Dnepr (rocket)

Dnepr
FunctionOrbital carrier rocket
Manufacturer
Country of originSoviet Union (original build),
Ukraine (commercial launches after 1999)
Cost per launchUS$29 million [1]
Size
Height34.3 m (113 ft)
Diameter3 m (9.8 ft)
Mass211,000 kg (465,000 lb)
Stages3
Capacity
Payload to LEO
Mass4,500 kilograms (9,900 lb)
Payload to the ISS
Mass3,200 kilograms (7,100 lb)
Payload to SSO
Mass2,300 kilograms (5,100 lb)
Payload to TLI
Mass550 kilograms (1,210 lb) (with ST-1)
Associated rockets
Based on
  • R-36M
Launch history
StatusRetired[1]
Launch sitesSite 109/95, Baikonur
LC-13, Yasny
Total launches22
Success(es)21
Failure(s)1
First flight21 April 1999
Last flight25 March 2015
First stage
Powered by1 RD-264 module
(four RD-263 engines)
Maximum thrust4,520 kN (1,020,000 lbf)
Specific impulse318 s (3.12 km/s)
Burn time130 seconds
PropellantN2O4 / UDMH
Second stage
Powered by1 RD-0255 module
(one RD-0256 main engine and one RD-0257 vernier)
Maximum thrust755 kN (170,000 lbf)
Specific impulse340 s (3.3 km/s)
Burn time190 seconds
PropellantN2O4 / UDMH
Third stage
Powered by1 RD-864
Maximum thrust20.2 kN (4,500 lbf)
Specific impulse309 s (3.03 km/s)
Burn time1,000 seconds
PropellantN2O4 / UDMH

The Dnepr rocket (Russian: Днепр, romanizedDnepr; Ukrainian: Дніпро, romanizedDnipró) was a space launch vehicle named after the Dnieper River. It was a converted ICBM used for launching artificial satellites into orbit, operated by launch service provider ISC Kosmotras. The first launch, on April 21, 1999, successfully placed UoSAT-12, a 350 kg demonstration mini-satellite, into a 650 km circular Low Earth orbit.[2][3]

  1. ^ Clark, Stephen (30 December 2016). "Iridium satellites closed up for launch on Falcon 9 rocket". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 30 December 2016. Russian officials have said they plan to discontinue Dnepr launches.
  2. ^ "The Dnepr launcher". RussianSpaceWeb.com.
  3. ^ "UoSAT-12 Integrates with Dnepr for Launch on 21 April". Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. Archived from the original on 2007-09-28.