Soyuz TM-20

The Soyuz-TM crew transports (T – транспортный – Transportnyi – meaning transport, M – модифицированный – Modifitsirovannyi – meaning modified) were fourth generation (1986–2002) Soyuz spacecraft used for ferry flights to the Mir and ISS space stations. It added to the Soyuz-T new docking and rendezvous, radio communications, emergency and integrated parachute/landing engine systems. The new Kurs rendezvous and docking system permitted the Soyuz-TM to maneuver independently of the station, without the station making "mirror image" maneuvers to match unwanted translations introduced by earlier models' aft-mounted attitude control.

Soyuz TM-20
Mission typeMir crew transport
OperatorRosaviakosmos
COSPAR ID1994-063A
SATCAT no.23288
Mission duration169 days, 5 hours, 21 minutes, 35 seconds
Orbits completed~2,760
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftSoyuz 7K-STM No.69[1]
Spacecraft typeSoyuz-TM
ManufacturerRKK Energia
Launch mass7,170 kilograms (15,810 lb)
Crew
Crew size3
MembersAleksandr Viktorenko
Yelena Kondakova
LaunchingUlf Merbold
LandingValeri Polyakov
CallsignВи́тязь (Vityaz' – Knight)
Start of mission
Launch dateOctober 3, 1994, 22:42:30 (1994-10-03UTC22:42:30Z) UTC[1]
RocketSoyuz-U2
Launch siteBaikonur 1/5
End of mission
Landing dateMarch 22, 1995, 04:04:05 (1995-03-22UTC04:04:06Z) UTC
Landing site50.52°N 67.35°E / 50.52; 67.35
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric
RegimeLow Earth
Perigee altitude392 kilometres (244 mi)
Apogee altitude394 kilometres (245 mi)
Inclination51.6 degrees
Period92.42 minutes
Epoch3 November 1994[2]
Docking with Mir
Docking portCore forward
Docking date6 October 1994, 00:28:15 UTC
Undocking date22 March 1995, 00:43:08 UTC
Soyuz programme
(Crewed missions)
 

Soyuz TM-20 was the twentieth expedition to the Russian Space Station Mir.

Mir as seen from Space Shuttle Discovery during STS-63, with Soyuz TM-20 seen at the top

Crew

Position Launching crew Landing crew
Commander  Aleksandr Viktorenko
Fourth and last spaceflight
Flight Engineer  Yelena Kondakova
First spaceflight
Research Cosmonaut  Ulf Merbold
Third and last spaceflight
 Valeri Polyakov
Second and last spaceflight

Mission highlights

20th expedition to Mir.

Carried 10 kg of equipment for use by Merbold in ESA's month-long Euromir 94 experiment program. During automatic approach to Mir's front port, the spacecraft yawed unexpectedly. Viktorenko completed a manual docking without additional incident.

See also

References

  1. McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  2. McDowell, Jonathan. "Satellite Catalog". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
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