New Launcher In Works In Russia

By Alexey Komarov

MOSCOW - Russian Space Agency Roscosmos has chosen a team consisting of Samara Space Center (TcSKB Progress), RSC Energia and the Makeev Rocket Design Bureau to develop a new medium-class booster.

The rocket will launch from the yet-to-be-built Vostochny cosmodrome in the far east of Russia. It should be able to boost manned and cargo spacecraft, as well as space station modules, to low-Earth orbit.

According to Roscosmos requirements, the new launcher should be able to send up to 20 metric tons of payload into a 200 kilometer (120-mile) altitude orbit. The team beat out Khrunichev and its Angara modular booster.

According to industry sources, the winning project is essentially an upgrade of the venerable Soyuz booster. It would be a two-stage launcher. It will reportedly feature an oxygen/kerosene first stage and a second stage using an oxygen/hydrogen fuel combination.

The new launch system is intended for the Advanced Crew Transportation System (ACTS) planned by Roscosmos to replace the Soyuz and Progress spacecraft. Roscosmos promises to name a winner in the ACTS competition early next week. The first launch of the new booster with an unmanned payload is planned for 2015, and the first manned mission is targeted for 2018.

Soyuz photo: Arianespace