Proton (rocket family)

Proton (Russian: Протон) (formal designation: UR-500) is an expendable launch system used for both commercial and Russian government space launches. The first Proton rocket was launched in 1965. Modern versions of the launch system are still in use as of 2020, making it one of the most successful heavy boosters in the history of spaceflight. All Protons are built at the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center factory in Moscow and Chemical Automatics Design Bureau [4] in Voronezh, transported to the Baikonur Cosmodrome, brought to the launch pad horizontally, and raised into vertical position for launch.[5][6]

Proton 8K82K
Launch of a Proton-K rocket
FunctionOrbital launch vehicle
ManufacturerKhrunichev State Research and Production Space Center and Chemical Automatics Design Bureau
Country of originSoviet Union; Russia
Size
Height53 metres (174 ft)
Diameter7.4 metres (24 ft)
Mass693.81 tonnes (1,529,600 lb) (3 stage)
Stages
  • M: 4
  • K: 3
Capacity
Payload to LEO
Mass23,700 kilograms (52,200 lb)[1]
Payload to GTO
Mass6,300 kilograms (13,900 lb)[2]
Launch history
StatusActive
Launch sitesBaikonur, LC-200 & LC-81
Total launches425
  • M: 111
  • K: 310
  • Proton: 4
Success(es)378
  • M: 100
  • K: 275
  • Proton: 3
Failure(s)34
  • M: 9
  • K: 24
  • Proton: 1
Partial failure(s)13
  • M: 2
  • K: 11
First flightProton: 16 July 1965
Proton-K: 10 March 1967
Proton-M: 7 April 2001
Last flightProton: 6 July 1966
Proton-K: 30 March 2012
Proton-M: 30 July 2020
Notable payloads
First stage
Engines6 RD-275
Thrust10,470 kN (2,350,000 lbf)
Burn time126 s
FuelN2O4/UDMH
Second stage
Engines3 RD-0210 & 1 RD-0211
Thrust2,399 kN (539,000 lbf)[3]
Specific impulse327 seconds (3.21 km/s)
Burn time208 s
FuelN2O4/UDMH
Third stage
Engines1 RD-0212
Thrust630 kN (140,000 lbf)
Specific impulse325 seconds (3.19 km/s)
Burn time238 s
FuelN2O4/UDMH
Fourth stage – Blok-D/DM
EnginesRD-58M
Thrust83.4 kN (18,700 lbf)
Specific impulse349 seconds (3.42 km/s)
Burn time770 s
FuelLOX/RP-1

As with many Soviet rockets, the names of recurring payloads became associated with the Proton. The moniker "Proton" originates from a series of similarly named scientific satellites, which were among the rocket's first payloads. During the Cold War, it was designated the D-1/D-1e or SL-12/SL-13 by Western intelligence agencies.

Launch capacity to low Earth orbit is about 22.8 tonnes (50,000 lb).[7] Geostationary transfer capacity is about 6.3 tonnes (14,000 lb).[8] Commercial launches are marketed by International Launch Services (ILS).[9] In 2013, the rocket was intended to be retired before 2030.[10]

As of June 2018, production on the Proton rocket is ceasing as the new Angara launch vehicle comes on line and becomes operational. No new launch service contracts for Proton are likely to be signed.[11]

History

Proton[12] started its life as a "super heavy ICBM". It was designed to launch a 100-megaton (or larger) thermonuclear weapon over a distance of 13,000 km. It was hugely oversized for an ICBM and was never deployed in such a capacity. It was eventually used as a space launch vehicle. It was the brainchild of Vladimir Chelomei's design bureau as a foil to Sergei Korolev's N1 rocket, whose purpose was to send a two-man Zond spacecraft around the Moon; Korolev openly opposed Proton and Chelomei's other designs for their use of toxic propellants. The unusual appearance of the first stage results from the need to transport components by rail. The central oxidizer tank is the maximum width for the loading gauge of the track. The six tanks surrounding it carry fuel and serve as the attachment points for the engines. Despite resembling strap-on boosters, they are not designed to separate from the central oxidizer tank. The first and second stages are connected by a lattice structure. The second stage engine ignites shortly before separation of the first stage and the lattice allows the exhaust to escape.[13]

A rushed development program led to dozens of failures between 1965 and 1972. Proton did not complete its State Trials until 1977, at which point it was judged to have a higher than 90% reliability.

Proton's design was kept secret until 1986, with the public being only shown the upper stages in film clips and photographs, and the first time the complete vehicle was shown to the outside world happened during the televised launch of Mir.

Mass-production of guidance, navigation and control system for Proton has begun in 1964 on "Communard" Industrial Association (Kharkov, Ukraine).[14]

Proton launched the uncrewed Soviet circumlunar flights and was intended to have launched the first crewed Soviet circumlunar spaceflights, before the United States flew the Apollo 8 mission. Proton launched the Salyut space stations, the Mir core segment and expansion modules, and both the Zarya and Zvezda modules of the ISS.

Proton also launches commercial satellites, most of them being managed by International Launch Services. The first ILS Proton launch was on 9 April 1996 with the launch of the SES Astra 1F communications satellite.[15]

Between 1994 and mid-2010, Proton revenues were $4.3 billion, and were projected to grow to $6 billion by 2011.[16]

In January 2017, the Proton was temporarily grounded due to the manufacturer, Voronezh Mechanical Plant, having substituted a heat-resistant alloy in the engines with a cheaper metal.[17][18]

In June 2018, the state corporation Roscosmos announced that the Proton rocket would cease production as the new Angara launch vehicle comes on line and becomes operational. No new launch service contracts for Proton are likely to be signed.[11]

Proton flew its last scheduled commercial mission on 9 October 2019, delivering Eutelsat 5 West B and Mission Extension Vehicle-1 to geostationary orbit.[19] A number of Roscosmos and other Russian government missions remain on Proton launch manifest.

Proton 8K82K
Main article: Proton-K

The (GRAU index) 8K82K version is now usually called "Proton K". It is fuelled by very toxic unsymmetrical dimethyl hydrazine and nitrogen tetroxide.[20] These are hypergolic fuels which ignite on contact, avoiding the need for an ignition system, and can be stored at ambient temperatures. This avoids the need for components that are tolerant of low temperatures, and allows the rocket to remain on the pad indefinitely (other launchers with such capability include the U.S. Titan II GLV, Titan III, and Titan IV, the Chinese Long March 2 and Long March 4, the Soviet/Ukrainian Tsyklon launchers, the Soviet/Russian Kosmos-3 and Kosmos-3M launchers and the European Ariane 1 to Ariane 4 launchers). In contrast, cryogenic fuels need periodic replenishment as they boil off.

The fourth stage has multiple variants, depending on the mission. The simplest, Blok D, was used for interplanetary missions. Blok D had no guidance module, depending on the probe to control flight. Three different Blok DM versions (DM, DM2, and DM-2M) were for high Earth orbits. The Blok D/DM were unusual in that the fuel was stored in a toroidal tank, around the engine and behind the oxidizer tank.

The initial Proton tests in 1965–66 only used the first two stages of the booster, the complete four-stage vehicle being flown for the first time in 1967. When the Soviet space station program began in 1971, Protons began being flown with the Blok D removed for use as a heavy-lift LEO launcher.

Proton-K payloads included all of the Soviet Union's Salyut space stations, almost all Mir modules (with the exception of the Docking Module, which was launched on the United States Space Shuttle), and the Zarya and Zvezda modules of the International Space Station. It was intended to launch the crewed TKS spacecraft, prior to the cancellation of that programme, although a few robotic flights of spacecraft were fulfilled. In addition it was intended to launch the 1970s LKS spaceplane that was never realised.

Proton-M
Main article: Proton-M
Proton-M, part being rotated to vertical. In the background the mobile service tower can be observed

The initial version of Proton M, could launch 3–3.2 tonnes (6,600–7,100 lb) into geostationary orbit or 5.5 tonnes (12,000 lb) into a geostationary transfer orbit. It could place up to 22 tonnes (49,000 lb) in low Earth orbit with a 51.6-degree inclination, the orbit of the International Space Station (ISS).

The Proton M's improvements included lower stage modifications to reduce structural mass, increase thrust, and fully use propellants. Generally a Briz-M (Russian: Бриз meaning Breeze) storable propellant upper stage is used instead of the Blok D or Blok DM stage, removing the need for multiple fuel supplies and oxygen top-off due to boiling; the Proton-M also flew with a Blok-DM upper stage. Efforts were also made to reduce dependency on foreign (usually Ukrainian) component suppliers. With the Briz-M upper stage, the payload fairing diameter is 4.1 m (13.45 ft).[21]

Proton launch vehicles and Briz-M upper stages are designed and built by Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center (Khrunichev) in Moscow, the majority owner of International Launch Services (ILS). The Center is home to all engineering, assembly and test functions of Proton production. With the recent consolidation of the Russian space enterprises, Khrunichev has direct oversight and control of up to 70% of all Proton manufacturing from suppliers to manufacturers. The consolidation directly supports Khrunichev's ongoing efforts for vertical integration of Proton production.[22]

An enhanced variant, the Phase III Proton-M/Briz-M launch vehicle, was flight proven on the Russian Federal dual mission of Express AM-44 and Express MD-1 in February 2009 and performed its first commercial launch in March 2010 with the Echostar XIV satellite. The Proton-M/Briz-M phase III configuration provides 6150 kg of GTO performance, an increase of 1150 kg over the original Proton-M Briz-M, while maintaining the fundamental design configuration.

On 6 August 2012, the Russian Federal Space Agency lost a Russian and an Indonesian communications satellite in an attempt to launch them into orbit on a Proton-M due to technical difficulties with the last stage.[23] On 2 July 2013, a Proton-M launching three GLONASS navigation satellites experienced a failure reminiscent of the 1960s disasters shortly after liftoff when the booster crashed near LC-39 at Baikonour, ending a 30-year unbroken stretch without a first stage failure; all future Proton flights were suspended pending investigation.[24] The accident was eventually determined to be caused by the rate gyro package having been installed upside-down. Due to the difficulty of installing the package incorrectly, it was widely suspected that it had been done deliberately by a disgruntled or drunk worker at the Khrunichev plant.

On 15 May 2014, a Proton-M/Briz-M carrying an Ekspress satellite suffered a third stage failure from a bad turbopump bearing. Debris fell in Manchuria. On 21 October, another Ekspress satellite was left in a useless orbit when the Briz stage cut off 24 seconds too early.

On 16 May 2015, a MEXSAT communications satellite failed to orbit due to another third stage malfunction, the eighth Proton failure since 2010.

Khrunichev has initiated development of a set of phase IV enhancements in order to keep pace with market demands and the mass growth trends of commercial satellites. The implementation of Phase IV Proton Briz-M enhancements were completed in 2016. The payload mass performance for phase IV has been increased to 6320 kg to a reference GTO orbit with 1500 m/s of residual delta V to GSO.[25]

Launches
Main article: List of Proton launches

Future developments

Significant upgrades were temporarily put on hold following announcement (in 1992) of the new Angara launch vehicle. The single largest upgrade was the KVRB stage. This cryogenic stage would have greatly increased capacity. The engine was developed successfully, and the stage as a whole had progressed to hardware. However, as KVRB is noticeably larger than Block D, the vehicle's aerodynamics, flight control, software, and possibly electronics would have to be reevaluated. In addition, the launch pad can supply existing Protons with common hypergolic fuels from single sources. The upper stages, in particular, are fed by common loading pipes running along the rocket. Switching to a stage with different fuels requires the addition of extra support articles; switching to cryogens requires that such support articles top off the stage periodically.

Heavy variants of Angara will be simpler and cheaper than Proton (and like the Atlas V rocket, will not use hypergolic fuels; instead, it will use the same RP-1 fuel as that used on the Soyuz rocket). They will also be designed from the start to accept a KVTK stage, and will already have a LOX supply at the pad; only a hydrogen supply will be called upon.

See also

Similar launch systems

References
  1. Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center - Proton-M rocket // russianforces.org
  2. Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center - Proton-M rocket // russianforces.org
  3. "Proton 8K82K". www.friends-partners.org. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  4. http://www.kbkha.ru/?p=8&cat=8&prod=33
  5. "Proton Mission Planner's Guide". International Launch Services.
  6. "Proton Verticalization, Pad 39, Baikonur". flickr. 5 September 2005.
  7. http://www.khrunichev.ru/main.php?id=54
  8. Clark, Stephen (9 June 2016). "Upgraded Proton booster adds satellite to Intelsat's fleet". Spaceflightnow.com.
  9. "Commercial Launch Heritage". International Launch Services.
  10. "Russian rocket development in the 2010s". Anatoly Zak.
  11. Berger, Eric (25 June 2018). "Russia's Proton rocket, which predates Apollo, will finally stop flying Technical problems, rise of SpaceX are contributing factors". arsTechica. Retrieved 26 June 2018. ...failures have followed in recent years. These problems, combined with the rapid rise of low-cost alternatives such as SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, have caused the number of Proton launches in a given year to dwindle from eight or so to just one or two.
  12. "Proton Heritage". International Launch Services.
  13. The first stage of the Proton rocket at Russian Space Web
  14. "History of SSIA "Communard"".
  15. "Proton Launch Archives | International Launch Services". ilslaunch.com. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
  16. Statement by Vladimir Ye. Nesterov, Khrunichev Director-General, at Press Conference on 15 July 2010 Khruhichev 29 July 2010.
  17. "Russia's Proton rocket grounded by poor quality control". www.planetary.org. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
  18. "Russia's Proton Rocket faces extended Grounding due to systemic Engine Problems". spaceflight101.com. Retrieved 24 February 2017.
  19. http://russianspaceweb.com/eutelsat5wb-mev1.html
  20. "Commercial Launch Vehicle | ILS Proton Breeze M | International Launch Services". ilslaunch.com. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
  21. "Proton Breeze M – ILS". www.ilslaunch.com. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
  22. "Experience ILS: Achieve Your Mission" (PDF). 4 March 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
  23. "News from around the world". latimesblogs.latimes.com. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
  24. "Russia's Proton crashes with a trio of navigation satellites". Russian Space Web. 2 July 2013.
  25. "Commercial Launch Heritage | Proton Rocket | International Launch Services". ilslaunch.com. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
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