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Aviation History
1990
1990 - 1775.PDF
Resurs-F2 Resurs-F1 tional unsophistication" seem to be the bywords. Indeed, several Vostok capsules have been refurbished and launched again. PHOTO-RECONNAISSANCE The first Soviet photo-reconnaissance satel lite, Cosmos 4, was launched on 16 March, 1962, and since then hundreds of these spacecraft have flown, returning their films in the recoverable Vostok capsule. The first and second generation of photo-reconnais sance satellites have been phased out but third-generation spacecraft are still flying, the first having been launched as Cosmos 1208 in 1968. These craft fly missions with medium-and high-resolution cameras, per forming tactical and strategic surveys or manoeuvrable 12-day spot surveillance mis sions, often at short notice. Cosmonauts on the one-man Vostok flights in 1961-3 ejected before landing because the capsules hit the ground at lOm/s. Landing the photographic instruments at about 5m/s is accomplished by adding small retro-rockets to the parachute lines. These fire when the parachute deploys. The resolution of these spacecraft, equi pped with the KFA-1000 camera, is 5m or better. Vladimir Pankin, senior engineer at Soyuzkarta, the Soviet remote-sensing agency, says that the KFA-1000 "...is ac knowledged worldwide as the camera with the best resolution available in the world". He suggests that a 2m resolution may be possible under the best atmospheric and lighting conditions. The 1,000mm focal-length camera, oper ating from an altitude of 150km to 300km, produces 300mm2 of image frames with a 60% fixed overlap and a possible optimal enlargement capability of 10. The camera is used on civilian remote-sensing spacecraft, and provides a capability for 5m-resolution images which will not be matched by French Spot or US Landsat satellites for at least two years. Images from the KFA-1000 photo- reConnaissance satellites have been offered commercially through the United Nations. More recently, the lifetimes of these satel lites, now weighing about 6,300kg and launched on Soyuz SL-4 vehicles, have been increased from the original eight days, to 14, 16 or even 21 days, indicating that, rather than relying on batteries for power, they now carry solar panels. In the year to 31 March, 1990, the Soviets launched 11 medium- resolution and high-resolution Cosmos sat ellites from either Baikonur or Plesetsk. These were placed in 62°-, 69°- or 82°- inclination orbits, passing over strategic targets when the best lighting prevailed. The use of these satellites has tailed off a little in favour of improved fourth- generation craft, which may use a variant of the Soyuz manned spacecraft bus and de scent capsule, and the fifth-generation digi tal data-imaging satellites. RESURS F In May 1977, the Soviets launched a new series of remote-sensing spacecraft, taking images for the Priroda natural resources agency using recoverable photo capsules. It Bion payloads have included monkeys (here Yer- osha is prepared for ithe flight on which he broke loose and created havoc) was only in 1989 that these satellites, hith erto anonymously designated Cosmos, were given the name Resurs because the Soviets wanted to enter the commercial remote- sensing imaging market and details of the spacecraft and photographic equipment and capabilities were required by customers. Over 40 Resurs F spacecraft have flown, with only five carrying the name. Like the classified photo-reconnaissance satellites these craft weigh about 6,300kg, with either battery power on shorter 14- to 16-day Resurs F-l missions, or solar panels on the 20-30-day Resurs F-2 missions. Resurs F-2 made its first appearance on a civilian mission in 1987, as Cosmos 1882. The longer-lived Resurs F-2 provides an "on duty" and "off duty" capability, meaning that the satellites can attempt to re-photograph the same area when weather conditions are more favourable. Both these spacecraft probably carry the retro-rocket on the front of the recoverable capsule, allowing the rocket engine on the rear instrument compartment to be used for in-orbit manoeuvring. Adding a cup-shaped retro, to the descent capsule was an innova tion^ which first came to light when the Vostok capsule was modified as Voskhod to carry'two- and three-man crews in 1964-5, acting as a backup retro-rocket. Two Resurs F-2 spacecraft have deployed pairs of 70cm-diameter, 78kg Pion passive atmosphere research satellites. Resurs F-l has also been used to carry piggyback microgravity processing payloads. In Sep- FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 20 - 26 June 1990 37
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