_(Memorial_Museum_of_Astronautics).JPG) Mockup of theVenera 1 spacecraft | |
| Mission type | Venus impactor |
|---|---|
| Operator | OKB-1 |
| Harvard designation | 1961 Gamma 1 |
| COSPAR ID | 1961-003A |
| SATCATno. | 80 |
| Mission duration | 7 days |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | 1VA No.2 |
| Manufacturer | OKB-1 |
| Launch mass | 6,424.0 kilograms (14,162.5 lb) |
| Dry mass | 643.5 kilograms (1,419 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | February 12, 1961, 00:34:36 (1961-02-12UTC00:34:36Z) UTC |
| Rocket | Molniya 8K78 |
| Launch site | Baikonur1/5 |
| End of mission | |
| Last contact | 19 February 1961 (1961-02-20) |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Heliocentric |
| Eccentricity | 0.173 |
| Perihelion altitude | 0.718AU |
| Aphelion altitude | 1.019 AU |
| Inclination | 0.58° |
| Period | 311 days |
| Flyby ofVenus | |
| Closest approach | 19 May 1961 |
| Distance | 100,000 km (62,000 mi) |
.jpg) | |
Venera 1 (Russian:Венера-1 meaningVenus 1), also known asVenera-1VA No.2 and occasionally in the West asSputnik 8, was the first spacecraft to perform aninterplanetary flight and the first to fly pastVenus, as part of theSoviet Union'sVenera programme.[1] Launched in February 1961, it flew past Venus on 19 May of the same year; however, radio contact with theprobe was lost before theflyby, resulting in it returning no data.
Venera 1 was a 643.5-kilogram (1,419 lb) probe consisting of a cylindrical body 1.05 metres (3 ft 5 in) in diameter topped by a dome, totalling 2.035 metres (6 ft 8.1 in) in height. This was pressurized to 1.2 standard atmospheres (120 kPa) with dry nitrogen, with internal fans to maintain even distribution of heat.[citation needed] Two solar panels extended from the cylinder, charging a bank ofsilver-zinc batteries. A 2-metre (6 ft 7 in) parabolic wire-mesh antenna was designed to send data from Venus to Earth on a frequency of 922.8 MHz. A 2.4-metre (7 ft 10 in) antenna boom was used to transmit short-wave signals during the near-Earth phase of the mission. Semidirectionalquadrupole antennas mounted on the solar panels provided routine telemetry and telecommand contact with Earth during the mission, on a circularly-polarized decimetre radio band.
The probe was equipped with scientific instruments including a flux-gatemagnetometer attached to the antenna boom, twoion traps to measure solar wind,micrometeorite detectors, andGeiger counter tubes and a sodium iodidescintillator for measurement of cosmic radiation. An experiment attached to one solar panel measured temperatures of experimental coatings. Infrared and/or ultraviolet radiometers may have been included. The dome contained aKDU-414 engine used for mid-course corrections. Temperature control was achieved by motorized thermal shutters.
During most of its flight,Venera 1 was spin stabilized. It was the first spacecraft designed to perform mid-course corrections, by entering a mode of 3-axis stabilization, fixing on the Sun and the starCanopus. Had it reached Venus, it would have entered another mode of 3-axis stabilization, fixing on theSun andEarth, and using for the first time a parabolic antenna to relay data.
.jpg)
Venera 1 was the second of two attempts to launch a probe to Venus in February 1961, immediately following the launch of its sister shipVenera-1VA No.1,[2] which failed to leave Earth orbit due to the failure of a power transformer. The transformer was wrapped in foil and painted black and white for thermal reasons.[3][4] Soviet experts launched Venera-1 using aMolniya carrier rocket from theBaikonur Cosmodrome. The launch took place at 00:34:36 GMT on 12 February 1961. Vehicle L1-6V steered downrange into a clear blue winter sky and orbit was successfully achieved.[5]
The spacecraft, along with the rocket'sBlok-L upper stage, was initially placed into a 229-by-282-kilometre (142 mi × 175 mi)low Earth orbit,[1] before the upper stage fired to place "Venera 1" into aheliocentric orbit, directed towards Venus. The 11D33 engine was the world's first staged-combustion-cycle rocket engine, and also the first use of anullage engine to allow a liquid-fuel rocket engine to start in space.
During the first telemetry session, it was found that Venera 1 failed to enter the constant solar orientation mode, which led to a shortage of electrical power on board. While unfortunate, this was expected and in such a case the station had to conduct a rough orientation to the Sun and turn off non-vital systems. However, the radio transmitters had not been adequately designed and communication was shortly lost. The signal was regained on 17 February but it was still unable to lock onto the Sun properly and again went into protective mode and turned off the transmitter. Three successful telemetry sessions were conducted, gathering solar-wind and cosmic-ray data near Earth, at the Earth'sMagnetopause, and on February 19 at a distance of 1,900,000 km (1,200,000 mi). After discovering thesolar wind withLuna 2,Venera 1 provided the first verification that this plasma was uniformly present in deep space. Seven days later, the next scheduled telemetry session failed to occur. On May 19, 1961,Venera 1 passed within 100,000 km (62,000 mi) of Venus. With the help of the British radio telescope atJodrell Bank, some weak signals fromVenera 1 may have been detected in June. Soviet engineers believed thatVenera 1 failed due to the overheating of a solar-direction sensor.[6]
| Active missions |
|    | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Past missions |
| ||||||||||||
| Planned missions |
| ||||||||||||
| Proposed missions |
| ||||||||||||
| Cancelled or not developed | |||||||||||||
| Program overviews | |||||||||||||
| Related | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
