Proposed reusable Russian rocket design
This article is about a mid-2010s proposed new Russian carrier rocket family. For the 1969 spaceflight, see
Soyuz 7
.
The
Soyuz-7
(Russian:
Союз-7
) or
Amur
(
Russian
:
Аму?р
) is a partially-
reusable
,
methane
?fueled,
orbital
launch vehicle
currently in the design concept stage of
development
by the
Roscosmos State Corporation
in Russia. The preliminary design process began in October 2020, with operational flights planned for no earlier than 2028.
[4]
Amur is intended to substitute for the existing
Soyuz-2
, at a much lower per launch cost.
[8]
This is a proposed family of new Russian
rockets
proposed by
JSC SRC Progress
in the mid-2010s, to replace the legacy
Soyuz
for launch after the early 2020s. JSC SRC Progress had been the manufacturer and custodian of the Soyuz family design for many decades.
[9]
The new design concept was a part of Project
Feniks
(
Russian
:
Феникс
,
lit.
'Fenix').
[
not verified in body
]
While all previous iterations of the Soyuz family had their roots firmly set on the
R-7
ICBM
legacy, the new rocket, designated
Soyuz-7
in 2013, was to be a completely new design from the ground up. The proposed new design was to be based on a new propellant:
LOX
and
liquid methane
, use a new tank structure, new
propulsion
, and would do away with the famous
Korolev Cross
, and have
thrust vector control
in the main engine rather than using
vernier engines
.
[9]
It was conceived in 2013 to be a scalable family with three versions covering the
medium
to
heavy
payload ranges.
[9]
The project would help to assure access to space for Russia by acting as a backup launcher in the event of problems with the
Angara
rocket family.
[7]
As conceived in the mid-2010s, the smallest version was to be a 270-tonne rocket, intended as a replacement of the
Soyuz-2
rocket, with an expected payload to
LEO
of 9 t (9,000 kg). It will use a single
RD-0164
engine on the first stage, and a
RD-0169
engine on the second.
[10]
The first engineering design was expected to be completed by 2016,
[
needs update
]
and the first flight expected as early as 2022.
[
citation needed
]
The use of just two stages for the base version, and the simplification of subsystems was intended to product a more reliable and less-expensive
launch vehicle
, with the lightest version expected to be cheaper than the Soyuz-2.
[11]
History
[
edit
]
During an interview with the
Kazakhstani
magazine
Space Research and Technologies
during 2013, Mr. Kirilin, CEO of TSKB Progress, explained the conception of the project.
[11]
When the
Rus-M
project was cancelled, TSKB Progress started work on a methane fueled launch vehicle under the Roscosmos
Magistral
research program.
[11]
This work was self funded by the company, and looked to replace the
Soyuz
vehicle and keep the vehicle design capabilities within the company.
[
citation needed
]
The venerable Soyuz rocket vehicle would be an approximately 60-year-old design by 2020 and it could not remain competitive with the new vehicles,
[
according to whom?
]
like the
Falcon 9
. It was described by Progress CEO, Mr. Kirilin, as
technologically and operationally hopelessly outdated
.
[11]
It has conical sections, where each panel is unique, it uses six engines with 24 nozzles, most rocket manufacturing tasks include a number of manual operations, it even requires five different fluids:
kerosene
,
liquid oxygen
,
hydrogen peroxide
, gaseous
nitrogen
and gaseous
helium
. Looking forward, the price of
RG-1
fuel was going up, since it could only be distilled from a single oil field, that, by 2015, was expected to be depleted soon.
[11]
The proposed
Soyuz-7
would use the same diameter for all sections of the rocket, 3.6 m (12 ft), use
liquid methane
and
liquid oxygen
, have a single engine with a single nozzle on each stage, and automate
[
clarification needed
]
most tasks.
[11]
The proposed new rocket was conceived to use the existing Soyuz pads and installations after some modifications.
Liquid methane
is cheap, Russia has ample reserves and it has a huge installed base. It also has some important thermal and polymerizing properties that paves the way for reusable rockets. The rocket was expected to use the
KBKhA
RD-0164
[
clarification needed
]
engine in the core
[
clarification needed
]
stages, and a methane version of the KBKhA
RD-0124
[
clarification needed
]
in the upper stage.
[11]
During an August, 2015 interview with Ria Novosti, Mr. Kirilin stated that a preliminary design was expected in 2015 or 2016,
[
needs update
]
that they intended to first develop a light version
[
clarification needed
]
, that they anticipated an initial
test flight
of the first prototype in 2022 and that the propulsion would be the RD-0164 for the cores
[
clarification needed
]
and the RD-0169
[
clarification needed
]
rocket engine for the upper stage.
[7]
However, this project, part of
Soyuz-5
, was abandoned when Soyuz-5 has evolved into a replacement for
Zenit family
named Irtysh, with
RKK Energia
as manufacturer. The methalox rocket was later renamed to Soyuz-7.
The contract for the preliminary design phase of the Amur was signed on 5 October 2020, to build "the first Russian reusable methane rocket."
[12]
The design reference goals include high-reliability, operational launch cost target of
US$22 million
, and a reusable
first stage
, with an
expendable
second stage.
[12]
Roscosmos has budgeted a "not to exceed" program cost of 70 billion rubles (
US$880 million
) for the development program through the first launch.
[13]
The rocket design is expected to follow the practice of
SpaceX
with the
Falcon 9
to design the first stage for reusability.
[8]
[14]
and the rocket engine to be reused 100 or more times.
[12]
Versions
[
edit
]
Previous
[
edit
]
In the mid-2010s,
Soyuz-7
was conceived to be a scalable family, with three conceptual versions:
- Basic version, designed to replace the
Soyuz-2.1a
/b rockets, would use
just a first and a second stage
. It was conceived to have a payload to a 200 km (120 mi) circular
LEO
orbit of 9 t (8.9 long tons; 9.9 short tons).
[15]
[9]
- A three-core-stage version, designed as a crew carrier vehicle, that would use a central core and two equal cores on the side as boosters. This design concept was to have not an air-ignited second stage to eliminate air start risk. It was expected to have a payload to LEO of 16 t (16 long tons; 18 short tons).
[15]
[9]
- The heaviest version with maximum capability.
[16]
It was expected to achieve a payload to LEO of 25 t (25 long tons; 28 short tons).
[15]
[9]
Current
[
edit
]
In 2020, Amur is planned to be a 4.1 m (13 ft)-diameter
two-stage-to-orbit
,
medium-lift
[8]
vehicle of 55 m (180 ft) height, with a gross liftoff mass of 360 t (790,000 lb).
[13]
[12]
It is aimed to deliver a payload to
low Earth orbit
of 10.5 t (23,000 lb),
[8]
but could loft 12.5 t (28,000 lb) if the first stage is expended and not reused, as all traditional launch vehicles of the early space age were.
[13]
Amur will launch from the
Vostochny Cosmodrome
in the
Russian Far East
.
[17]
The first stage of the rocket will use
grid fins
to assist with
attitude control
during
atmospheric reentry
and is planned to be powered by five RD-0169A
metha
lox
engines,
[8]
which are currently being developed at the
Chemical Automatics Design Bureau
.
[12]
The long-term target is for most of the engines to fire 100 times, but the center engine, reignited for descent through the
atmosphere
and again for
landing operations
which will include extending
landing legs
,
[8]
will be aimed to eventually reach a life expectancy of 300 engine firings.
[12]
The ground test program for the new
methalox
-propellant engines is expected to be completed by late 2024.
[17]
Launches
[
edit
]
Future Launches
[
edit
]
Serial number
|
Rocket & serial
|
Date (UTC)
|
Launch site
|
Payload
|
Orbit
|
Outcome
|
Remarks
|
1
|
Soyuz-7
|
NET
December 2028
[4]
|
Vostochny Cosmodrome Site 2A
|
GVM-M(Simulated mass)
|
LEO
|
TBD
|
First test flight of Soyuz-7
|
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]
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- This Template lists historical, current, and future space rockets that at least once attempted (but not necessarily succeeded in) an orbital launch or that are planned to attempt such a launch in the future
- Symbol
†
indicates past or current rockets that attempted orbital launches but never succeeded (never did or has yet to perform a successful orbital launch)
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