At the moment, the Russian space industry has several types of launch vehicles that have different characteristics and are capable of jointly solving a wide range of tasks related to placing the payload into orbit. In parallel with the operation of existing missiles, new models of such equipment are being developed. The most famous is the promising Angara project. In addition, design work on the Phoenix theme has already begun. The result of this program should be the emergence of a promising medium-class launch vehicle capable of replacing some of the existing samples.
Over the past several decades, the main medium-class launch vehicles used by our country have been the Soyuz family systems. Despite the considerable age of the family as a whole, the equipment undergoes regular upgrades, and in addition, completely new versions of missiles are being created, which are most seriously different from the previous ones. Nevertheless, by now there is a need to create a completely new rocket capable of replacing the "Soyuz" of all existing versions.
The reasons for this are quite simple. The missiles of the existing line are distinguished by rather high characteristics and great capabilities, but the modernization of even the best samples cannot continue indefinitely for objective reasons. Thus, it is necessary to start developing a completely new rocket, initially using modern technologies and element base, as well as meeting current and future requirements. Taking into account such features of the development of rocket technology, space industry specialists several years ago suggested starting the development of a promising launch vehicle.
Zenit-2 launch vehicle. Photo Bastion-karpenko.ru
New plans for the development of rocket technology became known a little over two years ago. In April 2015, domestic media published information obtained from unnamed sources in the rocket and space industry. Later, reports of a new project received official confirmation from the heads of key industrial enterprises. Then the name of the project became known - "Phoenix". Subsequently, the initially published data was repeatedly refined and corrected, probably in connection with the current development of the project.
According to the first reports two years ago, in the very near future the leading enterprises of the rocket and space industry had to determine the main features of the future project, as well as form the terms of reference. Roscosmos was to be responsible for this stage of work. It was planned to spend about two years on the formation of requirements, 2016 and 2017. Development work was to be carried out only in 2018. It was planned to spend several more years on the development of the project and the subsequent stages of the program.
According to preliminary plans for 2015, the main phase of the project was to continue from 2018 to 2025. Also, sources that reported the start of the Phoenix project disclosed some financial details. For seven years, starting in 2018, at least 30 billion rubles were supposed to be spent on the development of the project and missiles of a new type.
At the same time it was reported that the Progress Rocket and Space Center (Samara) became the initiator of the development of the promising Phoenix project. For obvious reasons, two years ago the exact shape of the launch vehicle had not yet been formed, but even then certain assumptions were made on this score. According to information from that time, the rocket was supposed to be built according to a monoblock scheme and put a load weighing more than 9 tons into low-earth orbit. The possibility of using a power plant operating on different fuel pairs was considered. Depending on the customer's decision, it was possible to use engines using liquefied natural gas or kerosene and liquefied hydrogen.
In this form and with such characteristics, the Phoenix launch vehicle could take an intermediate position between the existing Soyuz and Zenit systems. In addition, the possibility of using a promising rocket as a module for the construction of carriers of heavier classes with increased carrying capacity was not ruled out. In the proposed form, according to the statements of unnamed representatives of the industry, the Phoenix rocket was supposed to be an addition to the carriers of the Angara family. It was indicated that in the event of any problems with the latter, forcing the termination of the operation of all carriers of the family, the presence of "Phoenix" will allow the continuation of the launch of small and medium payloads into orbit.
For some time, there were no new reports on the progress of work under the Phoenix program. Some details of the existing plans were announced only at the end of March 2016. The head of Roskosmos, Igor Komarov, spoke about several research works required to form the appearance of a number of promising launch vehicles of different classes. At the same time, in the case of the Phoenix project, it is planned to accelerate the work. According to the available schedule, the design was to be completed in 2025. Nevertheless, it was planned to once again analyze the existing possibilities and find a way to accelerate the development of the rocket with the completion of the project until the middle of the next decade. As the head of the state corporation noted, the market and life demand acceleration of work.
I. Komarov also confirmed the possibility of using the Phoenix rocket not only as an independent carrier. The main task of the project was still to create a middle-class rocket, but this did not exclude the use of "Phoenix" as the first stage of a promising super-heavy carrier. Any details of a technical nature associated with such a use of the rocket were not disclosed.
New reports on the progress of work on the Phoenix project and information on the technical appearance of the rocket had to wait for more than a year. Only at the end of April 2017 were new interesting features of the project revealed. General Director of the Rocket and Space Corporation Energia Vladimir Solntsev said that, at least in the first stages, the Phoenix rocket will be disposable. At the same time, he clarified that the issue of multiple use of rocket stages is subject to additional justification. To solve the problem of returning the spent stage to the ground, it is necessary to use special control systems, new equipment and an additional supply of fuel. As a consequence, the savings on the return of the stage are either absent or minimal. At the same time, reducing the size of the area where the steps fall appears to be a convenient way to save on launches.
V. Solntsev also spoke about plans for maximum automation of work with a new type of rocket. A large number of automatic systems will be present on board the Phoenix and as part of the launch complex, which will be responsible for conducting prelaunch preparation. Thanks to this, all preparation for the launch will be carried out by the equipment independently, without human intervention. The assembly of launch vehicles of a new type is currently expected to be set up at the production facilities of the Progress RCC in Samara.
On May 22, the TASS news agency published new information on the progress of work in the framework of the Phoenix program. This time the information was received from the press service of the Central Scientific Research Institute of Mechanical Engineering, which is one of the main organizations of the domestic rocket and space industry. Representatives of TsNIIMash reported that the creation of a promising rocket will begin with a preliminary design. In accordance with the instructions of Roskosmos, this stage of work will be completed by the end of this year. It will be possible to speed up the work due to some features of the existing regulatory and technical base. It allows for the skipping of some stages of programs if there is sufficient justification for this.
In addition, the most important prerequisite for reducing the development time will be the use of the existing reserve. In the Phoenix project, it was proposed to apply the developments on the Zenit launch vehicle project, which was created and operated earlier in cooperation with Ukraine. The final assembly of Zenit missiles was carried out abroad, but about 85% of all components were manufactured in Russia. The proposal to use the existing backlog was taken into account when creating the terms of reference. The latter also took into account the possibility of reducing the experimental development associated with the borrowing of ready-made elements.
Models of missiles of the Angara family. Photo Wikimedia Commons
In the future, it is also planned to save time on flight tests. It is proposed to conduct them at the Baikonur cosmodrome. To carry out inspections of the Phoenix, it is planned to modernize the existing launch of Zenit carrier rockets within the framework of the Baiterek joint project. The modification of the Phoenix rocket, modified for launches from Baikonur, received its own name “Sunkar” (Kazakh “Sokol”). It is also possible to create a unified "sea" missile, which will be used together with the existing launch complex "Sea Launch". Naturally, the launch complex at the Vostochny cosmodrome will be built by a certain date.
According to the current plans of Roscosmos, a modification of the Phoenix for Sea Launch will be tested in 2020. Next year, 2021, the Sunkar rocket will fly from Baikonur for the first time. The first launch from Vostochny is scheduled for 2034.
The appearance of the Phoenix project and the obtaining of certain results made it possible to revise some of the existing plans for the further development of the rocket and space program. In the foreseeable future, it is planned to send into orbit the first manned spacecraft "Federation", which is currently being developed. Earlier it was stated that the first flight of the Federation will take place in 2021 and will be carried out using a carrier rocket of the Angara family, starting from the Vostochny cosmodrome. According to the latest reports, in the new project, the role of the carrier of the manned spacecraft will be transferred to the Phoenix.
On May 27, TASS, citing unnamed representatives of the space industry, announced the postponement of the first launch of the Federation and the replacement of the launch vehicle. Due to some peculiarities of the current projects and the available opportunities, it was decided to postpone the launch to 2022, to carry it out at Baikonur and to use a new type of launch vehicle. The launch of the rocket with a manned spacecraft will be carried out within the framework of the Baiterek project. A TASS source noted that such a change in plans would make it possible to do without major modifications to the launch complex, missile or Federation ship.
Also a few days ago it became known that the construction of a new infrastructure necessary for the operation of manned spacecraft at the Vostochny cosmodrome will be postponed for some time. This work will be carried out only after the start of the development of a super-heavy launch vehicle for flights to the Moon. Thus, some of the new facilities on Vostochny will be built only in the second half of the next decade. At the same time, the change in the existing plans will in no way affect the preparation for operation of the Angara family of missiles carrying an unmanned payload.
According to the available data, the domestic rocket and space industry is currently developing a draft design for the Phoenix launch vehicle. As a result, the exact technical appearance of the rocket has not yet been fully formed, but there is already some information about the features of its design. For obvious reasons, the current estimates regarding the architecture and design of the rocket may not correspond to the results of the project due to the continuation of its development and the introduction of certain changes.
According to existing estimates, the Phoenix rocket will be built according to a two-stage scheme and will be able to carry the upper stage. Despite the use of certain developments of the Zenith project, the promising carrier will be larger and heavier, and will also be able to show higher characteristics. So, the length of the first stage can be increased to 37 m, the second - up to 10 m with an increase in the maximum diameter up to 4.1 m. The starting mass can reach 520 tons.
Assumptions are made about the possible composition of the power plant. So, the first stage can be obtained with liquid engines RD-171M, RD-170M or RD-180. In the first two cases, the stage will receive one engine, while the RD-180 should be used in pairs. The second stage can be equipped with two RD-0124 engines. It is supposed to use different booster blocks of domestic production.
Earlier it was reported that the proposed technical appearance will significantly improve the main characteristics in comparison with the originally named. So, it will be possible to launch up to 17 tons of payload into low-earth orbit. With the use of an appropriate upper stage and a flight route over the territory of China, it will be possible to deliver up to 2.5 tons of cargo to a geostationary orbit.
Since 2015, when the first sufficiently detailed information about a promising project appeared, the Phoenix launch vehicle has been positioned as a replacement or, at least, an addition to some systems of the Soyuz family. Nevertheless, in fact, these missiles will become a replacement for Zenits, the operation of which is seriously hampered due to the well-known events in the neighboring state. The emergence of a new carrier with similar capabilities, apparently, will make it possible to finally abandon the existing international cooperation.
At the same time, Phoenix / Sunkar will indeed be able to complement the existing Unions. First of all, this will make it possible to ensure the launches of the new manned spacecraft "Federation", which, according to the latest data, will be used together with the "Phoenix", and not with the "Angara", as previously planned. In addition, the simultaneous use of several launch vehicles with similar capabilities can provide some operational advantages.
In the context of the creation and commissioning of the Phoenix rocket, questions arise about the future fate of some projects of the Angara family. Within the framework of the latter, the construction of missiles of different types with different configurations and different characteristics is proposed. Some missiles of such a modular architecture (first of all, the Angara-3) turn out to be a direct analogue of the Phoenix in their capabilities. When a heavy or super-heavy launch vehicle is created on the basis of the Phoenix, a new problem with competition will arise. Time will tell how these issues will be resolved.
According to reports of recent months, the program for creating a promising medium-class launch vehicle "Phoenix" has entered the stage of preliminary design. This stage should be completed by the end of this year, after which new work will begin, as a result of which the first rocket of a new type will go to the cosmodrome by the middle of the next decade. Successful implementation of the Phoenix / Sunkar project will lead to an expansion of the range of available carriers with corresponding positive operational and economic consequences. At the same time, the project may face technical or other problems. In addition, specialists will have to solve certain issues directly related to the simultaneous creation of several missiles with similar characteristics.
