Hey guys, I've been searching the internet, but haven't been able to find the answer to this. Maybe I'm using the wrong keywords or something, but then I remembered the well informed people on this forum, so I thought I'd ask here.
Why do the R-7 family of rockets have their liquid boosters inset? What I mean is, most other rockets I see with boosters just strap cylindrical boosters to a cylindrical core, but R-7/Soyuz have a tapering core that has the boosters far closer together. I assume this makes it more aerodynamic, but how much difference does it actually make, and are there other considerations I don't know about?
Thanks!