| NK-15 | |
| Country Of Origin: | Soviet Union |
| Date: | 1960s |
| Designer: | Kuznetsov Design Bureau |
| Purpose: | 1st/2nd-stage engine |
| Successor: | NK-33 |
| Type: | liquid |
| Oxidiser: | LOX |
| Fuel: | kerosene |
| Cycle: | Staged combustion |
| Pumps: | Turbopump |
| Thrust(Vac): | 1753kN |
| Thrust(Sl): | 1505kN |
| Throttle Range: | 50–105% |
| Thrust To Weight: | 137 |
| Chamber Pressure: | 14.5MPa |
| Length: | 3.7m (12.1feet) |
| Diameter: | 2m (07feet) |
| Dry Weight: | 1247kg (2,749lb) |
The NK-15 (GRAU index 11D51) was a rocket engine designed and built in the late 1960s by the Kuznetsov Design Bureau. The NK designation was derived from the initials of chief designer Nikolay Kuznetsov. The NK-15 was among the most powerful LOX/kerosene rocket engines when it was built, with a high specific impulse and low structural mass. It was intended for the ill-fated Soviet N-1 Moon rocket.
The engine equipped the N1 rocket - the first two launch attempts failed due to this engine.[1] Its successor the NK-33 was to be used on the N1F, a new version of the N1, but the program was cancelled.