|
|
|
|
|
Cosmonaut flies resupply ship to space station docking BY JUSTIN RAY SPACEFLIGHT NOW Posted: October 30, 2010 
For the 40th time in the past decade, a Russian cargo freighter has arrived at the International Space Station carrying vital supplies to feed the needs of the orbiting laboratory and its resident crews. But this docking required the intervention by one of the most experienced cosmonauts.
The successful linkup to the Pirs docking compartment came at 12:36 p.m. EDT (1636 GMT) while soaring 220 miles over western Kazakhstan. Hooks and latches were engaged a few minutes later to firmly secure the 24-foot-long craft to the station. The Expedition 25 crew of commander Doug Wheelock, fellow NASA astronauts Shannon Walker and Scott Kelly, and Russian cosmonauts Fyodor Yurchikhin, Oleg Skripochka and Kaleri plan to open hatches and enter the Progress later today. The cargo includes 2,804 pounds of equipment, food, clothing and life support system gear, 1,918 pounds of propellant to replenish reservoirs that feed the Russian maneuvering thrusters, 498 pounds of water and some 110 pounds of oxygen and air for the station's atmosphere. The Progress was launched Wednesday atop a Soyuz rocket from Baikonur Cosmodrome, reaching a preliminary orbit of 151 by 120 miles. A series of precise engine firings propelled the freighter on the orbital chase. After arriving in range of the space station today, the vessel began a flyaround maneuver to get lined up with the docking port and then executed a roll maneuver to properly orient its solar wings with surrounding structures around the Pirs module. A brief stationkeeping hold with about 650 feet between the freighter and station allowed Russian flight controllers to assess systems before giving approval to commence the final approach. It was during stationkeeping that Russian flight controllers in Moscow instructed Kaleri to activate the TORU manual docking equipment and take over the piloting tasks from the Progress' autonomous KURS system. Kaleri, a seasoned veteran on his fifth spaceflight, worked inside the station's Zvezda service module to fly the freighter remotely using television views and a pair of joysticks. "Half a meter," a one of the cosmonauts reported as the Progress closed in. "Contact. Capture confirmed." "Alexander Kaleri manually bringing in the Progress 40 for a smooth docking," NASA TV commentator Rob Navias announced from Houston. "Congratulations to Mission Control with the next milestone completion," Kaleri radioed Moscow. "And congratulations to you with a successful docking. The range rate at the time of contact, based on our calculations, was 0.067, so you get an A today," a Russian flight controller said. "This was just like one our training sessions," Kaleri replied. The craft joins an earlier resupply ship that arrived in September and remains affixed to the outpost, plus two Soyuz crew transport capsules currently residing at the space station. In addition to being the 40th Progress to dock with the station, this resupply vessel was the fifth of five scheduled for flight this year. The ship will remain attached through mid-January, leaving shortly before the next freighter is launched.
|
|
|
|
Final Shuttle Mission Patch Free shipping to U.S. addresses!  The crew emblem for the final space shuttle mission is now available in our store. Get this piece of history! U.S. STOREWORLDWIDE STORE STS-134 Patch Free shipping to U.S. addresses!  The final planned flight of space shuttle Endeavour is symbolized in the official embroidered crew patch for STS-134. Available in our store!U.S. STOREWORLDWIDE STOREAres 1-X Patch  The official embroidered patch for the Ares 1-X rocket test flight, is available for purchase.U.S. STOREWORLDWIDE STOREApollo Collage  This beautiful one piece set features the Apollo program emblem surrounded by the individual mission logos.U.S. STOREWORLDWIDE STOREProject Orion  The Orion crew exploration vehicle is NASA's first new human spacecraft developed since the space shuttle a quarter-century earlier. The capsule is one of the key elements of returning astronauts to the Moon.U.S. STOREFallen Heroes Patch Collection  The official patches from Apollo 1, the shuttle Challenger and Columbia crews are available in the store.U.S. STOREWORLDWIDE STORE |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
INDEX | PLUS | NEWS ARCHIVE | LAUNCH SCHEDULE ASTRONOMY NOW | STORE ADVERTISE © 2012 Spaceflight Now Inc. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
VIDEO:
WATCH PROGRESS 40P FREIGHTER DOCKING 