Engineer & Scientist Russia
Konstantin Tsiolkovsky
Theorist · Independent (Russian Empire / Soviet Union)
Deriving the rocket equation and proposing multi-stage rockets and space stations decades before either was built
About
Born
1857
Died
1935
Nationality
Russia
A self-taught, largely deaf schoolteacher in provincial Russia who worked out the mathematics of rocket-powered spaceflight in near-total isolation. His 1903 paper derived what is now called the Tsiolkovsky rocket equation, relating a rocket's change in velocity to its exhaust velocity and mass ratio, and he proposed liquid propellants, multi-stage rockets and orbiting space stations before any of them existed. He never built a rocket himself, but his theoretical work underpins the entire field and directly influenced Soviet rocketry, including Korolev.
Frequently asked about Konstantin Tsiolkovsky
- What is Konstantin Tsiolkovsky known for?
- Deriving the rocket equation and proposing multi-stage rockets and space stations decades before either was built
- What is Konstantin Tsiolkovsky's role at Independent (Russian Empire / Soviet Union)?
- Konstantin Tsiolkovsky is the Theorist at Independent (Russian Empire / Soviet Union).