heliospheric nose".
|
||||
|
||||
== Voyager Golden Record ==
|
||||
|
||||
Both spacecraft carry a 12-inch (30 cm) golden phonograph record that contains pictures and sounds of Earth, symbolic directions on the cover for playing the record, and data detailing the location of Earth. The record is intended as a combination time capsule and an interstellar message to any civilization, alien or far-future human, that may recover either of the Voyagers. The contents of this record were selected by a committee that included Timothy Ferris and was chaired by Carl Sagan.
|
||||
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title: "Voyager program"
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chunk: 6/6
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source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyager_program"
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category: "reference"
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tags: "science, encyclopedia"
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date_saved: "2026-05-05T13:27:03.406597+00:00"
|
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instance: "kb-cron"
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
== Pale Blue Dot ==
|
||||
|
||||
Pale Blue Dot is a photograph of Earth taken on February 14, 1990, by the Voyager 1 space probe from a distance of approximately 6 billion kilometers (3.7 billion miles, 40.5 AU), as part of that day's Family Portrait series of images of the Solar System.
|
||||
The Voyager program's discoveries during the primary phase of its mission, including new close-up color photos of the major planets, were regularly documented by print and electronic media outlets. Among the best-known of these is an image of the Earth as a Pale Blue Dot, taken in 1990 by Voyager 1, and popularized by Carl Sagan,
|
||||
|
||||
Consider again that dot. That's here. That's home. That's us....The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena.... To my mind, there is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly and compassionately with one another and to preserve and cherish that pale blue dot, the only home we've ever known.
|
||||
|
||||
== See also ==
|
||||
|
||||
== References ==
|
||||
|
||||
== Further reading ==
|
||||
Swift, David W. (1997). Voyager Tales. Reston, Va: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. ISBN 978-1-56347-252-7.
|
||||
Gallentine, Jay (2009). Ambassadors from Earth: Pioneering Explorations with Unmanned Spacecraft. Lincoln: U of Nebraska Press. ISBN 978-0-8032-2220-5.
|
||||
Pyne, Stephen J. (2010). Voyager: Exploration, Space, and the Third Great Age of Discovery. Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0-14-311959-3.
|
||||
Bell, Jim (2015). The Interstellar Age: Inside the Forty-Year Voyager Mission. Penguin Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-698-18615-6.
|
||||
|
||||
== External links ==
|
||||
|
||||
NASA sites
|
||||
|
||||
NASA Voyager website
|
||||
Voyager Mission status (updated in real time)
|
||||
Voyager Spacecraft Lifetime
|
||||
NASA Facts – Voyager Mission to the Outer Planets
|
||||
Voyager 1 and 2 atlas of six Saturnian satellites, 1984
|
||||
JPL Voyager Telecom Manual
|
||||
NASA instrument information pages:
|
||||
|
||||
"Voyager instrument overview". Archived from the original on 21 July 2011.
|
||||
"CRS – COSMIC RAY SUBSYSTEM". Archived from the original on 3 August 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2017.
|
||||
"ISS NA – IMAGING SCIENCE SUBSYSTEM – NARROW ANGLE". NASA. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
|
||||
"ISS WA – IMAGING SCIENCE SUBSYSTEM – WIDE ANGLE". Archived from the original on 18 July 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2009.
|
||||
"IRIS – INFRARED INTERFEROMETER SPECTROMETER AND RADIOMETER". Archived from the original on 18 July 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2009.
|
||||
"LECP – LOW ENERGY CHARGED PARTICLE". Archived from the original on 18 July 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2009.
|
||||
"MAG – TRIAXIAL FLUXGATE MAGNETOMETER". Archived from the original on 18 July 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2009.
|
||||
"PLS – PLASMA SCIENCE EXPERIMENT". Archived from the original on 18 July 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2009.
|
||||
"PPS – PHOTOPOLARIMETER SUBSYSTEM". Archived from the original on 25 August 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2009.
|
||||
"PRA – PLANETARY RADIO ASTRONOMY RECEIVER". Archived from the original on 18 July 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2009.
|
||||
"PWS – PLASMA WAVE RECEIVER". Archived from the original on 18 July 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2009.
|
||||
"RSS – RADIO SCIENCE SUBSYSTEM". Archived from the original on 3 August 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2017.
|
||||
"UVS – ULTRAVIOLET SPECTROMETER". Archived from the original on 3 August 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2017.
|
||||
Non-NASA sites
|
||||
|
||||
Spacecraft Escaping the Solar System – current positions and diagrams
|
||||
NPR: Science Friday 8/24/07 Interviews for 30th anniversary of Voyager spacecraft
|
||||
Illustrated technical paper by RL Heacock, the project engineer
|
||||
Gray, Meghan. "Voyager and Interstellar Space". Deep Space Videos. Brady Haran.
|
||||
PBS featured documentary The Farthest-Voyager in Space
|
||||
Voyager image album by Kevin M. Gill
|
||||
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