Mars 1M No.2

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1M No.2

A Mars 1M spacecraft
Mission type Mars flyby
Mission duration Failed to orbit
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type Mars 1M
Manufacturer OKB-1
Launch mass 650 kilograms (1,430 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date 14 October 1960, 13:51:03 (1960-10-14UTC13:51:03Z) UTC
Rocket Molniya
Launch site Baikonur 1/5

Mars 1M No.2, designated Mars 1960B by NASA analysts and dubbed Marsnik 2 by the Western media, was a spacecraft launched as part of the Soviet Union's Mars programme, which was lost in a launch failure in 1960.[1] 1M No.2, which was intended to perform a flyby of Mars, was destroyed after its Molniya carrier rocket failed to achieve orbit.[2][3]

Launch

Mars 1M No.2 was the second Mars 1M spacecraft to be launched, lifting off four days after its sister craft, Mars 1M No.1, had been lost during the Molniya 8K78 rocket's maiden flight. 1M No.2 was carried by another Molniya, which had the serial number L1-5M. The launch took place from Site 1/5 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, with liftoff occurring at 13:51:03 UTC on 14 October 1960.[4]

During preparations for the launch, an oxidiser leak in the second stage caused liquid oxygen, at cryogenic temperature, to spill around the engine's fuel inlet valve. This froze the stage's RP-1 propellent, leaving the engine unable to ignite. As a result, the spacecraft failed to achieve Earth orbit.[5]


References

  1. ↑ Zak, Anatoly. "Russia's unmanned missions to Mars". RussianSpaceWeb. Retrieved 26 October 2013. 
  2. ↑ Krebs, Gunter. "Mars 1M". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 26 October 2013. 
  3. ↑ Wade, Mark. "Mars 1M". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Retrieved 26 October 2013. 
  4. ↑ McDowelll, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 26 October 2013. 
  5. ↑ LePage, Andrew J. (11 October 2010). "The beginnings of planetary exploration". Retrieved 26 October 2013. 
Past
Cancelled
Italics indicate failures at launch.
← 1959  ·  Orbital launches in 1960  ·  1961 →
Discoverer 9 | Discoverer 10 | Midas 1 | Pioneer 5 | S-46 | TIROS-1 | Transit 1B · Solrad | Discoverer 11 | Luna E-3 No.1 | Luna E-3 No.2 | Echo 1 | Korabl-Sputnik 1 | Midas 2 | Transit 2A · Solrad 1 | Discoverer 12 | Vostok-1K No.1 | Discoverer 13 | Echo 1A | Courier 1A | Discoverer 14 | Korabl-Sputnik 2 | Discoverer 15 | Pioneer P-30 | Courier 1B | Mars 1M No.1 | Samos 1 | Mars 1M No.2 | Discoverer 16 | Explorer 8 | Discoverer 17 | TIROS-2 | Transit 3A · Solrad 2 | Korabl-Sputnik 3 | Explorer S-55 | Discoverer 18 | Pioneer P-31 | Discoverer 19 | Vostok-1K No.4
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