Mir EO-4
Encyclopedia
Mir EO-4 was the fourth long-duration expedition to the Soviet
space station
Mir
. The expedition began in November 1988, when crew members Commander Aleksandr Volkov
and Flight Engineer Sergei Krikalev
arrived at the station via the spacecraft Soyuz TM-7
. The third crew member of EO-4, Valeri Polyakov, was already aboard Mir, having arrived in August 1988 part way through the previous expedition, Mir EO-3
.
The expedition lasted for five months, and at its conclusion Mir was left unmanned until the launch of Mir EO-5
in September 1989. This ended a continuous habitation of the space station which began in February 1987, with the arrival of the crew of Mir EO-2
.
during Mir EO-2
. The physician
Valeri Polyakov was sent to the station part way through EO-3 so that he could observe the cosmonauts at the end of their record duration flight. Polyakov then stayed aboard Mir to observe the EO-4 crew.
Volkov, the only crew member who had been to space before, had one previous spaceflight. It was a two month mission in 1985 to the space station Salyut 7
, launched by the spacecraft Soyuz T-14
. This expedition, Salyut 7 EO-4, was intended to be 6 months long, but the Commander Vladimir Vasyutin
became ill, and the mission was shortened, forcing the cosmonauts to leave the station unmanned. Volkov became father of the first ever second-generation cosmonaut, when his son Sergey Volkov became Commander of the International Space Station
's Expedition 17
in 2008.
This was Krikalev's first spaceflight, and he went on to have a further five missions to space. As of 2010 he holds the record for the longest cumulative time spent in space, at 803 days. His most recent spaceflight was in 2005, as Commander of the International Space Station's Expedition 11
.
Polyakov, a physician
, arrived at the station part way through the previous expedition, Mir EO-3
. He had never been in space before, but would later have one more spaceflight, which would span three Mir expeditions: EO-15, EO-16, and EO-17. His second spaceflight, launched on Soyuz TM-18
in January 1994, would last 437 days, and as of 2010, still holds the record for the longest ever spaceflight.
president at the time, François Mitterrand
, insisted on attending the launch of the Soyuz TM-7, of which Frenchman Chrétien was a crew member. This caused the launch to be delayed by four days, and hence reducing Chrétien's time in space. Mitterrand flew to the launch site in Baikonur
in a Concorde
.
On November 28, two days after launch, the Soyuz TM-7 spacecraft docked to Mir, and for the first time six cosmonauts were simultaneously aboard the complex.
. This time was referred to as the French Aragatz mission. This was Chrétien's second spaceflight, his first was a short mission to Salyut 7
, which was launched with the spacecraft Soyuz T-6
, and lasted for about a week.
A highlight of the Aragatz mission was the spacewalk
which was performed by Volkov and Chrétien on 9 December 1988, and lasted for 5 hours and 57 minutes. It was the first spacewalk conducted by someone not from the Soviet or U.S. space programs. Its purpose was to install the 240 kg French experimental deployable structure, known as ERA, and a panel of material samples.
Return of Soyuz TM-6
On December 15, 1988, Titov and Manarov's 359th day in space, the EO-3 crew officially broke the spaceflight duration record by the required 10%; the record had previously been set by Yuri Romanenko
, who had a 326 day spaceflight aboard Mir during EO-2
. Both the French mission and EO-3 ended when Chrétien, Titov, and Manarov landed in the spacecraft Soyuz TM-6
on December 21, which occurred six hours after undocking from Mir.
On December 27, shortly after Soyuz TM-6 departed, the expedition's first Progress resupply spacecraft docked with the station, two days after its launch. This model of resupply spacecraft, Progress 7K-TG
, had been used for resupply missions to Soviet space stations since 1978. Progress 39 delivered 1,300 kg of supplies to the EO-4 crew, and remained docked to the station for 42 days.
During this time, Progress 39 was used to boost the orbit of the space station. This was necessary due to the greater than normal atmospheric drag
. The extra drag was caused by atmospheric expansion, which in turn was caused by the solar maximum
occurring at the time, during solar cycle 22
. The boost changed the Perigee
and Apogee
of the station from 325 km and 353 km AMSL
to 340 km and 376 km, respectively. After the boost, Krikalev reported that he was unable to visually detect the change in altitude.
The EO-4 crew filled Progress 39 with waste and excess equipment used during the Aragatz mission, and then the spacecraft undocked on February 7, and was intentionally destroyed during atmospheric reentry
later that day.
module, the launch of the next Mir module, Kvant-2
, would also be delayed. It was also announced that as a result, Mir would be left unmanned following EO-4.
in 1990). The updated design would be called Progress-M
, and its first flight would be Progress M-1
in August 1989, just prior to the arrival of the Mir EO-5
crew in September.
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
space station
Space station
A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a crew which is designed to remain in space for an extended period of time, and to which other spacecraft can dock. A space station is distinguished from other spacecraft used for human spaceflight by its lack of major propulsion or landing...
Mir
Mir
Mir was a space station operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, at first by the Soviet Union and then by Russia. Assembled in orbit from 1986 to 1996, Mir was the first modular space station and had a greater mass than that of any previous spacecraft, holding the record for the...
. The expedition began in November 1988, when crew members Commander Aleksandr Volkov
Alexander Alexandrovich Volkov (cosmonaut)
Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Volkov is a Russian cosmonaut.At the age of 13, Volkov witnessed Yuri Gagarin become the first man in space and this inspired him to become a cosmonaut...
and Flight Engineer Sergei Krikalev
Sergei Krikalev
Sergei Konstantinovich Krikalev is a Russian cosmonaut and mechanical engineer. As a prominent rocket scientist, he has been veteran of six space flights and currently has spent more time in space than any other human being.On August 16, 2005 at 1:44 a.m...
arrived at the station via the spacecraft Soyuz TM-7
Soyuz TM-7
-Mission parameters:*Mass: 7,000 kg 15,400 lb*Perigee: 194 km *Apogee: 235 km *Inclination: 51.6°*Period: 88.8 minutes-Mission highlights:...
. The third crew member of EO-4, Valeri Polyakov, was already aboard Mir, having arrived in August 1988 part way through the previous expedition, Mir EO-3
Mir EO-3
Mir EO-3 was an expedition to the space station Mir. The crew consisted of 3 people, Musa Manarov , Vladimir Titov and Valeri Polyakov . Manarov and Titov arrived at the station in December 1987 on Soyuz TM-4, while Polyakov arrived much later, in August 1988 on Soyuz TM-6...
.
The expedition lasted for five months, and at its conclusion Mir was left unmanned until the launch of Mir EO-5
Mir EO-5
Mir EO-5 was the 5th long duration expedition to the space station Mir, which lasted from September 1989 to February 1990. The two person crew was launched and landed in the spacecraft Soyuz TM-8, which remained docked to Mir throughout the mission. The crew are often referred to as the Soyuz TM-8...
in September 1989. This ended a continuous habitation of the space station which began in February 1987, with the arrival of the crew of Mir EO-2
Mir EO-2
Mir EO-2 was the second long duration expedition to the Soviet space station Mir, and it lasted from February to December 1987. The mission was divided into two parts , the division occurring when one of the two crew members, Aleksandr Laveykin, was replaced part way through the mission by...
.
Background
The previous long-duration expedition to Mir, EO-3, was intended to break the record for spaceflight duration of 326 days set by Yuri RomanenkoYuri Romanenko
Yury Viktorovich Romanenko is a former Soviet cosmonaut, twice Hero of the Soviet Union . Over his career, Yury Romanenko spent a total of 430 days 20 hours 21 minutes 30 seconds in space and 18 hours in space walks. In 1987 he was a resident of the Mir space station, launching on Soyuz TM-2 and...
during Mir EO-2
Mir EO-2
Mir EO-2 was the second long duration expedition to the Soviet space station Mir, and it lasted from February to December 1987. The mission was divided into two parts , the division occurring when one of the two crew members, Aleksandr Laveykin, was replaced part way through the mission by...
. The physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
Valeri Polyakov was sent to the station part way through EO-3 so that he could observe the cosmonauts at the end of their record duration flight. Polyakov then stayed aboard Mir to observe the EO-4 crew.
Crew
| Mir EO-4 | Name | Spaceflight | Launch | Landing | Duration | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commander |  Alexander VolkovAlexander Alexandrovich Volkov (cosmonaut) Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Volkov is a Russian cosmonaut.At the age of 13, Volkov witnessed Yuri Gagarin become the first man in space and this inspired him to become a cosmonaut... |
Second | 26 November 1988 Soyuz TM-7 Soyuz TM-7 -Mission parameters:*Mass: 7,000 kg 15,400 lb*Perigee: 194 km *Apogee: 235 km *Inclination: 51.6°*Period: 88.8 minutes-Mission highlights:... |
27 April 1989 Soyuz TM-7 Soyuz TM-7 -Mission parameters:*Mass: 7,000 kg 15,400 lb*Perigee: 194 km *Apogee: 235 km *Inclination: 51.6°*Period: 88.8 minutes-Mission highlights:... |
151 days | Mir was left unmanned when the crew undocked |
| Flight Engineer | Sergei Krikalev Sergei Krikalev Sergei Konstantinovich Krikalev is a Russian cosmonaut and mechanical engineer. As a prominent rocket scientist, he has been veteran of six space flights and currently has spent more time in space than any other human being.On August 16, 2005 at 1:44 a.m... |
First | ||||
| Research Doctor | Valeri Polyakov |
First | 29 August 1988 Soyuz TM-6 Soyuz TM-6 Dr. Valeri Polyakov remained behind on Mir with cosmonauts Musa Manarov and Vladimir Titov when Mohmand and Lyakhov returned to Earth in Soyuz TM-5.... |
241 days | Transferred from Mir EO-3 Mir EO-3 Mir EO-3 was an expedition to the space station Mir. The crew consisted of 3 people, Musa Manarov , Vladimir Titov and Valeri Polyakov . Manarov and Titov arrived at the station in December 1987 on Soyuz TM-4, while Polyakov arrived much later, in August 1988 on Soyuz TM-6... |
Volkov, the only crew member who had been to space before, had one previous spaceflight. It was a two month mission in 1985 to the space station Salyut 7
Salyut 7
Salyut 7 was a space station in low Earth orbit from April 1982 to February 1991. It was first manned in May 1982 with two crew via Soyuz T-5, and last visited in June 1986, by Soyuz T-15. Various crew and modules were used over its lifetime, including a total of 12 manned and 15 unmanned launches...
, launched by the spacecraft Soyuz T-14
Soyuz T-14
-Backup crew:-Mission parameters:* Mass: * Perigee: * Apogee: * Inclination: 51.6°* Period: 88.7 minutes-Mission highlights:...
. This expedition, Salyut 7 EO-4, was intended to be 6 months long, but the Commander Vladimir Vasyutin
Vladimir Vasyutin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Vasyutin was a Soviet cosmonaut.He was selected as a cosmonaut on December 1, 1978...
became ill, and the mission was shortened, forcing the cosmonauts to leave the station unmanned. Volkov became father of the first ever second-generation cosmonaut, when his son Sergey Volkov became Commander of the International Space Station
International Space Station
The International Space Station is a habitable, artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ISS follows the Salyut, Almaz, Cosmos, Skylab, and Mir space stations, as the 11th space station launched, not including the Genesis I and II prototypes...
's Expedition 17
Expedition 17
Expedition 17 was the 17th expedition to the International Space Station .The first two crew members, Sergey Volkov, and Oleg Kononenko were launched on 8 April 2008, aboard the Soyuz TMA-12...
in 2008.
This was Krikalev's first spaceflight, and he went on to have a further five missions to space. As of 2010 he holds the record for the longest cumulative time spent in space, at 803 days. His most recent spaceflight was in 2005, as Commander of the International Space Station's Expedition 11
Expedition 11
Expedition 11 was the 11th expedition to the International Space Station, using the Soyuz TMA-6, which stayed during the expedition for emergency evacuation....
.
Polyakov, a physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, arrived at the station part way through the previous expedition, Mir EO-3
Mir EO-3
Mir EO-3 was an expedition to the space station Mir. The crew consisted of 3 people, Musa Manarov , Vladimir Titov and Valeri Polyakov . Manarov and Titov arrived at the station in December 1987 on Soyuz TM-4, while Polyakov arrived much later, in August 1988 on Soyuz TM-6...
. He had never been in space before, but would later have one more spaceflight, which would span three Mir expeditions: EO-15, EO-16, and EO-17. His second spaceflight, launched on Soyuz TM-18
Soyuz TM-18
Soyuz TM-18 was launch from Baikonur Cosmodrome and landing 112 km north of Arkalyk. TM-18 was a two day solo flight that docked with the Mir space station on January 10, 1994. The three cosmonauts became the 15th resident crew of the MIR...
in January 1994, would last 437 days, and as of 2010, still holds the record for the longest ever spaceflight.
Backup Crew
- Aleksandr Viktorenko (Commander)
- Aleksandr SerebrovAleksandr SerebrovAleksandr Aleksandrovich Serebrov is a former Soviet cosmonaut. He was born in Moscow, on February 15, 1944, graduated from Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology , and was selected as a cosmonaut on December 1, 1978. He retired on May 10, 1995...
(Flight Engineer) - German Arzamazov (Research Doctor)
Mission highlights
During this mission experiments in 16 different fields were performed as topografic and spectrografic research of the Earth surface, biological and medical research (including blood and heart-tests).Launch
The FrenchFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
president at the time, François Mitterrand
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
, insisted on attending the launch of the Soyuz TM-7, of which Frenchman Chrétien was a crew member. This caused the launch to be delayed by four days, and hence reducing Chrétien's time in space. Mitterrand flew to the launch site in Baikonur
Baikonur Cosmodrome
The Baikonur Cosmodrome , also called Tyuratam, is the world's first and largest operational space launch facility. It is located in the desert steppe of Kazakhstan, about east of the Aral Sea, north of the Syr Darya river, near Tyuratam railway station, at 90 meters above sea level...
in a Concorde
Concorde
Aérospatiale-BAC Concorde was a turbojet-powered supersonic passenger airliner, a supersonic transport . It was a product of an Anglo-French government treaty, combining the manufacturing efforts of Aérospatiale and the British Aircraft Corporation...
.
On November 28, two days after launch, the Soyuz TM-7 spacecraft docked to Mir, and for the first time six cosmonauts were simultaneously aboard the complex.
Mir Aragatz
From November 28 to December 21, 1988, there were six people aboard the station: the three crew members of EO-4, Titov and Manarov who were finishing EO-3, and the visiting French cosmonaut Jean-Loup ChrétienJean-Loup Chrétien
Jean-Loup Jacques Marie Chrétien, is a French engineer, a retired Général de Brigade in the Armée de l'Air , and a former CNES astronaut. He flew on two Franco-Soviet space missions and a NASA Space Shuttle mission...
. This time was referred to as the French Aragatz mission. This was Chrétien's second spaceflight, his first was a short mission to Salyut 7
Salyut 7
Salyut 7 was a space station in low Earth orbit from April 1982 to February 1991. It was first manned in May 1982 with two crew via Soyuz T-5, and last visited in June 1986, by Soyuz T-15. Various crew and modules were used over its lifetime, including a total of 12 manned and 15 unmanned launches...
, which was launched with the spacecraft Soyuz T-6
Soyuz T-6
-Backup crew:-Mission parameters:*Mass: 6850 kg*Perigee: 189 km*Apogee: 233 km*Inclination: 51.7°*Period: 88.7 minutes-Mission highlights:...
, and lasted for about a week.
| Mir Aragatz | Name | Spaceflight | Launch | Landing | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew member |  Jean-Loup ChrétienJean-Loup Chrétien Jean-Loup Jacques Marie Chrétien, is a French engineer, a retired Général de Brigade in the Armée de l'Air , and a former CNES astronaut. He flew on two Franco-Soviet space missions and a NASA Space Shuttle mission... |
Second | 26 November 1988 Soyuz TM-7 Soyuz TM-7 -Mission parameters:*Mass: 7,000 kg 15,400 lb*Perigee: 194 km *Apogee: 235 km *Inclination: 51.6°*Period: 88.8 minutes-Mission highlights:... |
21 December 1988 Soyuz TM-6 Soyuz TM-6 Dr. Valeri Polyakov remained behind on Mir with cosmonauts Musa Manarov and Vladimir Titov when Mohmand and Lyakhov returned to Earth in Soyuz TM-5.... |
24.8 days |
A highlight of the Aragatz mission was the spacewalk
Extra-vehicular activity
Extra-vehicular activity is work done by an astronaut away from the Earth, and outside of a spacecraft. The term most commonly applies to an EVA made outside a craft orbiting Earth , but also applies to an EVA made on the surface of the Moon...
which was performed by Volkov and Chrétien on 9 December 1988, and lasted for 5 hours and 57 minutes. It was the first spacewalk conducted by someone not from the Soviet or U.S. space programs. Its purpose was to install the 240 kg French experimental deployable structure, known as ERA, and a panel of material samples.
Return of Soyuz TM-6
On December 15, 1988, Titov and Manarov's 359th day in space, the EO-3 crew officially broke the spaceflight duration record by the required 10%; the record had previously been set by Yuri Romanenko
Yuri Romanenko
Yury Viktorovich Romanenko is a former Soviet cosmonaut, twice Hero of the Soviet Union . Over his career, Yury Romanenko spent a total of 430 days 20 hours 21 minutes 30 seconds in space and 18 hours in space walks. In 1987 he was a resident of the Mir space station, launching on Soyuz TM-2 and...
, who had a 326 day spaceflight aboard Mir during EO-2
Mir EO-2
Mir EO-2 was the second long duration expedition to the Soviet space station Mir, and it lasted from February to December 1987. The mission was divided into two parts , the division occurring when one of the two crew members, Aleksandr Laveykin, was replaced part way through the mission by...
. Both the French mission and EO-3 ended when Chrétien, Titov, and Manarov landed in the spacecraft Soyuz TM-6
Soyuz TM-6
Dr. Valeri Polyakov remained behind on Mir with cosmonauts Musa Manarov and Vladimir Titov when Mohmand and Lyakhov returned to Earth in Soyuz TM-5....
on December 21, which occurred six hours after undocking from Mir.
Progress 39
Progress 7K-TG
Progress 7K-TG , was a Soviet unmanned spacecraft used to resupply space stations in low Earth orbit. Forty three flew, delivering cargo to Salyut 6, Salyut 7, and Mir...
, had been used for resupply missions to Soviet space stations since 1978. Progress 39 delivered 1,300 kg of supplies to the EO-4 crew, and remained docked to the station for 42 days.
During this time, Progress 39 was used to boost the orbit of the space station. This was necessary due to the greater than normal atmospheric drag
Drag (physics)
In fluid dynamics, drag refers to forces which act on a solid object in the direction of the relative fluid flow velocity...
. The extra drag was caused by atmospheric expansion, which in turn was caused by the solar maximum
Solar maximum
Solar maximum or solar max is the period of greatest solar activity in the solar cycle of the sun. During solar maximum, sunspots appear....
occurring at the time, during solar cycle 22
Solar cycle 22
Solar cycle 22 is the 22nd solar cycle since 1755, when recording of solar sunspot activity began. The solar cycle lasted 9.7 years, beginning in September 1986 and ending in May 1996. The maximum smoothed sunspot number observed during the solar cycle was 158.5, and the minimum was 8...
. The boost changed the Perigee
Apsis
An apsis , plural apsides , is the point of greatest or least distance of a body from one of the foci of its elliptical orbit. In modern celestial mechanics this focus is also the center of attraction, which is usually the center of mass of the system...
and Apogee
Apsis
An apsis , plural apsides , is the point of greatest or least distance of a body from one of the foci of its elliptical orbit. In modern celestial mechanics this focus is also the center of attraction, which is usually the center of mass of the system...
of the station from 325 km and 353 km AMSL
Above mean sea level
The term above mean sea level refers to the elevation or altitude of any object, relative to the average sea level datum. AMSL is used extensively in radio by engineers to determine the coverage area a station will be able to reach...
to 340 km and 376 km, respectively. After the boost, Krikalev reported that he was unable to visually detect the change in altitude.
The EO-4 crew filled Progress 39 with waste and excess equipment used during the Aragatz mission, and then the spacecraft undocked on February 7, and was intentionally destroyed during atmospheric reentry
Atmospheric reentry
Atmospheric entry is the movement of human-made or natural objects as they enter the atmosphere of a celestial body from outer space—in the case of Earth from an altitude above the Kármán Line,...
later that day.
Progress 40
On February 10, the next resupply spacecraft, Progress 40 was launched, and it docked with Mir two days later. It remained docked to Mir for 18 days. During this time, it was announced that due to delays in the production of the KristallKristall
The Kristall module was the fourth module and the third major addition to the Mir space station. As with previous modules, its configuration was based on the 77K module, and was originally named "Kvant 3". It was launched on May 31, 1990 on a Proton rocket...
module, the launch of the next Mir module, Kvant-2
Kvant-2
Kvant-2 was the third module and second major addition to the Mir space station. Its primary purpose was to deliver new science experiments, better life support systems, and an airlock to Mir. It was launched on November 26, 1989 on a Proton rocket. It docked to Mir on December 6...
, would also be delayed. It was also announced that as a result, Mir would be left unmanned following EO-4.
Progress 41
The final Progress resupply spacecraft of the expedition docked with the station on March 19, and remained docked for 33 days. Progress 41 was the second last Progress spacecraft to use the original design (the last being Progress 42, which resupplied Mir EO-6Mir EO-6
Mir EO-6 was the sixth long duration expedition to the space station Mir. The two crew members were Anatoli Soloviyov and Aleksandr Balandin .-Crew:...
in 1990). The updated design would be called Progress-M
Progress-M
Progress-M , also known as Progress 7K-TGM, is a Russian, previously Soviet spacecraft which is used to resupply space stations. It is a variant of the Progress spacecraft, originally built in the late 1980s as a modernised version of the Progress 7K-TG spacecraft, using new systems developed for...
, and its first flight would be Progress M-1
Progress M-1
Progress M-1, was a Soviet unmanned cargo spacecraft which was launched in 1989 to resupply the Mir space station. The eighteenth of sixty four Progress spacecraft to visit Mir, it was the first Progress-M spacecraft to be launched, and had the serial number 201...
in August 1989, just prior to the arrival of the Mir EO-5
Mir EO-5
Mir EO-5 was the 5th long duration expedition to the space station Mir, which lasted from September 1989 to February 1990. The two person crew was launched and landed in the spacecraft Soyuz TM-8, which remained docked to Mir throughout the mission. The crew are often referred to as the Soyuz TM-8...
crew in September.