Vostok 4
 Model of the Vostok capsule with its upper stage | |||||
| Operator | Soviet space program | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harvard designation | 1962 Alpha Nu 1 | ||||
| SATCAT № | 367 | ||||
| Mission duration | 2 days, 22 hours, 56 minutes | ||||
| Orbits completed | 48 | ||||
| Spacecraft properties | |||||
| Spacecraft | Vostok-3KA No.6 | ||||
| Manufacturer | Experimental Design Bureau OKB-1 | ||||
| Launch mass | 4,728 kilograms (10,423 lb) | ||||
| Crew | |||||
| Crew size | 1 | ||||
| Members | Pavel Popovich | ||||
| Callsign | Беркут (Berkut - golden eagle) | ||||
| Start of mission | |||||
| Launch date | August 12, 1962, 08:02:33 UTC | ||||
| Rocket | Vostok-K 8K72K | ||||
| Launch site | Baikonur 1/5[1] | ||||
| End of mission | |||||
| Landing date | August 15, 1962, 06:59 UTC | ||||
| Landing site | 48°9′N 71°51′E / 48.150°N 71.850°E | ||||
| Orbital parameters | |||||
| Reference system | Geocentric | ||||
| Regime | Low Earth | ||||
| Perigee | 159 kilometres (99 mi) | ||||
| Apogee | 211 kilometres (131 mi) | ||||
| Inclination | 65.0 degrees | ||||
| Period | 88.2 minutes | ||||
| |||||
Vostok 4 (Russian: Восток-4, Orient 4 or East 4) was a mission in the Soviet space program. It was launched a day after Vostok 3 with cosmonaut Pavel Popovich on board—the first time that more than one manned spacecraft were in orbit at the same time. The two Vostok capsules came within 6.5 km (4.0 mi) of one another and ship-to-ship radio contact was established.[2]
The cosmonauts of Vostok 3 and 4 did not attempt rendezvous. At one point the craft came within a few kilometers of each other and Popovich later reported at a news conference that he saw the other craft from orbit. Popovich is quoted as saying, "I saw it at once," referring to seeing Vostok 3 in orbit. "It looked like a very small moon in the distance."
The Vostok 3 and 4 spacecraft landed about 200 km apart, south of Karaganda, Kazakhstan.[3]
The mission went largely as planned, despite a malfunction with the Vostok's life-support systems that meant that cabin temperature dropped down to 10 °C (50 °F). The flight was terminated early after a misunderstanding by ground control, who believed that Popovich had given them a codeword asking to be brought back ahead of schedule.
The re-entry capsule is now on display at the NPO Zvezda Museum in Moscow, but it has been modified to represent the Voskhod 2 capsule.
Crew
| Position | Cosmonaut | |
|---|---|---|
| Pilot | Pavel Popovich First spaceflight | |
Backup crew
| Position | Cosmonaut | |
|---|---|---|
| Pilot | Vladimir M. Komarov | |
Reserve crew
| Position | Cosmonaut | |
|---|---|---|
| Pilot | Boris Volynov | |
References
- ↑ "Baikonur LC1". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Retrieved 2009-03-25.
- ↑ Gatland, Kenneth (1976). Manned Spacecraft, Second Revision. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc. pp. 117–118. ISBN 0-02-542820-9.
- ↑ "Soviet Spacemen Say No Try Made To 'Rendezvous'", TheMontreal Gazette newspaper, Aug 22, 1962
| Unmanned |
| |
|---|---|---|
| Manned | ||
| Cancelled | Vostok 7 to 13 (incorporated into Voskhod programme) | |