Where to See America's Greatest Spaceships (Infographic)Įlizabeth Howell (she/her), Ph.D., is a staff writer in the spaceflight channel since 2022 covering diversity, education and gaming as well.Space Shuttle: The First Reusable Spacecraft.Space Shuttle Launches New Era in Exploration.Challenger: Shuttle Disaster That Changed NASA.Molniya Research Industrial Corporation: Buran.Russian Space Web: Buran Reusable Shuttle.Just nine years later, the only Buran used in space was destroyed after the roof fell in at its storage facility at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Molniya considered another version that would be a bit smaller, but the idea was never pursued because of a lack of investor interest, Zak added. The program itself was put on ice because “the Soviet Ministry of Defense fully realized the lack of purpose for the system, compared to its tremendous cost,” Zak wrote.īy 1993, the head of NPO Energia (Yuri Semenov) said the project was cancelled. Just a few years later, in 1991, the Communist government fell and the nation broke up into several countries. The spacecraft launched aboard a Russian Energia rocket and successfully touched down under automatic control, something NASA's space shuttle was not designed to do.īuran launched at a difficult time for the Soviet Union. 15, 1988, and re-entered the atmosphere after two orbits, according to NASA. Buran performed 24 test flights on Earth (including 15 that were fully automatic) in preparation for its space test flight, Molniya stated.īuran launched only once into space, on Nov. Similarly to NASA's space shuttle, Buran would have different kinds of thermal materials on its surface to shield from the stresses of re-entry. Additional crewmembers could ride in the cargo area. A separate cargo department would allow for satellites up to 17 meters (56 feet) long and 4.5 meters (15 feet) in diameter. The Molniya Research Industrial Corporation, which developed the Buran's body, said the goal was to send 30 tons to space and return 20 tons to Earth.īuran was supposed to hold up to six passengers in its crew cabin.
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