Volga (rocket stage)

Volga missile stage
country	Russia
Manufacturer	RKZ Progress
GRAY index	141KS and 14S46
First flight	December 28, 2013
Calls	6th
Data
height	1.02 m
diameter	3.10 m
Takeoff mass	1140-1740 kg
Max. Payload	1400 kg ( SSE 835 km)
Max thrust	approx. 2.9 kN
fuel	UDMH / N 2 O 4

The Volga - named after the river of the same name - is a multiple re-ignitable rocket upper stage made by the Russian manufacturer RKZ Progress . It is used when launching satellites with Soyuz 2.1 rockets to reach higher orbits . The stage has been in use since 2013.

background

→ Main article : Soyuz-2.1w

The Volga stage emerged from the Soyuz-1 project. The aim of this project, which began in the 2000s, was to develop a more powerful variant of the Soyuz rocket. In fact, only the smaller Soyuz-2.1w rocket version and the additional Volga stage required for it were created. The latter can also be used with the “large” Soyuz variants 2.1a and 2.1b , instead of the more powerful and more expensive Fregat level.

The bus from the Jantal satellite family developed by RKZ Progress served as the basis for the new upper level . This was also the inspiration for the older Soyuz rocket upper stage Ikar , which is therefore technically similar to the Volga stage.

Technology and performance data

The Volga is a good three feet high and 3.1 meters in diameter, which means that it is wider than the body of the rocket (∅ 2.64 m) on which it is mounted. In terms of deployment profile, it is a kick stage : During the initial launch phase, it is located within the payload fairing of the rocket and finally transports the satellites slowly and precisely into their target orbit.

Like its predecessor, the Ikar, the Volga is also operated with the hypergolic (self-igniting) fuel combination UDMH and nitrogen tetroxide . The main engine used is the 17D64, a further development of the Ikar engine 17D61 with an unchanged maximum thrust of approx. 2.9  kN . Small control engines are available for position control . When fully fueled, the stage weighs 1,740 kg at takeoff, 900 kg of which is fuel.

The multiple ignition capability and an operating time of up to 24 hours make it possible to place several payloads in different orbits one after the other. Typically, however, an assignment only lasts 1–2 hours. The stage then uses the remaining fuel to remove itself from space - if possible - so that no space debris is created. If the mission profile does not allow this, it controls a cemetery orbit .

For a launch of the Soyuz 2.1w / Volga from the Plesezk cosmodrome , RKZ Progress states the following maximum payloads:

• 1700 kg for a track inclined by 62.8 ° at an altitude of 1000 km
• 1400 kg at 82.4 ° incline and 1500 km altitude
• 1400 kg in a sun-synchronous orbit (98.7 °) at an altitude of 835 km.

All previous flights went into lower orbits, which allows heavier payloads.

Mission list

As of December 31, 2019

Serial No.	Date ( UTC )	Launch site	Soyuz	Payload (satellites)	Orbit data		Remarks
					⌀ height	Tilt
10	Dec 28, 2013	Pl 43/4	2.1w	A is 1 SKRL-756 1 SKRL-756 2	607 km 606 km 602 km	82.4 °
20	0Dec 5, 2015	Pl 43/4	2.1w	Canopus -ST 1 KYuA 1	685 km	98.2 °	Kanopus-ST 1 did not separate from the Volga stage; both burned up on re-entry after three days.
30	Apr 28, 2016	Where 1S	2.1a	MVL-300 Aist 2D Samsat-218	478 km 478 km 478 km	97.3 °	Space telescope
4th0	23rd June 2017	Pl 43/4	2.1w	Cosmos 2519	662 km	98.0 °	Kosmos 2519 later exposed the sub-payloads Kosmos 2521 and 2523.
50	July 10, 2019	Pl 43/4	2.1w	Cosmos 2535 to 2538	615 km	97.9 °
6th0	Nov 25, 2019	Pl 43/4	2.1w	Cosmos 2542	640 km	97.9 °	Kosmos 2542 later suspended the Kosmos 2543 sub-payload.

See also : List of Soyuz rocket launches  and Soyuz launch statistics

swell

• The Soyuz-1 (Soyuz-2-1v) rocks on the Russian Space Web
• Volgar Upper Stage at RKZ Progress (English / Russian mixed)
• Ikar / Volga on Gunter's Space Page, with deployment list of the Volga (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Information from the RKZ Progress website; Anatoly Zak (Russian Space Web) names 3.2 m instead.
2. ^ William Graham: Soyuz 2-1 launches maiden mission from Vostochny. In: Nasaspaceflight.com. April 27, 2016, accessed on September 20, 2019 . 
3. ↑ Space-Track, accessed on September 20, 2019.