In French Guiana (South America) from Kuru space launching site, they launched two European satellites ‘Soyuz-ST’ as a result of an ambitious project which began in 2005. The Europeans have received one of the most safe and trouble-free satellites and plan to make over 50 launches during the next ten years. The launching pad’s main peculiarity is the movable service tower which costed Europe 344 million Euros and was constructed by Russian specialists. The house of the rocket (let’s call it this way) has a weight of over 800 tons and protects the satellite from heavy rains which are very typical of that area (over 500 milimeters of precipitation may fall during just one day!).
[youtube]h5hQ2QsUdZc[/youtube]
Watch the video to see this ‘high-rise building’ in operation.
The ‘Company Mir’ won the tender (tendered by the governments of Russia and France) for designing, manufacture and installation of the movable tower. The location of the launching site in the equatorial zone (French Guiana) enables launching heavier satellites than Russain Baykonur and Plesetsk.
Projecting was made on a certificated software AUTODESK INVENTOR, Solid Works.
The ‘Company Mir’ has designed and constructed the following:
1. Movable service tower, which includes:
- supporting iron
- cover and roof
- North gate
- South gate
- auxiliary constructions
- trolleys
- ladders
2. Gate and rotary ground control systems.
3. Gate and rotary ground control system checkout console.
4. Power supply.
Installation of the tower in Russia. Installation at a hight of 10 meters.
Installation at a hight of 18 meters.
Installation at a hight of 27 meters.
Manufacturing and installation of the tower in Guiana.
June-July, 2010.
August-September, 2010.
November-December, 2010.
January-February, 2011.
March-April, 2011.
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This is one of the ships which transports ‘Soyuz’ satellites from Russia to French Guiana. At first, rockets are transported from Samara to a port in St. Petersburg. After that they load them into specially designed ships which may contain up to two disassembled rockets, and deliver them to Guiana. It takes the ship from 11 to 15 days to reach the South America shore.
To deliver rockets to Kuru, they have designed and manufactured special hermetic containers, where certain temperature and humidity are kept. Apart from the rockets, they load tanks with kerosene for fuelling, upper-stage rockets (produced in Moscow) and iron-clad tanks with toxic fuel for them. Each rocket occupies 10 containers; also they load the same number of tanks with kerosine and 5 containers with special equipment with them.
In the picture: rocket pods at the port of St. Petersburg.
They are being loaded onto the ship.
Loading process.
‘Soyuz-ST’ in Guaina
Carrier rocket get delivered to space launching sites in Russia in units by train, which wagons look like regular post ones. Although delivery by plane seems more sensible for that, economically it is completely unsound.
What’s the name of the song from the video?
The song in the Roscosmos clip is The Glitch Mob – Bad Wings.
Very nice footage. Inspiring.
Russia shouldn´t help the bankrupt warmongering €Uro-fascists getting their surveillance sat´s into space.
They all rely on Russia now aren´t they? So much for all that boasting and fancy projects. let them be and leave the carcass to rot…
Sorry to say, but the world has moved on from such decisive thinking, or at least i would hope. Why you think Russians should withdraw from the world market at one of the very things they are so good at is beyond me. Russians are world class leaders in the space marketplace. Why forfeit that lead to others over old-world politics?
At last, news from Russia in French Guiana. By the way, the rocket has been launched friday last week :
http://www.flickr.com/photos/esa_events/sets/72157627767903603/show/
Looking forward to see the next launch in december. The launch pad is in Sinnamary, not Kourou. I think I’ll be with the Russians celebrating this with…vokda ! Even if we have rhuhm here…but I think it’s too strong for the Russians !
Rhuhm is too fruity, too sweet for Russians, vodka is just good! BTW, the tower and modified Soyuz look awesome!!!! Russia and France are good at collaborations. The political rhetorics is just boring, people have got to just make things work. And it just does….
Go for the Vodka ! A restaurant in Sinnamary always have lots of frozen bottles in their fridge. And so have I.
Amazing how russians are smart when it comes to rocket science, I admire that. I have a colleague who works with me as a loan officer, she just returned back to Russia for vacation. She always tells me how beautiful the country is..