To date Russian Federation has the most powerful space industry in the world. Russia is the undisputed leader in the field of manned space exploration and, moreover, has parity with the United States in matters of space navigation. Our country has some lags only in the research of distant interplanetary spaces, as well as in developments in remote sensing of the Earth.
Story
The space rocket was first conceived by Russian scientists Tsiolkovsky and Meshchersky. In 1897-1903 they created the theory of its flight. Much later, foreign scientists began to explore this area. These were the Germans von Braun and Oberth, as well as the American Goddard. In the peaceful interwar period, only three countries in the world dealt with the issues of jet propulsion, as well as the creation of solid fuel and liquid engines for this purpose. These were Russia, the USA and Germany.
Already by the 40s of the 20th century, our country could be proud of the successes achieved in the creation of solid fuel engines. This made it possible to use such formidable weapons as the Katyusha during World War II. As for the creation of large rockets equipped with liquid engines, Germany was the leader. It was in this country that the V-2 was adopted. These are the first short-range ballistic missiles. During World War II, the V-2 was used to bomb England.
After the victory of the USSR over Nazi Germany, the main team of Wernher von Braun, under his direct leadership, launched its activities in the USA. At the same time, they took with them from the defeated country all the previously developed drawings and calculations, on the basis of which the space rocket was to be built. Only a tiny part of the team of German engineers and scientists continued their work in the USSR until the mid-50s of the 20th century. They had at their disposal separate parts of technological equipment and missiles without any calculations or drawings.
Subsequently, both in the USA and in the USSR, the V-2 rockets were reproduced (in our country it is R-1), which predetermined the development of rocket science aimed at increasing the flight range.
Tsiolkovsky's theory
This great Russian self-taught scientist and outstanding inventor is considered the father of astronautics. Back in 1883, he wrote the historical manuscript “Free Space”. In this work, Tsiolkovsky first expressed the idea that movement between planets is possible, and for this we need a special one called a “space rocket”. The theory of the jet device itself was substantiated by him in 1903. It was contained in a work entitled “Exploration of World Space.” Here the author provided evidence that a space rocket is the apparatus with which one can leave the earth’s atmosphere. This theory was a real revolution in the scientific field. After all, humanity has long dreamed of flying to Mars, the Moon and other planets. However, pundits have not been able to determine how an aircraft should be constructed that will move in completely empty space without a support capable of giving it acceleration. This problem was solved by Tsiolkovsky, who proposed using it for this purpose. Only with the help of such a mechanism could it be possible to conquer space.
Operating principle
Space rockets from Russia, the USA and other countries still enter Earth orbit using rocket engines, proposed at one time by Tsiolkovsky. In these systems, the chemical energy of the fuel is converted into kinetic energy, which is possessed by the jet ejected from the nozzle. A special process occurs in the combustion chambers of such engines. In them, as a result of the reaction of the oxidizer and fuel, heat is released. In this case, the combustion products expand, heat up, accelerate in the nozzle and are ejected at enormous speed. The rocket moves due to the law of conservation of momentum. She receives acceleration, which is directed in the opposite direction.
Today, there are such engine projects as space elevators, etc. However, in practice they are not used, since they are still under development.
First spacecraft
The Tsiolkovsky rocket, proposed by the scientist, was an oblong metal chamber. Outwardly, it looked like a balloon or airship. The front, head space of the rocket was intended for passengers. Control devices were also installed here, and carbon dioxide absorbers and oxygen reserves were also stored. Lighting was provided in the passenger compartment. In the second, main part of the rocket, Tsiolkovsky placed flammable substances. When they were mixed, an explosive mass was formed. It was ignited in its designated place in the very center of the rocket and ejected from the expanding tube at enormous speed in the form of hot gases.
For a long time, the name of Tsiolkovsky was little known not only abroad, but also in Russia. Many considered him an idealistic dreamer and an eccentric visionary. The works of this great scientist received a true assessment only with the advent of Soviet power.
Creation of a missile complex in the USSR
Significant steps in the exploration of interplanetary space were made after the end of World War II. This was the time when the United States, being the only nuclear power, began to exert political pressure on our country. The initial task set before our scientists was to build up Russia's military power. For a worthy rebuff in the conditions unleashed during these years cold war it was necessary to create an atomic one, and then the second, no less difficult task was to deliver the created weapon to the target. This is what combat missiles were needed for. In order to create this technology, already in 1946 the government appointed chief designers of gyroscopic devices, jet engines, control systems, etc. S.P. became responsible for linking all systems into a single whole. Korolev.
Already in 1948, the first ballistic missile developed in the USSR was successfully tested. Similar flights to the USA were carried out several years later.
Launch of an artificial satellite
In addition to building up military potential, the USSR government set itself the task of space exploration. Work in this direction was carried out by many scientists and designers. Even before an intercontinental-range missile took off, it became clear to the developers of such technology that by reducing the payload aircraft, it was possible to achieve speeds exceeding cosmic speed. This fact indicated the likelihood of launching an artificial satellite into earth orbit. This epoch-making event occurred on October 4, 1957. It marked the beginning of a new milestone in the exploration of outer space.
The work on developing the airless near-Earth space required enormous efforts on the part of numerous teams of designers, scientists and workers. The creators of space rockets had to develop a program for launching an aircraft into orbit, debug the work of the ground service, etc.
The designers faced a difficult task. It was necessary to increase the mass of the rocket and make it possible for it to reach the second. That is why in 1958-1959 a three-stage version of the jet engine was developed in our country. With his invention, it became possible to produce the first space rockets in which a person could go into orbit. Three-stage engines also opened up the possibility of flying to the Moon.
Further, launch vehicles became more and more improved. Thus, in 1961, a four-stage model of a jet engine was created. With it, the rocket could reach not only the Moon, but also get to Mars or Venus.
First manned flight
The launch of a space rocket with a person on board took place for the first time on April 12, 1961. The Vostok spacecraft, piloted by Yuri Gagarin, took off from the surface of the Earth. This event was epoch-making for humanity. In April 1961, space exploration received its new development. The transition to manned flights required designers to create aircraft that could return to Earth, safely crossing the layers of the atmosphere. In addition, the space rocket had to be equipped with a human life support system, including air regeneration, nutrition and much more. All these tasks were successfully solved.
Further space exploration
Vostok-type missiles for a long time contributed to maintaining the leading role of the USSR in the field of exploration of near-Earth airless space. Their use continues to this day. Until 1964, Vostok aircraft surpassed all existing analogues in their carrying capacity.
Somewhat later, more powerful carriers were created in our country and in the USA. The name of space rockets of this type, designed in our country, is “Proton-M”. An American similar device is Delta-IV. In Europe, the Ariane 5 launch vehicle, which belongs to the heavy type, was designed. All these aircraft make it possible to launch 21-25 tons of cargo to an altitude of 200 km, where low Earth orbit is located.
New developments
As part of the project for a manned flight to the Moon, launch vehicles belonging to the super-heavy class were created. These are US space rockets such as the Saturn 5, as well as the Soviet N-1. Later, the USSR created the super-heavy Energia rocket, which is not currently used. The Space Shuttle became a powerful American launch vehicle. This rocket made it possible to launch spaceships weighing 100 tons into orbit.
Aircraft manufacturers
Space rockets were designed and created at OKB-1 (Special Design Bureau), TsKBEM (Central Design Bureau of Experimental Mechanical Engineering), as well as at NPO (Scientific and Production Association) Energia. It was here that domestic ballistic missiles of all types saw the light of day. Eleven strategic complexes that our army adopted came from here. Through the efforts of the workers of these enterprises, the R-7 was created - the first space rocket, which is considered the most reliable in the world at the present time. Since the middle of the last century, work has been initiated and carried out at these production facilities in all areas related to Since 1994, the enterprise received a new name, becoming OJSC RSC Energia.
Today is the day of the space rocket manufacturer
RSC Energia named after. S.P. Korolev is a strategic enterprise of Russia. It plays a leading role in the development and production of manned space systems. The company pays great attention to the issues of creating latest technologies. Specialized automatic space systems are being developed here, as well as launch vehicles for launching aircraft into orbit. In addition, RSC Energia is actively implementing high technology for the production of products not related to the development of airless space.
This enterprise, in addition to the head design bureau, includes:
JSC "Experimental Mechanical Engineering Plant".
CJSC "PO "Cosmos"
CJSC "Volzhskoe Design Bureau"
Baikonur branch.
The most promising programs of the enterprise are:
Issues of further space exploration and the creation of a manned transport space system of the latest generation;
Development of manned aircraft that are capable of exploring interplanetary space;
Design and creation of energy and telecommunication space systems using special small-sized reflectors and antennas.
Research project
"Rocket Science:
past, present, future"
Scientific supervisor: Daria Vladimirovna
1. Introduction. 3
2. The history of the origins of rocket science. 4
3. First steps in space. 7
4. Modern achievements in astronautics. 14
5. Imitation of a rocket launch at home. 16
6. Conclusion. 17
7. List of references used: 18
Introduction
Find out how rocket science began;
Explore the first steps in space,
Learn about modern achievements in astronautics,
Simulate a rocket launch at home.
The history of the origins of rocket science
At the end of the 9th century, the Chinese invented gunpowder, which they initially used to make firecrackers, which they attached to the tips of arrows and launched towards their enemies. The explosions frightened the horses and caused panic. Very soon, Chinese gunsmiths noticed that the fragile firecrackers were flying on their own: this is how the principle of launching a rocket was discovered. Soon gunpowder began to be widely used in military affairs, grenades, cannons, and rifles. Military strategists trusted direct-fire cannons more than unguided missiles, but aerial projectiles proved effective at hitting large targets. It was the invention of gunpowder that became the basis for the emergence of real rockets. Rockets began to be improved. Over time, various scientists calculated how much gunpowder was needed to launch a rocket to the moon. And since from ancient times man dreamed of breaking away from the Earth and reaching other worlds, we came to the point that we began to invent a space rocket. Even 400 years ago, the possibility of space flights was proven, but until the mid-20th century, space flights were only in the minds of scientists and science fiction writers. And only two designers S. Korolev and V. von Braun made the dream a reality.
In 1931, a group for the study of jet propulsion was created, headed by Sergei Pavlovich Korolev. The scientist immediately focused his attention on creating cruise missiles. August 17, 1933 A hybrid fuel rocket, GIRD-09, took off into the sky, the rocket rose over 400 meters, and a few months later the first rocket using liquid jet fuel, GIRD-X, was launched. Soon two devices appeared and were successfully tested: RNII-212 and RNII-217. The study of jet propulsion was of interest not only to Soviet scientists. Similar works were also carried out in Germany. In 1933 In Germany, the first launch of a rocket by the German scientist von Braun took place - A-1.
The design of this rocket turned out to be unstable, which was taken into account when creating a new rocket: A-2. At the end of 1934, two missiles of this type were successfully launched from the test site. Both missiles had a liquid-propellant jet engine (LPRE). Already in 1936, the A-3 rocket was created, then the command of Nazi Germany gave the go-ahead for the development of the rocket program, and the following year tests of the A-3 began. The rocket, unlike its predecessors, weighed more and had gas rudders, which made it possible to launch it vertically from the launch pad. However, the tests ended in failure, and von Braun began work on the A-5.
Having successfully launched the A-5, designers moved on to work on the large A-4 rocket, which during the war became known as the V-2. The missile, weighing 13 tons and 14 meters high, hit targets at a distance of up to 300 km, covering it in 5 minutes; later the missile served as a model for all post-war missiles. After Germany's surrender, German scientists continued to work on improving rocket technology. Von Braun surrendered to the Americans and became one of the leading specialists in the American space program.
The USSR and the USA began a race for possession of German missile secrets. The Americans, together with von Braun, received not only documentation, but also the factories where the V-2 was manufactured. However, a few months later this territory ceded to the USSR, and a group of scientists led by Korolev immediately arrived there. The rocket scientists were tasked with reproducing the A-4 rocket. In 1948
Korolev successfully tested the R-1 rocket, a slightly modernized copy of the V-2. Later, in 1953, the designers were faced with the task of creating a rocket capable of delivering a detachable warhead weighing 5 tons to a distance of up to 8 thousand km. S.P. Korolev decided to abandon the German inheritance; he had to develop a completely new rocket, which did not yet exist. Despite the fact that the new military order was designed for a new type of nuclear weapon, Korolev had the opportunity to create a rocket that could launch a ship into space. Since the engine that could put such a load into orbit did not exist even in the projects, Korolev proposed a revolutionary rocket design. It consisted of four blocks of the first stage and one block of the second, connected in parallel. This system was called a “bundle”. Moreover, the engines began to work from the ground. On May 15, 1957, the first launch of a new rocket took place, which was named R-7. The success and, as a result, reliability of the design and very high power for a ballistic missile made it possible to use the R-7 as a launch vehicle. It was launch vehicles that opened up the space age to man.
First steps in space
Korolev made rockets for the military, but dreamed of starting space exploration with their help. In the spring of 1954, he, together with academician M.V. Keldysh and a group of scientists from the Academy of Sciences, determined the range of problems that artificial Earth satellites were supposed to solve. Korolev appealed to the government with a request to allow the use of a new rocket to launch a space satellite. Khrushchev agreed, and at the beginning of 1956 a resolution was adopted on the creation of an artificial Earth satellite weighing 1000-1400 kg with equipment for scientific research weighing 200-300 kg. Scientists began work on two satellites at once. The first so-called “object-D” weighed more than 1.3 tons and carried 12 scientific instruments on board. In addition, it was equipped with solar panels, which powered the Mayak radio transmitter and a tape recorder for recording telemetry in those parts of the orbit that are inaccessible to ground-based tracking stations. However, before the start he broke down. To prevent the spacecraft from overheating in the sun, a gas thermoregulation system was developed inside the satellite. In addition, an original cooling system was invented. Thus, the “object-D”, which was supposed to open the space age, had all the systems of modern spacecraft. It was a full-fledged space research station.
The second satellite was biological. It was the head fairing of the R-7, inside which the scientists placed a pressurized cabin for the animal and containers with scientific and measuring equipment. The satellite had a mass of more than half a ton and was supposed to go into orbit after the “object-D”. The purpose of his launch of the ball is quite simple - to prove that a living creature is capable of flying into space and staying alive.
However, the first to fly into space was not a satellite loaded with scientific equipment, but a small metal ball equipped with a simple radio transmitter. This device was called the “simplest satellite”, or PS. A metal ball with a diameter of just over half a meter, consisting of two hemispheres fastened with 36 bolts, had a mass of only 83 kg.
It had 4 antennas installed on it, 2.5 and 2.4 meters long. The sealed aluminum case was filled with nitrogen, this was supposed to protect the device from overheating. Also inside were two transmitters weighing 3.5 kg and three batteries. The radio signals it transmitted made it possible to explore the upper layers of the ionosphere.
The simplest satellite was assembled in record time. On February 15, 1957, a resolution was adopted on its creation, and on October 4 of the same year, it entered orbit. The “beep-beep” signal received by all radio amateurs heralded the beginning of a new space age. PS-1 spent 92 days in orbit, and already on November 4, exactly a month after launch, PS-2 went into space with the dog Laika on board. The first living creature was supposed to survive in orbit for a week, but the device overheated and the dog quickly died. Nevertheless, the main goal was achieved - Korolev proved the possibility of flying a living creature into space.
Laika was the first living creature to go into space, but she was far from the first animal to fly in a rocket. Scientists in the USSR and USA used animals to study overloads during flight. The Americans preferred to fly monkeys, and we preferred to fly dogs, which we found in the courtyards of the Institute of Aviation Medicine. Scientists have trained dogs to wear special clothes and eat moistened food from an automatic feeder, because it is impossible to lap in zero gravity. The dogs underwent training, preparing for overloads and ejection.
In the same year S.P. Korolev began research on creating a manned satellite spacecraft. The launch vehicle was to be the R-7. Calculations have shown that it is capable of delivering cargo weighing more than 5 tons into low-Earth orbit.
At the same time, Korolev’s bureau began work on the Vostok spacecraft. In total, three types of ships were created: the Vostok-1k prototype, on which the systems were tested, the Vostok-2k reconnaissance satellite, and the Vostok-3k, intended for human flights into space.
After finishing work on the future Vostok spacecraft, it was time for testing. The first to fly on the satellite ship was the dummy, followed by the dogs. On August 19, 1960, the Sputnik 5 spacecraft, which was a prototype of the Vostok spacecraft, was launched into space from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. The dogs Belka and Strelka went on the ship.
They spent about a day in orbit and returned safely to earth. For several months there were still attempts to launch dogs into space, but all were unsuccessful and the dogs died. S.P. Korolev could not send a man into space until he was sure that the ship was reliable and the astronaut would return to Earth safe and sound, so dog launches continued. On March 9, 1961, the Sputnik 9 spacecraft launched, carrying on board a mannequin, a dog Chernushka, a mouse and a guinea pig. When returning after entering the dense layers of the atmosphere, the dummy successfully ejected, and the animals landed in the descent module.
Zvezdochka was the next to go into space. March 25 spacecraft with a dog and a dummy on board, it went into orbit, performed a series of tests and returned to earth. The safety of the spacecraft was proven, and now Korolev, with a calm heart, gave the go-ahead for human flight. The single-seat Vostok spacecraft carried an astronaut into orbit, who was flying in a spacesuit. The life support system was designed for 10 days of flight. After the completion of the research program, the descent module was separated from the ship, which delivered the astronaut to the ground. At an altitude of 7 km, the astronaut ejected and landed separately from the descent module. However, in emergency cases, he could not leave the device. The total mass of the spacecraft reached 4.73 tons, length (without antennas) 4.4 m, and maximum diameter 2.43 m. The compartments were mechanically connected to each other using metal bands and pyrotechnic locks. The ship was equipped with systems: automatic and manual control, automatic orientation to
The sun, manual orientation to the Earth, life support, designed to maintain an internal atmosphere close in its parameters to the Earth's atmosphere for 10 days, command and logic control, power supply, thermal control and landing.
The weight of the spacecraft together with the last stage of the launch vehicle was 6.17 tons, and their combined length was 7.35 m. When developing the descent vehicle, the designers chose an asymmetrical spherical shape, as the most well studied and having stable aerodynamic characteristics for all ranges at different speeds. This solution made it possible to provide an acceptable mass of thermal protection for the device and implement the simplest ballistic scheme for descent from orbit.
At the same time, the choice of a ballistic descent scheme determined the high overloads that the person working on board the ship had to experience. The descent vehicle had two windows, one of which was located on the entrance hatch, just above the astronaut’s head, and the other, equipped with a special orientation system, in the floor at his feet.
On April 12, 1961, an 8k78 launch vehicle carrying the Vostok spacecraft was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. On board the ship was pilot-cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, who was the first to overcome the gravity of his native planet and enter low-Earth orbit. "Vostok" made one revolution around the Earth, the flight lasted 108 minutes. The flight of the Vostok spacecraft with a person on board was the result of the hard work of Soviet scientists, engineers, doctors and specialists in various fields of technology. On August 6, 1961, the ship, called Vostok-2, was launched with pilot-cosmonaut G.S. Titov. The flight lasted 25 hours. The orbital flight and descent went well. A professional reportage film camera was installed on the Vostok-2 ship, modified for on-board filming. Using this camera, a 10-minute photograph of the Earth was taken through the ship's windows.
The astronaut himself chose the objects to be photographed, trying to obtain material illustrating the pictures he observed during the flight. The resulting high-quality footage was widely shown on television, published in national newspapers, and aroused the interest of the scientific community in studying images of the Earth from space. The next stage was the Voskhod program for man's entry into space. For this purpose the design was changed. The two-seater Voskhod-2 was equipped with an inflatable airlock chamber, which was fired back after use. Outside the camera, the designers installed a movie camera, cylinders with a supply of air for inflation, and a supply of oxygen. A special Berkut spacesuit was developed for the flight. The suit had a multi-layer hermetic shell, with which pressure was maintained, and on the outside there was a special coating that protected from sunlight. On March 18, 1965, Voskhod-2 launched with cosmonauts Belyaev and Leonov. An hour and a half after the start of the flight, Leonov opened the outer hatch and went into outer space.
The launches of spacecraft marked a new era in space exploration. In 1962, designers began designing the Soyuz spacecraft to fly around the Moon. Simultaneously with Soviet scientists, the US space agency began developing a lunar program; they wanted to be the first to explore the surface of the moon. Lunokhods were created to study the surface of the Moon. New launch vehicles and spacecraft, such as the Apollo, created by NASA scientists, to carry astronauts to the surface of the Moon. On July 16, 1969, Apollo 11 launched. The lunar module landed on the moon. Neil Armstrong descended onto the lunar surface on July 21, 1969, making the first lunar landing in human history. Spaceships could not provide a long stay in orbit, so scientists began to think about creating an orbital station. In 1971, the Salyut orbital station was launched into orbit using the Proton launch vehicle. 2 years later, the United States launched the Skylab station.
Orbital stations (OS) were intended for long-term stay of people in low-Earth orbit, for conducting scientific research in outer space, observations of the surface and atmosphere of the planet. What distinguished the OS from artificial satellites was the presence of a crew, which was periodically replaced using transport ships. The ships carried crew changes, fuel supplies and materials for the station, and also life support equipment for the crew. The length of stay at the orbital station depended on whether it could be refueled and repaired in time. Therefore, when developing the third generation orbital station Salyut, it was decided to create a cargo ship on the basis of the manned Soyuz spacecraft, which later received the name Progress. During the design, onboard systems and the design of the Soyuz spacecraft were used. “Progress” had three main compartments: a sealed cargo compartment with a docking unit, which housed materials and equipment delivered to the station, a refueling compartment, and an instrumentation compartment.
In 1979, Soviet designers began work on a new type of long-term orbital stations. 280 organizations worked on “The World”. The base unit was launched into orbit on February 20, 1986. Then, over the course of 10 years, six more modules were docked one after another. Since 1995, foreign crews began to visit the station. Also, 15 expeditions visited the station, 14 of them international.
The station spent 5,511 days in orbit. In the late 1990s, numerous problems began at the station due to the constant failure of various instruments and systems. After some time, the decision was made to scuttle the Mir. On March 23, 2001, the station, which had worked three times longer, was sunk in the Pacific Ocean. In the same 1979, American designers built the first Shuttle, space shuttle, and reusable transport spacecraft. The shuttle launches into space, performs maneuvers in orbit as a spacecraft, and returns to Earth as an airplane. It was understood that the Shuttles would scurry like shuttles between low-Earth orbit and the Earth, delivering payloads in both directions. The ships began to be used to launch cargo into orbit at an altitude of 200-500 km, conduct research, and service orbital space stations.
| 1.1. | Stages of development of rockets and rocketry…………………………………….. | |
| 1.2. | The theory of bodies of variable mass is the foundation of astronautics. Development of astronautics and practical rocketry……………………………... | |
| 1.3. | Formation of the space services market and development of space technology at the present stage…………………………………………………………………………………. | |
| 1.3.1. | The main tasks solved by rocket and space technology……………….. | |
| 1.3.2. | Work performed at the rocket and space complex during the preparation of launch vehicles for launch and at the launch stage………………………………………………………... | |
| 1.3.3. | The composition of the rocket and space complex and the test site for testing and routine launches of launch vehicles……………………………………………………………….. | |
| Prospects for the development of launch vehicles…………………………………….. | ||
| Literature………...…………………………………………………..…………. |
Chapter 1
Introduction to rocket and space technology
Stages of development of rockets and rocket technology
The history of rocket development dates back to ancient times. The appearance of rockets is inextricably linked with the invention of gunpowder, the combustion products of which create a reactive force capable of imparting a relatively high speed to a rocket. The literature indicates that the recipe for making gunpowder was known in China, India, and Arab countries, but where gunpowder first appeared is still unknown. It is believed that in China, rockets (“fire arrows”) were used back in the 10th – 12th centuries.
The use of missiles as weapons has always been determined by the relatively high energy capabilities of the rocket devices, which made missiles effective in combat use. However, the constant competition of other types of projectile throwing, as a rule, led at many stages of rocket creation to the abandonment of the use of the latter. The main reason for the failure was the low accuracy of the missiles hitting the target compared to competing systems. This is due to the fact that in non-missile systems, the required speed is communicated to a projectile, bullet, etc., over a short period of movement of the projectile along a guide, which can be quite accurately aimed at the target.
As a result of this, the projectile throwing velocity vector, the value of which is formed during the movement of the projectile in the barrel, can be oriented more or less accurately, and it is relatively little influenced by the external conditions of the projectile flight. However, these same conditions require the imparting of large accelerations to the projectile, and, consequently, large loads caused by reactions acting on the throwing device. This forces the production of a non-rocket propellant system that is significantly heavier compared to the mass of the projectile (hundreds of times).
IN missile system the transmission of velocity to the projectile occurs mainly outside the launcher, on a relatively long section of the flight path. This leads to the fact that the acceleration of the projectile is small, and therefore the load on the throwing system is also small. The weight of the rocket launching system becomes comparable to the weight of the rocket, and may differ by only a few times.
“Fire arrows” became widespread in India. Europeans (the British) first encountered “fire arrows” during the colonization of India. A military engineer, Colonel William Congreve, began studying them. He took the missiles to England, improved them, and ensured that the missiles were adopted by the British army. The missiles were used quite widely and successfully in the combat operations of the British army. So in 1807, during the war with Napoleon, the English fleet during the siege of Copenhagen almost completely destroyed the city with the help of missiles. issue 2 p. 152 fig. 7; page 159 fig. 11. The appearance of missiles in England's arsenal forced them to be taken up in other countries.
In Russia, rockets are described in the “Charter” of Anisim Mikhailov, written by him in 1607-1621. Under Peter I, rockets were widely used in the Russian army. In the early 80s of the 17th century, a “Rocket Establishment” was established in Moscow, which was then transferred to St. Petersburg. At the beginning of the 18th century, a signal rocket was created there, which was in service with the Russian army for more than a century and a half. issue 2, p. 159 Fig. 11.
One of the first creators of combat missiles for the Russian army was General Alexander Dmitrievich Zasyadko (1779 - 1837). He created successful ricochet and incendiary missiles, which were used in rocket companies and batteries of the Russian army.
In the 40s of the last century, the Russian scientist General Konstantinov K.I. developed scientific basis calculation and design of powder rockets. issue 2 p. 160 fig. 12. Using his techniques, missiles with a firing range of up to 4-5 km were created, which became an effective weapon for the Russian army.
However, the development in the second half of the 19th century of rifled artillery, which made it possible to obtain a greater firing range and higher accuracy and less dispersion of hits, supplanted rockets. As already noted, the impact of external loads (aerodynamic, caused by inaccuracy in the manufacture of the projectile, propellant, etc.) on the projectile when flying in the acceleration section under the influence of reactive force leads to large angular deviations of the projectile velocity vector from the required value, and consequently to deviations of the parameters projectile movement along the trajectory. These deviations significantly exceeded similar deviations of artillery guns developed in the second half of the 19th century; the accuracy of missiles was much lower than the accuracy of projectiles fired from these guns. This was the reason for abandoning the use of missiles as projectiles to hit targets.
In the course of the development of methods of armed struggle during the period of rapid development of science and technology in the late 19th - early 20th centuries, there was a transition to positional wars, the conduct of which required enormous strain on the entire economic and moral potential of the enemy countries and the expenditure of large human resources, organizing the management of the economy of these countries , maneuver of forces and means throughout the country.
During such wars, the requirements for the ability to destroy enemy targets at a considerable distance from the front line of the armed struggle of the fighting armies constantly increased. Such objects included control centers, communication nodes of all types, the most important centers energy supply, production industrial products, concentrations of troops, military equipment, main warehouses of various supplies. To cause moral damage to the population of the country and to reduce it labor resources It was considered possible to strike at large enemy settlements.
One of the first attempts to create means of delivering a combat projectile in deep rear The enemy (according to the concepts of that time) was the creation in Germany during the First World War of ultra-long-range weapons designed to fire at targets located at a distance of 200-250 km from the gun.
The unique experience of using this weapon has shown that the effectiveness of such a throwing system is extremely low. To deliver a projectile weighing 7 kilograms to the target, it was necessary to create a weapon weighing 350 tons, which has a low rate of fire and has very low survivability due to the extremely high load on the barrel when fired.
In addition, the circular deviation of the projectile from the aiming point, equal to 2 km, was so great that it could actually fire at area targets like large city, that's what Paris was like. This showed that with such dispersion parameters, an increase in efficiency to an acceptable level can only be achieved through a sharp increase (hundreds of times) in the mass of the warhead. That is, it was impossible to achieve success along the way of using barrel systems to deliver such a charge to the target.
The development of aviation in the first two decades of the 20th century might suggest that the use of airplanes would solve the problem. Already at the end of the First World War, all major warring countries created bombers capable of delivering up to a ton or more of bomb load over a range of 300-350 km (Fridrichshafen G-IV, Gotha G-V in Germany), (Handley Page H-12, Handley Page H-15 in England), (Ilya Muromets in Russia), (Martin MB in the USA). True, during the First World War, practically not a single air raid was carried out on deep rear enemy targets, except for a few bomb attacks carried out by German airships. But the accumulated experience of using aviation to attack enemy ground forces at the front line and near military rear areas, the trend in the development of aviation (increasing flight range, speed, payload capacity, development of aircraft weapons) made it possible to create theories of air wars, the founders of which proved that in such wars almost only Aviation forces can suppress enemy resistance, cause irreparable damage to the enemy’s economy and demoralize the population. But the authors of these theories did not take into account the combat capabilities of developing air defense systems, built on the use of modern fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft artillery, early detection of attacking enemy aircraft, communications and control equipment. The development of air defense made it possible to maneuver even with limited forces, providing local countermeasures in defensive assets.
Understanding this led to the fact that in countries with a developed scientific and technical base (USA, USSR, Germany), the idea arose of creating combat robotic aircraft that combine the capabilities of aircraft in achieving remote targets, having a significant payload on board with increasing the reliability of the task with comparable costs of material resources for the creation and production of these devices, either through their mass use in a relatively cheap version, or by increasing their invulnerability when flying along such trajectories and at such a speed, which made them inaccessible to air defense systems of that time. German scientists and engineers achieved the greatest success in implementing this idea. This was largely explained by the fact that in the European countries that were victorious in the First World War (England, France, Italy), in the USA and the USSR great influence was devoted to the development of a proven military aviation. And in Germany, the Versailles Peace Treaty prohibited the ownership and development of such aircraft, and the efforts of scientists were aimed at creating unconventional means of attack, a tool for suppressing rear targets, which were not subject to the restrictions of the peace treaty. Such tools turned out to be the V-1 (FZG-76) unmanned cruise missile and the V-2 (A4) ballistic missile.
In Germany, which has largely retained its scientific and technical potential, and in the mid-30s received the economic opportunity to create new weapons systems, it was possible to create a significantly more powerful and more efficient unmanned ballistic vehicle than in other countries and design ground equipment units, organize its mass production, as well as the production of ground equipment units, test the entire combat missile system, find, create and test organizational and operational principles of application.
The creation of unmanned aerial vehicles such as V-1 projectile aircraft and V-2 guided ballistic missiles and the use of experience in their operation and combat use sharply intensified work on similar systems of armed warfare carried out in various countries of the world, especially in the USSR and the USA.
It was the installation of a control system on board a ballistic missile that made it possible to increase the accuracy of the missile’s firing at small targets and make it competitive in efficiency with any missile system.
In the Soviet Union in March 1946, at the first post-war session of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, among other priority tasks for the country's development, the task of ensuring work on the development of jet technology was named. In 1946, by the Decree of the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR, a decision was made to create new and develop existing research, development and testing organizations, the activities of which should be aimed at creating missiles of various classes and purposes, primarily long-range ballistic missiles, ground equipment providing their preparation, launch, flight control and measurement of flight parameters.
In the early 50s, the Soviet Union reached the forefront in the development and use of powerful missiles. This allowed humanity in 1957 to take the first step in the practical exploration of space - to launch an artificial Earth satellite, and then in 1961, the first cosmonaut.
With the further development of rocket technology, its creators solved two problems:
Improving missiles as a means of armed warfare, increasing their invulnerability from enemy influence and increasing the combat power of missiles. The solution to this problem has always been associated with the desire to reduce the dimensions of the missile while maintaining or even increasing the power of the warhead and its effectiveness. This would, in turn, make it possible either to increase the protective properties of silo launchers, the increase in size of which was not allowed by international agreements, or to create mobile vehicles of acceptable size missile systems different types. As a rule, rockets that meet these requirements are created with solid fuel;
Increasing the capabilities of rockets as a tool for the exploration of near and deep space. And along this path, in the initial period, there was a constant tendency to increase the size of rockets, since the tasks that were and are being set for rocket technology require the ability to launch heavier objects.
At the first stage of this development, almost all problems of space exploration were solved by using combat rockets and their stages as a means of launching space objects. Subsequently, special spacecraft carriers were created to solve the problems of space exploration.
Medium and heavy class missiles that were used for this purpose are mainly equipped with liquid rocket engines. And at present, only a very small part of space exploration tasks can be solved by using the stages of modern combat rockets (dual technology rockets). That is, a certain differentiation of combat missiles and rockets that carry space objects is increasingly visible.
1.2. The theory of bodies of variable mass is the foundation of astronautics.
Development of astronautics and practical rocket technology.
The creation of the theory and practice of using rockets is based on the basic principles of the mechanics of bodies of variable mass. Mechanics of bodies of variable mass - the science of the 20th century. Modern rocket technology presents new and new challenges for this relatively recently emerged branch of theoretical mechanics.
Missiles of various types, rockets, and torpedoes have now been mastered by industry in almost all countries of the world. All rockets are bodies whose mass changes significantly during movement. In general, cases of movement of bodies whose mass changes over time can be seen in many natural phenomena. For example, the mass of a falling meteorite moving in the atmosphere decreases due to the fact that meteorite particles are torn off due to air resistance or burn out.
The basic law of the dynamics of a point of variable mass was discovered by the Russian scientist, professor of the St. Petersburg Polytechnic Institute I.V. Meshchersky in 1897. It is shown that there are two factors that distinguish the equations of motion of a point of variable mass from Newton’s equations: the variability of mass and the hypothesis of separation of particles that determine the additional or reactive force that creates the motion of the point.
The law of motion of a point of variable mass states: “For any moment of time, the product of the mass of the radiating center and its acceleration is equal to the geometric sum of the resultant external forces applied to it and the reactive force.”
d(m×V)/dt = F + R
The basic equation of motion of a point of variable mass obtained by I.V. Meshchersky made it possible to establish quantitative laws for various tasks. One of the essential hypotheses underlying Meshchersky’s method is the hypothesis of short-range action (contact action of the body and thrown particles). It is assumed that at the moment the particle separates from the body, a phenomenon similar to an impact occurs, the particle receives a relative velocity V 2 in a very short period of time, and further interaction between the particle and the main body stops.
An important contribution to the mechanics of variable mass was made by the Russian scientist K. E. Tsiolkovsky. In 1903, he published the work “Exploration of World Spaces by Reactive Instruments,” in which he thoroughly examined a number of interesting cases rectilinear motion of bodies of variable mass (missiles). The simplest problem solved in Tsiolkovsky’s research concerns the very principle of jet propulsion. Studying the motion of a point in a medium without external forces, Tsiolkovsky showed that with a sufficiently high velocity of particle ejection and the ratio of the initial mass of the point to the final mass, very high (cosmic) velocities can be obtained.
In the mechanics of bodies of variable mass, Tsiolkovsky came up with the idea of studying such movements of a point of variable mass, when at some time intervals the mass of the point changes continuously, and at some moments of time - abruptly. This made it possible to construct the theory of multistage rockets.
Cosmonautics as a science, and then as a practical branch, was formed in the middle of the 20th century. But this was preceded by a fascinating history of the birth and development of the idea of flying into space, which began with fantasy, and only then did the first theoretical works and experiments appear. Thus, initially in human dreams, flight into outer space was carried out with the help of fairy tales or natural forces (tornadoes, hurricanes). Closer to the 20th century, technical means were already present for these purposes in the descriptions of science fiction writers - balloons, super-powerful guns and, finally, rocket engines and the rockets themselves. More than one generation of young romantics grew up on the works of J. Verne, G. Wells, A. Tolstoy, A. Kazantsev, the basis of which was a description of space travel.
Everything described by science fiction writers excited the minds of scientists. So K. E. Tsiolkovsky said: “First, thought, fantasy, and fairy tale inevitably come, and behind them comes precise calculation.”
Publication at the beginning of the 20th century theoretical works pioneers of astronautics K. E. Tsiolkovsky, F. A. Tsander, Yu. V. Kondratyuk p. 8, R. H. Goddart issue. 2 p. 174 fig. 9, G. Hanswindt, R. Hainault Peltry, G. Oberta vol. 2 p. 175, V. Gomana to some extent organized a flight of fancy, but at the same time brought to life new directions in science - attempts appeared to determine what astronautics can give to society and how it influences it.
One of the pioneers of rocket- space technology is Robert Einaut Pelterie - French scientist, engineer and inventor.
He came to astronautics after becoming interested in aviation technology. He was one of the first to draw attention to the possibility of using atomic energy in space technology.
In 1912-1913, Robert Goddard in the USA developed the theory of rocket propulsion. Goddard derived the differential equation of rocket motion and developed an approximate method for solving it, determined the minimum launch mass for lifting one pound of payload to different heights, and obtained the rocket efficiency value. They were shown the possibility of launching a multi-stage rocket and the benefits of its use were determined. Since 1915, he was engaged in bench experiments with solid fuel rockets. In 1920, Goddard’s fundamental work, “The Method of Achieving Ultimate Heights,” was published in Washington. This work is one of the classics in the history of rocket and space technology.
In 1921, Goddard began conducting experimental research with liquid rocket engines using liquid oxygen as an oxidizer and hydrocarbons as fuel. The first launch of a liquid-propellant rocket engine at the stand took place in March 1922. The first successful flight of a rocket with a rocket engine created by Goddard occurred on March 16, 1926 issue. 2 pp. 189 fig. 26, a rocket weighing 4.2 kg reached a height of 12.5 m and flew 56 m.
It must be said that the idea to connect the cosmic and terrestrial directions of human activity belongs to the founder of theoretical cosmonautics, K. E. Tsiolkovsky. When a scientist said: “The planet is the cradle of reason, but you cannot live forever in a cradle,” he did not put forward alternatives - either the Earth or space. Tsiolkovsky never considered going into space to be a consequence of some hopelessness of life on Earth. On the contrary, he spoke about the rational transformation of the nature of our planet by the power of reason. People, the scientist argued, “will change the surface of the Earth, its oceans, atmosphere, plants and themselves. They will control the climate and will rule within the solar system, as well as on the Earth itself, which will remain a dwelling place for humanity for an indefinitely long time.”
In the field of theoretical development of issues of cosmonautics and interplanetary travel, the talented researcher Yu. V. Kondratyuk worked, who, independently of K. E. Tsiolkovsky, in his works “To those who will read in order to build” (1919) and “the conquest of interplanetary spaces” (1929) obtained the basic equations of rocket motion. In a number of provisions discussed in his works, the basic provisions set out in the works of Tsiolkovsky were supplemented. For example, Kondratyuk proposed, when flying to the Moon, to launch a space system into an artificial satellite orbit, and then a takeoff and landing vehicle and direct it to the Moon. The energy efficiency of such a launch of a payload directed to the Moon is shown.
Another major representative of the Russian school of astronautics was F. A. Tsander. The book “Problems of Flight Using Jet Vehicles,” published in 1932, contains materials on rocket designs, the theory of rocket flight, and proposals for the use of certain metals and alloys as fuels for rocket engines.
In 1921, on the initiative and under the leadership of N.I. Tikhomirov, a Gas Dynamic Laboratory (GDL) was created as part of the Military Research Committee under the Revolutionary Military Council of the RSFSR, which was engaged in the development of rockets using ballistic powders. Based on these developments, multiple rocket launchers were created, successfully tested and adopted by the Red Army, which played a significant role in the battles at Khalkhin Gol and in the Great Patriotic War.
In May 1929, at the GDL, on the initiative of V.P. Glushko, a department was created in which liquid jet engines ORM-1 and ORM-2 (experimental jet engines) were developed in 1930-31.
Nitrogen oxide (oxidizer) and toluene or a mixture of gasoline and toluene (fuel) were used as fuel components in the engines. The engines developed thrust up to 20 kg. Based on the test results in 1931-32, a series of liquid-propellant rocket engines up to ORM-52 with a thrust of 250-300 kg was created and tested.
In 1931, groups for the study of jet propulsion (Mos GIRD and Leningrad) were created in Moscow and Leningrad under Osoviakhim, which united rocket science enthusiasts on a voluntary basis.
F.A. Tsander, S.P. Korolev, Yu.A. Pobedonostsev, M.K. Tikhonravov and others worked at the Moscow GIRD.
At MosGIRD, under the leadership of S.P. Korolev, the first GIRD-09 rocket with an engine of 25-33 kg thrust was created according to the project of M.K. Tikhonravov, the engine of which ran on hybrid fuel jelly-like gasoline and gaseous oxygen p. 10 fig. 2. The rocket was tested in August 1933. In November of the same year, under the leadership of S.P. Korolev, the GIRD-X rocket was created, running on liquid fuel, alcohol and liquid oxygen. The rocket engine developed thrust up to 65 kg. The rocket was created according to the design of F.A. Tsander.
In 1933, on the basis of the GDL and Mos GIRD, the Rocket Research Institute of the Red Army (RNII RKKA) was created in the system of the People's Commissariat of Defense, which a few months later was transferred to industry. A number of liquid propellant engines (from ORM-53 to ORM-102) were created at the Institute in 1934-38, and ORM-65, created in 1936, developed thrust up to 175 kg and was the most advanced engine of that time.
In 1939, on the initiative of V.P. Glushko and under his leadership, an experimental design bureau for liquid-propellant rocket engines (OKB-GDL) was created, where in the forties a family of aviation liquid-propellant rocket engines was developed, which served as prototypes for the development of powerful rocket engines.
In the USSR immediately after World War II practical work in space programs are associated with the names of S.P. Korolev and M.K. Tikhonravov. At the beginning of 1945, M.K. Tikhonravov organized a group of RNII specialists to develop a project for a manned high-altitude rocket vehicle (a cabin with two cosmonauts) to study the upper layers of the atmosphere. It was decided to create the project on the basis of a single-stage liquid rocket, designed for vertical flight to an altitude of up to 200 km (project VR-190). The project included solving the following problems:
Study of weightlessness conditions during short-term human flight in a pressurized cabin;
Studying the movement of the center of mass of the cabin and its movement around the center of mass after separation from the launch vehicle;
Obtaining data on the upper layers of the atmosphere;
Checking the functionality of the systems (separation, descent, stabilization, landing, etc.) included in the design of the high-altitude cabin.
The VR-190 project was the first to propose solutions that have found application in modern spacecraft:
Parachute descent system, soft landing braking rocket engine, separation system using pyrobolts;
Electrical contact rod for pre-ignition of the soft landing engine, ejection-free sealed cabin with a life support system;
Cabin stabilization system outside the dense layers of the atmosphere using low-thrust nozzles.
In general, the VR-190 project was a complex of new technical solutions and concepts, confirmed by the progress of development of domestic and foreign rocket and space technology. In 1946, the materials of the VR-190 project were reported by Tikhonravov to I.V. Stalin. Since 1947, Tikhonravov and his group have been working on the idea of rocket flight and in the late forties and early fifties showed the possibility of achieving the first cosmic speed and launching artificial satellites using a rocket base being developed in the USSR. In 1950-53, the efforts of members of M.K. Tikhonravov’s group were aimed at studying the problem of creating composite rockets and artificial satellites.
In a report to the Government in 1954 on the possibility of developing satellites, S.P. Korolev wrote: “On your instructions, I present a memorandum to Comrade. Tikhonravova M.K. “About the artificial satellite of the Earth.” In a report on scientific activities for 1954, S.P. Korolev noted: “We would consider it possible to carry out a preliminary development of the project of the satellite itself, taking into account the ongoing work (the work of M.K. Tikhonravov especially deserves attention).”
Work began to prepare for the launch of the first satellite PS-1. The first Council of Chief Designers was created, headed by S.P. Korolev, who subsequently managed the space program of the USSR, which became a leader in space exploration. Created under the leadership of S.P. Korolev, OKB-1-TsKBEM-NPO Energia has become the center of space science and industry in the USSR since the early 1950s. Cosmonautics is unique in that much that was predicted first by science fiction writers and then by scientists has truly come true at cosmic speed. Just over 40 years have passed since the launch of the first artificial Earth satellite, October 4, 1957 p. 37 fig. 8, and the history of astronautics already contains a series of remarkable achievements achieved initially by the USSR and the USA, and then by other space powers.
Already many thousands of satellites are flying in orbit around the Earth, the devices have reached the Moon, Venus, Mars; scientific equipment was sent to Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn to obtain knowledge about these distant planets of the solar system.
From the moment of the launch of the first cosmonaut Yu. A. Gagarin on the Vostok spacecraft, after the launches of the spacecraft p.38 fig. 9 “Salyut”, “Mir”, the USSR became for a long time the leading country in the world in manned space flight. Large-scale space systems in the interests of a wide range of tasks (including socio-economic and scientific), integration of space industries of various countries.
The first powerful liquid-propellant rocket engines (created under the leadership of V.P. Glushko), the implementation of new scientific ideas and schemes that practically eliminated losses on the TPU drive, pushed Russian engine building to the forefront of space technology. Development of thermo-hydrodynamics, theory of heat transfer and strength, metallurgy of materials, chemistry of fuels, measuring technology, vacuum and plasma technology.
Design of complex space systems, spaceport construction, high-precision and reliable control systems for remote meteorological support objects, satellite geodesy, creation of information space.
The fight against space pollution is underway.
The effectiveness of means of armed warfare increases by 1.5-2 times.
In the 20s of the twentieth century, practical work was carried out in Germany on the creation of liquid propellant engines and ballistic missile projects were developed. Prominent German scientists and engineers G. Obert, R. Nebel, W. Riedel, K. Riedel took part in the work. Hermann Oberth worked on the creation of rockets. Back in 1917, he created a project for a combat rocket using liquid fuel (alcohol and liquid oxygen), which should carry a combat charge to a range of several hundred kilometers. In 1923, Oberth wrote his dissertation "The Rocket in Interplanetary Space." Further development G. Oberth's ideas were received in the book “Ways of Space Flight” (1929), which discussed, in particular, the possibility of using solar radiation energy during interplanetary flights.
In 1957, Oberth's book "Men in Space" was published, where he again returned to the use of solar radiation energy using mirrors deployed in space.
Oberth has developed several projects for space rockets with liquid propellant engines, offering alcohol, hydrocarbons, liquid hydrogen as fuel, and liquid oxygen as an oxidizer.
R. Nebel worked on a project for a missile launched at ground targets from an aircraft.
V. Riedel conducted experimental studies of rocket engines. In 1927 it was created in Breslau. Society for Interplanetary Communications, whose members created and tested a rocket cart in Rousselheim.
At the end of the 20s, to carry out experimental work aimed at creating rockets with liquid propellant engines, a group for the study of liquid rocket engines under the leadership of V. Dornberger was created in the ballistics and ammunition department of the cruiser's weapons department. In 1932, in Kuehnelsdorf near Berlin, in a specially organized experimental laboratory, the development of liquid propellant engines for ballistic missiles began.
In this laboratory, Wierner von Braun became the leading designer. In 1933, a group of engineers led by Dornberger and Brown designed a ballistic rocket with a liquid-propellant rocket engine A-1 with a launch weight of 150 kg, length 1.4 m, diameter 0.3 m. The engine developed a thrust of 295 kg. Although the design was unsuccessful, its improved version A-2, created on the basis of the A-1, was successfully launched in December 1934 on the island of Borkum (North Sea). The rocket reached an altitude of 2.2 km.
In 1936, with the full support of the Reichswehr command, the Dorberger-Brown group began developing a ballistic missile with an estimated range of 275 km and a warhead weight of 1 ton. At the same time, a decision was made to build the Peenemünde rocket research center on the island of Usedom in the Baltic Sea, consisting of two parts. Peenemünde-West to test new types of weapons for the Air Force and Peenemünde-Ost, where work was carried out on a missile for the ground forces.
After unsuccessful launches of the A-3 rocket, work began on the A-4 rocket with a liquid-propellant rocket engine, which had the following performance characteristics: launch weight 12 tons, length 14 m, body diameter 1.6 m, stabilizer span 3.5 m, engine thrust on Earth 25 tons, flight range about 300 km. The circular deflection of the rocket should be within 0.002 - 0.003 km. The warhead had an explosive charge of 1 ton.
The first experimental launch of the A-4 rocket took place on June 13, 1942 and ended in failure; the rocket fell 1.5 minutes after launch. On October 3, 1942, the rocket flew 190 km, reaching an altitude of 96 km and deviated from the calculated landing site by 4 km.
Between September 1944 and March 1945, the command of the German armed forces sent about 5.8 thousand V-2 missiles to combat missile units. Almost 1.5 thousand missiles did not reach the launchers. About 4.3 thousand missiles were launched towards England and Belgium. Of these, 15% achieved the goal. This low percentage of successful launches is explained by the design flaws of the V-2. However, experience was gained in the use of long-range missile weapons, which was immediately used in the USA and the USSR.
1.3. Formation of the space services market and development of space technology at the present stage
If in the first period of the rapid development of rocket technology, solving problems in space was carried out at any cost, a new, usually more advanced rocket was developed to solve each new problem, then already at the end of the 60s the question of the economic efficiency of rocket technology was raised.
As its practical effectiveness increases, its impact in various areas of human activity in space increases. In advanced countries, interest in using its results began to appear in most countries of the world. The question arose about the use of launch vehicles and spacecraft on a lease basis from countries that have this equipment, or about the creation and development of their own space technology. The first path led to the creation of a market for space services. However, due to the high cost of renting space communication lines, meteorological, navigation and other space systems, the question of creating their own launch vehicles and spacecraft was raised in many countries.
But often individual even large states did not have enough of their own resources for these purposes, so international space associations began to be created to implement large space projects, for example the European Space Agency and a number of others.
Since the late seventies, the space services market has been a device and an intensively developing sector of the world economic system. This is due to the increasing demand for services provided at on a commercial basis using rocket and space systems: telecommunications, products and services for remote sensing of the Earth's surface, launching aircraft into space, geodetic and navigation services, etc. In addition, political changes have led to a weakening government regulation in the development of private initiative in the field space activities. As a result of the creation of promising technologies and the development of launch vehicles and spacecraft, new opportunities have opened up in space exploration on a commercial basis.
we examined the most important component of deep space flight - gravity maneuver. But due to its complexity, a project such as space flight can always be broken down into a large number of technologies and inventions that make it possible. The periodic table, linear algebra, Tsiolkovsky’s calculations, strength of materials and other entire fields of science contributed to the first, and all subsequent human space flights. In today’s article we will tell you how and who came up with the idea of a space rocket, what it consists of, and how, from drawings and calculations, the rocket turned into a means of delivering people and cargo into space.A Brief History of Rockets
The general principle of jet flight, which formed the basis of all rockets, is simple - some part is separated from the body, setting everything else in motion.
It is unknown who was the first to implement this principle, but various guesses and conjectures bring the genealogy of rocket science right back to Archimedes. What is known for certain about the first such inventions is that they were actively used by the Chinese, who loaded them with gunpowder and launched them into the sky due to the explosion. Thus they created the first solid fuel rockets. European governments showed great interest in missiles early
Second rocket boom
Rockets waited in the wings and waited: in the 1920s, the second rocket boom began, and it is associated primarily with two names.
Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky, a self-taught scientist from the Ryazan province, despite difficulties and obstacles, himself reached many discoveries, without which it would have been impossible to even talk about space. The idea of using liquid fuel, Tsiolkovsky’s formula, which calculates the speed required for flight based on the ratio of the final and initial masses, a multi-stage rocket - all this is his merit. Largely under the influence of his works, domestic rocket science was created and formalized. In the Soviet Union, societies and circles for the study of jet propulsion began to spontaneously arise, including GIRD - a group for the study of jet propulsion, and in 1933, under the patronage of the authorities, the Jet Institute appeared.
Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky.
Source: Wikimedia.org
The second hero of the rocket race is the German physicist Wernher von Braun. Brown had an excellent education and a lively mind, and after meeting another luminary of world rocket science, Heinrich Oberth, he decided to put all his efforts into creating and improving rockets. During World War II, von Braun actually became the father of the Reich's “weapon of retaliation” - the V-2 rocket, which the Germans began using on the battlefield in 1944. The “winged horror,” as it was called in the press, brought destruction to many English cities, but, fortunately, at that time the collapse of Nazism was already a matter of time. Wernher von Braun, together with his brother, decided to surrender to the Americans, and, as history has shown, this was a lucky ticket not only and not so much for scientists, but for the Americans themselves. Since 1955, Brown has worked for the American government, and his inventions form the basis of the US space program.
But let's go back to the 1930s. The Soviet government appreciated the zeal of enthusiasts on the path to space and decided to use it in its own interests. During the war years, the Katyusha, a multiple launch rocket system that fired rockets, showed its worth. It was in many ways an innovative weapon: the Katyusha, based on a Studebaker light truck, arrived, turned around, fired at the sector and left, not allowing the Germans to come to their senses.
The end of the war presented our leadership with a new task: the Americans demonstrated to the world the full power of the nuclear bomb, and it became quite obvious that only those who have something similar can claim the status of a superpower. But there was a problem. The fact is that, in addition to the bomb itself, we needed delivery vehicles that could bypass US air defense. Airplanes were not suitable for this. And the USSR decided to rely on missiles.
Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky died in 1935, but he was replaced by a whole generation of young scientists who sent man into space. Among these scientists was Sergei Pavlovich Korolev, who was destined to become the Soviets' "trump card" in the space race.
The USSR set about creating its intercontinental missile with all zeal: institutes were organized, the best scientists were gathered, a missile research institute was being created in Podlipki near Moscow, and work was in full swing.
Only a colossal effort of effort, resources and minds made it possible Soviet Union V as soon as possible build your own rocket, which they called R-7. It was its modifications that launched Sputnik and Yuri Gagarin into space, and it was Sergei Korolev and his associates who launched the space age of mankind. But what does a space rocket consist of?
The rocket is so far the only vehicle capable of launching a spacecraft into space. And then K. Tsiolkovsky can be recognized as the author of the first space rocket, although the origins of rockets date back to the distant past. From there we will begin to consider our question.
History of the invention of the rocket
Most historians believe that the invention of the rocket dates back to the Chinese Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD), with the discovery of gunpowder and the beginning of its use for fireworks and entertainment. When a powder shell exploded, a force arose that could move various objects. Later, the first cannons and muskets were created using this principle. Powder weapon shells could fly long distances, but were not rockets, since they did not have their own fuel reserves, but It was the invention of gunpowder that became the main prerequisite for the emergence of real rockets. Descriptions of the flying "fire arrows" used by the Chinese indicate that these arrows were rockets. A tube made of compacted paper was attached to them, open only at the rear end and filled with a flammable composition. This charge was ignited and the arrow was then released using a bow. Such arrows were used in a number of cases during the siege of fortifications, against ships and cavalry.
In the 13th century, together with the Mongol conquerors, rockets came to Europe. It is known that rockets were used by the Zaporozhye Cossacks in the 16th-17th centuries. In the 17th century, a Lithuanian military engineer Kazimir Semenovich described a multistage rocket.
At the end of the 18th century in India, rocket weapons were used in battles with British troops.
At the beginning of the 19th century, the army also adopted military missiles, the production of which was established by William Congreve (Congreve's Rocket). At the same time, the Russian officer Alexander Zasyadko developed the theory of rockets. Great success Russian artillery general achieved in improving missiles in the middle of the last century Konstantin Konstantinov. Attempts to mathematically explain jet propulsion and create more efficient missile weapons did in Russia Nikolay Tikhomirov in 1894.
Created the theory of jet propulsion Konstantin Tsiolkovsky. He put forward the idea of using rockets for space flight and argued that the most efficient fuel for them would be a combination of liquid oxygen and hydrogen. He designed a rocket for interplanetary communication in 1903.
German scientist Hermann Oberth in the 1920s he also outlined the principles of interplanetary flight. In addition, he conducted bench tests of rocket engines.
American scientist Robert Goddard in 1926 he launched the first liquid-propellant rocket, using gasoline and liquid oxygen as fuel.
The first domestic rocket was called GIRD-90 (an abbreviation for the “Group for the Study of Jet Propulsion”). It began to be built in 1931, and was tested on August 17, 1933. GIRD at that time was headed by S.P. Korolev. The rocket took off 400 meters and was in flight for 18 seconds. The weight of the rocket at launch was 18 kilograms.
In 1933, in the USSR at the Jet Institute, the creation of a fundamentally new weapon was completed - rockets, the installation for launching which later received the nickname "Katyusha".
At the rocket center in Peenemünde (Germany) it was developed A-4 ballistic missile with a flight range of 320 km. During the Second World War, on October 3, 1942, the first successful launch of this rocket took place, and in 1944 it began combat use called V-2.
The military use of the V-2 showed the enormous capabilities of rocket technology, and the most powerful post-war powers - the USA and the USSR - also began developing ballistic missiles.
In 1957 in the USSR under the leadership Sergei Korolev The world's first intercontinental ballistic missile, the R-7, was created as a means of delivering nuclear weapons, which in the same year was used to launch the world's first artificial Earth satellite. This is how the use of rockets for space flight began.
Project by N. Kibalchich
In this regard, it is impossible not to recall Nikolai Kibalchich, a Russian revolutionary, Narodnaya Volya member, and inventor. He was a participant in the assassination attempts on Alexander II, it was he who invented and manufactured projectiles with “explosive jelly”, which were used by I.I. Grinevitsky and N.I. Rysakov during the assassination attempt on the Catherine Canal. Sentenced to death.
Hanged together with A.I. Zhelyabov, S.L. Perovskaya and other Pervomartovites. Kibalchich put forward the idea of a rocket aircraft with an oscillating combustion chamber to control the thrust vector. A few days before his execution, Kibalchich developed an original design for an aircraft capable of space flight. The project described the design of a powder rocket engine, flight control by changing the angle of the engine, a programmed combustion mode, and much more. His request to transfer the manuscript to the Academy of Sciences was not satisfied by the investigative commission; the project was first published only in 1918.
Modern rocket engines
Most modern rockets are equipped with chemical rocket engines. Such an engine can use solid, liquid or hybrid propellant. A chemical reaction between the fuel and oxidizer begins in the combustion chamber, the resulting hot gases form an escaping jet stream, are accelerated in the jet nozzle (or nozzles), and are expelled from the rocket. The acceleration of these gases in the engine creates thrust - a pushing force that makes the rocket move. The principle of jet propulsion is described by Newton's third law.
But chemical reactions are not always used to propel rockets. There are steam rockets, in which superheated water flowing through the nozzle turns into a high-speed steam jet, which serves as propulsion. The efficiency of steam rockets is relatively low, but this is compensated by their simplicity and safety, as well as the cheapness and availability of water. The operation of a small steam rocket was tested in space in 2004 on board the UK-DMC satellite. There are projects using steam rockets for interplanetary transportation of goods, with water heating using nuclear or solar energy.
Rockets like steam rockets, in which the working fluid is heated outside the engine's operating area, are sometimes described as systems with external combustion engines. Examples of external combustion rocket engines include most designs of nuclear rocket engines.
Alternative methods are now being developed to raise spacecraft into orbit. Among them are the “space elevator”, electromagnetic and conventional guns, but they are still at the design stage.
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