High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! The Vostok-L (Russian: Восток meaning "East"), GRAU index 8K72 was a rocket used by the Soviet Union to conduct several early tests of the Vostok spacecraft. It was derived from the Luna rocket, with a slightly enlarged second stage to accommodate the larger payload, and was a member of the R-7 family of rockets. Four launches were conducted between 15 May and 1 December 1960, three of which successfully reached orbit.