1972 Soviet Soyuz Spacecraft Technical Logbook 11F615 A8 Vacuum Chamber Test Diary

Item Specifics

Type: Handwritten Technical Logbook / Working Test Journal

Year: 1972–1973

Theme: Soviet Space Exploration / Manned Space Program

Spacecraft/Object: Soyuz 7K-T / 11F615 A8


Language: Russian (Technical, Handwritten)

Pages: 99 handwritten pages (numbered up to 101 with a few gaps/blanks)

Dimensions: 8-3/8" x 11-3/4" x 3/4" (Approx. A4 size)

Description

Extremely Rare 1972–1973 Original Soviet Space Program Handwritten Technical Journal – Testing of the Soyuz Spacecraft (Object 11F615 A8) in Vacuum Chamber SM-70

Up for auction is an extraordinary piece of primary space history: a fully intact, 99-page handwritten Soviet engineering logbook dated from July 1972 through March 1973.

This authentic archive captures the rigorous, classified technical preparations of Object 11F615—the legendary Soyuz Spacecraft. Specifically, the journal references modification 11F615-A8 (the Soyuz 7K-T), which was the direct successor to the ill-fated Soyuz 11 and served as the workhorse for ferrying cosmonauts to the Salyut orbital stations.

Historical Context & Significance:

Following the decompression accident of Soyuz 11 in June 1971, Soviet space engineers at OKB-1 (TsKBEM) subjected the redesigned spacecraft to exhaustive vacuum and life-support pressure testing before allowing crewed flights to resume in late 1973. This logbook is a frontline record of those exact safety and systems tests, conducted inside the specialized SM-70 Barochamber (Vacuum Chamber).

Content Highlights:

Cover Inscription: "Рабочий журнал испытаний объектов в барокамере СМ-70. Начат: 1972 г." (Working Journal of Object Testing in Vacuum Chamber SM-70. Started: 1972.)

Technical Logs: Packed with comprehensive hand-drawn data tables, formulas, system schematics notations, fluid/gas calculations, and timeline checkmarks.

Systems Monitored: Detailed logs tracking lines, valves, vacuum levels, pressure drawdowns, and life support telemetry (including mentions of "nitrogen supply," "vacuum pumps BH-500," and specific valve lines like "Линия 1 к клапанам ЗА1, ЗА2").

Official Sign-offs: Dozens of daily entries signed off by the lead testing engineers, shifts in charge, and technicians (including signatures from specialists like Skvortsov, Chernyshev, Golubev, and others).

Condition Report:

The notebook is in authentic, as-found archival condition. The marbled green industrial cover shows expected handling wear, scuffing, and minor fraying along the cloth spine, perfectly reflecting its intensive use in a high-stakes Soviet aerospace lab. The interior pages are exceptionally clean, crisp, and fully legible, written in stable blue and black ink with red pencil corrections.

Low corner of the cover is missing

A truly peerless artifact perfect for serious collectors of Soviet space memorabilia, archival historians, or institutional displays.