Molniya-M Blok ML

8K78M Blok ML

Mission Profile

Molniya-M Blok ML was a four-stage Soviet launch vehicle derived from the venerable R-7 rocket family, incorporating a specialized Blok ML upper stage optimized for placing payloads into the highly elliptical Molniya orbit that provided good radio coverage of Soviet high-latitude territory. Standing 43.4 meters tall with a liftoff mass of 305,000 kg and generating 4,070 kN of thrust, it entered service in April 1968. The vehicle served as a dedicated launcher for Soviet military early-warning and communications satellites that required the distinctive Molniya orbit, a trajectory so closely associated with this family of spacecraft that the orbital type itself bears the rocket family's name.