VORONEZH, August 14 (Itar-Tass) — A new rocket engine RD-0124 was successfully tested at the Chemical Automatics Design Bureau in Voronezh, southwestern Russia, on Saturday.
This engine will be installed at the third stage of Russia’s new carrier rocket Soyuz-2-1B and will take it into space with a satellite for the Glonass navigation system in December 2011, the head of the Russian federal space agency, Vladimir Popovkin, told reporters.
RD-0124 is a rocket engine capable of generating thrust of 30 tonnes and burning liquid oxygen and kerosene in a staged combustion cycle. It was created for Soyuz-2-1B carrier rocket designed by TsSKB-Progress state space and rocket production centre. It allows to increase the carrier rocket’s payload capacity by one tonne.
By its characteristics it outstrips all similar oxygen-kerosene engines existing in the world. It became the first engine produced for Russia’s carrier rocket in the post-Soviet history.
RD-0124 will be used on a light-class carrier rocket Soyuz-2-1B and as a part of a Soyuz-ST-B rocket, which will be launched from Kourou space centre in French Guiana under the Russian-French program.
Moreover, a modified version of RD-0124 will be used in the family of new carrier rockets Angara developed by the Khrunichev state research and production space centre.