Astronomy:Kosmos 379

Short description: Unmanned test of Soviet lunar module

Kosmos 379

A standard LK
Operator	Soviet Union
COSPAR ID	1970-099A
Mission duration	12 years, 9 months and 27 days
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type	T2K
Launch mass	7,495 kilograms (16,524 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date	24 November 1970, 11:00:00 (1970-11-24UTC11Z) UTC
Rocket	Soyuz-L
Launch site	Baikonur 31/6
End of mission
Decay date	21 September 1983
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth
Eccentricity	0.004161
Perigee altitude	198 kilometres (123 mi)
Apogee altitude	253 kilometres (157 mi)
Inclination	51.6 degrees
Period	88.7 m

Kosmos 379 (Russian: Космос 379 meaning "Cosmos 379") was an unmanned test of the LK (the Soviet counterpart of the Apollo Lunar Module) in Earth orbit.

Mission

Earth orbit simulated propulsion system operations of a nominal lunar landing mission. Kosmos 379 entered a 192 to 232 km low Earth orbit. After three days it fired its motor to simulate hover and touchdown on the moon, in imitation of a descent to the lunar surface after separation of the Blok D lunar crasher propulsion module. The engine firing changed its orbit from 192 km X 233 km to 196 km X 1206 km (delta-V = 263 m/s).

After a simulated stay on the Moon, it increased its speed by 1.518 km/s, simulating ascent to lunar orbit making the final apogee 14,035 km. These main maneuvers were followed by a series of small adjustments simulating rendezvous and docking with the Soyuz 7K-L3. The LK lander tested out without major problems and decayed from orbit on September 21, 1983.

Parameters

• Spacecraft: T2K
• Mass: 5500 kg
• Crew: None
• Launched: November 24, 1970
• Landed: Reentered September 21, 1983
• Orbit: 192 km

External links

• Mir Hardware Heritage
  • Mir Hardware Heritage - NASA report (PDF format)
  • Mir Hardware Heritage (wikisource)