Twice Hero of the Soviet Union Makarov Oleg Grigorievich: biography, achievements and interesting facts

A talented person, scientist, famous design engineer, cosmonaut Oleg Makarov is an honorary citizen of three cities: Yakutsk (Russia), Dzhezkazgan (Kazakhstan) and Rivne (Ukraine). The beginning of his career coincided with the year that is considered the beginning of the era of space exploration. It was in 1957 that the Soviet Union launched the world's first artificial satellite. And at the source of this significant event was still a young and unknown Makarov Oleg Grigorievich.

Biography

The awards of this man are numerous. He was twice Hero of the Soviet Union: in 1973 and 1978. Oleg Grigorievich Makarov was born on January 6, 1933 in the Tver region in a small village of Udomlya with the same name. His father was a serviceman, and therefore he frequently moved from place to place in the service of his duty. When the boy was about seven years old, his family moved to Moldova, where he was at the time of the beginning of the Patriotic War. Mother with little Oleg were evacuated first to Saratov, then to Fergana, to Uzbekistan. From 1943 to 1945, they lived in the Tver region in the village of Kesova Gora. After the war the father was transferred to Weimar in Germany. There Makarov Oleg Grigorievich lived with his family from 1945 to 1949. From Weimar the family moved to the Ukrainian city of Rovno. Here in 1951 the boy finished the tenth grade of the school.

Youth

Oleg Makarov's school years passed in difficult military and post-war years. Frequent travel to uninhabited places, when a young man constantly had to learn with new conditions and educational programs, left their mark on his character. But in 1951, when the life and financial situation of the Makarov family more or less normalized, the parents suggested that his son stay in Rivne and enter the university there.

Study in Baumanka

But the already formed solid character of the young man affected his decision. Makarov Oleg Grigorievich chose a more difficult path for himself. He decided to go to Moscow and enter the Higher Technical School. Bauman. The young man learned about this university from an officer who served with his father.

Oleg was met in the capital by his cousin. At that time Evgeny was already studying at the last year of the Moscow Power Engineering Institute. The young man in all things helped his brother in an unfamiliar city.

Beginning of a career

The young man entered the university and studied well enough in it. The diploma practice was held in OKB-1, with which his biography was subsequently closely linked. Oleg Makarov after graduating from a higher educational institution in the direction was recruited to this organization as an engineer.

Almost all of his work was in this organization. The famous design bureau was headed by Sergey Pavlovich Korolev himself. He immediately liked Makarov.

Oleg Grigorievich worked on the development of equipment for rocket and space technical systems, took a very active part in ground and flight tests. He is a co-author of the report on the creation of an earth satellite with an astronaut on board. Makarov took a direct part in the process of developing the outline design of the manned "East", moreover, he directed the work to improve this ship. Today, there are few people who, before the first flight into space, managed to do so much for cosmonautics, but Oleg Grigorievich.

Work in the engineering squad

The very first set of astronauts began in 1960. In the first squadron came only military pilots. A subdivision was established in the Moscow Region, on the site where the Cosmonaut Training Center currently operates. It was there that a small town was built, known throughout the world as the Star City. Later for the flights required and highly skilled engineers. As a result, another detachment was formed. It included engineer-cosmonauts and cosmonauts-researchers. With the blessing of the Queen himself, after a very strict medical examination, in 1966 Makarov Oleg Grigoryevich, an astronaut, was also recorded, who had to go through a very difficult and sufficiently long preparatory period before his cherished dream of flying into the infinite universe was fulfilled.

Lunar program

From 1967 to 1968 O. Makarov, together with A. Leonov, was preparing for a flight to the Moon. But it did not take place. The lunar program was closed for a number of reasons, the main of which were missile crashes during their launches in unmanned mode. It was not destined to take place and the flight of Makarov to DOS-2 - a long-term station.

The first space test

Makarov's dream of being in outer space was not destined to come true until 1973. And only in the year of his 40th birthday Oleg Grigoryevich made his first flight. He was in space for three days (September 27-29). The crew of the ship consisted of two people: Makarov - flight engineer of the Soyuz-12 spacecraft and V. Lazarev. Many people called this flight special. The fact that he was the first after the tragic accident in 1971, the ship with the astronauts V. Volkov, G. Dobrovolsky and V. Patsayev on board.

O. Makarov and V. Lazarev were to check all the design decisions and technical improvements, as well as to test the latest spacesuits. The flight ended successfully. For showing heroism and courage Makarov Oleg Grigorievich received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

Accident

The next flight of this crew almost ended tragically. On April 5, 1975, the launch vehicle with Makarov and Lazarev on board departed successfully from the Baikonur launch pad. However, when it was put into orbit, an emergency situation occurred. It happened at the moment when the KK was from the ground at an altitude of almost two hundred kilometers. Fortunately, the emergency rescue system worked. As a result, the astronauts on the landing gear catapulted. The situation was disastrous. The astronauts withstood the twenty-fold overload, which no one had ever experienced before. It was believed that the human body is not adapted to such. However, Oleg Grigorievich Makarov (USSR pilot-cosmonaut), as well as V. G. Lazarev, was so well trained that he could stand it. For showing courage the crew was awarded the Order of Lenin.

After entering into the history of inhuman trials, the subsequent flights of Makarov and Lazarev turned out to be a big question. However, Oleg Grigoryevich himself did not think so. His great desire and firm character combined with strong health enabled the cosmonaut to make two more space flights. True, the second crew member VG Lazarev no longer participated.

Achievements in cosmonautics

The next flight of Makarov took place in January 1978, when he flew to the long-term station Salyut-6 as a flight engineer on the Soyuz-27 spacecraft. The composition of the crew was also V. Dzhanibekov. On board the station were astronauts Romanenko and Grechko.

For the first time in the history of astronautics, a space complex was assembled right in the near-earth orbit, having a length of about thirty meters and weighing thirty-one tons. It consisted of an orbital station and two manned spacecraft. Experienced cosmonauts perfectly performed the task and conducted an incredible research work. It was one more step to increase the duration of flights to space. Thus, the process of creating huge research complexes in space began. For this flight O. Makarov received the second medal "Golden Star".

Last his space flight Oleg Grigorevich made at the age of forty-eight years. The main task of this expedition was the repair of thermal control systems for the orbital long-term station. The duration was thirteen days. The task was incredibly difficult, but the cosmonauts coped with it.

Interesting Facts

In 1980 Oleg Grigorievich defended his thesis for the degree of candidate of technical sciences. In 1986, he, for health reasons expelled from the detachment, returned to his basic engineering activities. In his native RSC Energia, he served as deputy head.

With his wife Valentina Soldatova Oleg Grigorievich met in 1960 in OKB-1. In the same year he married. In 1961, the pair had a firstborn. In total, Oleg Makarov has two sons. In 1998 Oleg Grigorevich was operated in the Central Clinical Hospital for heart surgery, but he could not fully recover. Twice died Hero of the Soviet Union Makarov Oleg on May 28, 2003 at his dacha in the Moscow suburbs. He was seventy-one years old. Oleg Grigorievich was buried in Moscow at the Ostankino Cemetery.

Makarov did not maintain a personal archive, but his relatives managed to collect a huge amount of materials and hand them over to the Space Museum. A lot of work was done by his sons, who helped colleagues from the OKB.