The Complete Book of Spaceflight: From Apollo 1 to Zero Gravity

90 cosmic rays
was the responsibility of a group of European research
laboratories known as the Caravane Collaboration.
Although originally projected to last two years, the spacecraft
operated successfully for more than six, providing
the first complete map of the Milky Way Galaxy in the 2
keV to 5 GeV energy range and identifying about 25 discrete
sources.
Launch
Date: April 9, 1975
Vehicle: Delta 2914
Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base
Orbit: 442 × 99,002 km × 90°
Mass: 280 kg
cosmic rays
High-energy subatomic particles from space that include
fast-moving protons and small numbers of heavier nuclei.
On colliding with particles in Earth’s atmosphere, they
give rise to many different kinds of secondary cosmic radiation.
The lowest energy cosmic rays come from the Sun,
while those of higher energy originate in supernovas and
other sources both within our galaxy and beyond.
cosmic string
Hypothetical bizarre material that may have formed
shortly after the Big Bang. If cosmic string exists, it is predicted
to be infinitesimally small in cross-section but
enormously long, perhaps forming loops that could encircle
an entire galaxy. Theory indicates that strings would be
extremely massive (a one-m length weighing perhaps 1.6
times as much as Earth), give rise to peculiar gravitational
fields, and be superconducting. It has also been suggested
that strings could be used as the basis of an interstellar
drive. The idea is that an array of magnet coils attached to
a spacecraft would be set up around a string. Magnetic
pulses induced in the coils would cause the superconducting
string to respond with opposing magnetic fields
that would move the spacecraft along. The resulting
propulsion would be reactionless in that it would not
depend on ejecting mass to gain momentum rocket-style.
Instead, the enormous mass of the string would provide a
base to push against, effectively storing the energy used to
build the spacecraft’s momentum. To decelerate, the vessel
would simply withdraw the energy from the string,
returning it to storage as the destination was reached. Of
course, developing the technology for such a propulsion
system would be only one aspect of the problem; finding
a suitably placed cosmic string would be quite another. 136
cosmonaut
A Russian/Soviet astronaut. The Russians have a longstanding
tradition of calling their people “cosmonauts”
only after they have traveled in space. This differs from
the American custom, in which astronauts are so named
as soon as they have been accepted into NASA employment
after passing the selection tests. See Avdeyev,
Sergei; Belyayev, Pavel; Berezovoi, Anatoly; Dobrovolsky,
Georgy; Feoktistov, Konstantin; Gagarin, Yuri;
Komarov, Vladimir; Lebedev, Valentin; Leonov, Alexei;
Makorov, Oleg; Polyakov, Valery; Remek, Vladimir;
Savitskaya, Svetlana; Tereshkova, Valentina; Titov,
Gherman; Titov, Vladimir.
Cosmos (launch vehicle)
A family of small two-stage Russian launch vehicles
derived from the R-12 and R-14 ballistic missiles (see “R”
series of Russian missiles). It stemmed from a government
decision in 1960 to develop a means of launching
payloads not requiring the more powerful R-7–based
(Soyuz-type) boosters. Earlier Cosmos rockets, known as
Cosmos and Cosmos-2, consisted of an R-12 first stage
and a high-performance second stage that burned a
unique liquid oxygen/UDMH propellant combination.
These were used to launch Cosmos and Intercosmos
satellites until they were phased out in 1977. They were
superseded by Cosmos-1, Cosmos-3, and Cosmos-3M,
based on the R-14. The Cosmos-3M, with its restartable
second stage, was the most prolific and successful of this
line, delivering payloads of up to 1,500 kg into LEO (low
Earth orbit). Although its production ended in 1995, a
number remain in storage.
Cosmos (spacecraft)
A long and ongoing series of Earth satellites launched by
Russia for a variety of military and scientific purposes.
The first was placed in orbit on March 16, 1962. Subprograms
of Cosmos include Bion, EORSAT, Geizer, Geo-
1K, Glonass, Gonets, Luch, Parus, Rorsat, Strela, and
Tsikada. The Cosmos label is also used for prototypes of
new satellites; for example, Cosmos 122 to 144 were test
versions of the weather satellite series known as Meteor.
Finally, the catchall name was used in the early years of
the Space Race to hide the true objectives of missions
that failed, including a number of lunar and planetary
probes left stranded in low Earth orbit and several vehicles
connected with the secret Soviet-manned Moon program.
Cosmos 1
An experimental space sail, built for the Planetary Society
in Russia by the Babakin Space Center and funded by
Cosmos Studios, a science-based media and entertainment
venture by Ann Druyan (wife of the late Carl
Sagan) and A&E Network. The 600 square meter sail,
made of 5-micron aluminized mylar in the shape of eight