Voskhod (rocket)

Voskhod (rocket)
Name	Voskhod
Caption	A Voskhod rocket launching the Kosmos 97 satellite in 1965.
Function	Expendable carrier rocket
Manufacturer	OKB-1 (Korolev)
Country origin	Soviet Union
Height	31 m
Diameter	2.99 m
Mass	298400 kg
Capacity LEO	5900 kg
Status	Retired
Launches	300+
Success	280+
Fail	20+
First	November 16, 1963
Last	June 29, 1976
Payloads	Voskhod spacecraft, Zenit reconnaissance satellites, Bion science satellites
Comparable	Atlas-Agena, Thor-Agena

Voskhod (rocket). The Voskhod was a Soviet expendable launch system derived from the earlier R-7 family of rockets, most directly from the Vostok launch vehicle. It was developed by the OKB-1 design bureau under the leadership of chief designer Sergei Korolev to support the Voskhod program and other military and scientific satellite launches. The rocket featured an upgraded second stage and became a workhorse for the Soviet space program throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, launching numerous Zenit reconnaissance satellites and Bion biological research payloads into low Earth orbit.

Development and design

The development of the Voskhod rocket was a direct evolution of the Vostok launch vehicle, which itself was a modified R-7 Semyorka ICBM. Engineers at OKB-1, led by Sergei Korolev, sought to increase payload capacity to orbit for the new multi-crew spacecraft. The primary design change was the replacement of the Vostok's Block-E second stage with the more powerful Block-I stage, which used a RD-0107 engine developed by the Kosberg design bureau. This modification, along with structural refinements to the core R-7 first stage, allowed the Voskhod to deliver approximately 5,900 kg to low Earth orbit, a significant improvement over its predecessor. The rocket retained the characteristic R-7 clustered configuration with four strap-on boosters surrounding a central core stage.

Operational history

The Voskhod rocket entered service in 1963, with its first successful launch carrying the Kosmos 21 test satellite on November 16 from Site 1/5 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. It quickly became the standard launch vehicle for the Soviet space program's crewed Voskhod programme, launching the historic Voskhod 1 mission in 1964 and Voskhod 2 in 1965. Following the conclusion of the crewed program, the Voskhod was extensively used by the Soviet Armed Forces to orbit numerous Zenit-2 and Zenit-4 military reconnaissance satellites under the Kosmos designation. The rocket also launched various scientific missions, including the Bion series and Meteor weather satellites, achieving a high launch rate throughout the late 1960s.

Variants

The primary variant was the standard Voskhod (GRAU index 11A57), which served as the backbone for hundreds of launches. A specialized version, sometimes referred to as the Voskhod-M, incorporated minor upgrades for launching the heavier Zenit-4M reconnaissance satellite. The basic 11A57 design also formed the core for the later Molniya-M rocket, which added a third stage (Block-L) for missions to Molniya orbit and deep space. While closely related, the Soyuz family represented a further evolution with a different second stage and became the definitive successor to the Voskhod for crewed missions and cargo resupply flights to Salyut and Almaz space stations.

Launch profile and performance

Following ignition at Baikonur, the four strap-on boosters and core stage of the Voskhod rocket fired simultaneously for the initial ascent. The boosters separated approximately two minutes into flight, after which the core stage continued to burn. The core stage then jettisoned, allowing the Block-I second stage to ignite and complete the orbital insertion. The typical mission profile delivered payloads into a low Earth orbit with an inclination of approximately 65 degrees, standard for launches from Baikonur to support reconnaissance and crewed missions. The rocket's performance enabled it to place payloads weighing up to 5,900 kg into a 200 km orbit, a capability that reliably supported the Voskhod spacecraft and the heavier Zenit satellite series.

Notable missions and payloads

The most famous Voskhod launches were the two crewed missions of the Voskhod programme: Voskhod 1, which carried Konstantin Feoktistov, Boris Yegorov, and Vladimir Komarov as the first multi-person crew in 1964, and Voskhod 2, which featured the first extravehicular activity by Alexei Leonov in 1965. Beyond these, the rocket launched hundreds of military satellites, including the Kosmos 186 and Kosmos 188 satellites that performed the first fully automated docking in 1967. Significant scientific payloads included the Bion 1 (Kosmos 605) biological satellite and various Meteor weather observatories, cementing its role in both defense and civil space exploration.

Legacy and retirement

The Voskhod rocket established a strong legacy of reliability and high-tempo launch operations, demonstrating the versatility of the R-7 core design. Its success directly paved the way for the development of the more advanced Soyuz rocket family, which remains in service today. The final Voskhod launch occurred on June 29, 1976, orbiting the Zenit-4M reconnaissance satellite Kosmos 835. Retirement was driven by the full transition to the more capable Soyuz-U variant, which offered greater payload flexibility and became the standard medium-lift vehicle for the Soviet space program through the era of the Salyut and Mir space stations.

Category:Voskhod program Category:R-7 (rocket family) Category:Launch vehicles of the Soviet Union