Space Security Index

2010 Development
Mix of successes and failures in the development of new launch vehicles
In 2010, Russia remained focused on the development of the new Angara family of space
launchers, which are to replace some of the aging Molniya-M launch vehicles currently
in service. 97 e development of the Angara space launcher is the largest Russian space
project included in the Federal space program for 2006-2015. 98 Once completed, the
light-, medium-, and heavy-duty Angara rocket will be mostly used at the new Vostochnyj
spaceport. 99 Building the infrastructure of Russia’s new spaceport was expected to start in
2011. However, launches using the new Angara rocket are not expected to start before
2013. 100 Roscosmos, the Russian federal space agency, has estimated that by 2020 the new
spaceport will host half of Russia’s yearly launches, leaving Baikonur with about 11 per
cent. 101
Another new Russian launcher under development, “Rus” (Russia), will be used to launch
the future manned spaceships currently being designed. 102 e rst launch of a manned
spacecraft from Vostochnyj is expected in 2018. e Energiya company planned to start
developing a nuclear-engine launcher in 2011. 103
e China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT) continued work on the Long
March-5, the next generation of launch vehicles, which ocials say will be signicantly more
powerful than previous launch systems. 104 e Long March 5 is expected to have engines that
generate 120 tons of thrust; test launches are planned for 2014. 105 CALT general manager
Li Tongyu has stated that engineers are studying a rocket engine with a thrust of 600 tons,
adding that such rockets “would only be justied for things like sending humans to the
Moon, if those projects are approved.” 106 e Long March 5 rockets are expected to be able
to carry 25 tons to near-earth orbits and 14 tons to geosynchronous orbits, compared to nine
and ve tons, respectively, of current-generation models. 107
Following the cancellation of the Constellation program, 108 the U.S. focused on the
development of new launchers by private industry rather than NASA. 109 e new U.S.
National Space Policy released in June emphasized maintaining a robust and competitive
industrial base in the U.S., specically seeking partnerships with the private sector to enable
commercial spaceight capabilities for the transport of crew and cargo to and from the
International Space Station. 110
2010 Development
Scientific space missions continue to be developed worldwide
Several successful scientic missions were launched or executed in 2010. e Planck
space telescope, designed to map and measure the anisotropies of the Cosmic Microwave
Background (CMB), 111 continued to transmit high-quality data to the Earth. 112 On 5 July,
the ESA released the rst full-sky image of microwave radiation taken by the Planck telescope
between August 2009 and May 2010. Although denitive results about the observation will
likely not be available until at least 2012, Nazzareno Mandolesi, director of the Institute of
Space Astrophysics and Cosmic Physics in Italy, said that the telescope is “very healthy and
all the instruments are working, sometimes better than expected.” 113
On 15 June, French space agency CNES successfully launched the solar science satellite
Picard aboard a Russian Dnepr-1 launcher from Dombarovskiy Cosmodrome. 114 Picard,
which is equipped with a 4.3-inch imaging telescope that can obtain precise measurements
Civil Space Programs
87