Dnepr rocket

Infobox rocket
name =Dnepr (Dnipro/Konversiya)

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caption =
function =Orbital carrier rocket
manufacturer =Yuzhny Machine-Building Plant
country-origin = Soviet Union (Ukraine)
cpl-year =
cpl =
height =34.3 m
alt-height =112.5 ft
diameter =3 m
alt-diameter =9.8 ft
mass = 211,000 kg
alt-mass =465,000 lb
stages = 3 (4 or 5 with SpaceTug upper stages)
LEO-payload = 4,500 kg
alt-LEO = 9,900 lb
payload-location = ISS
payload = 3,200 kg
alt-payload = 7,000 lb
payload2-location = TLI
payload2 = 550 kg (with ST-1)
alt-payload2 =
status = Active
sites = LC-109, Baikonur
Yasny
first=21 April 1999
last=
launches =12
success =11
fail =1
partial =
stage1engines =1 RD-264
stage1thrust =4,520 kN
alt-stage1thrust =1,016,130 lb_f
stage1SI =318 s
stage1time =130 seconds
stage1fuel = N2O4/UDMH
stage2engines =1 RD-0255
stage2thrust =755 kN
alt-stage2thrust =169,730 lb_f
stage2SI =340 sec
stage2time =190 seconds
stage2fuel = N2O4/UDMH
stage3engines =1 RD-869
stage3thrust =18.6 kN
alt-stage3thrust =4,181 lb_f
stage3SI =317 sec
stage3time =1,000 seconds
stage3fuel = N2O4/UDMH
stage4name =SpaceTug 1 (ST-1)
(Optional)
stage4engines =1 Solid
stage4thrust =TBC
alt-stage4thrust =
stage4SI =
stage4time =TBC
stage4fuel = Solid
stage5name =SpaceTug 3 (ST-3)
(Optional, May be flown as stage 4 without ST-1)
stage5engines =1 Liquid (TBC)
stage5thrust =TBC
alt-stage5thrust =
stage5SI =
stage5time =TBC
stage5fuel = N2O4/UDMHThe Dnepr rocket ( _ua. Дніпро, "Dnipro"; _ru. Днепр, "Dnepr") is a space launch vehicle named after the Dnieper River. It is a converted ICBM used for launching artificial satellites into orbit, operated by launch service provider ISC Kosmotras. The first launch, on April 21, 1999, successfully placed UoSAT-12, a 350 kg demonstration mini-satellite, into a 650 km circular LEO. [cite web |url=http://www.russianspaceweb.com/dnepr.html |title=The Dnepr launcher |publisher=RussianSpaceWeb.com] [cite web |url=http://www.sstl.org/index.php?loc=27&id=151 |title=UoSAT-12 Integrates with Dnepr for Launch on 21 April |publisher=Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd]

Converted missile

The Dnepr is based on the R-36MUTTH ICBMndash called the "SS-18 Satan" by NATOndash designed by the Yuzhnoe Design Bureau in Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine. The Dnepr is three-stage rocket using storable toxic liquid propellants. The launch vehicles used for satellite launches are withdrawn from service with the Russian Strategic Rocket Forces and stored for commercial use. A group of 150 ICBMs can be converted for use and are available until 2020. The Dnepr can be launched from Baikonur in Kazakhstan and a newly created Cosmodrome at the Yasny launch base (Dombarovsky), in the Orenburg region of Russia.

Performance

The Dnepr launch vehicle has only a small number of modifications compared to the R-36M ICBM in service. The main difference is the payload adapter located the space head module and modified flight-control unit. This baseline version can lift 3,600 kg into a 300 km low earth orbit at an inclination of 50.6°, or 2,300 kg to a 300 km sun-synchronous orbit at an inclination of 98.0°. On a typical mission the Dnepr deploys a larger main payload and a secondary payload of Miniaturized satellites and CubeSats. A number of Space Tugs are under development which will be placed inside the space head module, thereby sacrificing volume and payload but enabling orbits requiring more energy, including planetary escape orbits.

Launch history

Before the Dnepr entered commercial service it was in service with the Strategic Rocket Forces which launched the ICBM version over 160 times with a reliability of 97%. The rocket has been used ten times for commercial purposes with a single failure.

Launch failure

The committee investigating the failed launch on July 26, 2006 concluded that the failure was caused by a malfunctioning of the pumping hydraulic drive of combustion chamber #4. The control malfunctioning brought about the disturbances, which led to the roll instability, excessive dispersions of the yaw and pitch angles. Thrust termination occurred at 74 seconds after lift off. The crash site was located 150 km from the launch pad in an unpopulated area of Kazakhstan. Toxic propellants did pollute the crash site, forcing Russia to pay US$1.1m in compensation [cite web|url=http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/11/03/news/AS_GEN_Kazakhstan_Russia_Space.php|title=Russia to pay Kazakhstan over US$1 million in compensation for damage from rocket crash|publisher=International Herald Tribune|date=2006-10-03] . The rocket used for this launch was more than twenty years old. Procedures for launch have been changed to prevent future malfunctions of this kind.

References

External links

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