the contributions of fridrikh tsander: a memoir

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Acta Astronautica 52 (2003) 591–599www.elsevier.com/locate/actaastro

The contributions of Fridrikh Tsander: a memoir�

Marsha Freeman21st Century Science and Technology, P.O. Box 16285, Washington, DC 20041, USA

Received 12 August 1999; received in revised form 18 March 2002

Abstract

Soviet space pioneer Fridrikh Tsander (1887–1933) is a seminal +gure in the earliest history of the theory and developmentof space-ight. He saw himself as taking the theoretical groundwork laid at the turn of this century by Konstantin Tsiolkovsky,and extending it to the practical reality of taking man into space.

Tsander combined the ability to generate creative concepts for accomplishing his goals, and the tenacity to performnumerous experiments, with a dedication to organizing public support, particularly among youth, for his dream to go “Forwardto Mars.” Those young men he inspired and trained went on to make signi+cant contributions to the Soviet space e5ort.

The lack of knowledge today about his work is not due to any shortcomings on his part. Tsander died in 1933, at theage of 46, just at the moment that government support for large-scale rocket experiments was being realized, and dramaticbreakthroughs could be made. Lacking such support throughout his life limited what Tsander was able to practically realize,but visionary concepts he originated are still being worked on today, such as the “combining” of aircraft and rockets forspace-ight. Those who worked with Tsander, and continued after him, including S.P. Korolev, readily acknowledge FridrikhTsander’s central place in the history of astronautics.

1. Mars in 1909

Fridrikh Arturovich Tsander (Fig. 1) was bornin Riga, Latvia on August 23, 1987, into a Germanfamily. His father, a medical doctor who workedat the Zoological Museum in Riga, often took hisson to see the exotic animals there. His mother haddied when Fridrikh was 2 years old. Tsander wrotethat his father’s stories of “life in unknown formsthat might be found on other planets as well asmeteorites like those kept in the museum, arousedin me, at a very early age, the wish to -y to thestars [1].”

� Based on paper IAF-98-IAA. 2.1.07 presented at the 49thInternational Astronautical Congress, 28 September–2 October1998, Melbourne, Australia.

During high school, Tsander was introduced tothe recently published 1903 article by Tsiolkovsky,“Space Research with the Aid of Jet PropulsionMachines.” According to his former co-worker andbiographer, Leonid K. Korneev, this article “cre-ated a great impression on the young dreamer,” andthe idea of space travel “was the source of his in-exhaustible and endless enthusiasm throughout hislife [2].”After high school, Tsander studied +rst at the

Technical College of Danzig, Germany, and in 1907returned to Riga to attend the Polytechnical Insti-tute. In an autobiographical article written in March1927, for inclusion in Nikolai Rynin’s voluminous“Interplanetary Flight and Communication,” Tsanderwrote: “In 1908, I was twenty-one years old, oHciallyan adult. I obtained a substantial sum of money andthe +rst thing I bought was an astronomical telescope

0094-5765/02/$ - see front matterPII: S0094 -5765(02)00132 -7

592 M. Freeman /Acta Astronautica 52 (2003) 591–599

Fig. 1. F.A. Tsander (1887–1933).

with an objective diameter of 4 inches and a lengthof approximately 1.5 meters.”At that time, Tsander organized the “First Student

Association for Aeronautics and Flight Technology,”at Riga Polytechnical Institute. “I often mentioned tomy friends that we should work on problems of -ightto other planets. During the famous opposition of Marsin 1909, I often showed the planets and star clustersto my friends with the aid of my telescope,” Tsandersays (Fig. 2).By that time, Tsander had already been working

on concepts for space propulsion and space -ight.Space historian Viktor Sokolsky, who has researchedTsander’s hand-written material in the archives of thethen Soviet Academy of Sciences, reports that on June23, 1907, Tsander made an entry in his notebook onthe motion of a body propelled by the reaction of issu-ing particles. And in November of that year, he madebrief mention of problems associated with the creationof a spacecraft [3].In 1914, Tsander received an honors degree in

“Technological Engineering,” and obtained employ-ment at the rubber plant, “Provodnik,” to familiarizehimself with a material that could be used as an in-sulating material in the vacuum of space. When theplant moved to Moscow in 1915, Tsander left Riga.Two years later, the factory closed down, and Tsanderdevoted himself to study and theoretical calculationsof interplanetary -ight.

Fig. 2. Fridrikh Tsander as a student in 1913.

2. Airplanes combined with rockets

Tsander had carefully studied the writings ofTsiolkovky but had concluded that staged rocketswere neither safe for manned -ight nor eHcient. Be-tween 1917 and 1919, Tsander started his work oncombining airplanes that could -y at a high altitude,with a rocket attached, that could take a spaceship tospace (Figs. 3 and 4).In February 1919, Tsander began work at Aviation

Plant No. 4 (“Motor”), using all of his spare timeto study the construction of an airplane +tted witha rocket engine. The following year, he presented adetailed speech about his spaceship and the possibil-ity of -ights to other planets, at the Provincial con-ference on inventors in Moscow. V.I. Lenin was inthe audience, which Tsander relates, made him verynervous.He reported to his friend and biographer

Korneev later: “After the speech, I was invited to meetLenin: : :Lenin was greatly interested in my work andmy plans for the future; he spoke with such simplicity

M. Freeman /Acta Astronautica 52 (2003) 591–599 593

Fig. 3. Tsander’s design for a winged rocket, made up of a4-propeller bi-plane, with a small monoplane, for return to Earth,in the center.

Fig. 4. A model of Tsander’s winged rocket design, now in theTsander Museum in Riga.

and cordiality that I am afraid I took advantage of histime by relating to him in great detail my work andmy determination to build a rocket spaceship. I alsotold Lenin I was working on the problems of man’s-ight to Mars: : :Lenin asked me: ‘Will you be the+rst to -y?’ I answered that I had to set an example,and that I never thought possible to do otherwise.At the end of our conversation, Lenin shook myhand strongly, wished me success in my work, andpromised support.” On December 30, 1921, Tsanderpresented his concept of a high-pressure aircraftmotor to a governor’s conference of inventors, “andthey wished me further success and expressed a desirethat I continue my work in this direction.”

But the Soviet Union, in the midst of the ravagesof a civil war, was in no position to support rocketresearch. In the middle of 1922, Tsander was laid o5from his job at the Aviation Plant, and used the timeto intensify his studies. In April of the following year,the workers at the plant awarded Tsander one percentof their wages in order for him to be able to continuehis researches, and in return, he presented a report toa general plant meeting at the factory [4].Tsander proposed that “it can be aHrmed with

almost total certainty that intelligent life exists onMars,” to explain why that planet must be the ulti-mate object of space exploration. He reported that inthe previous 10–15 years, there had been importantsuccesses in the Soviet aviation industry, which ledhim to his “independent design of a rocket and itsusage in combination with an airplane.”“My spaceship consists of an airplane +lled out with

a high-pressure aviation engine,” Tsander reported.“The engine would use liquid oxygen, and gasolineor ethylene, or hydrogen: : :The engine would start thepropellers and the plane would leave Earth: : :At aheight of 28 km the aviation engine would be cut o5and the rocket engine would take over, with a forceof 1500 kg.”In his April 1923 report to the factory workers,

and in another report prepared the following month,Tsander outlined the advantages to this design. Onewould be that “the rocket will have permissiblestresses, not the tremendous pressures [thrust] anddimensions which Tsiolkovsky calculated.” Another,grew from his concern that in Tsiolkovsky’s design,“in case the rocket motor should fail, the entire ap-paratus would fall to the Earth.” In Tsander’s design,should the rocket fail, the winged spaceship wouldglide back to a safe landing.In addition, an aircraft-like landing, Tsander pro-

posed, would greatly increase the safety of space-ight,as compared to the parachute method proposed par-ticularly by German space pioneer Hermann Oberth.Tsander proposed to place a small airplane inside thelarge aircraft, which, with wings, would be the space-ship and the return vehicle.When the aircraft engine were stopped, and the

rocket started, at speed of about 400 m=s and an alti-tude of about 28 km, “with the aid of a special mech-anism, we would transfer parts of the airplane to theboiler. We would then get liquid aluminum, which


combined with hydrogen and oxygen, furnishes uswith an excellent fuel.” Tsander concludes that fromhis calculations, “we would have attained suHcientspeed to leave the Earth and to -y over to other plan-ets.” This unique idea Tsander continued to developthroughout his life.Alternatively, Tsander proposed, the aircraft could

store and use liquid oxygen and other gases in liq-uid form, which would increase the eHciency of therocket, to where “it would be possible to burn the liq-uid fuel exclusively, without dismantling the aircraftitself.” Certainly, he pointed out, one would want touse this design, and reuse the aircraft, during the testprogram.Throughout this period, in addition to performing

design work and calculations, Tsander continued hiswork on small-scale experiments. Kornnev reports thatas early as 1909, Tsander had mentioned in his note-books the possibility of using metal fuels, and in 1917,he designed and had constructed a crucible for usein experiments in burning molten metals.In January 1916, he had begun construction of a

greenhouse, light enough in weight to be used in inter-planetary voyages. This, he explained, was necessaryboth to provide sustenance, and to provide the oxygennecessary for the crew. “I did achieve certain results,”he reported in 1923. “I grew peas, some cabbage,giving lovely roots.”In the fall of 1923, Tsander married A.F.

Milyukova, and later had two children, Astra andMercury.But experiments on rocket motors and high-pressure

aircraft engines required substantial support. For this,Tsander turned to a public lecture program, to try toraise the interest, and the funds, needed for his spaceresearch.

3. Organizing support for space research

On January 20, 1924, Tsander was a featuredspeaker at the meeting of the Theoretical Sectionof the Moscow Society of Astronomy Enthusiasts(or Amateur Astronomers) (MOLA). During his pre-sentation, he included, for the +rst time in public,his calculations of the required period of accelerationof his spacecraft, the gliding descent to Earth frominterplanetary space, the design for an interplanetary

space station, trajectories from the Earth to Marsand to Venus, drawings of his winged rocket, theuse of aircraft components for propulsion, and a newidea—to use large mirrors on the spacecraft to con-centrate light and replace rockets in interplanetaryspace.In his presentation, Tsander also made reference

to the “recently published book of G. [sic] Oberth[1923],” and the experiments of Robert Goddard,which con+rmed the calculations Tsander himselfhad made. In his outline of his lecture, Tsander indi-cates that at the end of his report, he would concludethat “comprehensive investigation of constructionsis required, and the formation of a society of in-vestigators and interplanetary voyage enthusiasts isdesirable.”Korneev reports that at this meeting, the section

approved a proposal by Tsander to organize withinthe USSR a “Society for the Study of InterplanetaryTravel,” which was created shortly thereafter; the +rstamateur “rocket” society in the world. For a time,it was part of the Zhukovsky Air Force Academy inMoscow.On July 15, 1924, Tsander presented a proposal

for the work the Society should be conducting. Thisshould include “theoretical scienti+c work, drawingwork, and laboratory work.” Tsander’s program forthe Society included the testing of small rockets withvarious fuels, including an investigation of gas pres-sures, smoothness of walls, transmission of heatthrough the walls, various fuels including metals,rocket materials, an injector rocket operating withatmospheric air, complex joined rockets, and liquidfuel containers.Then, he proposed, there should follow the con-

struction of airplane models driven by rockets andmotors or rockets alone; testing of the e5ects of largeaccelerations; construction and testing of motors withliquid oxygen or solar heat; testing of diving suitsfor spacecraft at high altitudes, and in space; testingof apparatus to regenerate exhaled air; greenhouseinvestigations; testing in wind tunnels; testing oftelevision for rockets; investigation of the upperlayers of the atmosphere with rockets, and otherexperiments.In a July 31 presentation, Tsander announced

that the Society would be sponsoring a contest fora high-altitude rocket, and they intend to publish a


journal, titled, “Rockets.” Tsander, who could readGerman, also reported that they would be undertakingthe translation of Hermann Oberth’s 1923 book intoRussian. Tsander reports that “approximately 150persons registered within a short time,” as membersof the Society.Then, on August 4, a report was received that

Professor Goddard in America had sent a rocket tothe Moon. The Society for the Study of Interplane-tary Travel organized a debate on this news whichtook place on October 1, 1924 in the auditorium ofthe Physical Institute of Moscow State University.The number of people who came to hear about thisremarkable feat was so large that they could not all beaccomodated in the hall, and the horse militia had tobe called out to keep order! The debate was repeatedagain on October 4 and 5.But, of course, the report was not true, and the

suggestion has been made that giving the report cre-dence discredited the Society and led to its demise.But the outline of Tsander’s statement at the debates,contained in the archives of his papers, indicateshis presentation encompassed the broadest range oftopics, including -ights to Mars and Venus, the mili-tary signi+cance of interplanetary -ights, the impor-tance of such -ights for astronomy, and the fact thatthis technology could provide -ights from Moscow toNew York in two hours.Tsander reports that the “lack of published material

and of space and time did not permit us to work inten-sively. After existing for approximately one year, theAssociation became inactive. The +les and the librarywere handed over to the Military Scienti+c Organiza-tion in Moscow.”In 1924, Tsander’s article, “Flights to Other

Planets,” was +nally published, and he embarkedon a vigorous organizing tour to garner supportand manpower for his research. Throughout 1924and 1925, Tsander presented lectures and reportson interplanetary voyages, not only in Moscow,but also Kharkov, Leningrad, Saratov, Ryazan andTula.After the demise of the Society for the Study

of Interplanetary Travel, Tsander brought his lec-tures and vision to other organizations hoping toengage them in the research. Tsander has been de-scribed as having the drive and conviction of acrusader.

Fig. 5. The model of Tsander’s rocket plane, designed in 1922,and shown at the 1927 Exhibition of Interplanetary Machines inMoscow.

4. An interregnum

For the next few years, Tsander submitted appli-cation after application to try to secure funding tocontinue his work, and continued his hectic scheduleof public lectures. In 1927, the Air Force Academy inMoscow +nally invited Tsander to deliver a series oflectures, the summary of which he had submitted tothem in 1924. A model of Tsander’s spaceship wasshown at the Exhibition of Interplanetary Machinesheld in Moscow in February 1927 (Fig. 5), sponsoredby the Interplanetary Section of the Association ofInventors, with a sign indicating he had built it in1922.On October 8, 1926, Tsander submitted materials

to the Science Department of Glavnauka, the MainAdministration for Scienti+c,Museum, and Scienti+c–Artistic Institutions, to seek their support for hisresearch. Glavnauka passed the material on to Profes-sor V.P. Vetchinkin for evaluation, and the professorrecommended that the book Tsander proposed towrite, be published.Thereafter, Tsander submitted his formal applica-

tion to Glavnauka requesting that he be allowed towork at TsAGI or in the “aviation trust exclusivelyin the area of interplanetary voyages,” and to make itpossible for him to prepare his book. Tsander pointedout that “approximately 5000–6000 men are workingin the area of aviation in the USSR. If even one mancan be given the possibility to work in the area ofspecial high-altitude and high-speed -ights and -ightsto other planets, this research will occupy only one+ve-thousandth the volume of the work in the area


of ordinary aviation, which can be considered quitepermissible.”The Scienti+c Department of Glavnauka replied on

July 7, 1927, that “it will not be possible to satisfyyour request: : :” How they came to that conclusion isrevealed by the evaluation of Tsander’s work given byone reviewer, Prof. V.I. Yakovlev, who stated, “Manyof Tsander’s works have no scienti+c signi+cance.”Hermann Oberth would have understood the situationperfectly.In the meantime, Tsander had also requested,

“desiring to improve the arms of the Red AirForce,” permission to work at TsAGI, the CentralAero-Hydrodynamics Institute. Tsander asked for3000 rubles for his salary, and 7000 rubles for exper-iments.In March of 1927, Tsander wrote that his children,

“although much loved (I had given them astronomicalnames, the daughter being called Astra and the son,Merkur), considerably slowed down the work.” And ina letter in early December 1929, mentions that becausehe was working on his research “at every free momentat home, I became quite ill with a sore throat, and hadthe misfortune to lose my three-year-old son due tocomplications from scarletina; then I myself becameill with scarletina and almost died also. After this,I was some time in recuperation.”In 1930, after having received no support from

existing scienti+c or military institutions, Tsander isin discussions with colleagues and co-thinkers aboutthe possibility of establishing a society “similar tothat which existed in 1924.” In December of that year,N.K. Fedorenkov wrote to Tsander asking if he wouldlike to become chairman of a Society for the Study ofInterplanetary Voyages. He reports that in response tomaterial he had published earlier, he received manyletters, perhaps over one hundred, and there wasincreased public interest in Moscow.Fedorenkov suggested to Tsander that he con-

tact the Moscow Aviation Institute and others andinvite them to join, and also to get in contactwith Osoaviakhim, the Society for the Creation ofWeapons and Aviation-Chemical Construction, alsotranslated, Association for Promoting AerochemicalDefense.At long last, Fridrikh Tsander would obtain some

support for the research he had been carrying out onhis own for more than 20 years.

Fig. 6. Tsander’s schematic of the OR-1 experimental rocket en-gine.

5. Finally, a rocket program

By 1929, Tsander had designed his +rst experimen-tal rocket engine, the OR-1 (experimental rocket-1,from the Russian transliteration) (Fig. 6).In notes dated September 30, 1929, he wrote that

“because of the shortage of funds, I unexpectedlyconceived the idea of transforming a blowtorch intothe +rst jet engine. I made this idea a reality: : :Thegasoline tank was of one-liter capacity, the air pumpdiameter including piston was 15 mm, the pistonstroke was 107 mm, the inner outlet diameter of thetorch nozzle was 22 mm : : :There was a combustionchamber inside the jacket arranged with the aid of aspecial pipe. A disposable conic nozzle was attachedto the end of the pipe; this ensured exhaust velocitiesexceeding the speed of sound,” and so on. Korneevrelates that the total fuel and oxidizer (gasoline andair) consumption per second was only 1:69 g.On December 20, 1930, Tsander began work at

the Central Institute for Aircraft Motor Construction,where he embarked on a series of experiments onOR-1. And the following year, a jet engine section


was established within the Central Council of Osoavi-akhim, and Tsander was appointed its director. In thesecond half of the year, the section was reorganized,and Tsander was made the chairman of the technicalcouncil that was in charge of the group.As Korneev relates, Tsander placed great hope in

the youth, and made an e5ort to involve as many stu-dents as possible from the Moscow Aviation Institute.Tsander gave lectures, conducted group study courses,and “entrusted themwith certain technical calculationsand with the construction of various rocket compo-nents.”During this period, rocket enthusiasts had formed

a group which also had the intention of conduct-ing experiments on rocket engines. In April 1932,Osoaviakhim, therefore, established the Group forthe Study of Jet Propulsion (GIRD). Korneev relatedthat it did not have a smooth beginning. The sumsallocated for research were very limited, and skepticsreferred to the rocket enthusiasts as “lunatics.”Finally, they found an unoccupied basement in

Moscow, and “Tsander’s exultation at +nding thesequarters cannot be described,” Korneev relates. Notunlike the youthful space enthusiasts in Germany inthe same period, the GIRD members were faced withinventing a new technology, including the machinetools and measuring devices for their research.Korneev, who participated in this work, states:

“Many were the sleepless nights they spent, often onan empty stomach, in search of solutions of rockettechnology problems.” He relates that the membersof GIRD were humorously referred to as the “Groupof Engineers Working Gratis,” which has the sameacronym in Russian.In April 1923, Tsander went over to full-time

work for GIRD. He continued experiments with theOR-1 rocket engine, and by July 1932, Tsander hadconducted more than 50 combustion experiments.Tsander had lectured extensively at TsAGI start-

ing in March 1931, and soon met S.P. Korolev, whohad come there in 1930. According to Tsander’sdaughter, Astra, her father’s activities interestedKorolev, and he joined the group at GIRD [5]. OnOctober 7, 1931, Korolev along with aircraft designerB.I. Cheranovsky, were present at the 32nd testing ofthe OR-1 engine.A new idea emerged, which was to construct a

rocket glider, called the RG-1, using Tsander’s more

Fig. 7. The assembly diagram of the liquid-fueled OR-2.

advanced OR-2 rocket engine, and Cheranovsky’sglider. Korolev undertook the leadership of construct-ing the glider, and a contract was concluded betweenthe Bureau of Air-ight Technology of the CentralCouncil of Osoaviakhim, and Tsander, at GIRD.Korolev, Astra Tsander reports, became the chief ofthe 4th brigade of GIRD, engaged in constructing therocket glider with Tsander’s OR-2 engine.Tsander had begun design work on the next-

generation OR-2 engine (Fig. 7) in the fall of 1931. Itwas the +rst design in the USSR of a liquid jet engine.Gasoline was chosen as the fuel, and the oxidizer wasliquid oxygen. The engine system consisted of onetank for the fuel and two tanks for the oxygen, allpear-shaped, equipped with a device allowing themto be disgarded through openings in the wing of theglider. The +rst combustion tests with the new enginestarted on March 18, 1933, but Tsander had alreadyleft for a rest at the mineral spa in Kislovodsk.At the end of 1932, upon completing his design

of the OR-2, Tsander began to design a new, morepowerful liquid engine with a thrust of 600 kg, and


also three versions of an engine with a 5-ton thrust.Astra Tsander makes the case that these designs of herfather, although not tested in his lifetime, became theheritage from which the future rockets of the SovietUnion developed.Tsander’s intense and total commitment to the

dream of taking man to the planets a reality isdescribed by his co-worker Korneev. “I rememberthat for three days running, we couldn’t get a vital test[of the OR-1] ready. All the members of the groupwere younger than Tsander, and it was much easierfor them to stand such a strain.”“Seeing that Tsander was very tired and asleep

on his feet, we presented him with an ‘ultimatum:’if he didn’t go home immediately everyone would stopwork...Tsander disappeared...+ve or six hours passed,and one of the mechanics shouted...‘Everything’sready. Raise the pressure, we’re o5 to Mars!’ Andsuddenly everyone was stupe+ed. A couch that stoodat the far end of the basement toppled with a crash,and from behind it appeared Tsander.”Overwork +nally led, after much persuasion, to

Tsander’s agreement to go to Kislovodsk for a rest.When he arrived at the sanitorium, he was runninga high fever, having apparently contracted typhoidfever during his journey on the train.At 6 AM on March 28, 1933 Tsander succumbed to

his illness. As Korneev writes, “This extraordinary andbrilliant man’s life came to an abrupt end in his 46thyear.” (Fig. 8). After Tsander’s death, Korneev wasappointed the chief of the team of GIRD researchers.

6. Summary

Tsander summarized his own contributions to thenew science of astronautics, in the autobiographicalpiece he wrote in March 1927 for inclusion in Rynin’svolumes. They speak for themselves:

1. To provide rockets with wings for -ight in theatmosphere, for attainment of cosmic speeds ofapproximately 8 km=s in the upper layers of theatmosphere, and also for landing in a glide upon re-turn from interplanetary space to the Earth or someother planet possessing an atmosphere.

2. To equip such an airplane rocket with engines for-ight in the lower layers of the atmosphere, where

Fig. 8. The modest bedroom in Riga where Tsander lived andworked until leaving for Moscow in 1915.

the eHciency of rockets is very small due to thelow -ight speed. The engines should be of specialdesign, it being best if they are designed to operatefor half an hour without breakdown.

3. To simultaneously use rocket propellants givingsold and gaseous products of combustion. The+rst kind of propellant (particularly because meth-ods, proposed by others, of assembling rocketsinvolve enormous initial weights and are thereforenot cheaper but more dangerous than my airplanerockets, since the design of pure lifting rockets hasnot yet been studied) may consist of parts of theinterplanetary spaceships, e.g., girders, surfaces,etc. made of alloys of aluminum, magnesium,lithium, etc. These parts become super-uous be-cause of the weight reduction due to the consump-tion of part of the propellant. It is thus an advantagethat we can build a very strong spaceship capableof carrying suHcient amount of propellant.

4. To use combinations of rockets and concavemirrors concentrating the sunlight inside the space-ship in order to increase the gas-outlet velocity,i.e., the power of the rocket during -ight in inter-planetary space.

5. To use a ring (solenoid) in which an electric cur-rent -ows, and the pressure of the solar radiationon a cloud of iron +llings maintained inside thering by the electric current for propulsion in in-terplanetary space. It is an advantage that meteors


Fig. 9. Tsander’s home in Riga, Lativa, which opened as a Museum in 1987.

passing through this cloud will scarcely a5ect thelight.

6. To concentrate the sunlight in parallel beams bymeans of huge convex and concave mirrors de-signed as described under point 4, in order to ob-tain high speeds and permit -ights to other solarsystems (at present this is the only possible methodwhich o5ers hope for such -ights).

7. To use a sphere made of very thing metal sheets,charged by the Earth’s electricity and repelled fromit by electrostatic forces, for the purpose of inter-planetary -ight. This is possible if the Earth carriesan electric charge.

8. To circle around a planet in or outside itsatmosphere in order to increase the -ight speed(obtaining energy gratuitously during -ight toother planets); to accelerate the interplanetaryspaceship when its -ight speed is high (for thesame purpose).

9. To de-ect meteors by means of electrostatic energyemitted by the spaceship as cathode rays in the di-rection of the meteors, the spaceship being locatedinside an electrically charged sphere.

“I have several other suggestions to make on thedesign of interplanetary spaceships, their engines,rockets, etc., as well as other proposals whichI have not yet worked out suHciency,” Tsanderconcluded.

When a monument was erected to Tsander inKislovodsk, Korolev sent a telegram writing thathe would “forever remember Fridrikh ArturovichTsander as his teacher and chief.” Korolev also wroteof Tsander, “Due to his work during the past tenyears, prototypes of the +rst Soviet rocket motorshave been created. F.A. Tsander died in 1933, butwas able to create a team of workers, his students andsuccessors (Fig. 9).”

Acknowledgements

The author would like to acknowledge the helpof Youris Zhagars, curator of the Tsander Museum,in Riga, Latvia.

References

[1] N.A. Rynin, Interplanetary Flight and Communication,Vol. II, No. 4, Leningrad, 1929 (English translation, NASATTF-640-648).

[2] L.K. Korneev, editor, Problems of Flight by Jet Propulsion,Moscow, 1961 (English translation, NASA, TTF-147, 1964).

[3] V.N. Sokolsky, Some new data on early work of the Sovietscientist-pioneers in rocket engineering, In First Steps TowardSpace, Univelt, San Diego, 1985.

[4] A. Tsander, editor, From a Scienti+c Heritage, by F.S. Tsander,Moscow, 1967 (English translation, NASA TTF-541, 1969).

[5] A. Tsander, Talk before Moscow science history, summer1997, personal communication from Y. Zhagars.

the contributions of fridrikh tsander: a memoir

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