Project Mir station complex / UR-500 family

[predattak]

And a CIA stolen picture

Speaking of CIA stolen pictures .. i also have an old one, not sure but i think it may be the same rocket who knows.
I thought it may be of use to you so i posted it.


I'll .. I'll see myself out ..

 

[N_Molson]

I'll add the "grey interstage tape" so that it will look more like the original

 

[N_Molson]

Have the TVC system working for the first stage. It was probably the most complex thing to code. Maybe the third stage verniers will be a challenge, we'll see. Right now let's finish the UR500, the other big chunk is the engines nozzles animations.

 

[MaxBuzz]

engine flame. very interesting smoke goes in two directions at startup

 

[N_Molson]

Yes I'm thinking about the best way to render the exhaust. Proton has a very distinct "underexpanded" exhaust at launch, a bit too much coherent to be simulated by particles. An old-fashioned texture that fades and expands with altitude (Velcro Rockets did that I remember) is always an option, but I'm wondering if some transparent AND emissive 3D model could work. It could scale up (animation) and fade (alpha level) to simulate overexpansion.

Or, if that proves impossible, I still could use that model to make a screenshot and a clean flame texture.

Then there's a contrail of turbulent hot gases, that's easier to do. LC 81/23 or other Proton pads have two big trenches on the sides that generates those "volcanic" gases bursts upwards. That was nicely done in Thorton's addon, so I think that part, with a lot of testing and fine tuning, will be possible. At some point I'll have to code a "vessel-launchpad" to manage all the ground stuff anyways.

Right now I'm using stock Atlantis SSME exhaust, its not that far from the truth.

That one is crazy, I think the rocket casts shadow on its own exhaust. Amazing :

 

[GLS]

Proton has a very distinct "underexpanded" exhaust at launch, a bit too much coherent to be simulated by particles.

Set the random velocity parameter to 0 and the growth parameter to something very low or also 0, and you should get a "tube" of particles.

 

[N_Molson]

UR-500 in all its glory, the only visuals really missing are engine nozzles inner glow, but that's planned. Animations of the first stage nozzles works fine, along with TVC. Next step : the engine glow effects and implementing the stage 1/2 hotfire separation, should not be too hard. Then stage 2 TVC. And I'd like to deploy that satellite solar panels, too !

Right now deploying the satellite on a stable orbit is an interesting challenge, you have to plan the ascent carefully, and keep in mind that the second stage last seconds will give you a high-G boost (I think the Titan 2 was like that). On the pic below I did not aim high enough, ending with a 85x1200 km orbit. 85 is way too low, the sat would reenter after a few orbits. Ballistics. So the UR500 specifications seem rather accurate, we're not far from the real thing.

Early Ascent :


Aft view :


End of first stage burn with Syr-Daria river below :


Proton Satellite separation


Nosecone separation over the steppes

 

[Gargantua2024]

Never seen a representation of a Proton satellite this detailed before. It does look like they are instrumented dummy third stages of the rocket itself.

 

[N_Molson]

Yes that was the idea : make some science on high-energy particles while testing the rocket and achieve 3rd stage separation. Not unlike NASA's Pegasus satellite that was used to test the first Saturns.

And wait for the solar panels deployment animation

 

[4throck]

Looks very nice. Love that attention to detail, makes it look real!

 

[N_Molson]

Jarmonik's new shader helps a lot with the 'real look'. ?

 

[N_Molson]

Just to be sure, how do you understand this (from Anatoly Zak's website) ?

All four of Proton's second stage's engines can gimbal up to 3.25 degrees from their vertical position with the help of an electro-hydraulic system, so the rocket can be steered in flight on commands from the onboard computer

That would mean all four engines move only on 1 axis, right ? Again it can't be the same axis for all 4 engines, it has to be "tangential" if we want to get pitch, yaw & roll control. Like with the RD171MV engine in the Energia 5 project.

 

[MaxBuzz]

you want to apply a CCCP sticker. I looked through a lot of archival photographs of space technology, most of the inscriptions are present only on museum exhibits, painted posters, children's toys

for the proton rocket, only the emblem of the Khrunichev plant is characteristic and the inscription Proton, the older the rocket, the poorer the inscription

 

[N_Molson]

Yes and the original UR-500 really looks full-white. I also wonder if the black stripe on the first stage was always there or something added later ? Tell me if you find late 60's Proton launch pictures, that would be interesting. The first launches were not supposed to be public at all (not only because of secrecy, also because the missile was unreliable and used toxic fuel), so there was obviously no need for big markings.

I now have a working TVC system for the second stage, with the 3.25° angle. Good control. Still have the second stage nozzle animations to do. Little to show as there seems to be a firewall plate with holes for the nozzles, which make sense given the hotfire thing, but still.

 

[N_Molson]

@MaxBuzz: That one is very interesting, what do you think of the rocket we can see at 1:40 ? Only the top is painted, looks like they left the metal as it was for the first and second stages ?

They speak about a station, is it Mir ? Or Salyut ? Probably Mir, they say 1988 right ?

There's a marking on one of the radial tank on the rocket we see on the train, but I can't read, resolution is too low (0:26). That rocket has an escape tower and grid fins ! Must be old footage from one of the Zond launches, amazing ! I think there is a small red flag on the third stage.

And there is even a second stage gimbal test at 3:00, and they show the radial tanks assembly. A real treasure.

 

[MaxBuzz]

0.26 very interestingly, the inscription on the rocket accelerator "Электроника" on the drawing of the Proton, which I stopped earlier, is exactly the same inscription, but it is rare in photographs.I'm trying to find the company that left this inscription and its logo

what concerns the module this is the basic block of the station "Mir" I made this inscription in paint.net using text and a geometric shape

 

[N_Molson]

I like that one (added the engines "glow effect") :

 

[cosmonaut2040]

what do you think of the rocket we can see at 1:40 ? Only the top is painted, looks like they left the metal as it was for the first and second stages ?

very interesting! Judging by the colouring pattern, it looks to be the same rocket shown being stacked at 5:35-6:00 in the video. At 5:50 they show the rear view of the payload and it looks like a Souyz service section with solar panels! So from that we can infer that it is either Salyut 1 or the identical DOS-2 station that was lost in a launch failure!

 

[N_Molson]

At 5:50 they show the rear view of the payload and it looks like a Souyz service section with solar panels! So from that we can infer that it is either Salyut 1 or the identical DOS-2 station that was lost in a launch failure!

But I don't see why they would have equipped the rocket with an escape tower... Last Zond (Zond 8) was launched in 1970, I think it could be that one (color film). Though unmanned, the Zond flights were equipped with such a tower. My guess is that this is old footage they picked more or less randomly for their documentary (which point is to "sell" Proton vehicle services to make some much needed money, as they say at the end "Roscosmos is ready for your proposals"). If so, it is really awesome, I would never have expected to see a Proton/7K-L1 rocket on film !

 

[MaxBuzz]

unfortunately no, I can even name the shooting date November 29, 1986 a part from the ship the Souyz means that this is an ordinary military satellite based on Almaz