Soyuz 12
Encyclopedia
Soyuz 12 was a 1973 manned test flight by the Soviet Union
of the newly-redesigned Soyuz 7K-T
spacecraft that was intended to provide greater crew safety in the wake of the Soyuz 11
tragedy. The flight marked the return of the Soviets to manned space operations after the 1971 accident. The crew capacity of the capsule had been decreased from three to two cosmonauts to allow for space suit
s to be worn during launch, re-entry and docking. It was the first time pressure suits were used for reentry since the Voskhod 2
flight.
Cosmonaut
s Vasili Lazarev and Oleg Makarov spent two days in space testing the new craft.
station. But the failures of Salyut 2
and Cosmos 557
in the months previous meant there was no station for the craft to dock to. The service module had no solar panels, carrying batteries for power instead, which limited the flight to about two days, enough time for a journey to and from a space station.
Cosmonauts Lazarev and Makarov wore pressure suits for launch and landing, and would have worn them for a station docking, all changes brought about by the Soyuz 11
tragedy. The bulk of the suits and their environmental control systems limited the crew size to two.
After the successful 27 September 1973 launch, the craft was maneuvered to 326 x 344 km on the second day in space, which later proved to be the standard orbit for the Salyut 4
space station. A multispectral camera in the orbital module
was used in coordination with aircraft to photograph Earth. The intention was to survey crop and forest conditions, it was reported. The cosmonauts also tested using a Molniya 1
satellite
to communicate with ground stations when out of range.
The crew landed safely on 29 September and the mission was called "flawless."
A large object was jettisoned when the craft was preparing for retrofire. The object remained in orbit for 116 days, landing 400 km southwest of Karaganda
.
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
of the newly-redesigned Soyuz 7K-T
Soyuz 7K-T
The second generation of the Soyuz spacecraft, the Soyuz Ferry or Soyuz 7K-T, comprised Soyuz 12 through Soyuz 40 . Although still using the Igla system, these had no solar panels, employing batteries...
spacecraft that was intended to provide greater crew safety in the wake of the Soyuz 11
Soyuz 11
Soyuz 11 was the first manned mission to arrive at the world's first space station, Salyut 1. The mission arrived at the space station on June 7, 1971 and departed on June 30, 1971. The mission ended in disaster when the crew capsule depressurized during preparations for re-entry, killing the...
tragedy. The flight marked the return of the Soviets to manned space operations after the 1971 accident. The crew capacity of the capsule had been decreased from three to two cosmonauts to allow for space suit
Space suit
A space suit is a garment worn to keep an astronaut alive in the harsh environment of outer space. Space suits are often worn inside spacecraft as a safety precaution in case of loss of cabin pressure, and are necessary for extra-vehicular activity , work done outside spacecraft...
s to be worn during launch, re-entry and docking. It was the first time pressure suits were used for reentry since the Voskhod 2
Voskhod 2
Voskhod 2 was a Soviet manned space mission in March 1965. Vostok-based Voskhod 3KD spacecraft with two crew members on board, Pavel Belyaev and Alexei Leonov, was equipped with an inflatable airlock...
flight.
Cosmonaut
Astronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
s Vasili Lazarev and Oleg Makarov spent two days in space testing the new craft.
Crew
Backup crew
Reserve crew
Mission parameters
- Mass: 6720 kg (14,815.1 lb)
- Perigee: 306 km (190.1 mi)
- Apogee: 348 km (216.2 mi)
- Inclination: 51.0°
- Period: 91.0 min
Mission highlights
As the first manned test of the new version of the Soyuz ferry craft, Soyuz 12 was to have flown to a SalyutSalyut
The Salyut program was the first space station program undertaken by the Soviet Union, which consisted of a series of nine space stations launched over a period of eleven years from 1971 to 1982...
station. But the failures of Salyut 2
Salyut 2
Salyut 2 was a Soviet space station which was launched in 1973 as part of the Salyut programme. It was the first Almaz military space station to fly. Within two weeks of launch the station had lost attitude control and depressurised, leaving it unusable...
and Cosmos 557
Cosmos 557
Kosmos 557 was the designation given to DOS-3, the next space station in the Salyut program. It was originally intended to be launched as Salyut-2, but due to its failure to achieve orbit on May 11, 1973, three days before the launch of Skylab, it was renamed Kosmos-557.Due to errors in the flight...
in the months previous meant there was no station for the craft to dock to. The service module had no solar panels, carrying batteries for power instead, which limited the flight to about two days, enough time for a journey to and from a space station.
Cosmonauts Lazarev and Makarov wore pressure suits for launch and landing, and would have worn them for a station docking, all changes brought about by the Soyuz 11
Soyuz 11
Soyuz 11 was the first manned mission to arrive at the world's first space station, Salyut 1. The mission arrived at the space station on June 7, 1971 and departed on June 30, 1971. The mission ended in disaster when the crew capsule depressurized during preparations for re-entry, killing the...
tragedy. The bulk of the suits and their environmental control systems limited the crew size to two.
After the successful 27 September 1973 launch, the craft was maneuvered to 326 x 344 km on the second day in space, which later proved to be the standard orbit for the Salyut 4
Salyut 4
Salyut 4 was a Salyut space station launched on December 26, 1974 into an orbit with an apogee of 355 km, a perigee of 343 km and an orbital inclination of 51.6 degrees. It was essentially a copy of the DOS 3, and unlike its ill-fated sibling it was a complete success...
space station. A multispectral camera in the orbital module
Orbital module
The orbital module is a portion of spacecraft used only in orbit. These have developed from the Soviet Soyuz spacecraft.-Soyuz orbit module:The orbit module is a spherical part of Soviet-Russian Soyuz space ship series...
was used in coordination with aircraft to photograph Earth. The intention was to survey crop and forest conditions, it was reported. The cosmonauts also tested using a Molniya 1
Molniya
Molniya may refer to:* The Molniya , the Soviet military communications satellite.* Molniya orbit, distinctive orbit associated with the satellite....
satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
to communicate with ground stations when out of range.
The crew landed safely on 29 September and the mission was called "flawless."
A large object was jettisoned when the craft was preparing for retrofire. The object remained in orbit for 116 days, landing 400 km southwest of Karaganda
Karaganda
Karagandy , more commonly known by its Russian name Karaganda, , is the capital of Karagandy Province in Kazakhstan. It is the fourth most populous city in Kazakhstan, behind Almaty , Astana and Shymkent, with a population of 471,800 . In the 1940s up to 70% of the city's inhabitants were ethnic...
.