MOSCOW. Feb 26 (Interfax-AVN) - The Molnia research and production association has worked out 30 percent of working design documents on the wing and empennage of the Baikal non- expendable booster for the Angara carrier rocket, Molnia Chief Constructor Yuri Trufanov said on Wednesday.
"Development of working documents on the wing, empennage and other components is underway. Up to 30 percent of working documents on Baikal's wing and empennage are ready," Trufanov told Interfax-Military News Agency.
Experiments in tubes of the Central Aero-Hydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI) confirmed that the booster can withstand thermal pressure that stems from its higher re-entry speed, he said.
Baikal's wing is made of an aluminium alloy that retains density under temperatures up to 200 degrees Celsius. Titanium alloys are widely used as well. The nose and rear parts of the wing, as well as empennage, are to remain functional under temperatures up to 500 degrees Celsius, that is why their design features composite alloys of the carbon-carbon type, like on the Buran space shuttle, or special high-temperature steels.
The Khrunchiev space center is the chief developer of the Angara system. Angara is expected to become a universal modular asset for orbiting payload. Heavy rockets of this family will have four Baikal boosters, medium rockets will have two boosters and light rockets will be fitted with one booster.
Molnia is responsible for designing Baikal's reusable section, ground and flight tests of the booster's automatic pilotless landing, and cooperation supplies of component parts and sections, namely the wing, empennage, engines and chassis for Baikal's production. The cost of R&D related to Baikal's design is estimated at about USD130m.
Estimates show that employment of the Baikal booster will by some two or three times cut expenditures required for orbiting payload.
Horizontal flight tests of the booster are expected to take place in 2006. By that time, first tests of Angara 1.1. and Angara 1.2 light carrier rockets withot the booster are to have taken place. A total of 10 test launches of Baikal must be performed before it is installed in Angara.