Russian Space Program: News & Discussion #1

TR1 wrote:As always, human stupidity is a far bigger threat than mechanical failure.

Why dont they probe for sabotage as well , It can be a simple human stupidity or a deliberate one.

Most of stupidity I have seen happens only when the military launches its satellite.

Humain mistakes (and not stupidity) is and will always be their

Remember last NASA cargo their was a humain mistake in network cables but they manage to detect it less than half hour before the launch

Quality check is the key, which should also detect a possible sabotage

Austin wrote:Why dont they probe for sabotage as well , It can be a simple human stupidity or a deliberate one.

Most of stupidity I have seen happens only when the military launches its satellite.

Exactly to the point Austin .

Even more true if we consider that those "highly selective mistakes" happen always in secondary components delivered by private subcontractors outside the field of view of security "vigilant eyes".

There is design and there is process... first of all why would the sensors need to be able to be connected in different ways to allow different polarity settings?

If they don't then they need to be designed so they can't be attached any way except the correct way.

Error prevention by design.

Equally there should be a process in place that demands the person checking is independent of the person doing so that something is done and then it is checked to be done correctly by someone else or tested to ensure it is OK before launch.

With the issue of sabotage it is sad to say that such things extend to electronics... perhaps trojan horses are present in the electronics to generate a failure to make the vehicle crash while giving false readings that everything is OK and false readings that something else is wrong...

Makes domestic production of parts essential... the US did this sort of thing years ago with computer chips they knew were going to be used in nuclear reactors... of course it would be ironic if US astronauts were killed because the trojans that make Russian rockets crash are in the rockets that take US astronauts to the ISS...

Garry I agree with your assessment that failure should be prevented by Design as far as possible then let Human fall into it. Also I too hope all the Russian Rocket components are sourced from Russian source.

Angara competition in the making ,ESA approves Angara 6 basic design

Esa selects Ariane 6 basic design

Can some one tell me how is Angara a better launch vehical and what reliability factor it is aiming for ?

Just glancing through some of the design choice countries have made for future launch vehical

Europe Ariane 6 will be 1st ,2nd stage all solid and 3rd stage Liquid.
Indian GSLV Mk3 will be 1st stage solid and 2nd and 3d stage Liquid ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geosynchronous_Satellite_Launch_Vehicle_Mk_III )
Russian Angara will be all 3 stage liquid fuel ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angara_%28rocket_family%29 )

Not sure what direction US will take but they have a new SDV program under works
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuttle-Derived_Launch_Vehicle

Report: 'Upside down' sensors led to $1.3bn Proton-M rocket crash

Rogozin denies that human factor is behind the Proton carrier rocket crash

http://www.itar-tass.com/en/c32/805914.html

"

A version that someone has mixed up the “plus” with “minus” is annoying and makes experts shrug their shoulders,” the vice-premier told journalists.

He explained that the technology of making such systems is “meant for fools”. “First, one has to be color-blind to make a mistake in connecting the wires because the wires which need to be connected have one color,” Rogozin said.

“Second, one of the wires is short in order to have access to a connection. The second wire is long in order to have access to another tab,” Rogozin said. He added that the technology had been tested for decades.

The Russian vice-premier concluded that since investigators were not considering a subversive act as a possible version, then the outpour of that kind of information was nothing more than “red herring”.

Russian Space Center Delays ‘Sabotage’ – Official

MOSCOW, August 21 (RIA Novosti) – Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin slammed the slow progress of construction at Russia’s Vostochny cosmodrome during a visit to the facility Wednesday, saying the delays amounted to “sabotage.”

Rogozin, who oversees the defense and aerospace sectors, said two key instructions regarding construction of the cosmodrome had been issued, but even though one had a July 30 deadline, neither have so far been fulfilled.

Both instructions he mentioned related to setting project construction costs and performance indicators for the site, which covers over 1,000 square kilometers (386 square miles).

“I will view any deviation from the plan as sabotage,” Rogozin said at a meeting with representatives of agencies involved in building the cosmodrome. “I have no intention of being one of those public servants who accept failure to deliver on instructions.”

Rogozin reminded those involved of the project’s importance, and demanded they explain the hold-ups.

“I would like to hear the reasons why these problems arose and proposals to ensure the necessary number of specialists are involved in all stages of the construction work,” Rogozin said.

Rogozin acknowledged the recent severe flooding in the local Amur Region recently had caused problems. “The region is currently actively battling the floods. Workers in the region will be worth their weight in gold,” he said.

In July, five builders, aged between 25 and 50 working at the cosmodrome site were fired for illegal marijuana use, Russia’s Federal Drug Control Service said at the time.

The space center is scheduled for completion by 2020, and is to due to make initial rocket launches as soon as 2015, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting on the space sector in April 2013.

“The site will become a major link in Russia’s aviation and space sector and a powerful innovative center for developing the whole country and the Far East,” he said.

Vostochny is intended to replace Baikonur in Kazakhstan as Russia’s main launch facility, although in April Putin stressed Russia’s continued commitment to Baikonur. According to space agency Roscosmos, Vostochny will host 45 percent of Russia’s space launches and all its manned flights from 2020, while Baikonur’s share will fall from 65 percent to 11 percent, with the remainder going to Plesetsk in Russia’s far north.

Russia and Kazakhstan have been in dispute in recent years over the amount Russian pays for use of the site, prompting Astana to limit the number of rockets Russia launches from it.

George1 wrote:Russian Space Center Delays ‘Sabotage’ – Official

MOSCOW, August 21 (RIA Novosti) – Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin slammed the slow progress of construction at Russia’s Vostochny cosmodrome during a visit to the facility Wednesday, saying the delays amounted to “sabotage.”

Rogozin, who oversees the defense and aerospace sectors, said two key instructions regarding construction of the cosmodrome had been issued, but even though one had a July 30 deadline, neither have so far been fulfilled.

Both instructions he mentioned related to setting project construction costs and performance indicators for the site, which covers over 1,000 square kilometers (386 square miles).

“I will view any deviation from the plan as sabotage,” Rogozin said at a meeting with representatives of agencies involved in building the cosmodrome. “I have no intention of being one of those public servants who accept failure to deliver on instructions.”

Rogozin reminded those involved of the project’s importance, and demanded they explain the hold-ups.

“I would like to hear the reasons why these problems arose and proposals to ensure the necessary number of specialists are involved in all stages of the construction work,” Rogozin said.

Rogozin acknowledged the recent severe flooding in the local Amur Region recently had caused problems. “The region is currently actively battling the floods. Workers in the region will be worth their weight in gold,” he said.

In July, five builders, aged between 25 and 50 working at the cosmodrome site were fired for illegal marijuana use, Russia’s Federal Drug Control Service said at the time.

The space center is scheduled for completion by 2020, and is to due to make initial rocket launches as soon as 2015, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting on the space sector in April 2013.

“The site will become a major link in Russia’s aviation and space sector and a powerful innovative center for developing the whole country and the Far East,” he said.

Vostochny is intended to replace Baikonur in Kazakhstan as Russia’s main launch facility, although in April Putin stressed Russia’s continued commitment to Baikonur. According to space agency Roscosmos, Vostochny will host 45 percent of Russia’s space launches and all its manned flights from 2020, while Baikonur’s share will fall from 65 percent to 11 percent, with the remainder going to Plesetsk in Russia’s far north.

Russia and Kazakhstan have been in dispute in recent years over the amount Russian pays for use of the site, prompting Astana to limit the number of rockets Russia launches from it.

Hahaha this guy is gold.

Now let's see him do something as opposed to talking all the time.

If his attempted ass-chewing actually has an effect though and straightens things out; well then at least that's something.

the RD-170 is one impressive rocket engine

With 20 million horsepower output, the Soviet-era RD-170 was about 5 percent more powerful, yet 1.5 times smaller, than American’s F-1 first stage rocket engine made for the Saturn V booster of the Apollo lunar program.

Reportedly, when the Energia booster with the Buran space shuttle was launched in November 1988, the massive concrete bays paving the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan were flying around like dry leaves, due to the immense power coming from the four RD-170 engines, which blasted the 2,400-ton rocket booster into space.  

http://rt.com/news/russian-rocket-engine-ban-039/

Still in demand too... the US is using a modified version in their Delta rockets... and for a new space craft they are developing for the 2020s they have ordered new rocket engines from Russia... because they are the best.

Nicely done.

Russian Space Industry to Be Consolidated Within Year – Rogozin

Pictures of new Russian spaceship









http://sdelanounas.ru/blogs/40264/

Three Gonets-M satellites launched by Rockot

http://lenta.ru/news/2013/09/26/soyuz/

Soyz launches from Boikanur.

Would it be sensible for Russia to purchase some of their spacerafts from a private company like SpaceX? You know, to perform maybe smaller tasks.

milky_candy_sugar wrote:Would it be sensible for Russia to purchase some of their spacerafts from a private company like SpaceX? You know, to perform maybe smaller tasks.

When Russia can build their own satellite why need to purchase and subsidise SpaceX

Better to let private player in Russia or University to let build one

The could use some commercial satellites, but certainly would want domestically developed systems.

They could probably offer a global do it yourself satellite system where they come to you... where ever you want to be/launch from and offer different packages. For instance for small satellites in low earth orbit a modified Mig-31 could be used, whereas for heavier payloads a TOPOL truck and missile could be delivered to launch something.

Certainly for countries near the equator where satellite launching is cheaper because the spin of the earth is added to the velocity of the rocket to mean less energy is needed to get it into a particular equatorial orbit.

Quantum satellites, laser communication technology - excellent 

Russian space experiment "laser communication system" (TBE "SLS")

Proton-M & Astra-2e mission success

http://www.ilslaunch.com/mission-control/mission-blog/astra-2e-mission-success

Russian Federal Space Agency will provide independent access to remote sensing

First Russian space android moved to the practical tests