Buran-Energia

The Moscow’s authorities will ask that the houses will be set with new energy-efficient technologies developped by the All-Russia Research Institute of Aviation Materials, reported the journalists last 20 march during a visit of this institut by the mayor Yuri Luzhkov.

The mayor specified that one of the most important task of the city is to insure a good energy control for heating houses and to promote the use of new technologies. He also added that in 2010 the city will spend more than 8 billion rubles about scientific development which is more than the previous year.

As the institut’s director Yevgeny Koblov said, the discussion will be about the use of materials, developped for the Buran project, to increase the thermal efficiency of the houses. According to him some agreement had already been settled. Moreover, said Koblov, Moscow is considering the utilisation of carbon fibers developped by the institut for the construction of buildings.

The All-Union Research Institute of Aviation Materials was created and attached to the ministry of heavy industry of the USSR in 1932, then to the governement of the Russian Federation.

Here is some pictures I took last summer at Tushino (suburbs of Moscow) where the second generation Buran OK-2.01 is stocked, we can see that she is in a pretty bad shape.

It’s with great pleasure that I present you a special book (special because the thematic is rare). This book speaks about a theme that passionate a lot of us, human spaceflights, and especially the flight of a Russian Cosmonaut on-board the MIR space station.

Hugo Boris came at Baikonur for his researches and this is where I meet him (my trip to Baikonur).

But instead of paraphrasing him I going to let him talk:
Three years of work… The investigation allowed me to meet many cosmonauts. I went to the star city, at Moscow. But most of all at Baikonur, in Kazakhstan, where I attend a manned launch. This moment was soul-stirring, more than I can imagine. In fact, I can’t get over this trip, I think of it every day.

I haven’t danced for a long time (Je n’ai pas dansé depuis longtemps, in French) – Hugo Boris – ed. Belfond

Ivan was chosen to be the first man to stay more than four hundred days in Earth orbit.
An ordinary man, married, father of two children, leave the planet.
While the soviet empire collapse into chaos, he is revolving endlessly.
For him, the Sun rises and sets down sixteen times a day.
As time is passing by he is loosing sleep, smell, taste.
His vertebral column doesn’t bear him anymore.
His mind is wavering.
He has been practicing for many years, the mind entirely pointed toward space.
Now, he is only thinking of Earth. He misses Earth like a woman.

An interview (in French) of Hugo Boris on France 2 television, in the broadcasting « Dans quelle étagère… »:

Some days ago a documentary was broadcasted about the Spiral system on Russian TV Cultura. Here is a part.

Source: orbicraft.

You can find other videos here.

Jean-Loup Chrétien went to space on June 24, 1982. He then becomes the first occidental to flight in space (nor Sovietic, nor American) but also the first French cosmonaut. He stayed some days in space aboard the Salyut space station to proceed to experiences for the CNES agency.

In 1988, he had the chance to go again, also with the Soviets, but aboard the brand new MIR station for a joint mission, Aragatz, between France and USSR. The launch date was settled at November 26, 1988, but 11 days earlier another historical event took place.

Jean-Loup Chrétien and his Soyuz TM-7 partners,  Alexander Volkov and Sergei Krikalev, arrived at Baikonur weeks before the launch to finish their training on the cosmodrome. Early in the morning of November 15, they are waken up by the staff of the hotel, which said them that a launch is going to take place. So the small group, the crew, the backup crew and some members of the hotel went upstairs on the building’s roof and watch in the direction of the lunar launch pad enlightening the night. At that time the USSR was in a bad financial state and the Energia-Buran program was suffering financial cuttings, some people said that if the launch doesn’t take place this morning the shuttle will never be launch.

Then suddenly a big light appeared at the horizon. Spectacular and blinding, this light began to go up to the clouds base which it reached in few seconds, going from this incandescent dot to a magnificent light disc which slowly blow out as Buran was mounting in the clouds. Buran lifted off under an awful weather, during an inky night, and must came back to Baikonur just few hours later and succeed her first automatic landing. It’s was also her first flight, without crew onboard. We stayed  disbelieving, and watching during hours the evolution of the weather. It was clear that our russians colleagues had took lots of risks. We learned later that the chances of success were less than 50%. [...]

The local TV  broadcasted the rest of the events. Buran began her reentry in the atmosphere at the right time, and we were watching with anxiety the picture shoot by the television camera orientated to the base of the clouds in the landing strip axis. The ceiling was low, it continued to snow, and a strong crosswind was blowing. Suddenly Buran escaped from the clouds, some 20 to 30 seconds before landing. We were holding our breast and watching this majestic vehicle beginning its circle before touching down. The landing was magnificent, and Buran stopped majestically in a tremendous applause. Ignoring the risks by getting close too quickly, a group of engineers and technicians ran toward this hero to acclaim it with enthusiasm. Vodka was flowing, even knowing that despite her success it should be her last flight.

Extract from the book: Rêves d’étoiles (Dreams of stars), Jean-Loup Chrétien.

Visit of François Mitterrand, for the launch of JL. Chrétien, in the hangar 112.

Presidential Concorde on the Ybileiniy airport (Buran’s landing strip).

Gleb Evgeniyevich Lozino-Lozinsky (December 25, 1909-November 28, 2001) was chief designer of the Spiral and Buran space systems, on last december 25, he should have had 100 years.

After his studies he became a plane engine specialist at the Mikoyan design bureau. During the 60′s he works as chief project on Spiral program, then enter at NPO Molnya as the main constructor of the Buran space shuttle, in the 90′s he will start the MAKC project (small space shuttle).

He was persuated that space travels should be done in winged spacecraft.

Here is a reporting that was broadcasted on TVRoscosmos:

The first version of the FCS Mag has arrived. This review was made by some members of the Space Exploration Forum (in French) for the joy of everybody and not only specialists. The advantage of this formula is that the articles are written by passionnated people of this field (professionals or amateurs) which make them very interesting.
We can find articles about space news, missions in the ISS for example, as well as historical and scientific articles.

I wish long life for the webzine.

To download it it’s here or on the picture.

Here is some pictures of the last BOR-5 (more pictures) in Russia, it is stocked at the Monino airbase. On those pictures we can see details on the temperature regulation system in the wings and attitude thrusters on the back.

Thanks to Orbicraft.