To the Mun Soviet Style. N1, LOK, LK.

[Martian Emigrant]

Hey all.

 

This is a report with pictures of my mission to the Mun using the 1969 vintage Soviet Rocketery.

I must say that the LK (Lunniy Korabl or Lunar Craft) has a Wonderful-Wonderful 1930-Tractor-Retro Punk look to it.

But the whole thing was messed up. Too many parts, too many manufacturing problems and way too late to upstage the Apollo program.

Anyway here is my rocket.

imgur album http://imgur.com/a/w31op

My version has 16 engines on the first stage (30 on the Original), 8 on the second, 4 on the third then one per stage.

The interstage between 1, 2 and 3 are ventilated like the original (I used clipped inflatable heat shields).

I concluded that the Soviet engineers had spherical fuel cells inside a skin-structure. Then braced the parts together.

The Americans came in with more of a wet-wing concept where the outside skin IS the fuel cell. And they weren't spheres.

The more I look at the overall result the more convinced I am that it never would have worked. No matter how many alternate reality you might look at.

Anyway.

The LK is between the fifth stage and the LOK (Lunniy Orbitalny Korabl, Lunar Orbital Craft)

My LOK is closer to a Soyuz with it's solar panels than the original.

It's made of 2 MK1 clipped together with a fairing around them.

 

Launch

Running stage 2

Stage 3 gets the contraption to space.

Losing the fairing, exposing stage 4, 5, the LK, LOK, deploying antennas and solar panels.

On my version the LK is naked to space.

My research indicate that there were other fairings....Holding 4th to fifth and fifth to LOK around the LK.....(Structure? I guess).

Stage 3 finishes its job of achieving orbit

Stage 4 does the Translunar injection.

Goodbye 4th stage

Separating with the 4th stage this close to Kerbin messed up my Mun flyby altitude. Corrected with RCS.

The 5th stage is ignited for the first time to do the Mun Orbit Insertion.

 

Edited March 10, 2017 by Martian Emigrant

[Mr. Peabody]

Good thing your mission didn't turn out like the original Russian moon mission did. They did land, but they probably didn't expect to be going as fast as they were when they landed. Moon or bust, literally.  

[septemberWaves]

5 minutes ago, The Dunatian said:

Good thing your mission didn't turn out like the original Russian moon mission did. They did land, but they probably didn't expect to be going as fast as they were when they landed. Moon or bust, literally.  

The four test flights of the N1 were uncrewed flights that never got anywhere near the Moon. Each of them was a test flight to test out the N1 launch vehicle systems and to find flaws that could be fixed in the next test flight (which was supposed to continue until the rocket worked, but funding was cut off after the USA won the race to the Moon).

[Martian Emigrant]

Part 2 of my report.

 

After achieving Munar orbit Val (It had to be Val) does an EVA to get from the LOK to the LK.

She seems to be enjoying herself.

 

The fifth stage was used to get into orbit. Now it is used to start the descent by providing the de-orbit burn.

Goodbye 5th stage.

The Single multiple restart LK engine better work because we are going down.

Val is relieved.

Touchdown. F5 please.

Mandatory flag.

Let's go back. Nothing to do here.

 

After waiting for the LOK to fly overhead. Liftoff. Leaving the legs behind.

A few burns to achieve a rendez-vous.

 

Now my design was a bit shy of Delta-V. And ran out of fuel AND Mono-Propellant. 700m to the LOK.

 

Jeb had to spring into action. And that's when I noticed......

 

I couldn't get the RCS to work.....

No nozles....... Many emotions.

 

Oh, what the eck. Tuned the main engine down and used it to do the docking.

 

Success.

Now Val does another EVA to the LOK.

 

Edited March 10, 2017 by Martian Emigrant

[Martian Emigrant]

Part 3.

 

Goodbye LK. You were a good ship.

A quick adjustment of the manoeuvre nodes.

A short burn (With the engine back at full power).

Goodbye Mun.

Separating the parts that will not help the re-entry.

Het look it's the KSC below the Service Module explosion.

 

Jeb: Who packed the chute?

 

Val: It's was Bill.

Jeb: Was it before or after the Superball?

 

Both Val and Jeb: It was before!

 

Jeb: This spaceship looks like a "Stubby" (Beer bottle) makes me thirsty.

 

This concluded the adventure.

 

Thank you for reading this.

 

ME

Edited March 10, 2017 by Martian Emigrant

[septemberWaves]

You have some pretty good spacecraft designs, particularly the Soyuz.

Edited March 10, 2017 by eloquentJane

[Martian Emigrant]

1 hour ago, The Dunatian said:

Good thing your mission didn't turn out like the original Russian moon mission did. They did land, but they probably didn't expect to be going as fast as they were when they landed. Moon or bust, literally.  

 

1 hour ago, eloquentJane said:

The four test flights of the N1 were uncrewed flights that never got anywhere near the Moon. Each of them was a test flight to test out the N1 launch vehicle systems and to find flaws that could be fixed in the next test flight (which was supposed to continue until the rocket worked, but funding was cut off after the USA won the race to the Moon).

Hi.

As EJ pointed out there was no lost of life in the trials of the N1. They never got to space either.

But I must also point out that the first attempt to launch the N1 was in Feb 1969.

There were a lot of Soviet-Style delays.

Apollo 8 had orbited the Moon already.

By the second attempt Apollo 9 and 10 had been successful.

When the 4th was tried the Apollo program was already shutdown.

There was only 17 left to fly from the original 20.

 

And that's my friends is history.

 

ME

 

Edited March 10, 2017 by Martian Emigrant

[Mikki]

Very cool adventure, fun read!

[KingPhantom]

nice craft.

 

how is the lander putted together, that you can use the engine "in" the decoupler before decoupling?

[Martian Emigrant]

On 2017-03-13 at 10:45 AM, KingPhantom said:

nice craft.

 

how is the lander putted together, that you can use the engine "in" the decoupler before decoupling?

Hey.

Just found your reply. (If you want to be noticed in an older tread you really should "Quote" the person, or "Name" the person or use "Like" so a notification is sent)

I.......Don't remember.

I will go look at the craft. I still have the file.

The decoupler was clicked to the engine in the normal way.

Then was offset up using the offset tool in the VAB.

The engine exhaust doesn't impinge on the decoupler. Nor does the decoupling damage the engine....in this case.

When "Clipping" parts you need to try them as they can stick together and not function quite the way you would like.

 

ME

Edited March 23, 2017 by Martian Emigrant

[KingPhantom]

2 hours ago, Martian Emigrant said:

Hey.

Just found your reply. (If you want to be noticed in an older tread you really should "Quote" the person, or "Name" the person or use "Like" so a notification is sent)

I.......Don't remember.

I will go look at the craft. I still have the file.

The decoupler was clicked to the engine in the normal way.

Then was offset up using the offset tool in the VAB.

The engine exhaust doesn't impinge on the decoupler. Nor does the decoupling damage the engine....in this case.

When "Clipping" parts you need to try them as they can stick together and not function quite the way you would like.

 

ME

cool thank you.

 

so you use the engine before you decouple the decoupler underneath it? nice