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| Птичка Буря | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Buran-class orbiter |
| Construction number | 1.02 |
| Country | Soviet Union |
| Status | 95-97% complete[1] |
2K (GRAU indexserial number 11F35 2K, NPO Molniya airframe number 1.02), often referred to asPtichka (Russian:Птичка, "little bird", although this was also a nickname for all orbiters in the programme[2]), is the secondBuran-class orbiter, produced as part of the Soviet/RussianBuran programme. Although 2K was the closest to being completed of any of theBuran-class orbiters (after the orbiterBuran), it was never finished. The program was officially cancelled in 1993, at which point the shuttle was 95-97% complete. The proposed official name for 2K wasBurya (Russian:Буря, "storm" or "tempest").[1][3]
2K was being prepared for its maiden flight to perform the first fully regularBuran-class orbiter operation. (The flight ofBuran was lacking regular thermal control and power systems.) This orbiter was also planned to receive a remote manipulator and docking system.
As of 1989, the orbital flight test program for the second orbiter was split into two missions, with a space station approach test on the second, but delays in preparations changed the plans to perform all test tasks in one maiden flight, scheduled for December 1991.[4] The mission profile included:
In August 1995, 2K was moved into storage within the MZK building (Russian: МЗК, Монтажно-Заправочный Комплекс, "Assembling and Fueling Facility") atBaikonur Cosmodrome, alongside the full size test article OK-MT.[5]
The ownership of 2K and its sister shipBuran has been contested since the fall of theSoviet Union, with the director ofRoscosmosDmitry Rogozin attesting that he had tried to purchaseBuran and return it to Russia, but became entangled in legal disputes on its true owner. The contractor for theBuran space programme,RSC Energia, had set up a subsidiaryCJSC Energia to manage its overseas assets in 2004, which were then transferred toRSE Infrakos in 2004 and relinquished toJSC KRISP Aelita, a joint Russian-Kazakh company. Kazakh businessmanDauren Musa asserted ownership of 2K in 2011 after purchasing the company's shares, which was disputed by the Kazakh government, but reaffirmed by the country's court after litigation proceedings.[1][6]
With theBuran destroyed in 2002, 2K is considered valuable as the last of its kind, and Musa has offered to trade the spacecraft in return for the skull of last KazakhkhanKenesary Kasymov. Kasymov had been beheaded in 1847 and his skull sent to Russia, but his skull remains missing today, with Russia denying knowledge of its location.[7]
In April 2021, 2K was vandalized withgraffiti, including the worddobro (Russian:добро, meaning "good") on the right side of the orbiter.[8] Photos of the graffiti surfaced onInstagram andTelegram on May 26, though by that time the orbiter had already been painted over.[9][10] According toNASASpaceFlight.com, there is evidence thatRoscosmos may have known about the vandalism and decided to cover it up.[10]
The vandalism caused distress to many space enthusiasts. Roscosmos also expressed concern and expressed its belief that theBuran hardware atBaikonur Cosmodrome should be transferred to a museum, and that it would discuss the issue at the nextIntergovernmental Kazakh-Russian Commission.[11]Dauren Musa, the current owner of the orbiter, also expressed his concern about the state of the hardware, and stated that he would discuss the fate of his orbiters with Roscosmos.[10]
NASASpaceFlight noted that the vandalism may have benefited the orbiters by drawing attention to their condition.[10]
45°56′25.6″N63°19′6.3″E / 45.940444°N 63.318417°E /45.940444; 63.318417
Space Shuttle andBuran-class orbiters | |||||||
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