Re: Khrunichev's history photo archive

In article <1172236432.991850.283960@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
<Dr.Colon.Oscopy@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Great stuff here. Thanks. Why is there so little information (pics.
etc) on Polyus? The best stuff I've seen really is from Mark Wade but
no other official source..................Doc

The latest issue of Quest -- the only professionally-published space-history
journal -- has Polyus/Skif on the front cover, and quite a bit of detail
inside... Attempting a very brief condensation (with the caveat that this
article was only Part 1):

The original goal was an orbital laser ABM system. As the difficulty of
this sank in, an interim goal of an orbital laser antisatellite system
appeared. The intended armament, for the first version at least, was a
big CO2 laser already built for an airborne-laser testbed, powered by a
couple of big turbogenerators. A variant of the TKS service module (other
variants of which were used as Mir add-on modules and the Zarya ISS
module) would supply various support services.

The complexity of all this caused an early decision that the first flight
would not include the laser or some of its optics, but would be strictly a
subsystem-test mission, to check out support systems. Various other
complications intervened, climaxing with a decision to hastily assemble as
much of a test mission as could be managed in time for the first Energia
launch (which lacked a payload, Buran being behind schedule).

The top third of so of the vehicle, under a launch fairing, was the
service module -- put at the top to keep its launch environment as similar
to that on a Proton as possible. (But this also meant that its engines
were facing the wrong way for the orbit-insertion burn, and so the whole
vehicle would have to be turned 180deg first...) Much of the rest was
an empty shell -- no laser, no optics, no turbogenerators. The big
nonpropulsive-vent system for the laser exhaust was there, with a set of
gas cylinders to provide enough flow for testing it. The two big pods on
the tail -- target dispensers for testing of the laser -- likewise could
be tried out. A few other bits and pieces were also present.

Oh, and it was painted black to help thermal management -- the thermal
design was meant for a hull stuffed with heat-producing equipment, not a
mostly-empty shell, and it needed all the help it could get.
--
spsystems.net is temporarily off the air; | Henry Spencer
mail to henry at zoo.utoronto.ca instead. | henry@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
.

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