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Author
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Topic: What color was the Soviet N1 rocket?
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drscoop
Member Posts: 54
From: Macclesfield, UK
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 06-30-2019 04:49 AM
  
A group of us over on a Lego group on Facebook are working toward making an N1 on the same scale as the recent Lego Saturn V, and we wondered if anyone had any hard evidence as to the color of the launched N1 boosters?Looking across many photos, there seems to be discrepancies between a sand green colour, and both light and dark gray. As far as I can determine the dark gray was a pad test fit mockup and the sand green may have been a pre-assembly primer. And perhaps the launch vehicles were light gray and white. However, this is guesswork just now. Wondered if anyone had any convincing evidence one way or the other? The N1 reference guide also shows dark grey but it’d be good to get an authentic understanding of this? Thanks in advance! |
randy
Member Posts: 2176
From: West Jordan, Utah USA
Registered: Dec 1999
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posted 06-30-2019 09:50 AM
I have a poster that has an N-1 with alternating white, light gray and small what look like orange stripes going around the vehicle. It has a black and white checkerboard pattern on the upper part of the first and second stages. Also, there is a small black stripe and an orange one around the third stage. |
AstroCasey
Member Posts: 42
From:
Registered: Feb 2019
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posted 06-30-2019 10:07 AM
I did a little research on this matter. I found that the paint scheme varied for all four N1 launches (3L, 5L, 6L and 7L). I looked at two websites: Encyclopedia Astronautica and Russian Space Web. For the first website, look at the N1 article and read under the heading "Redesign and New Missions-1969 to 1974." It mentions that the third launch introduced an all white paint scheme to help with cooling. The second website has photos of all four attempts. I also have the same poster described in the previous post. The N1 on the poster doesn't match any photos of the real rocket. My guess for this is that the poster is old (the last rocket is from 1982) and info on the N1 from the Soviets was scarce at the time. Hope this helps. |
SPACEFACTS
Member Posts: 301
From: Germany
Registered: Aug 2006
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posted 07-01-2019 12:31 AM
Here you can see a dark green N1 mockup. But I've seen photos with a nearly white N1. |
PeterO
Member Posts: 399
From: North Carolina
Registered: Mar 2002
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posted 07-01-2019 09:05 AM
There are CGI drawings in N-1: For the Moon and Mars. The text states that the colors were dark gray and white. |
lucspace
Member Posts: 403
From: Hilversum, The Netherlands
Registered: Oct 2003
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posted 07-03-2019 07:40 AM
This is the same issue as what is the 'true' colour of the Soyuz rocket. Most images we see of this vehicle before launch are taken during roll-out at Baikonur. This traditionally happens early in the morning, when the Sun is low over the horizon and is very yellow in colour. A grey rocket in yellow light comes out green in photos.Have a look at these images of a Soyuz in the assembly hall and roll-out at Vostochni under a white sky; these show the true colour of the Soyuz rocket and I think the early, grey N-1 was of the same colour. |
perineau
Member Posts: 218
From: FRANCE
Registered: Jul 2007
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posted 07-03-2019 12:06 PM
Err, doesn't anybody have a high-quality picture of the bird? That would surely answer the color question! |
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