Salyut 7

Salyut 7 (Russian Салют -7) was the last of the Salyut space station program of the Soviet Union, which was placed in a low Earth orbit. She was launched on 19 April 1982, a Proton rocket from Baikonur. Salyut 7 was part of the transition from monolithic to modular space stations and served as a test subject for many Andockversuche and station expansion modules. She was the tenth space station that has been started.

Description

Salyut 7 was used as a workaround for a possible failure of Salyut 6 and was also similarly constructed for this reason, and provided with identical equipment. Once, however, delayed the Mir program, the former alternative solution was started as an independent space station. In orbit, the station suffered some technical glitches, but they were eliminated from the respective crews. Salyut 7 had a higher load compartment capacity than their predecessors. The station was serviced by numerous Soyuz spaceships and provided with food and other commodities during long-term stays, from Progress spacecraft. In September 1983, a defective fuel line made ​​a spacewalk (EVA ) for the repair needed. The repair was successfully done by the crew of Soyuz T-10. In addition to the numerous experiments and observations that have been made on Salyut 7, the station for docking large station modules was used. These modules were called " Heavy Cosmic modules ", the modified versions of the TKS spacecraft were, which were designed for the stopped military space station program Almas. These maneuvers helped the engineers to develop the approach and coupling technology that was needed for the construction of the space station Mir. Salyut 7 occurred on February 7, 1991, in the Earth's atmosphere and burned up partially. Fragments of the station went down in Argentina over the place Capitán Bermúdez after location on the proposed re-entry point, which was located on the uninhabited parts of the Pacific, was overshot. People did not come to harm in the crash.

Just like Salyut 6 Salyut 7 also had two docking adapter, which were located at the two ends of the station. This made ​​it possible to dock on one side of a manned Soyuz spacecraft to the station and the station was served and cared for by the other side of the Progress spacecraft simultaneously. Salyut 7 had three solar panels, two of which were along the station and one was mounted perpendicular to these two on the station. These panels have the advantage that you could attach additional secondary panels on its sides, so as to increase the electrical power. Inside of Salyut 7 were seven electric stoves, a refrigerator, a tank with a permanently warm water and newly developed seats for the command console to find. The portholes were designed so that they could also pass ultraviolet light to kill any germs infection quickly. Furthermore, improved the possibilities for the physical training of the cosmonauts on board, so 7 nor longer stays were possible to Salyut. The BST 1M telescope, which was used in Saljut 6 was replaced by an X-ray detector.

After the flight of Cosmos 1267 to Salyut 6, the Soviet Union launched Cosmos 1443 on 2 March 1983 on a Proton rocket. Cosmos 1443 docked with the station on March 10. The module was undocked from the crew of Soyuz T-9 from the station. The landing capsule of the cosmos in 1443 no longer needed equipment transported back to Earth. The rest of the module burned up in Earth's atmosphere. The module Cosmos 1686 was launched on September 27, 1985 and reached Salyut 7 on 2 October. Cosmos 1686 did not have a landing capsule and remained until the fall of the station Salyut 7 docked. So the module from the crew of Soyuz T -14 was used.

Crews

During the period of four years and two months, the station of a total of ten teams was visited. Among them were five ordinary crews on Salyut 7 a long-stay and five teams who completed a short-term stay. Under these crews were under the Intercosmos program also cosmonauts from France and India. On Salyut 7 Svetlana graduated Sawizkaja, the second woman in space, first woman a spacewalk.

On Salyut 7, the following long-term crews worked:

• The first crew, Anatoly Beresowoi and Valentin Lebedev reached Salyut 7 on May 13, 1982 aboard Soyuz T -5 and stayed for 211 days until December 10, 1982 the station.
• On June 27, 1983 reached the crew of Soyuz T-9, Vladimir and Alexander Alexandrov Liakhov, Salyut 7 and 150 days remained until November 23, 1983 the station.
• On February 8, 1984, the crew of Soyuz T -10, Leonid Kizim, Vladimir Solovyov and Oleg Atkow reached, Salyut 7 and remained at 237 days until October 2, 1984 the longest on Salyut 7
• On 6 June 1985, the crew of Soyuz T -13, Vladimir Dzhanibekov and Viktor Savinykh reached, Salyut 7 After the arrival of Soyuz T-14 on 18 September 1985 Dzhanibekov replaced as commander of Vladimir Vasyutin while Alexander Volkov as an additional flight engineer joined the long-term occupation. Georgi Grechko, third member of the crew of Soyuz T-14, the station already left again a week later and returned along with Dzhanibekov back to Earth. On 21 November 1985, 168 days after the launch of Soyuz T -13, also returned Savinykh, Vasyutin and Volkov home.
• On May 6, 1986, the crew of Soyuz T-15, Leonid Kizim and Vladimir Soloviev reached, Salyut 7, the Soyuz spacecraft launched from the Mir space station Salyut 7 from to After 50 days stay on Salyut 7 returned the crew of Soyuz T -15 with the Soyuz spaceship back and Mir space station and took this diverse scientific material. These were the only ever running flights between two space stations.

There were also five shorter missions to Salyut 7 They brought the long-term crews working material, equipment and food. The list of manned missions to the space station Salyut 7 gives an overview of all flights to Salyut 7

Specifications

• Length: 15.8 m
• Maximum diameter: 4.15 m
• Liveable volume: 90 m³
• Takeoff weight: 19,824 kg
• Number of coupling cap: 2
• Span of solar panels: 17 m
• Solar cell area: 51 m²
• Number of solar panels: 3
• Generated output: 4-5 kW
• Unmanned Missions: 15
• Manned Missions: 10
• Long-term stays: 5
• Main engines: 2
• Push of a main engine: 2.9 kN