Proton

8K82 UR-500

Mission Profile

The Proton (8K82, UR-500) was a two-stage Soviet heavy-lift launch vehicle in the Proton family, the original configuration designed to launch massive scientific payloads into low Earth orbit. Standing 31.5 m tall with a 7.4 m diameter and a liftoff mass of 600 tonnes, it generated 8,850 kN of liftoff thrust and could deliver 8,400 kg to low Earth orbit. First flying in July 1965, the original two-stage Proton launched the heaviest single scientific satellites of its era before the three-stage Proton-K variant became the standard configuration.