Sunday, April 29, 2001

Tubsat

 1998-042A


On Jul 7 at 0315 UTC Russia carried out the first satellite launch from a submarine. The Shtil'-1 launch vehicle is a converted R-29RM (RSM-54) ballistic missile. It launched the German 8 kg Tubsat-N `nanosatellite' and its companion 3 kg Tubsat-N1 from the K-407 `Novomoskovsk', a 667BDRM Del'fin class submarine of the Russian Northern Fleet's 3rd Flotilla, commanded by Cdr. Aleksandr Moiseev. Tubsat-N entered a 400 x 776 km x 78.9 deg orbit. The Shtil' is a three stage liquid propellant submarine launched ballistic missile made by the Makeev design bureau; the satellite payload is placed in the standard Shtil' reentry vehicle. The launch was carried out at 0315 UTC on Jul 7 from a range in the Barents Sea off the coast of the Kol'skiy Peninsula, at approximately 35.3 deg E 69.3 deg N (TUB message) or 34.2E 69.5N (NK 9815-15). The submarine was at a depth of about 30m. Both Tubsat-N and Tubsat-N1 carry a small store-forward communications payload which will be used to keep track of transmitters placed on vehicles, migrating animals, and marine buoys. They are owned and built by the Technische Universitat Berlin (TUB). This was the first orbital launch by the Russian Navy and the first by a Makeev built rocket.

Size of the combined satellites 0.32 x 0.32 x 0.10m. Mass of Tubsat N is 8.5 kg.

The third stage engine is jettisoned from the third stage post boost system. The payload capsule (an SLBM RV) is ejected from the PBS. It is a 1.47m long 0.45m x 0.67m dia elliptical cone with its base a separable payload plate.

Stage 2 is 4.6m long (including forward skirt but excluding engine nozzle) 1.90m dia. The PBS is 1.90m diam 3.0m long. The ejected engine is about 2.0m long 1.0m dia.

42F was a rapidly decaying object not tracked until a year after launch.

 ID  RCS  Orbit 6/98  Orbit 6/99 

42A  Tubsat N  0.06 400 x 774  396 x 745   
42B  Tubsat N1 0.54 400 x 770  391 x 708   
42C  Stage  5.3  401 x 807  400 x 792   
42D  Engine?  0.25 400 x 774  393 x 726   
42E   0.01 400 x 771  385 x 675   
42F  deb  0.16  332 x 453  (Cataloged 1999) 


Tubsat N 
 

DateTimeEventOrbit  

1998 Jul 7  0315:00  Launch by Shtil'-1  Barents 
  Stage 1 burn 
 0316:15 T+1:15 Stage 1 Sep 30 km  -6300? x 60? x 78.9 
  T+1:15 Interstage halves sep  
 0316:15 Stage 2 burn 
 0317:49  T+2:49 Stage 2 sep 109 km  -5200? x 160? x 78.9  
  T+2:49 Mode A start, Stage 3 MES 109 km  
 0319:16 T+4:16 Mode M start 174 km, Stage 3 MECO  -1650? x 400 x 78.9  
 0320:20 T+5:20 Stage 3 engine sep 224 km; impact Pacific  -1620? x 400 x 78.9 
 0325:41  T+10:41 B mode, Apogee leg begins, BR MES 800 m/s?  -1500? x 400 x 78.9 
 0330:06  T+15:06 Apogee leg ends, BR MECO  400 x 700? x 78.9 
  BR in low thrust mode 
 0330:11  T+15:11 Payload capsule sep from nosecone  400 x 710? x 78.9 
 0330:47  T+15:47 Payload capsule cover ejected 
 0330:47  T+15:47 Payload ejected from capsule at 2.2m/s 
 0330:47  T+15:47 Nosecone thrust off, 100m away 
 0335?Stage 2 impact 85E 78N 
 0338? Stage 3 engine impact Pacific range 

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