Foton

Adaptation of recoverable Vostok spacecraft for zero-gravity materials processing tests. 400 W available to operate experiments.

Beginning in 1985 the USSR/CIS conducted annual unmanned space missions dedicated to materials science research. The Foton spacecraft used for these flights was a derivative of the 1960's era Vostok/Voskhod manned spacecraft and the Zenit military reconnaissance satellites and was very similar to the Bion and Resurs-F satellites. Prototype Foton satellites were launched as Cosmos 1645, 1744, and 1841. Since 1988 the spacecraft were officially designated as Foton.

The 6200 kg spacecraft was 6.2 m in length with a maximum diameter of 2.5 m and was divided into three major sections: the service/retro module, the payload capsule, and an equipment block. The 2.3-m diameter recoverable capsule could handle a payload of up to 700 kg and a volume of 4.7 m3. Electrical power was supplied entirely by storage batteries with 400 W average per day allocated to the payload (up to 700 W for 90 minutes each day). Mission durations for the eight Foton flights to the end of 1992 were 13-16 days.

To minimize perturbation forces, thereby maximizing microgravity conditions (as low as 10^-5 g), Foton spacecraft were placed in mildly eccentric orbits at 62.8 degrees inclination and were not maneuvered during the mission.

Prior to 1991 annual Foton missions were always launched in April or May. Launches were performed by the Soyuz booster from Plesetsk, and recoveries were made in Kazakhstan in the primary manned recovery region north-east of the Baikonur Cosmodrome.

Foton spacecraft had flown with the Zona 1, Zona 4, Zona 4M, Splav 2, and Konstanta 2 electric furnaces as well as the Kashtan electrophoresis unit. The French firm Carra was developing a new interface module for Foton called Spacepack in 1994, which would facilitate the integration of foreign microgravity experiments on Russian spacecraft like Foton.

Design Life: 16 days. Typical orbit: 226 km x 394 km at 62.8 degrees inclination. Mass: 6,190 kg (13,640 lb). Payload: 404 kg (890 lb).

• 1985 April 16 - Cosmos 1645 / Foton 1 - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC41/1. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Mass: 6,200 kg (13,600 lb). Perigee: 214 km (132 mi). Apogee: 388 km (241 mi). Inclination: 62.80 deg. Period: 90.50 min. Duration: 12.16 days.
  Materials processing tests.

• 1986 May 21 - Cosmos 1744 / Foton 2 - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC41/1. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Mass: 6,200 kg (13,600 lb). Perigee: 217 km (134 mi). Apogee: 371 km (230 mi). Inclination: 62.80 deg. Period: 90.40 min. Duration: 13.19 days.
  216 orbits. Materials processing experiments. Continuation of research on materials science in space.

• 1987 April 24 - Cosmos 1841 / Foton 3 - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC41/1. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Mass: 6,300 kg (13,800 lb). Perigee: 217 km (134 mi). Apogee: 380 km (230 mi). Inclination: 62.90 deg. Period: 90.50 min. Duration: 13.17 days.
  Materials processing tests. Conduct of experiments on the production of semi-conducting materials and super-pure biological preparations in micro-gravity.

• 1988 April 14 - Foton 4 - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC41/1. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Mass: 6,200 kg (13,600 lb). Perigee: 215 km (133 mi). Apogee: 372 km (231 mi). Inclination: 62.80 deg. Period: 90.40 min. Duration: 13.62 days.
  218 orbits. Materials processing experiments; extremely pure and semiconductor materials. Research in material science in space (production of semiconductor materials with improved properties and very pure biologically active substances)

• 1989 April 26 - Foton 5 - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC41/1. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Mass: 6,200 kg (13,600 lb). Perigee: 220 km (130 mi). Apogee: 377 km (234 mi). Inclination: 62.80 deg. Period: 90.50 min. Duration: 14.35 days.
  234 orbits. Materials processing. Space materials research (production of enhanced performance semiconductors and especially pure biologically active substances in microgravity conditions). Jointly with France.

• 1990 April 11 - Foton 6 - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC43/3. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Mass: 6,200 kg (13,600 lb). Perigee: 216 km (134 mi). Apogee: 374 km (232 mi). Inclination: 62.80 deg. Period: 90.40 min. Duration: 15.17 days.
  250 orbits. In addition to Russian materials science experiments, Foton 6 carried out the French Gezon experiment using the Russian Zona-4M electric furnace (Foton spacecraft have also flown the Zona 1, Zona 4, Splav 2, and Konstanta 2 electric furnaces as well as the Kashtan electrophoresis unit). Foton 6, which also carried the European Biopan life sciences experiments, was successfully recovered on the 15th day.

• 1991 October 4 - Foton 7 - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC43/4. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Mass: 6,200 kg (13,600 lb). Perigee: 214 km (132 mi). Apogee: 394 km (244 mi). Inclination: 62.80 deg. Period: 90.60 min. Duration: 15.54 days.
  Materials research; carried German, French experiments. Continuation of space materials research conducted jointly with Germany and France.

• 1992 October 8 - Foton 8 - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC43/4. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Mass: 6,200 kg (13,600 lb). Perigee: 218 km (135 mi). Apogee: 359 km (223 mi). Inclination: 62.80 deg. Period: 90.30 min. Duration: 15.60 days.
  250 orbits. Microgravity research. Space materials research (conducted jointly with Germany).

• 1994 June 14 - Foton 9 - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC43/3. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Mass: 6,200 kg (13,600 lb). Perigee: 220 km (130 mi). Apogee: 358 km (222 mi). Inclination: 62.80 deg. Period: 90.30 min. Duration: 17.56 days.
  Microgravity experiments. Landed July 2.

• 1995 February 16 - Foton 10 - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC43/4. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Mass: 6,300 kg (13,800 lb). Perigee: 218 km (135 mi). Apogee: 355 km (220 mi). Inclination: 62.80 deg. Period: 90.30 min. Duration: 14.62 days.
  234 orbits. Carried Russian, French, German micro-gravity experiments. Landed in Russia Mar 3

• 1997 October 9 - Foton 11 - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC43/3. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Perigee: 218 km (135 mi). Apogee: 363 km (225 mi). Inclination: 62.80 deg. Period: 90.30 min. Duration: 13.63 days.
  Microgravity experiments. Landed in Kazakhstan Oct 23.

• 1999 September 9 - Foton 12 - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC43/4. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Perigee: 216 km (134 mi). Apogee: 379 km (235 mi). Inclination: 62.80 deg. Duration: 14.64 days.
  Foton 12 carried European microgravity experiments. The spacecraft's descent module landed on Russian territory at 52.47 deg N 53.83 deg E on September 24, 1999.

• 2002 October 15 - Foton-M - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC43/3. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. FAILURE: Contamination in hydrogen peroxide line of fuel pump system led to explosion of Strap-on D 29 seconds after launch. The rocket crashed near the pad, debris from the explosion killing one soldier. Mass: 6,425 kg (14,164 lb).
  Launch delayed from October 9. Foton-M No. 1 (Foton-13) was an improved version of the Foton materials processing satellite. The 6425 kg satellite carried a variety of microgravity experiments including those of the European Space Agency. The satellite was destroyed in the accident.

• 2005 May 31 - Foton M-2 - Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: LC1. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Mass: 6,535 kg (14,407 lb). Perigee: 262 km (162 mi). Apogee: 304 km (188 mi). Inclination: 63.00 deg. Period: 89.93 min.
  Microgravity mission with the experiments being returned to earth after 16 days in a spherical Vostok capsule of the type that first carried Yuri Gagarin into space in 1961. The capsule landed in Kazakhstan at 07:36 GMT on 16 June. For this mission a 385 kg European payload of 39 experiments in fluid physics, biology, material science, meteoritics, radiation dosimetry and exobiology was carried. A further 215 kg of Russian instruments were also flown. Many were experiments were being reflown following loss of Foton-M1 on 15 October 2002. The planned Fotino miniature re-entry capsule experiment was not flown.

  Applied research included heat transfer experiments with the European FluidPac facility, chemical diffusion experiments in the SCCO (Soret Coefficients in Crude Oil), and material science investigations in the Agat and Polizon furnaces. These experiments were expected to contribute to new heat-exchanger designs, more efficient oil exploration processes, and better semiconductor alloys. The Biopan facility carried life science experiments, including a student seed germination test.

• 2007 September 14 - Foton M-3 - Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: LC1. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Perigee: 258 km (160 mi). Apogee: 280 km (170 mi). Inclination: 62.90 deg. Period: 89.90 min.
  Recoverable spacecraft derived from the Vostok. Carried Russian and European microgravy, life sciences and technology experiments. After deploying the YES-2 tether on 25 September, Foton M-3 was deorbited at 07:23 GMT on 26 September and successfully landed at 07:58 GMT in Kazakhstan.