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Soyuz 7K-T
Part of Soyuz
Soyuz 7K-T
Soyuz 7K-T
Credit: © Mark Wade
Russian manned spacecraft. Launched 1972 - 1981.

AKA: 11F615A8;7K-T;7K-T/AF/. Status: Operational 1972. First Launch: 1972-06-26. Last Launch: 1981-05-14. Number: 23 . Thrust: 4.09 kN (919 lbf). Gross mass: 6,800 kg (14,900 lb). Unfuelled mass: 6,300 kg (13,800 lb). Specific impulse: 282 s. Height: 7.48 m (24.54 ft).

Following the disastrous Soyuz 11 flight, when the crew was killed by cabin depressurization, the 7K-OKS design was subjected to a complete redesign, resulting in the substantially safer 7K-T space station ferry. One crew position was eliminated, making it possible for the two crew members to wear pressure suits during dangerous phases of the flight. Batteries replaced the solar panels of the earlier configuration, to eliminate the chance of undeployed panels causing problems as was the case on Soyuz 1. Numerous minor changes were made to improve the basic safety and redundancy of the design. The 7K-T would safely fly 31 times until replaced by the Soyuz T in 1981.

Soyuz Guidance and Controls

The re-entry maneuver was normally handled automatically by radio command. Spacecraft attitude in relation to the local motion along the orbit was determined by sun sensors, infrared horizon sensors and ion gauges, which could detect the spacecraft's direction of motion by the greater velocity of ions impacting the spacecraft in the direction of motion.

The cosmonaut could however take manual control of the spacecraft and manually re-enter. This was done by using the ingenious Vzor periscope device. This had a central view and eight ports arranged in a circle around the center. When the spacecraft was perfectly centered in respect to the horizon, all eight of the ports would be lit up. Alignment along the orbit was judged by getting lines on the main scope to be aligned with the landscape flowing by below. In this way, the spacecraft could be oriented correctly for the re-entry maneuver.

To decide when to re-enter, the cosmonaut had a little clockwork globe that showed current position over the earth. By pushing a button to the right of the globe, it would be advanced to the landing position assuming a standard re-entry at that moment.

This manual system would obviously only be used during daylight portions of the orbit. At night the dark mass of the earth could not have been lined up with the optical Vzor device. The automatic system would work day or night. However problems were found on Soyuz 1 when the ion gauges would not function in ion 'pockets' of low density in the re-entry maneuver portion of the orbit.

The Soyuz kept (to this day) the little globe and Vzor system. On the early model Soyuz, prior to the Soyuz T of the 1980's, there was no on-board inertial navigation system. To perform an orbital maneuver, the parameters for an orbital maneuver would be transmitted from the ground. When the time came for a maneuver, the spacecraft would align itself to the local vertical and direction of motion by the methods mentioned above (automatic or manual). Then three gyros would be spun up, the spacecraft maneuvered automatically or manually to the required attitude for the maneuver, and the main engine would fire automatically at the prescribed time to make the orbit change. There was a simple delta-v gauge showing the velocity change. Since the Soyuz thrust to weight was so low (around 0.06, or only half a meter per second) this meant the maneuvers could be handled manually without much error (on re-entry burns the practice was to count to five after the engine was supposed to shut off before overriding it!)

The Soyuz had always had very limited maneuver capability, a source of some embarrassment during the ASTP joint flight where the Apollo did most of the maneuvering. Not until the Soyuz T version was enough maneuvering fuel and the inertial navigation system available to allow rendezvous with non-co-operative objects (like the dead Salyut 7 station on the epic Soyuz T-15 flight) and to fly around objects for inspection (this was theoretically possible in the old models, but due to limited fuel or conservatism it was never demonstrated).

Crew Size: 2. Orbital Storage: 110 days. Habitable Volume: 11.00 m3. Spacecraft delta v: 210 m/s (680 ft/sec). Electric System: 0.84 average kW.


More at: Soyuz 7K-T.

Family: Manned spacecraft, Space station orbit. Country: Russia. Engines: KTDU-35. Spacecraft: Soyuz 7K-T SA, Soyuz 7K-T BO, Soyuz 7K-T PAO, Salyut 6. Flights: Soyuz 12, Soyuz 13, Soyuz 17, Soyuz 18-1, Soyuz 18, Soyuz 25. Launch Vehicles: R-7, Soyuz 11A511, Soyuz-U. Propellants: Nitric acid/Hydrazine. Projects: Salyut. Launch Sites: Baikonur, Baikonur LC1, Baikonur LC31. Agency: Korolev bureau, MOM. Bibliography: 121, 185, 186, 187, 188, 2, 21, 32, 33, 344, 367, 382, 42, 474, 51, 6, 60, 89, 94, 6901, 13130, 13131.
Photo Gallery

Panel Soyuz 7K-OKPanel Soyuz 7K-OK
Control panel of the initial earth orbit version of Soyuz.
Credit: © Mark Wade


Soyuz 7K-T PanelSoyuz 7K-T Panel
Close-up of Soyuz 7K-T right sequencer panel
Credit: © Mark Wade


Soyuz 7K-TSoyuz 7K-T
Credit: © Mark Wade


Soyuz InteriorSoyuz Interior
View of Soyuz interior.
Credit: © Mark Wade


Soyuz 7K-TSoyuz 7K-T
Credit: © Mark Wade


Soyuz 13Soyuz 13
Credit: Manufacturer Image


Soyuz 12Soyuz 12
Credit: Manufacturer Image



1970 February 9 - .
1970 February 16 - .
1971 July 4 - . Launch Vehicle: N1.
1972 January 1 - .
1972 June 26 - . 14:53 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz 11A511.
1972 August - .
1972 October - .
1973 June - .
1973 June - .
1973 June 15 - . 06:00 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz 11A511.
1973 August - .
1973 September - .
1973 September 27 - . 12:18 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz 11A511.
1973 November 30 - . 05:20 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz 11A511.
1973 December 18 - . 11:55 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz 11A511.
1974 October - .
1975 January 10 - . 21:43 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz 11A511.
1975 April 5 - . 11:04 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz 11A511. FAILURE: During second-third stage separation third stage failed to separate from second stage but still ignited.. Failed Stage: 3.
1975 May 24 - . 14:58 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz 11A511.
1977 July - .
1977 October 9 - . 02:40 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1977 November - .
1977 December 10 - . 01:18 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1978 January 10 - . 12:26 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1978 March 2 - . 15:28 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1978 June 15 - . 20:16 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1978 August 26 - . 14:51 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1979 February 25 - . 11:53 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC31. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1979 April 10 - . 17:34 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC31. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1979 June 6 - . 18:12 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC31. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1980 April 9 - . 13:38 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC31. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1980 May 26 - . 18:20 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC31. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1980 July 23 - . 18:33 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1980 September 18 - . 19:11 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1981 March 22 - . 14:58 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC31. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1981 May 14 - . 17:16 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U.
1982 First half - .

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