Sergei Pavlovich Korolev- brilliant scientist, physicist, engineer, designer. He achieved enormous results in the field of practical astronautics and the production of rocket and space technology.
short biography
Sergei Pavlovich Korolev was born January 12, 1907 year in Zhitomir. His father is Pavel Yakovlevich Korolev, a teacher of Russian literature. Mother - Maria Nikolaevna Moskalenko, daughter of a Nezhin merchant.
When he was 3 years old, his mother left the family, and he was sent to the city of Nizhyn to live with his grandparents. Sergei Pavlovich studied in Kyiv, then in Odessa.
It was in Odessa that he met the pilots of the local air squad and spent a lot of time in their company, being interested in the intricacies of their craft. The smart young man was shown what an airplane is made of, how it flies, was allowed to sit at the controls of the plane and was told: to become a pilot, you need to study well.
Study and first job
Sergei Korolev immediately learned the last piece of advice and continued his studies after school. He entered the Kiev Polytechnic Institute. However, the training program there did not quite suit him, and so he transferred to Higher Technical School in Moscow.
After graduating from college, Korolev was sent to work in Central Aerodynamic Institute. During this period, he studied the works of Tsiolkovsky “Jet Airplane”.
Impressed by what he read, he changed jobs: in 1933 Korolev went to work at the new Jet Research Institute. He became deputy head of the institute for scientific work. Then he was 26 years old, and he made grandiose plans for the future.
The young designer and scientist believed that the future of all aviation lay in jet engines and jet technology.
Arrest and continuation of scientific activities
In 1938 A massive purge was taking place in the USSR: they were looking for spies, enemies of the people. Many scientists, designers, and engineers were injured. Korolev was also arrested and sentenced by 10 years in forced labor camps in Kolyma.
At the request of the remaining scientists, he was transferred to the design group Tupolev create the Tu-2 aircraft. While working at Sharashka, he continued to dream of jet-powered aircraft.
Trip to Germany
From his conclusion unexpectedly released in 1944, and in 1945 he was sent to Germany as a specialist in the field of jet rocketry. There he collected military documentation of German scientists who created the famous rockets V-1 and V-2.
From Germany, Korolev was sent to Podlipki near Moscow, where he formed research and production center for the production of liquid fuel rockets. He was appointed chief designer ballistic missiles. Has begun new stage his life.
New stage
In 1947 Korolev was invited to the Kremlin to report to Stalin on the development of a ballistic missile. He reported, but there was no reaction. And no changes occurred. Changes came after Stalin's death, when the country's new leadership attracted talented scientists and engineers to create new missile weapons and space exploration.
First launch into space
In 1954, Korolev completed work on a missile with a nuclear warhead and began creating an intercontinental missile. In October 1957, a rocket carrying the first artificial satellite took off into the sky..
In 1959, three spacecraft took turns heading towards the Moon. The first and second brought a pennant depicting the coat of arms of the USSR to the surface of the Moon, and the third took photographs reverse side Moons. On April 12, 1961, the world's first manned space flight took place., and on March 18, 1965, man first went into open space.
Korolev was so passionate about his work that he literally spent days and nights in laboratories, test sites, and the cosmodrome. He did not take into account himself, with time, with the work team - he lived by his favorite work and devoted himself completely to it.
Sergei Pavlovich Korolev planned to create a new ship, in the compartment of which cosmonauts could stay without spacesuits, and thought about docking two ships in space. But his heart could not withstand the excessive stress and on January 14, 1966 he died of heart failure.
Natasha Koroleva (real name Natalya Vladimirovna Poryvay) is a pop singer who received popular love after the release of the album “Yellow Tulips”, recorded jointly with Igor Nikolaev. Among her songs are such hits as “Little Country”, “A Little Bit Doesn’t Count”, “Blue Swans” and dozens of other lyrical ballads and fiery dance compositions.Childhood of Natasha Koroleva
Natasha Poryvay, who was born in Kyiv, grew up in a creative family: the girl’s father was a choirmaster, and her mother, Honored Artist of Ukraine Lyudmila Poryvay, conducted the Svetoch choir. My 5-year-older sister, Irina, was a musically gifted child and subsequently performed solo under the pseudonym Rusya. It is not surprising that already at the age of 3 Natasha Poryvay made her debut on stage together with the Big Choir of Radio and Television of Ukraine, performing the song “Cruiser Aurora”. 
At the age of 7, the girl was enrolled in a music school for piano class and, at the same time, in the choreographic studio named after Grigory Verevka. An important event What predetermined the baby’s fate was her acquaintance with the composer Vladimir Bystryakov, who took the gifted Natasha under his wing. At the age of 12, she began performing with his songs (“Where did the circus go”, “World of miracles”), thanks to which she quickly became the star of all city holidays: children's matinees, government congresses, New Year's lights, city days - every event was accompanied by the clear voice of Natasha Poryvay . In 1987, the girl became a winner of the Golden Tuning Fork folk music competition.
In the same year, Natasha made her first appearance on television, in the “Wider Circle” program (a kind of prototype of the “Minute of Fame” show), which gave a ticket to fame to many aspiring performers: Dmitry Malikov, Leonid Agutin, the group “Secret”... But for real significant event for the young singer it was a performance at a vocal competition in Evpatoria. She did not take any prizes, but attracted the attention of Elvira, the assistant of the famous Moscow television producer Marta Mogilevskaya. Natasha gave the woman a cassette with her own material, not knowing that this act would later play a huge role in her life.
Natasha Koroleva in the program “Wider Circle” (1986)
Some time passed, but no news came from Moscow, and Natasha continued to build a career in her native Ukraine, entering the Kiev Variety and Circus School to major in “Variety Vocals.” In the summer of 1989, she went on tour to the States.
The vocal girl made a strong impression on American vocal teachers, who invited her to become a student at the Eastman School of Music at the prestigious University of Rochester. But Natasha, who by that time had been contacted by representatives of Martha Mogilevskaya, rejected this tempting offer and set off to conquer Moscow.
Casting Natasha Koroleva
The heyday of Natasha Koroleva’s career. "Dolphin and the Mermaid"
In the fall of 1989, Marta Mogilevskaya advised Igor Nikolaev, Alla Pugacheva’s former arranger and an aspiring singer who was in a creative stupor, to find a suitable girl to record together. The choice fell on Natasha for two reasons: firstly, her vocal abilities were an order of magnitude higher than those of the other contenders, and secondly, the short girl looked ideal next to the 172-centimeter singer. 
At the first meeting, Igor was quite skeptical about this idea: the 16-year-old plump “Khokhlushka” did not look like a spectacular pop diva, and besides, she was embarrassed by the singer, who seemed to her like a king and a god of music. However, after listening, he was pleasantly surprised and soon wrote the song “Yellow Tulips” for the young protégé, which became the title track of the album of the same name, released in 1990. On the cover of the record there was an inscription: “Natasha Koroleva sings the songs of Igor Nikolaev.”
Natasha Poryvai turned into Koroleva in a completely natural way: the pseudonym was invented by Nikolaev, who was sure that the audience would not be able to remember the surname “Poryvai”, and it sounds somehow plebeian, another thing is the proud, impressive “Koroleva”.
After the release of the album, Natasha Koroleva’s popularity began to literally go off scale. “Yellow Tulips” brought the girl to the finals of the country’s main music competition, “Songs of the Year.” The stadiums and concert venues were overcrowded, fans brought armfuls of yellow tulips to their favorite artist, and when Natasha, who had broken her leg, took a short time out, admirers of her work asked to carry the plastered girl onto the stage.
“Song of the Year 1990”: Natasha Koroleva – “Yellow Tulips”
In 1991, Natasha Koroleva graduated from the Variety and Circus School. In 1992, the album “Dolphin and the Mermaid” was released, and the creative tandem of Igor and Natasha went on a grandiose tour of the cities of Russia with the program of the same name, which over the next three years conquered not only the remote corners of our homeland, but also big cities USA, Israel and Germany.
In 1994, the singer released a solo album called “Fan” (the music and lyrics were still the credit of Igor Nikolaev). However, she had to win the trust of listeners who did not want to believe in the end of “The Dolphin and the Mermaid” and recognize Natasha as an independent creative unit. Thanks to long hard work, the singer was able to regain the public's favor. For example, in the spring of 1995, she held three charity concerts at Far East as a sign of support for those affected by the devastating earthquake on Sakhalin.
In 1995, Koroleva’s second exclusively solo album, “Confetti,” was released, consisting of eleven songs. Among them was the composition “Little Country,” which soon conquered federal television and radio airwaves, turning into an immortal hit for children and adults who continue to believe in the fairy tale.
Natasha Koroleva: “I’m a random person in show business”
At this time, Natasha Koroleva made her debut as an actress in the musical “Old Songs about the Main Thing,” where she played the daughter of the chairman and, together with Lada Dance and Alena Apina, sang the song “Someone Came Down the Hill.” Over time, she appeared in the next three parts of the musical film: in the second she parodied the image of the heroine Svetlana Svetlichnaya from “The Diamond Arm”, in the third she sang a duet with Chris Norman, and in the final one with Alexander Tsekalo.
In 1997, Natasha was cast in the role of Malvina in the musical “The Newest Adventures of Pinocchio” (it is noteworthy that Pinocchio himself was played by Kristina Orbakaite). In between filming, Natalya worked on new material, and in December of the same year, Koroleva’s fans greeted her new album, “Diamonds of Tears,” with jubilation. Many listeners noted that Natasha had changed both externally and spiritually - from the cover it was no longer a girl who looked slyly at the buyers, but a fully formed lady. The lyrics have also become more mature: the “small country” has been replaced by “a girl dreaming of big love.”
With the new program, she went on a world tour, during which she was applauded by the auditoriums of London, New York, Berlin and Athens, and in 1999 she went on tour again with Igor Nikolaev and the concert program “The Dearest”.
In 2000, the Queen thought about specialized education and entered the acting department of GITIS, which she graduated from three years later.
New work by Natasha Koroleva
In 2000, the union of Natasha Koroleva and Igor Nikolaev broke up both creatively and personally. The singer lost the support of her loved one and the help of a talented composer. The album “Heart”, released shortly after the breakup, did without Nikolaev’s participation. Natalya was helped by composer Alexander Konovalov and songwriter Vladimir Vulykh - they wrote the iconic composition “It Was or Wasn’t.” 
In 2002, the singer released a collection of her best hits entitled “Shards of the Past.” It included 14 of Koroleva’s hits, as well as a new song “A Little Bit Doesn’t Count.” “What has become of me now? But life goes on,” was heard from every radio in the country.
Natasha Koroleva – “A little bit doesn’t count”
Natasha Koroleva's next album was recorded together with her new chosen one Sergei Glushko, also known under the pseudonym Tarzan. The record was called "Believe it or not." Three years later, the couple presented another joint work called “Heaven Is Where You Are.” The album of the same name was released with the support of the Dream Crystal jewelry house, whose face Natasha has been since August 2006.
In 2008, Natasha was invited to the show “Dancing with the Stars,” pairing the singer with choreographer Evgeniy Papunaishvili. In a short time, Koroleva had to learn many complex dance steps, but her efforts were rewarded only with third place.
“Dancing with the Stars”: Natasha Koroleva and Evgeniy Papunaishvili
And the next year, Natasha presented her writing debut, a largely autobiographical novel, “Male Striptease.” The singer’s experiments did not stop there: she soon became the owner of a beauty salon, which was called “Natasha Koroleva’s Beauty Salon.”
In the summer of 2010, the singer, together with Oleg Gazmanov, went to a festival of Russian culture in Germany. All proceeds from the sale of tickets to the star's concert were transferred to charitable foundation Red Cross. In November 2013, the star announced the termination of touring activities.
From 2012 to 2014, Natasha, together with her mother, Lyudmila Poryvai, hosted the program “Time for Lunch” on Channel One. The show compared home and restaurant kitchens - ordinary housewives challenged professional chefs.
Personal life of Natasha Koroleva: between a dolphin and a stripper
It cannot be said that the so-called “natural chemistry” was discovered at first glance between Natasha Koroleva and Igor Nikolaev. However, while working on the “Dolphin and Mermaid” program, the man fell in love with the girl, which grew stronger every day, turning into something more intimate, inspiring him to create melodic, slightly sad ballads. 
Natasha’s acquaintances noticed that she, although she desperately denied it, also fell in love with Nikolaev: with open mouth I caught his every word, copied his gestures and manner of speech. They began to live together, but Natasha, brought up in strictness, immediately confronted the singer with a fact: no civil marriage, only legalized relationships: “I had very strict rules and believed that everything should happen only after the wedding. True, now I have changed my mind - I think that you should first check your partner, and then marry him... When I realized that Igor’s courtship was going too far, I said: “Either officially, or not at all.” He had to think..."
Still, the musician did not want the relationship to be made public, so Natasha had to take everything into her own hands and make a cunning knight move. She and her parents came home to Nikolaev and invited the registry office employees there - no feasts, magnificent dresses and rings, only stamps in the passport.
In 2000, Natasha Koroleva left her husband. According to the singer, the reason for this was Nikolaev’s constant betrayal. Although the separation occurred without scandals and scenes of jealousy, both took this break very hard.
In an attempt to distract herself from the oppressive wound in her heart, Natasha plunged headlong into work. For one of the performances, she invited a group of dancers of the “original genre”, in other words, strippers. Among them was the blond, broad-shouldered handsome Tarzan, who was to discuss with Natasha the details of future payment.
Arkhip, the first-born of Natasha and Tarzan, was born in February 2002, and in August 2003 the lovers officially got married. This time everything was for real: the bride dressed in White dress, noisy company the guests were driven along the Neva by a motor ship, doves were released into the sky, and Natasha's unmarried friends caught the bride's lush bouquet.
The public received the news ambiguously. Not everyone was able to rejoice at Natasha’s happiness, reproaching her for “the broken heart of the maestro [Igor Nikolaev].” Tarzan himself commented on the situation like this: “I didn’t take Natasha away from him. When we started our relationship, she had already been living separately for a year, he had his own life. How to creative person, I have a very good attitude towards him, I like his songs.”
In 2008, Igor Nikolaev, who had ignored everything for several years creative success girls and called his former protégé exclusively by real name, took the first step towards reconciliation with his ex-lover. Natasha accepted the apology, and since then the former partners began to communicate as close friends.
A short time later, they appeared on stage together again to delight their loyal fans with an original performance of “The Dolphin and the Mermaid”; Nikolaev also wrote a new song for Natasha (“Dream Crystal”).
Natasha Koroleva and Alexander Marshal - “I am defamed by you”
Twice Hero of Socialist Labor
Lenin Prize laureate
Academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences
“What seemed impossible for centuries, what yesterday was just a daring dream, today becomes a real task, and tomorrow - an accomplishment!” S.P.Korolev
Sergei Korolev was born on January 12, 1907 in Ukraine, in Zhitomir, in the family of a literature teacher.
His father Pavel Yakovlevich Korolev graduated with honors from the Nezhin Historical and Philological Institute and received the title of gymnasium teacher. However, life together with Sergei’s mother, Maria Nikolaevna Moskalenko, did not work out for him. Soon after moving to Kyiv, his parents separated, and Sergei Korolev was brought up in the family of his mother’s parents in Nizhyn. Grandfather and grandmother loved their grandson very much and doted on him.
In Nezhin in 1911, Sergei first saw the Russian pilot Utochkin fly in an airplane, and this event shocked the imagination of the impressionable boy. I didn’t remember Korolev’s father. He was raised by his mother, a teacher, and his stepfather, engineer Grigory Mikhailovich Balanin. In 1917, Sergei and his mother moved to Odessa to live with his stepfather. In 1921, a detachment of seaplanes HYDRO-3 of the Main Directorate of the Air Force appeared in Odessa. Sergei watched their flights over the sea, dreaming of taking them into the sky. The incident brought the teenager together with hydraulic unit mechanic Vasily Dolganov. A new acquaintance, digging into the engine, explained to Sergei what was what. After the first “lecture” the “practice” began. All summer time He spent time in the hydraulic detachment, helping prepare planes for flight. Korolev became an indispensable, trouble-free assistant to mechanics and pilots.
He was not able to obtain a secondary general education immediately, since there were no conditions for this. Korolev graduated from a two-year vocational construction school. Sergei studied diligently. Classroom teacher He told his mother Maria Nikolaevna about him: “A guy with a king in his head.” All this time, Korolev continued to participate in the life of the hydroaviation detachment. Under the patronage of Dolganov, Sergei once took off in a seaplane, which was piloted by the detachment commander, and decided to become a pilot. At the same time, Sergei gained the reputation of a real mechanic. He also spent hours working in the school workshop where wooden products were made. The “carpentry school” was very useful to Sergei when he started building gliders.
In 1923, the government appealed to the people to build their own Air Fleet. The Aviation and Aeronautics Society of Ukraine and Crimea (OAVUK) was born in Ukraine.
Korolev immediately became a member of this society and began studying in one of its gliding circles. He lectured workers on gliding. Korolev acquired knowledge on gliding and aviation history on his own by reading books, including German. Sergei Korolev, thanks to his stepfather and construction school teacher Gottlieb Karlovich Ave, who taught lessons in German, knew German quite well. Knowledge of the language was firmly attached to him for the rest of his life.
When the construction of a glider designed by the famous military pilot K.A. Artseulov began in the OAVUK workshops, Sergei Korolev also took part in the work on it. In April 1924, he participated in the first conference of glider pilots in Odessa. At this time, in May, an event very important for the history of astronautics took place in Moscow - the world's first Society for the Study of Interplanetary Communications (SIMS) was founded. Felix Dzerzhinsky and Konstantin Tsiolkovsky were elected honorary members. The main task of this society was to promote the work of transatmospheric flights using jet vehicles and other scientifically based means."
It should be noted that in late XIX and at the beginning of the 20th century in Russia there was a high interest in space. It was fueled by science fiction writers. Capturing minds, they contributed to the emergence of scientific and technical ideas. Tsiolkovsky created the cosmic work “Exploration of World Spaces by Reactive Instruments,” publishing it in 1903. In it, the scientist first developed the theory jet propulsion and on its basis he proved that a liquid fuel rocket of the design he proposed is capable of achieving the speed necessary to overcome gravity.
People read the fantastic story “Outside the Earth” by Tsiolkovsky and especially Tolstoy’s novel “Aelita”. Long queues lined up at cinemas and clubs where the film based on this work was shown. The audience warmly applauded engineer Mstislav Los and Red Army soldier Alexei Gusev, who dared to go to Mars. It was fantastic. But there lived a real Moose, who developed spaceship-airplane, - our compatriot Friedrich Arturovich Zander, a follower of Tsiolkovsky’s ideas. Another engineer, Yuri Vasilyevich Kondratyuk, a theorist of astronautics, was pondering the work “For those who will read in order to build.” But Sergei Korolev has not yet read either Tsiolkovsky or Zander, and has not heard anything about Kondratyuk. They will come into his life later.
While after graduating from school, Sergei worked as a carpenter, covering roofs with tiles, and later began working at a machine in production. Seniority The chief designer began at the age of sixteen. “I will be a builder... but only of airplanes,” Korolev said in those years. Maria Nikolaevna in her heart opposed her son’s passion, expressing fears about the danger of his chosen life path. The sensible stepfather, on the contrary, treated him calmly. Sergei found support for his aspirations in his stepfather.
Sergei dreamed of studying at the Air Force Academy in Moscow. But it accepted people who had served in the Red Army and were over 18 years old. Sergei could have been helped by a certificate from the Odessa Gubernia Department of the OAVUK about the submission to the aviation technical department of the project of the K-5 motorless aircraft he designed, which Maria Nikolaevna brought to the leadership of the academy along with a petition for her son. However, uncertainty regarding admission to the Moscow Academy remained. And Sergei decided to enter the Kiev Polytechnic Institute, where at that time it was planned to begin training aviation engineers at the mechanical faculty.
Among the students of the Faculty of Mechanics, Sergei was considered one of the youngest and most educated. At the same time, he worked and was everything during these years: a newspaper delivery man, a loader, a carpenter, and a roofer. But still he could barely make ends meet. In a letter to his mother in Odessa, Sergei wrote: “I get up early in the morning, at about five o’clock. I run to the editorial office, pick up newspapers, and then run to Solomenka, deliver them. So I earn eight karbovanets. And I’m even thinking about renting a corner.”
There was a gliding circle at the institute. His work was followed and helped by many prominent scientists who taught at the KPI. Sergei Korolev became its member. He worked, like everyone else, hard and enthusiastically. Often at night. Korolev sometimes slept right in the workshop on wood shavings. He loved to work and was known as a jack of all trades. After that, nothing was ever redone. The gliders built in the institute's workshops participated in international competitions, receiving the highest marks. The circle members had a rule: whoever built the glider flew on it.
The KPIR-3 training glider was built, and Korolev contributed his share of his labor to it. Sergei flew on it. One of the flights almost cost him his life. At the border of the site - a wasteland where gliders were tested, a water pipe protruded from a pile of garbage. Sergei did not notice and landed the glider on it. The blow was strong enough and Korolev lost consciousness for some time.
In 1926, after studying for two years at the KPI, Sergei Korolev transferred to Moscow to a special evening group on aeromechanics at the Moscow Higher Technical School. During the day he worked either in a design bureau or at an aircraft factory, and studied in the evening. By this time, my mother and stepfather had moved to Moscow. Korolev aspired to aviation. As soon as he entered the Moscow Higher Technical School, Sergei immediately became involved in the work of the student group AKNEZH - Academic Circle named after Nikolai Egorovich Zhukovsky. Engineers and scientists gave lectures there.
In January 1927, the grand opening of the Moscow Glider School took place in the Gorki Leninskikh area. Sergei Korolev also became her cadet. He flew a lot and willingly, mastering new types of gliders. In March 1927, Sergei graduated from gliding school with honors. Sergei Korolev was especially looking forward to the lectures of aviation designer Andrei Nikolaevich Tupolev, whose planes were already flying across the sky by that time. He taught students a course on aircraft construction.
In May 1927, at the international exhibition of interplanetary vehicles, Sergei first became acquainted with the works of Zander and Tsiolkovsky’s brochure “Exploration of World Spaces with Jet Instruments.” Books, drawings, diagrams, handicraft models - everything that was shown at the exhibition sank into Korolev’s consciousness. He began to pay more attention to rockets and space flights.
A graduate student at the Moscow Higher Technical University, Korolev, completed his industrial practice at the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI), at the Tupolev Design Bureau. At this time he was already working at an aircraft factory in Fili. At the same time, he was preparing his graduation project, deciding to design a light-engine two-seater aircraft SK-4.
The design of the SK-4 aircraft, designed for a record flight range, turned out to be original, thought out to the smallest detail and worked out at the level of a mature specialist. Tupolev himself became the project manager, signing it from the first presentation. This has never happened in the students' practice. The rigor and thoroughness of the designer were known. The design of the single-engine, two-seater SK-4 aircraft, approved by Tupolev, was then built and tested.
In September 1929, Sergei Korolev and his colleague Sergei Lyushin presented an unusual glider at the VI All-Union Glider Competition in Koktebel, approximately 50-90 kilograms heavier than its counterparts. At that time it was believed that the smaller the airframe, the better. A test flight on the Koktebel was made by K.K. Artseulov, reporting to the members of the technical commission: “The glider is well balanced. It obeys the rudders well. It can be cleared for flights.” Twenty-two-year-old Korolev set a soaring record on the Koktebel glider. He hovered in the air for more than four hours.
In October 1930, at the All-Union Glider Rally, Korolev presented a new glider SK-3, which he named “Red Star”. Its load per square meter was greater than that of Koktebel - 22.5 kilograms. The glider's data was so unusual that the possibility of soaring in the air itself was questioned. However, it was on it that for the first time in the history of aviation, test pilot V.A. Stepanchenok, an experienced glider pilot, made the famous Nesterov loop in free flight. Korolev was not present at the competitions because he fell ill with typhus. As a result of the complication, he developed severe headaches and required craniotomy surgery. It was successful, but remained ordeal for Sergei. After the illness, Korolev’s body was so weakened that he had to leave work for several months. But as soon as it became easier, Sergei began reading Tsiolkovsky’s work “Jet Airplane” with enthusiasm.
Before studying in Kyiv, in Odessa, Korolev met his future wife- Ksenia Vincentini. He tried to do everything to make her become his girlfriend: he walked around her upside down, swam under a barge in the sea, and even did a handstand for her on the edge of the roof of a two-story Odessa morgue. All this made the necessary impression on Ksenia. While leaving to study at the aviation department of the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute, Korolev proposed to her. She replied that, although she loved him, she did not intend to get married until she learned to earn money on her own.
He studied in Kyiv, then at the Moscow Higher Technical School in Moscow, and she studied in Kharkov to become a doctor. After graduation, Ksenia was assigned to work in Donbass. While there, Korolev again tries to get consent to the marriage. In August 1931, she became his wife, and he took her to Moscow. However, Sergei was not known for fidelity in marriage. Her husband’s adventures brought Ksenia to the point where in the spring of 1948 she poured out all her feelings in a letter to Korolev’s mother: “You know the whole story of our love well. I had to endure a lot of grief even before 1938 (the year of Korolev’s arrest. - Author). , and, despite the remaining feeling of affection and some kind of love for S., I firmly decided... to leave him so that he could continue his life under his favorite slogan “Let everyone live as he wants...” Later they divorced.
Korolev’s second wife was translator Nina Ivanovna, who worked in his design bureau.
The daughter of Sergei Korolev and Ksenia Vincentini, Natasha, who was under the influence of her mother, learned about her father’s infidelities at the age of 12. The rift between daughter and father remained for life. According to space age chronicler Yaroslav Golovanov, when Korolev later called her from Baikonur to wish her a happy birthday, she hung up. He sat and cried.
But while Korolev was still interested in aviation, the desire to find a means to fly higher, faster, further brought him close to the idea of investigating the possibilities of jet propulsion. He agreed with Tsiolkovsky: “The era of propeller airplanes should be followed by the era of jet airplanes, or stratosphere airplanes.”
In March 1931, Sergei Korolev returned to work at TsAGI, combining work in the Jet Propulsion Research Group (GIRD). It was created in August 1931 under the Bureau of Aircraft of the Central Council of Osoaviakhim (DOSAAF) in the year of the 75th anniversary of Tsiolkovsky’s birth. GIRD became the center where everyone interested in rocketry flocked. Zander was appointed its head, who played an important role in the development of theoretical and practical issues of space navigation. The technical council was headed by Korolev. The age of the employees, with a few exceptions, did not exceed twenty-five years. The GIRD was located in an abandoned basement at house 19 on Sadovo-Spasskaya Street.
The idea of creating jet engines excited many minds outside the USSR in those years. But the first, main impetus was given by Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky, it was he who came up with the idea of the birth of a jet engine running on liquid fuel. In the 1920s, work in this direction was carried out by the German scientist Obert, the American professor Goddard and others.
The work of the Girdovites was crowned with success. On August 17, 1933, at the Nakhabino test site near Moscow, the first Soviet rocket GIRD-09, designed by M.K. Tikhonravov, using liquid fuel, rushed into the sky. The rocket rose to a height of 400 meters, the flight duration was 18 seconds. But this luck made the Girdovites finally believe in their strength. Unfortunately, Zander, who was the soul of the whole affair, never saw the rocket launch. Shortly before this, on March 28, he passed away; he died of typhus while on vacation in Kislovodsk. By a special resolution, the Central Council of Osoaviakhim assigned the name of F.A. Tsander to GIRD.
In 1933, the dream of rocketry enthusiasts to create a unified rocket center came true. Cutting off all bureaucratic obstacles, on the personal order of Tukhachevsky, who had a deep understanding of fundamentally new work, GIRD and the Leningrad Gas Dynamics Laboratory (GDL) were merged into the Jet Research Institute (RNII). I.T. Kleimenov (head of the GDL) was appointed head of the institute, Sergei Korolev was appointed his deputy for scientific work. He was awarded the official rank of divisional engineer (according to modern concepts- rank of lieutenant general of technical troops).
At the same time, Korolev and Tikhonravov were awarded the highest award of the defense society - the badge "For active defense work."
In 1934, Korolev’s first printed work, “Rocket Flight in the Stratosphere,” was published. “A missile is a very serious weapon,” the author warned in his work. Sergei Pavlovich sent a copy of the book to Tsiolkovsky. Soon, Osoaviakhim received a letter from Tsiolkovsky with a review of Korolev’s work: “The book is reasonable, informative and useful.” The scientist only complained that the author did not provide his address and deprived him of the opportunity to personally thank him for the book.
Korolev dreamed of getting serious about the rocket plane, but his plan was not destined to come true. Not everything went smoothly at the newly created institute. Disagreements emerged regarding the primary tasks of the Rocket Institute between Kleimenov and Korolev, as a result of which Korolev was transferred to the ordinary position of senior engineer. In the fall of 1937, the wave of repression and tyranny that swept the country reached the RNII.
Tukhachevsky was shot and Tupolev was arrested, who ended up in a closed Central Design Bureau, where other “enemies of the people” worked - famous designers in the aviation world V.M. Myasishchev, V.M. Petlyakov, R.L. Bartini and others. In Moscow, on Radio Street, the seven-story TsAGI building was converted into a prison for them, with rooms allocated for housing and design work. The specialists here worked not out of fear, but out of conscience, understanding that their work was necessary for the country, and firmly believing that they would soon sort it out and be convinced of their innocence.
On September 25, 1938, Korolev was included in the list of persons subject to trial by the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the USSR. He was in the first category on the list, which means that the punishment recommended by the NKVD authorities was execution. The list was personally endorsed by Stalin, thereby practically confirming the death sentence. But this was a time of change in the leadership of the NKVD and repressions had already reduced their scope. Therefore, court decisions did not so blindly follow the recommendations of the NKVD.
Lieutenant General Tyulin, a close friend who spoke with Korolev more than once on expeditions, testified: “When V. Glushko, later an academician, one of the creators of Soviet cosmonautics, was arrested on the basis of a denunciation, and declared an enemy of the people, Korolev publicly stated that he could not believe that Glushko is an enemy of the people. Then he himself was taken away a few days later."
Korolev was arrested on June 27, 1938 and sentenced to ten years in forced labor camps in Kolyma. He spent a year in Butyrka prison, during interrogations he was subjected to severe torture and beatings, as a result of which Korolev’s jaw was broken. He also suffered a concussion. On April 21, 1939, Korolev ended up in Kolyma, where he was at the Maldyak gold mine of the Western Mining Administration and was busy with the so-called “general work.” On December 2, 1939, he was sent to the disposal of Vladlag. In the Gulag, an engineer who knew Korolev from the Moscow special prison described him as “a cynic and a pessimist” who repeated: “We will all disappear without a trace.” But he was a rocket scientist, and he was needed. When a call came to Kolyma, send it to " Mainland", he hurried to the pier. However, by that time the last steamer had left. Soon the ship sank, and Korolev waited a year for navigation to begin.
Korolev returned to Moscow on March 2, 1940, where four months later he was tried a second time and sent to a new place of imprisonment - the Moscow NKVD special prison TsKB-29, where, under the leadership of Tupolev, also a prisoner, he took part in the creation of Pe-2 and Tu bombers -2 and at the same time proactively developed projects for a guided aerial torpedo and a new version of a missile interceptor. This was the reason for Korolev’s transfer in 1942 to another prison-type design bureau - OKB-16 at Kazan Aviation Plant No. 16, where work was carried out on new types of rocket engines for use in aviation.
Sergei Pavlovich worked, according to the recollections of his “cellmates,” furiously and quickly. He participated in the construction of a dive bomber under the leadership of Tupolev. Here at the Central Clinical Hospital he met the beginning of the war, then evacuated along with everyone else to Omsk. Korolev asked to be a pilot at the front, but Tupolev, who by that time had already been released from prison, having recognized and appreciated him even better, did not let him go, saying: “Who will build airplanes?”
Soon Korolev was appointed deputy head of the Tu-2 assembly shop. But the thought of creating a jet aircraft did not leave him. He did not yet know that in February 1940, the first rocket glider with a liquid rocket engine was tested in the country. It was driven by a towing aircraft, but this was a very important fact and the first step in the development of jet aviation. Before this flight, world practice had not yet known such an experience, and in 1942 the first aircraft with a jet engine was flown. It was piloted by test pilot Grigory Bakhchivandzhi.
Korolev was released in 1944 with his criminal record cleared. This is evidenced by an extract from the Minutes of the meeting of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR dated July 27, 1944. On May 13, 1946, a decision was made to create a development and production industry in the USSR missile weapons with liquid rocket engines. In accordance with this resolution, the unification of all groups was provided for Soviet engineers to study the German V-2 missile weapons, which had been working in Germany since 1945, at the Nordhausen Research Institute, of which Korolev was appointed chief engineer and technical director. In Germany, Sergei Pavlovich not only studies the German V-2 rocket, but also designs a more advanced ballistic missile with a flight range of up to 600 kilometers.
He signed his letters to his daughter: “Your friend Sergei”, and his articles - “Professor K. Sergeev”. In the 1950s, his place of work was stated in the directory of the Academy of Sciences: “PO Box 651.”
In 1952, after his criminal record was cleared and he received the order, Korolev applied to be a party candidate. At the bureau of the district committee he is received with difficulty (6 for, 5 against): after all, he is a former enemy of the people. On May 30, 1955, Korolev wrote to the Military Prosecutor’s Office: “I ask you to reconsider my case and completely rehabilitate me, since I was not a member of any anti-Soviet organization...”. The answer had to wait two years: rehabilitation came only in the spring of 1957, a few months before the launch of Sputnik. However, he never felt completely free. “The most tragic thing is that they don’t understand how much there is in common between life in the Gulag and life in freedom.” large area". After all, I’m classified, so if they want, they’ll slam me without an obituary. Another time you wake up, lie there and think: they’ll give a command, and the same guards will burst into the room and yell: “Come on, you bastard, get out with your things!” - from memories of Ozerov, who was with Korlev in the Gulag, and then free.
The first task set by the government for Korolev as chief designer and all organizations involved in missile weapons was to create an analogue of the V-2 rocket from domestic materials. But already in 1947, a decree was issued on the development of new ballistic missiles with a greater flight range than the V-2: up to 3,000 kilometers. In 1948, Korolev began flight tests of the R-1 ballistic missile (analogous to the V-2) and in 1950 successfully put it into service. This rocket differed from the German one in significantly greater reliability.
At the same time, Korolev was developing a new ballistic missile R-2 with a flight range of 600 kilometers.
The R-2 missile had a supporting fuel tank, a more convenient layout for operation and, most importantly, a warhead that separated in flight. In addition, the rocket propulsion system was significantly modified to increase its thrust, and the autonomous control system had twice the accuracy of fire. The R-2 missile was put into service in 1951, i.e. only a year later than the R-1 missile.
Together with practical work on missile weapons at NII-88, under the scientific leadership of Korolev, large-scale design and experimental research on topics H-I, N-2, N-3 in order to create a scientific and technical basis for the development of qualitatively new missiles.
On the topic N-1, experimental and theoretical studies of the main technical problems related to the implementation of the R-3 rocket project, which has a flight range of 3000 kilometers: it was necessary to ensure the stability of the flight of the rocket without a stabilizer (aerodynamically unstable) design and to obtain data on the behavior of boiling liquid oxygen in a thermally non-insulated oxidizer carrier tank during movement in the active part of the trajectory at elevated external heat flows into the mass of liquid oxygen. Based on the design solutions of the R-2 missile using its uprated engine, a single-stage experimental R-ZA ballistic missile with a stabilizerless design with a flight range of 1,200 kilometers was created. Successful flight tests of this missile gave rise to the Ministry of Defense to adopt it into service in 1956 with a nuclear warhead as the R-5M. It was the first domestic strategic missile, which became the basis of the missile nuclear shield countries.
On the N-2 topic, studies were carried out on the possibility and feasibility of creating ballistic missiles operating on stable fuel components (using nitric acid with nitrogen oxides as an oxidizer). As a result, the possibility of creating such missiles was confirmed and a preliminary design of the first domestic ballistic missile R-11 with a flight range of 250 km and a launch weight half that of the R-1 was completed. However, taking into account the environmental toxicity of nitrogen oxides and the lower energy characteristics of stable liquid fuels compared to fuels based on liquid oxygen and kerosene, as well as those that arose then serious problems With the development of rocket engines with the required thrust (greater than 8 g), stably operating on these fuel components, it was considered advisable to use a nitric acid oxidizer with nitrogen oxides for BR with comparatively short range flight. When creating missiles with a longer flight range, and especially intercontinental ones, it was recommended to use liquid oxygen as an oxidizer. Sergei Pavlovich turned out to be faithful to this direction in the development of rocket technology throughout his entire creative activity.
The Ministry of Defense entrusted OKB-1 NII-88 with the development of the N-11 missile, and Korolev brilliantly solved this problem by using A.M. Isaev’s 8-ton engine, which had just been created for an anti-aircraft missile, and for the first time using a liquid pressure accumulator to supply fuel to the combustion chamber .
Based on the R-11, Korolev developed and put into service in 1957 the R-11M strategic missile with a nuclear warhead, transported fueled on a tank chassis. Having seriously modified this missile, he adapted it for armament of submarines (submarines) as the R-11FM. The changes were more than serious, as it was done new system control and aiming, and also provided the ability to fire in fairly strong sea conditions from the surface. Thus, Sergei Pavlovich created the first ballistic missiles based on stable mobile ground- and sea-based fuel components and was a pioneer in these new and important areas of missile development.
He transferred the final development of the R-11FM missile to Zlatoust, to SKB-385, sending there from his OKB-1 the young talented lead designer V.P. Makeev, together with qualified designers and constructors, thereby laying the foundation for the creation of a unique center for the development of ballistic missiles. sea-based missiles.
At NII-88, two research projects were started under the leadership of Korolev in order to determine the appearance and parameters intercontinental missiles ballistic and winged types(topics T-1 and T-2) with the necessary experimental confirmation of problematic design solutions.
Research on the T-1 topic grew into development work related to the creation of the first two-stage intercontinental missile R-7 package design, which still surprises with its original design solutions, ease of execution, high reliability and efficiency. The R-7 rocket made its first successful flight in August 1957.
As a result of research on the T-2 topic, the possibility of developing a two-stage intercontinental cruise missile was shown, the first stage of which was purely rocket and launched the second stage, a cruise missile, to an altitude of 23-25 kilometers. The winged stage, using a ramjet engine, continued to fly at these altitudes at a speed of 3 M and was aimed at the target using an celestial navigation control system.
Subsequently, Korolev developed a more advanced compact two-stage intercontinental missile R-9 (supercooled liquid oxygen is used as an oxidizer) and put it into service (the silo version of the R-9A) in 1962. Later, in parallel with work on important space systems, Sergei Pavlovich began to be the first in the country to develop the solid-fuel intercontinental rocket RT-2, which was put into service after his death. At this point, OKB-1 Korolev stopped working on combat missiles and focused its efforts on creating priority space systems and unique launch vehicles.
While working on combat ballistic missiles, Korolev, as is now clear, strived for more - the conquest of outer space and human space flights. To this end, Sergei Pavlovich, back in 1949, together with scientists of the USSR Academy of Sciences, began research using modifications of the R-1A rocket and launching it to altitudes of up to 100 kilometers, and then using more powerful R-2 and R-5 rockets to altitudes of 200 and 500 kilometers. The purpose of these flights was to study the parameters of near outer space, solar and galactic radiation, the Earth's magnetic field, the behavior of highly developed animals in space conditions (weightlessness, overloads, large vibrations and acoustic loads), as well as testing life support and returning animals to Earth from space - About seven dozen such launches were made. With this, Sergei Pavlovich laid in advance serious foundations for a human assault on space.
In 1955, long before the flight tests of the R-7 rocket, Korolev, M.V. Keldysh, M.K. Tikhonravov came to the government with a proposal to launch an artificial satellite into space using the R-7 rocket. The government supports this initiative. In August 1956, OKB-1 left NII-88 and became an independent organization, with Korolev appointed chief designer and director. And already on October 4, 1957, Korolev launched the first satellite in human history into low-Earth orbit.
The period when spacecraft were created belongs to the fourth period of Korolev’s activity from 1957 until his premature death at the beginning of 1966. During this period, the Queen was distinguished by her breadth of views and inexhaustible creative energy. Working with Korolev was difficult, but interesting. The work went on day and night.
Sergei Pavlovich did not like to repeat himself. While developing some fundamentally new design, bringing it to perfection, he lost interest in it. Instead of then, over the course of many years, creating variants of what had already been mastered, he donated all this to the team of a related organization. And, if necessary, he transferred a group of his employees to the new enterprise.
They started a big business practically from scratch. And yet, over the course of ten years, orientation systems were developed for photographing the far side of the Moon, orientation and correction of the flight trajectories of Mars, Venus and Probes. Automatic and manual control systems have been developed for manned spacecraft Vostok, Voskhod, Soyuz and others. Sergei Pavlovich’s passion was transmitted, as if through a chain, to all participants, from scientists to ordinary workers, and the impossible became possible.
Korolev saw the appearance of space technology after many years. Sergei Pavlovich conducted meetings in a unique manner, allowing everyone to speak and keeping minutes “for himself” in the most careful manner. Upon completion, he thanked everyone present and said that he had heard a lot of interesting things, but he needed to think about it. The decision, which was sometimes made after some time, did not necessarily coincide with the opinion of the majority; often Sergei Pavlovich looked at the problem more broadly than his colleagues, taking into account what went far beyond the scope of the organization he headed. Having outlined the next goal, Korolev had the ability to instill in all participants in the work confidence in imminent success, to inspire them to do seemingly unthinkable things. He knew how to create an atmosphere in which people gave their all and did everything to bring victory closer.
Having organized the work, Korolev moved towards the goal, sweeping away obstacles, maintaining confidence in ultimate success, concentrating his forces on the main direction. Korolev did not convey topics related to manned flights to anyone. This was, on the one hand, due to the special responsibility of manned flights, on the other hand, to the long-standing and persistent sympathies of Sergei Pavlovich - he more than once said with regret that his age and health did not allow him to fly into space himself. Everything related to the work of the cosmonauts was led by Korolev himself and controlled most carefully.
B.V. Rauschenbach wrote about Korolev: “Working with Korolev was difficult, but interesting. Increased demands, short deadlines and novelty... He always wanted to know in detail the problems that his employees solved, reporting this or that issue to him, I often heard: “I didn’t understand, repeat." Not every leader could afford this “I didn’t understand”, for fear of losing his authority in the eyes of his subordinate. But such human weaknesses were completely alien to Sergei Pavlovich. All our projects were embodied in rocket technology , first of all, thanks to S.P., whom no one and nothing could stop if he needed something for business. Korolev said that he always waited for the confirming voice of intuition, “like the third bell”... How often he , relying on intuition, resolved controversial issues and was never wrong! He was not a scientist of any kind. They also write that he was a great engineer - this is absolute nonsense... because he did little: there is not a single Korolev theorem, not a single Korolev's formulas, But he also had one more amazing property - with a lack of information, he could still make the right decision... Again, an amazing instinct that never let him down. Such a business as he led could only be carried out with the character of Korolev - the character of a commander. Sergei Pavlovich was an excellent psychologist, without prejudice, without one-sided approach to a person. I didn’t divide into “little white” and “black”, I saw people with all their “stripes” and “speckles”. This helped him make full use of his talent as a leader; he knew how to infect those around him with his mood: enthusiasm, haste, or, conversely, calmness; in a word, what he at that moment considered necessary for the matter. I think that Korolev’s main thing was not that he came up with or invented something. At one time I thought for a long time about Korolev and all those people who really made major discoveries, I would say, discoveries of global significance, and I thought about how to call them in one word: a great scientist, a great engineer? This is all nonsense. There are many great scientists, and many great engineers. And these people were unique phenomena. And I repeat, I couldn’t think of a better word than commander.”
Even before the launch of the first artificial Earth satellite, under the leadership of Korolev, projects were being developed for interplanetary stations, satellites for national economic purposes, and manned spacecraft. In January 1959, the first rocket was launched towards the Moon; in the same year, a pennant depicting the coat of arms of the Soviet Union was delivered to the surface of the Moon and photographs of its reverse side were taken. In 1966, less than a month after Korolev’s death, he made a soft landing on the surface of the Moon. spacecraft- Korolev’s last work on the lunar exploration program. Korolev’s highest achievement in the field of deep space exploration was the flight of ships to Mars and Venus, and the delivery of a pennant with the coat of arms of the Soviet Union to the surface of Mars.
The Molniya-1 satellite became an example of solving a complex and necessary problem - providing radiotelegraph, radiotelephone and television communications over long distances, in particular between Moscow and the Far East.
But manned space flights are rightly considered the pinnacle of Korolev’s creativity. On April 12, 1961, the Vostok spacecraft launched with Yuri Gagarin on board.
It was as if Korolev himself did not exist during his lifetime. Only after his death was it allowed to talk, write and remember about him. He was an invisible man - without a name, biography, without facial expression and habits, without the two kopeck coins that Korolev always carried in his coat pocket - a strange children's talisman. Even when Korolev was alive, skeptics had ample reason to doubt his reality. The secret behind which this man was hiding resembled something fantastic.
He took on a difficult burden. Nature rewarded him with an analytical mind, the ability to captivate and lead others. Evil tongues, however, have always cast a shadow over the fence, assuring that Korolev is one of many of the same kind. But the evil tongues were wrong: he stood out among others with his audacity, talent, and ability to look to the future. And he worked much more than others, because he took on other people’s burdens. He lived a mythological life, practically ruining his health.
Korolev was sick with rectal sarcoma. In addition, he was found to have atherosclerotic cardiosclerosis, sclerosis of the cerebral arteries, pulmonary emphysema and metabolic disorders.
He died on the operating table. When Korolev was admitted to the Kremlin hospital, the operation was assigned to the middle-aged Professor Petrovsky. It was possible to put Korolev in a foreign clinic, as was the case with Chernenko, but Korolev was a secret scientist. Professor Golyakovsky, who lives in New York and was a former Moscow doctor, recalled this in his book “The Russian Doctor”: “They put Korolev on the operating table and, having begun the operation, discovered that the diagnosis was false. And the operation continued. When the patient became bad, the famous surgeon Vishnevsky was urgently called in. He examined the dying Korolev and muttered gloomily: “I don’t operate on corpses.”
Petrovsky was unable to stop the bleeding during the operation by removing the polyps. They decided to open the abdominal cavity. When doctors began to get to the site of the bleeding, they discovered a tumor the size of a fist. It was sarcoma - malignant tumor. Petrovsky decided to remove the sarcoma. At the same time, part of the rectum was removed. Due to the injury received in exile (the investigator hit Sergei Pavlovich on the cheekbone with a decanter), they could not insert a breathing tube into his throat. Korolev's death occurred on January 14, 1966 from heart failure. He was 59 years old.
The funeral took place on Red Square in Moscow on January 18 at 13:00. The urn with the ashes of Sergei Korolev was buried in the Kremlin wall.
As a sign of recognition of Korolev’s merits, monuments were erected in his homeland in Zhitomir, in Moscow, where he lived, in the Moscow region, where he built rockets and ships, at the cosmodrome, from where he laid roads to the Universe. The Kuibyshev Aviation Institute, the streets of many cities, two research vessels, a high mountain peak in the Pamirs, a pass in the Tien Shan, and an asteroid bear his name. In commemoration of Korolev’s merits in the study of the Moon, the world astronomical community assigned his name to one of the large ring-shaped rock formations on the Moon - the thalassoid.
About Sergei Korolev was filmed documentary"Knockin 'on Heaven".
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Text prepared by Andrey Goncharov
References:
Academician S.P. Korolev. Scientist. Engineer. Man: Creative portrait based on the memories of contemporaries: Sat. articles / Edited by A.Yu. Ishlinsky. - M., 1986.
Apenchenko O.. Sergei Korolev. - M., 1968.
Astashenkov P.T. Korolev. - M., 1969.
Cosmonautics: Encyclopedia / Ch. ed. V.P. Glushko. - M., 1985.
Cosmonautics of the USSR: Sat. / Comp. L.N.Gilberg, A.A.Eremenko; Chief editor Yu.A.Mozzhorin. - M., 1986.
Pioneers of rocket technology: Kibalchich, Tsiolkovsky, Tsander, Kondratyuk: Scientific works. - M., 1959.
Rauschenbach B. Scientist, designer, organizer. To the 75th anniversary of S.P. Korolev. - Wings of the Motherland., 1982.
Rebrov M.F. Sergei Pavlovich Korolev. Life and extraordinary destiny. - M.: OLMA-PRESS, 2002.
Romanov A. Korolev. - M., "Young Guard", ZhZL, 1996.
Alexander KHARKOVSKY: “Sergei Korolev – through thorns to the races”
Site materials about S.P. Korolev
Wikipedia materials
Sergei Pavlovich Korolev - outstanding Soviet designer and a scientist of the 20th century, academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences, founder of cosmonautics, creator of programs and a leading specialist in the field of rocketry and shipbuilding.
Sergei Korolev was born on January 12, 1907 (old style December 31, 1906) in Zhitomir. His father was a teacher, one of the commoners. After the breakup of the family, the boy was sent to Nizhyn to live with his mother’s parents, where he was raised in a merchant family. Since 1917, he has lived in Odessa with his mother Maria Nikolaevna and stepfather Grigory Mikhailovich Balanin. School curriculum studied houses, from 1922 to 1924 he studied at a construction school.
- In 1921, he met the pilots of the hydraulic squadron and took part in aviation life: at the age of 16, he gave lectures on aviation. His first invention, created at the age of 17, was the K-5 motorless aircraft, recommended for construction.
- 1924-1926 – studied at the Kiev Polytechnic.
- In 1926 he was transferred to Moscow to a higher technical school. Participates in the organization of a glider school, becomes an instructor and tester of gliders, graduates from a pilot school, attends an aerodynamics club and develops light aircraft and gliders. Since his fourth year, he has been working at the design bureau.
- Since 1927, he has participated in the All-Union Glider Competitions in Koktebel four times in a row.
- In 1929, he meets with K. E. Tsiolkovsky, who advises him to take up space flight, gives him the book “Space Rocket Trains” and recommends contacting Friedrich Arturovich Zander, an engineer at TsAGI (Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute).
- In February 1930, under the leadership of A.N. Tupolev defends the SK-4 aircraft project. At the same time, Korolev created the SK-3 “Red Star” glider, on which Nesterov’s loops were performed in free flight. The designer was unable to carry out the flight himself because he fell ill with typhus with complications such as deafness and memory loss. Before his illness, he had a phenomenal memory.
- In March 1931, he began working at TsAGI as a senior flight test engineer. The main event of this period was a meeting with Zander, who was testing the OR-1 engine. Korolev also gets involved in the work. In September 1931, a group led by Zander began developing and testing the RP-1 rocket plane with a liquid engine.
The first steps of domestic rocket science
Sergei Korolev heads the scientific and technical council of the Moscow GIRD. Priority is given to missile weapons necessary to strengthen the country's defense capability. Korolev creates the first design bureau, from members of the Central State Research Institute, which went down in the history of rocket science.
Most areas of domestic rocket science began here. An achievement of this period was the launch of the GIRD-09 liquid-propellant rocket, which rose to a height of 400 m. Korolev describes the results of his work in the book “Rocket Flight in the Stratosphere” (1934). Here he also highlights the possibilities of non-space use of rockets for military and scientific purposes.
In September 1933, 26-year-old Korolev was appointed deputy director of the Jet Institute. The hopes of the Girdovites about the transition to serious projects were not justified, the scope of development was reduced, and in 1934 Korolev was relieved of his post. He remained to work at the institute as an ordinary engineer, focusing his efforts on the development of cruise missiles.
Guided missile weapons
In 1936, Korolev was appointed chief designer of the RNII department developing rocket aircraft. Sergei had amazing intuition, encyclopedic knowledge and experience. For the first time, he substantiated the concept of a missile interceptor fighter, reaching in a few minutes high altitude, attacking aircraft that threaten the protected object.
During the tests, which Korolev planned to conduct personally, an accident occurred, during which the designer received a head injury and ended up in a hospital bed. After the hospital, on June 27, 1938, he was arrested as a member of the Trotskyist counter-revolutionary organization. Korolev was sentenced to ten years and sent to Kolyma.
Arrest of Sergei Korolev | VitebskCity Due to the arrest of Marshal Tukhachevsky and the authors of the new weapon, development stopped. The research of the rocket plane, which Korolev was engaged in, was continued, but without his participation it was not possible to build a combat rocket plane.
Victory and trophies
In September 1940, at the request of Tupolev (although he himself was arrested in 1938), Korolev was summoned from Kolyma. He immediately began developing a new bomber. After the first flight in December 1941, Tupolev’s team was evacuated to Omsk. Here the Tu-2 aircraft was put into production. It was the best front-line bomber.
HistoryTime Sergei Korolev continued to work in the prison design bureau of Kazan, developing an aircraft rocket launcher. Based on the results of his activities, he was awarded the Order of the Badge of Honor and released from prison. At the end of the war, he created the D-1 and D-2 RDD projects with solid fuel engines. It turned out that similar projects have already been implemented in Germany, so it is sent to German enterprises. Korolev comes to the conclusion that at home he has the ability to create similar missiles, but with improved characteristics.
Kanobu In May 1946, the Soviet leadership adopted a resolution that marked the beginning of the development of rocket science. In Kaliningrad near Moscow (today Korolev) the State Union Research Institute of Jet Weapons (NII-88) is being created. Korolev is appointed one of its main designers.
- On Stalin's orders, a copy of the German rocket is being created;
- Tests are being carried out on A-4 missiles assembled from captured units at the Nordhausen and NII-88 institutes;
- The first R-1 missiles are being tested, reproducing the A-4 from their materials according to domestic documentation.
Constructor
Sergei Korolev turned out to be not only a talented designer, but also an organizer who managed to coordinate the work of all departments.
Mastering the peaks military equipment began with the creation of a rocket with a range of 300 km. In 1948, the R-2 missile was created with a range of 600 km, capable of reaching some American bases. As a result of further developments, the R-5M RDD appears with a range of 1200 km and a nuclear warhead. Tests strategic missile were carried out at the Semipalatinsk test site on February 2, 1956.
HSL Korolev's main focus was the development of multi-stage intercontinental missiles. The R-7 ballistic missile (ICBM) he created had a range of 8 thousand km, the modernized version of the R-7A ICBM had a range of 12 thousand km. Liquid ICBMs were inferior to American solid-fuel ones, so an experimental rocket, the RT-1, was created using solid fuel. Modern missile systems are equipped with solid fuel missiles, based on the RT-2 ICBM created by Korolev.
Cosmonautics
Military developments were for Korolev a condition for further space exploration. On October 4, 1957, for the first time in the history of earthlings, an artificial satellite was launched. A month later, on November 3, a second satellite was sent into orbit, with the dog Laika on board. On April 12, 1961, he flew into space.
Kommersant Specialists from the Council of Chief Designers, created by Korolev, were involved in the implementation of these projects. During his lifetime, seven more flights of manned spacecraft were successfully carried out, satellites, space research stations and systems were launched.
Arguments and Facts The life of the chief designer ended early, it happened on January 14, 1966. The cause of death was surgery, during which the heart stopped. After his departure, the pace of development of space programs decreased. Neither Russia nor the United States has produced a person equal to him in terms of personality and talent.
Personal life
Sergei Korolev was married twice. He first married in August 1931 to classmate Ksenia Vincentini, and in 1935 she gave birth to his daughter.
Sergei Korolev with his wife Ksenia and daughter | Day Online In 1948, the family broke up.
Personalities He met his second wife, Nina Ivanovna Kotenkova, who was a translator at NII-88, at work.
Many foreigners associate Russia with space. But in our country the word cosmos is primarily associated with the surname Korolev.
Sergei Pavlovich was born in January 1907, in the city of Zhitomir. His father, Pavel Yakovlevich, was a simple teacher; he taught Russian literature at school. Mother Maria Nikolaevna Moskalenko was also a teacher.
As a child, Sergei differed from his peers in his passion for technology. This thrust was not without talent. And passion multiplied by talent always yields great results.
This is what happened with Korolev. At the age of 17, he developed a design for his first aircraft - a non-motorized aircraft.
In 1924, Sergei Korolev entered the Kiev Polytechnic Institute at the Faculty of Aviation Engineering. In two years of study, I mastered all general engineering subjects. In 1926, he moved to and continued his studies at the Moscow Higher Technical School - Moscow Higher Technical School.
During his studies, Sergei Pavlovich established himself as a talented designer. He built a number of aircraft: “Koktebel”, “Red Star”, as well as the SK-4 aircraft.
These models were interesting from a point of view. In the fall of 1931, Korolev and Zander created, with permission from above, a group for the study of jet propulsion. A year later, this group became a de facto state laboratory engaged in the development of rocket and aircraft.
In 1933, the Jet Research Institute was founded, with Kleimenov becoming its director. Sergei Pavlovich became his deputy. Korolev's fate was difficult.
In 1938, he went to prison on trumped-up charges. Two years later, the state still needed his services. While in prison, he took a large part in the creation of TU-2.
In 1946, Sergei Pavlovich was appointed chief designer of ballistic missiles. He quickly developed several generations of ballistic missiles, which are characteristically better side differed from their counterparts.
The next step in his life was the development of a launch vehicle for atomic warheads. Again, he coped with this task brilliantly. In 1956, the first domestically produced missile with a nuclear warhead was put into service. Subsequently, developments in this direction did not stop and Korolev managed to create several modifications.
Soon the space exploration program began. And this could not have happened without his knowledge and skills. Sergei Pavlovich created the first manned spacecraft in world history. The name of the ship is “Vostok”.
On this ship, a man flew into space for the first time. And this man was Yuri. Under the leadership of Korolev space program continues to develop, following Gagarin, Titov, Nikolaev, Popovich, Bykovsky, Tereshkova, Leonov fly into space.
The rapid development of astronautics in the USSR does not end only with the development of manned spacecraft. Korolev creates several drones with scientific purposes.
Satellites are launched into space to study the Earth's radiation belts. Telecommunications and radio broadcasting satellites are also launched into space.
Sergei Pavlovich was seriously ill and died in early 1966. Korolev is a Great Russian scientist, his contribution to the development of space can hardly be overestimated. Thanks to its scientific activity, is known not only in Russia, but also abroad.