Zarya Credit - © Mark Wade Media Gallery

'Super Soyuz' replacement for Soyuz and Progress. Concept was reusable spacecraft, launched by Zenit launch vehicle, with all possible systems recovered in landing module, together with significant payload delivered to and returned from orbit. Carriage in payload bay of Buran shuttle was also a requirement. Preliminary design work began on 27 January 1985. The design was briefed to the Military-Industrial Commission on 22 December 1986. However the project was cancelled in January 1989 on financial grounds.

Zarya would have been used for four missions:

• Launched into a 190 km, 51.6 degree orbit for docking with Mir-type space stations. In this role it would have carried two to four crew plus around two metric tons of payload up to 300-550 km orbits and back to earth.
• Rescue or lifeboat configuration, with 1,2, or no crew, returning up to 12 cosmonauts to earth (4 on first floor and 8 on second floor of capsule).
• With a crew of 2-3, for construction or repair of spacecraft in low earth orbit;
• In unpiloted form, as a spacecraft for resupply or refueling of spacecraft in high orbits up to 36,000 km (geosynchronous) altitude.

The capsule was 3.7 m in diameter, and had a total mass of 13 metric tons. When flown manned, 5-6 crew and 1,500 kg of cargo could be carried. If unmanned, a maximum cargo of 3,750 kg could be carried. An androgynous docking system was mounted at the front of the spacecraft, as were the antennae of the radio systems. A small engine module was mounted at the rear for orbital maneuver and retrofire. It was jettisoned before re-entry and was the only expendable part of the spacecraft.

After re-entry, a stabilization parachute was ejected. This was equipped with a radio altimeter in the parachute lines. Just before impact with the ground the altimeter triggered a large array of rocket engines arranged in a circle around the body of the re-entry vehicle. These braked the capsule to a soft landing. The braking and orientation engines were liquid propellant but used non-toxic propellants since they were housed within the capsule.

The design had several defects, chiefly the severe acoustic environment inflicted on the crew in the braking maneuver and the lack of any back-up landing system in the event of failure of the braking rockets to ignite.

Crew Size: 8. Orbital Storage: 270 days. Length: 5.00 m (16.40 ft). Maximum Diameter: 4.10 m (13.40 ft). Mass: 15,000 kg (33,000 lb). Payload: 3,000 kg (6,600 lb). Associated Launch Vehicle: Zenit-2.

• Zarya VA.  Other Designations: Vozvrashchaemiy apparat. Part of: Zarya. Class: Manned. Type: Spacecraft Module. Purpose: Reusable re-entry capsule.

  The Zarya landing module was enlarged from the Soyuz 2.4 m diameter to 4.1 m diameter, while keeping the same shape and L/D coefficient of 0.26 at Mach 6. The enlarged module could deliver in unmanned form 3 metric tons of supplies and fuel to the station, and return with 2.5 metric tons.

  With two crew, this dropped to 2.5 metric tons up and 1.5 metric tons back; or 8 crew and no payload could be transported. The landing module was designed for reuse 30 to 50 times. The ablative heat shield of Soyuz was replaced by thermal bricks of the kind developed for Buran. Instead of jettisoning the heat shield before landing to ignite the soft-landing rockets, these were moved to ports mid-way up the module. A total of 24 oxygen-kerosene engines each delivering 1500 kg thrust ignited just before impact with the earth to provide a zero velocity landing. Additionally the landing module had 16 orientation engines, each of 62 kgf.

  Crew Size: 12. Length: 3.60 m (11.80 ft). Basic Diameter: 3.70 m (12.10 ft). Maximum Diameter: 3.70 m (12.10 ft). Habitable Volume: 15.00 m3. Mass: 12,000 kg (26,000 lb). Payload: 3,000 kg (6,600 lb). RCS Coarse No x Thrust: 16 x 610 N. RCS Propellants: Oxygen/Kerosene. L/D Hypersonic: 0.26.

• Zarya NO.  Other Designations: Navesnoy otsek. Part of: Zarya. Class: Manned. Type: Spacecraft Module. Purpose: Expendable module for orbital maneuvering and experiments.

  Maneuver system consisted of two engines, each of 300 kgf.

  Length: 1.40 m (4.50 ft). Basic Diameter: 3.60 m (11.80 ft). Maximum Diameter: 4.10 m (13.40 ft). Mass: 3,000 kg (6,600 lb). Main Engine Thrust: 5.880 kN (1,322 lbf). Main Engine Propellants: N2O4/UDMH. Main Engine Propellants: 1,500 kg (3,300 lb).

• 1985 January 27 - Preliminary design work began on Zarya 'Super Soyuz'. -

  Concept was reusable spacecraft, launched by Zenit launch vehicle, with all possible systems recovered in landing module, together with significant payload delivered to and returned from orbit. Carriage in payload bay of Buran shuttle was also a requirement.

• 1986 December 22 - Zarya 'Super Soyuz' briefed to the Military-Industrial Commission. -

• 1989 January 1 - Zarya 'Super Soyuz' cancelled on financial grounds. -

• Semenov, Yu. P., S P Korolev Space Corporation Energia, RKK Energia, 1994. ISBN: 1896522815. Dual English/Russian language picture book of the history of the Energia Corporation. Many unique photos and drawings of Korolev's rockets and spacecraft. Republished by Apogee books in 2000. More at amazon.com...

• Afanasyev, I B, Neizvestnie korabli, Kosmonavtika, Astronomiya, Znanie, 12-91.. This basic monograph revealed for the first time the many cancelled Soviet manned space projects.