Chelomey OKB-52 LK and LK-700 lunar spacecrafts

[flateric]

Chelomey LK
all images (c) NPOMash
do not repost on other forums please

 

[Triton]

Wow Flateric, I was under the mistaken impression that Chelomei's direct lunar lander only existed on paper. I would love to see more of the LK-700. Do you also have images of the UK-700 launch vehicle?

 

[flateric]

LK-700 compared to LM and LOK/LK

more here http://www.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/content/numbers/200/36.shtml

 

[OM]

...And ironically, the "landing skiis" weren't necessary.

 

[Michel Van]

Chelomey design also manned space craft

Like LK-1 for manned lunar flyby spacecraft

The LK-700 manned lunar lander

http://www.astronautix.com/craft/lk700.htm

Almaz manned Spysat and TKS supply spacecraft
http://www.astronautix.com/craft/tks.htm
http://www.astronautix.com/project/almaz.htm

Also was Lunar Orbit OPS a Almaz for cartography of lunar surface launch by UR-700
http://www.astronautix.com/craft/lunitops.htm

next to that is the name "Merkur"
Unfortunately in Internet are differently Information about "Merkur"
the name "Merkur" was for VA return capsule of Almaz and TKS
other source claim "Merkur" was manned spacecraft unattached to Almaz and TKS
and was Chelomey counter proposal to Soyuz by Korolev
while other claim "Merkur" was orbital prototye of LK-1

Have our russian members a answers to this ?

 

[Michel Van]

Wow Flateric, I was under the mistaken impression that Chelomei's direct lunar lander only existed on paper. I would love to see more of the LK-700. Do you also have images of the UK-700 launch vehicle?

ahmen, already here:
http://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,7288.0.html

THX for picture, Flateric

just found another manned spacecraft by Chelomey OKB-52
MEK The Mars Expeditionary Complex aka Aelita Mars Expedition
3-6 men with Nuclear electric engine to Mars
http://www.astronautix.com/craft/mek.htm

 

[bigvlada]

UR-700 and 700M were beasts, but nobody in their right mind would built a 16.000t behemoth which uses toxic fuels. We'll wait quite a bit before we see another design with 750t LEO capability.

 

[Michel Van]

UR-700 and 700M were beasts, but nobody in their right mind would built a 16.000t behemoth which uses toxic fuels. We'll wait quite a bit before we see another design with 750t LEO capability.

against a GROUND LAUNCH Orion nuclear pulse engine with payload 4000 t LEO
is UR-700 & 700M very very very clean...

 

[Hanse]

UR-700 and 700M were beasts, but nobody in their right mind would built a 16.000t behemoth which uses toxic fuels. We'll wait quite a bit before we see another design with 750t LEO capability.

against a GROUND LAUNCH Orion nuclear pulse engine with payload 4000 t LEO
is UR-700 & 700M very very very clean...

There was a Boeing design in one of Scott's APR issues that had 2000t LEO capability and was conventionally powered.

 

[bigvlada]

against a GROUND LAUNCH Orion nuclear pulse engine with payload 4000 t LEO
is UR-700 & 700M very very very clean...

I know about the Orion Michael, but it was declared illegal. On the other side, there were no international treaty show stoppers for UR-700/700M.

There was a Boeing design in one of Scott's APR issues that had 2000t LEO capability and was conventionally powered.

That sounds intriguing, something along the Chrysler SERV (my favorite unbuilt space launcher) proposal?

 

[Michel Van]

there nice anecdote about this:

During a meeting about failure of First N1 in 1969
Chelomey was pushing his UR-700 as Alternative
Chertok asked Chelomei what would happen, if UR 700 exploded on the launch pad. Wouldn't the entire launch complex be rendered a dead zone for decades?
Chelomei's reply was that it wouldn't explode, since Glushko's engines were reliable and didn't fail.

Some month later, high rang official watch the launch of Proton (UR-500) one of Glushko's engines fail and the rocket wend out of control
and safety range officer has to destroy the Proton, what release toxic cloud over the Baikonur Cosmodrome
while the official try to escape in cars, after that ordeal they decided: ALL SOVIET HEAVY LAUNCH ROCKET MUST USE LOX/RP-1

Source: Astronautix page about UR-700
Yep Energia fulfilled this demand, but the Proton still fly's :-\

 

[hesham]

Hi,


http://www.xliby.ru/istorija/bitva_za_zvezdy_2_kosmicheskoe_protivostojanie_chast_i/p4.php

 

[OM]

Wow Flateric, I was under the mistaken impression that Chelomei's direct lunar lander only existed on paper. I would love to see more of the LK-700. Do you also have images of the UK-700 launch vehicle?

...Agreed! I also was under the same belief that this concept never made it past the paper stage, small Revell-scale models notwithstanding! I wonder if these mockups survived and are in storage in some hangar. Might be worth contacting someone at NPOMash and make an inquiry.


Flateric, I'd commend you for these, but as my jaw hit the ground a little too hard upon first sight of these images, I'll have to send you my dentist's bill instead... ;D

 

[bigvlada]

Same article, color picture of MP-1.

 

[athpilot]

Chelomey LK-1 with Korolyev 7K-L1.

 

[athpilot]

inside view of the LK-1 and UR-500 launch vehicle (source: A. Siddiqi: "Challenge to Apollo").

 

[Archibald]

Does everybody knows where that LK-700 mockup was installed ? At OKB-52 or OKB-23 ? Khimki or Fili ?
Must have been one hell of a sight.

 

[Michel Van]

Does everybody knows where that LK-700 mockup was installed ?

Chelomei order the construction of two Testmodel in 1/10 size of original rocket for dynamic simulations
and that one BIG model still exist in the Chelomey Design Bureau that occupies three floors !
They used Rubber hoses served to "refuel" the model with water (UR-700 use propellant transfer during launch)
More here

https://www.secretprojects.co.uk/threads/chelomei’s-ur-700-testmodel.29681/