A critical problem emerged during the separation and ignition of the third stage approximately five minutes into the flight. A failure in the electrical system responsible for releasing the locks securing the core stage of the booster to the third stage resulted in only one side of the locks disengaging. The post Space Rocket History #443 – Salyut 4 – The April 5th Anomaly & Soyuz 18 with Lazarev, Makarov, Klimuk, & Sevastyanov first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast ..read more

The crew of Soyuz 17 embarked on a historic 29-day mission, surpassing the previous Soviet mission-duration record of 23 days set by the Soyuz 11 crew aboard Salyut 1 in 1971. The post Space Rocket History #442 – Salyut 4 – Soyuz 17 with Gubarev & Grechko first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast ..read more

The Salyut 4 space station, designated DOS-4, marked the second phase of the Soviet Union’s civilian space station program. It was an improved version of the failed Salyut 2 station, with several notable enhancements.   The post Space Rocket History #441 – Salyut 4 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast ..read more

Initially, the rendezvous with Salyut 3 proceeded smoothly. However, as the Soyuz spacecraft approached the station, a critical problem arose. The Igla rendezvous system, designed to guide the spacecraft to the station, malfunctioned. The post Space Rocket History #440 – Salyut 3 – Soyuz 14 & Soyuz 15 Part 2 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast ..read more

Salyut 3 featured a “self-defense” gun purportedly designed by Alexander Nudelman for station use. Some reports suggest it was outfitted with a Nudelman-Rikhter “Vulkan” gun, a modified version of the 23mm Nudelman aircraft cannon, or conceivably a Nudelman NR-30 30mm … The post Space Rocket History #439 – Salyut 3 – Soyuz 14 Part 1 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast ..read more

NASA’s Explorer 50, also known as Interplanetary Monitoring Platform-8 or IMP-8, stands as a testament to humanity’s relentless pursuit of knowledge and exploration beyond the confines of Earth.   The post Space Rocket History #438 – Explorer 50, Westar 1, & NOAA 4 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast ..read more

Scientists had long been intrigued by Mercury, the innermost planet of our solar system. Despite its proximity to the Sun, Mercury remained largely unexplored, with many questions remaining about its surface features, geological composition, and magnetic field. The scientific community … The post Space Rocket History #437 – Mariner 10 – Venus & Mercury first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast ..read more

Pioneer 11 detected Saturn’s bow shock on Aug. 31, 1979, about 932,000 miles (1.5 million kilometers) out from the planet, thus providing the first conclusive evidence of the existence of Saturn’s magnetic field. The post Space Rocket History #436 – Pioneer 11 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast ..read more

This second generation of the Soyuz spacecraft, the Soyuz 7k-T was flown on Soyuz 12 through Soyuz 40 missions from 1973–1981. The new 7K-T spacecraft was designed to accommodate only two cosmonauts who would wear pressure suits at all times … The post Space Rocket History #435 – Soyuz 12 & 13 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast ..read more

Despite predictions, events seldom occur precisely as expected. The calculated breakup altitude of Skylab was based on its intended structural strength specifications. However, the actual vehicle was stronger than the specified strength requirements. The post Space Rocket History #433 – Skylab – Crashdown first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast ..read more