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Author
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Topic: Post-flight tours of Soviet Vostok spacecraft
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Tyler
Member Posts: 27
From: Auburn, Alabama, United States
Registered: Aug 2009
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posted 02-16-2012 10:05 PM
   
Following John Glenn's voyage, Friendship 7 went on a world tour to numerous countries. But none of the Vostok spacecraft went on tour following the flights of cosmonauts. What happened to the Vostok vehicles immediately after landing and why were they not exhibited in Communist countries along with the cosmonauts themselves? |
ilbasso
Member Posts: 1522
From: Greensboro, NC USA
Registered: Feb 2006
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posted 02-16-2012 10:32 PM
One reason might be that the ejection seat system would have been discovered. The Soviets kept that a closely-held secret. |
kyra
Member Posts: 583
From: Louisville CO US
Registered: Aug 2003
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posted 02-18-2012 05:23 AM
The spacecraft Vostok was not revealed publicly until April 1965. While the ejection seat is part of the reason, the specific means of operation and the control system were also considered Top Secret. In fact, some facts about the craft were not declassified until recently. Vostok 1 and 6 are in the OAO "Energia" Museum, Vostok 3 is in the Shorshely space museum, and Vostok 5 is in the Tsiolkovskiy Museum in Kaluga. Vostok 2 was destroyed during soft landing tests of Voskhod before it was ever displayed. Now I will drop a surprise on the forum. Vostok 4 is missing. Previously, we thought it was on display at the JSC RD & PE "Zvezda" plant in Tomilino as a Voskhod 2 mockup. Zvezda has confirmed this is originally Vostok-3KA-1, which launched on March 9, 1961 with the dog Chernushka "Blackie." For those that want technical and other fun details about the Vostok Program please visit my site here. |
PeterO
Member Posts: 399
From: North Carolina
Registered: Mar 2002
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posted 02-18-2012 08:24 AM
There was an exhibit called "Soviet Space" at the Boston Museum of Science around 1990. As I recall, it had a Vostok capsule. I believe it was a traveling exhibit that visited several sites in the US and Canada. |
dom
Member Posts: 855
From:
Registered: Aug 2001
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posted 02-18-2012 10:12 AM
The Vostok capsule was first displayed in Moscow in 1965. Its rocket wasn't revealed until the 1967 Paris Air Show! |
MarylandSpace
Member Posts: 1336
From:
Registered: Aug 2002
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posted 02-18-2012 11:46 AM
Interesting thread. This is one of the reasons I enjoy reading collectSPACE each day. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 02-18-2012 11:52 AM
quote:
Originally posted by PeterO:
I believe it was a traveling exhibit that visited several sites in the US and Canada.
The only Vostok to come to North America was 3KA-2, which lofted the dummy "Ivan Ivanovich" and the dog Zvezdochka for one orbit of the Earth on March 25, 1961. It returned to Russia last year after being sold by Sotheby's to Evgeny Yurchenko, chairman of the investment fund AS Popov. |
Neil DC
Member Posts: 140
From: Middletown, NJ, USA
Registered: May 2010
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posted 02-18-2012 11:56 AM
In addition the Vostok 1 spacecraft at Energia looked heavily patched up. Thus perhaps the Russians did not want to display damaged goods at the height of their glory. But I agree that not showing the ejection seat scenario helped tham appear to "keep" to the FAI rules that voyagers should launch and land in their spacecraft. |
kyra
Member Posts: 583
From: Louisville CO US
Registered: Aug 2003
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posted 02-18-2012 11:59 AM
quote:
Originally posted by dom:
The Vostok capsule was first displayed in Moscow in 1965. Its rocket wasn't revealed until the 1967 Paris Air Show!
Thank you, Dom. My mistake. On April 29, 1965 at the All-Soviet Exhibition of Economic Achievements in Moscow displayed a model of the spacecraft still attached to the third stage along with basic specifications.In 1967, they had not only the Paris Air Show, but this was when they displayed the descent module, ejection seats and control panels in Moscow. Sorry for the confusion. |
dom
Member Posts: 855
From:
Registered: Aug 2001
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posted 02-18-2012 02:34 PM
No worries.  How could they have lost Vostok 4? |
Fezman92
Member Posts: 1031
From: New Jersey, USA
Registered: Mar 2010
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posted 02-18-2012 02:49 PM
quote:
Originally posted by kyra:
Vostok 4 is missing.
How does one lose a Vostok? |
kyra
Member Posts: 583
From: Louisville CO US
Registered: Aug 2003
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posted 02-18-2012 03:20 PM
I suppose lost is a misnomer, as the paperwork tracking this spacecraft is in the hands of the spacecraft's owner, OAO Energia. However, without formal announcement of its whereabouts or public display it is considered "absent". Even the best sources at News of Cosmonautics do not know of its whereabouts with certainty. It is presumed to be in the custody of Energia with dozens of publicly absent Soyuz vehicles. It could have been destroyed, parted out for other displays, given to a museum that was preparing it for display and left in a warehouse. The possibilities are endless without announcement as to its disposition. We can hope the 50th anniversary of the Vostok 3 and Vostok 4 missions somehow shake the spacecraft out of the woodwork. |
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