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Kosmos Launch Vehicle "B",

THE SMALL UTILITY LAUNCH VEHICLE ("B")

Kosmos [B-1] Series SL-7

Overview, Supporting Facilities and Launch Vehicles of the

Soviet Space Program *

1976-1980

* Prepared by the late Charles S. Sheldon II and Geoffrey E. Perry M.B.E. Dr. Sheldon was the Senior Specialist in Space and Transportation Technology, Mr. Perry is a Senior Teacher at Kettering Boys School, England, and the leader of the Kettering Group of amateur satellite observers.

Just as the United States looked to the Redstone, Thor, Jupiter, Atlas, and Titan in the missile inventory to serve as first stages of space launch vehicles, the Russians also saw the logic of applying the results of extensive military R&D. As discussed, the original ICBM, SS-6 or Sapwood became the standard Soviet launch vehicle from 1957 to the present time, with its lift capability gradually improved to as much as 7.5 metric tons. Even with the economies of serial production, this is still an expensive way to put up every payload whose weight may be a small fraction of 7.5 metric tons.

Moscow parades of military hardware had revealed medium range and intermediate range missiles which should have been quite capable of serving as the first stage of space launch vehicles. One of these, the SS-3 or Shyster was later pictured by the Russians as the largest of four classes of vertical probe rockets used for geophysical payloads and biological flights launched at Kapustin Yar during the late 1950's. Shyster was replaced in parades by an improved version which may have a range of about, 1,600 kilometers instead of about 1,000 kilometers such as its predecessor. This newer model was code named SS-4 or Sandal. It was the principal rocket which showed up in Cuba during the fall of 1962, so its picture became well known in the United States. Kapustin Yar, a primary base for test flights of the Shyster and then the Sandal missile, came into use as a space orbital launch site in March of 1962 when Kosmos 1 was announced. The small Kosmos flights, all flown at close to 49 or 48 degree inclinations would have been ideally launched by the Sandal, and that was the conclusion of Western analysts for 5 years. No specific weights were announced for these groups of Kosmos payloads, strongly suggesting that there would be a large military component among them. However, from a study of the replica payloads which have been put on display, this vehicle should be able to lift from 260 to 425 kilograms to orbit. A Soviet at the Montreal Expo told David Woods the range was 280 to 600 kilograms. In 1967 at the Paris Air Show, the Russians put on display for the first time the RD-119 upper stage engine used for this launch vehicle. It had been developed between 1958 and 1962 at the Leningrad Gas Dynamics Laboratory. Its design concept was a little like the RD-107 and RD-108 from the same source. It operates at a pressure of 80 atmospheres, has a thrust of 11 tons, and a vacuum Igp of 352 seconds. It burns unsymmetrical dimethyl hydrazine (UDMH) and perhaps liquid oxygen. The single nozzle is bell-shaped, and a single shaft turbo pump system drives the fuel and oxidizer supplies as well as a fairly elaborate set of auxiliary nozzles for roll, pitch, and yaw.

Late in 1967, with the expansion of the Moscow Museum of Industrial Achievement, a total assembly of this small Kosmos launcher was put on display. This confirmed the analysts had been right: It did use a modified SS-4 Sandal first stage, with an added upper stage powered by the RD-119. The SS-4 and the B-l are shown in figure 12. Some of the payloads it puts up are spin stabilized, and then the carrier rocket upper stage is separated. In at least one case, the payload was not separated. In another case, two payloads were put up in a single launch. Twice, a special aerodynamic stabilization was used. More recently the first stage rocket engine has been displayed as the RD-214. It has four nozzles, burns kerosene in refined form and nitric acid. Its thrust is 74 tons, the Isp is 264 seconds, and its chamber pressure is 45 atmospheres.

Articles in dark's series of studies of Soviet launch vehicles dealing with the B-l and its payloads at the 71 degrees inclination have appeared in Spaceflight. (37, 38)

The B vehicle would now appear to have been phased out of service, its role having been assumed by the C-l. The last B-l launch placed Kosmos 919 into orbit from Plesetsk on June 18, 1977.

Although this study is devoted to the space program and not to military hardware per se, so much reference is made to military surface-to-surface missiles, many of which are also used for space purposes that table 10 has been included to give a quick reference check list of the better known of these.

1. SOVIET SPACE PROGRAMS: 1976-80, SUPPORTING FACILITIES AND LAUNCH VEHICLES, POLITICAL GOALS AND PURPOSES, INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION IN SPACE, ADMINISTRATION, RESOURCE BURDEN, FUTURE OUTLOOK PREPARED AT THE REQUEST OF HON. BOB PACKWOOD, Chairman, COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION, UNITED STATES SENATE, Part 1, Dec. 1982.

36. Clark, Phillip S. The Polyot Missions, Spaceflight, vol. 22, pp. 312-315, London , Sept.-Oct. 1980.

37. Clark, Phillip S. The Sandal Program, Spaceflight, vol. 23, pp. 18-21, London , May 1980.

38. dark, Phillip S. Cosmos Flights at 71 Degrees, Spaceflight, vol. 22, pp. 174-177, London, May 1980.