Soyuz TMA-02M
Encyclopedia
Soyuz TMA-21 was a Soyuz
flight to the International Space Station
(ISS). It transported three members of the Expedition 27
crew to the ISS, and docked at the station on 6 April 2011. TMA-21 is the 109th flight of a Soyuz spacecraft, the first of which launched in 1967. The Soyuz remained attached to the space station as a lifeboat, throughout the remainder of Expedition 27 and through the end of Expedition 28
, and returned to Earth on 16 September 2011.
The launch of Soyuz TMA-21 was devoted to the 50th anniversary of the first manned space mission, which was conducted by Yuri Gagarin
on 12 April 1961. The COSPAR International ID of Soyuz TMA-21 is 2011-012A.
. According to a Roscosmos news release, Marciel’s sketch was chosen for the crew patch, since it depicts Gagarin and his crew vehicle Vostok.
The spacecraft will fly a drawing of Gagarin, and, apart from being called Gagarin, it will also be written on the spacecraft.
's Gagarin's Start
launch pad in Kazakhstan
, at 23:18:20 UTC on April 4, 2011. Souyz Commander Samokutyaev was launched from the Soyuz's center seat with flight engineer Borisenko strapped in to his left and NASA astronaut Ronald Garan on his right.
The Soyuz-FG
rocket followed a nominal ascent, and successfully inserted the spacecraft into orbit 8 minutes and 45 seconds after liftoff. In orbit, the spacecraft deployed its two solar panels and communications antennas as planned.
Samokutyayev, carried a small stuffed dog given to him by his daughter. Hanging in front of the crew, live NASA TV launch footage showed that the dog begun to float as the spacecraft soared skywards, an indication of the weightlessness of space. "Launch was great, and we are in orbit and we are doing great," said Samokutyaev after the launch. Replying back the Moscow Mission Control said "This is a great anniversary flight, and have a great one".
(ISS) on April 6 at 23:09 UTC. The docking to the Poisk module occurred as the two spacecraft were orbiting over the Andes Mountains in Chile. Hatches between the Soyuz TMA-21 and the ISS were opened at 2:13 UTC on April 7. The three Soyuz crew members floated into the ISS. They were welcomed aboard for a crew greeting ceremony and a mandatory safety orientation by Expedition 27 Commander Dmitry Kondratyev and Flight Engineers Catherine Coleman and Paolo Nespoli.
on August 24.
The Soyuz TMA-21 spacecraft undocked from the International Space Station on September 16, 2011 at 00:38 UTC. Due to an apparent communications malfunction, voice communications from the crew were lost shortly after the deorbit burn, prompting some tense moments on the ground, but otherwise the reentry and descent went perfectly. There was no immediate explanation for the communications drop out.
Soyuz Commander Aleksandr Samokutyayev and Flight Engineers Andrei Borisenko and Ronald Garan returned to Earth on 16 September 2011 at 03:59 UTC, landing on target in central Kazakhstan. Russian search and rescue teams, along with NASA flight surgeons and space station program managers, were standing by to help the Soyuz crew. Three Antonov airplanes, 14 Mi-8 helicopters, and seven rescue vehicles took part in the search for the capsule. Samokutyayev was the first to be extracted out of the Soyuz descent module, followed by Garan and Borisenko. All three appeared relaxed and in good health as they rested in recliners near the descent module. After quick medical examinations inside a nearby erected tent, the crew were flown to Karaganda
for an official welcome home ceremony. From there Samokutyaev and Borisenko flew to Star City near Moscow while Garan boarded a NASA jet to fly back to the Johnson Space Center in Houston.
's work. Lermontov grew up in the village of Tarkhany
(in the Penza
Governorate), which now preserves his remains. Year 2011 also marks the 170th anniversary of his fatal duel with fellow army officer Nikolai Martynov
in 1841.
Soyuz spacecraft
Soyuz , Union) is a series of spacecraft initially designed for the Soviet space programme by the Korolyov Design Bureau in the 1960s, and still in service today...
flight to 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...
(ISS). It transported three members of the Expedition 27
Expedition 27
Expedition 27 was the 27th long-duration expedition to the International Space Station , starting on 16 March 2011. Expedition 27 saw numerous notable events, including the undocking of the Progress M-09M and Kounotori 2 spacecraft, the arrival of the Soyuz TMA-21 and Progress M-10M spacecraft, and...
crew to the ISS, and docked at the station on 6 April 2011. TMA-21 is the 109th flight of a Soyuz spacecraft, the first of which launched in 1967. The Soyuz remained attached to the space station as a lifeboat, throughout the remainder of Expedition 27 and through the end of Expedition 28
Expedition 28
Expedition 28 was the 28th long-duration expedition to the International Space Station, starting on 23 May 2011 with the departure of the members of Expedition 27. The first three members of the expedition arrived on the ISS aboard the Soyuz TMA-21 spacecraft on 4 April 2011, and were joined on 9...
, and returned to Earth on 16 September 2011.
The launch of Soyuz TMA-21 was devoted to the 50th anniversary of the first manned space mission, which was conducted by Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut. He was the first human to journey into outer space, when his Vostok spacecraft completed an orbit of the Earth on April 12, 1961....
on 12 April 1961. The COSPAR International ID of Soyuz TMA-21 is 2011-012A.
Crew
Backup crew
Mission insignia
In December 2010, the Head of the Russian Federal Space Agency, Anatoly Perminov approved the patch of the Soyuz TMA-21 mission. The patch was designed based on a drawing by young artist Marciel Santos Kayle, a 12 year old from French GuianaFrench Guiana
French Guiana is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department located on the northern Atlantic coast of South America. It has borders with two nations, Brazil to the east and south, and Suriname to the west...
. According to a Roscosmos news release, Marciel’s sketch was chosen for the crew patch, since it depicts Gagarin and his crew vehicle Vostok.
The spacecraft will fly a drawing of Gagarin, and, apart from being called Gagarin, it will also be written on the spacecraft.
Kvant-V equipment glitch
During the launch processing in March 2011, the Technical Management on Human Space System Flight Testing reported an operational glitch of the Kvant-V equipment. The Kvant-V system resides in the Instrumentation Propulsion Module - one of the three modules that make the Soyuz TMA-21 spacecraft. On March 13, Roscosmos Board held a meeting to discuss the issue and delayed the launch from March 30, 2011. The glitch was traced back to a faulty part (capacitor) in the equipment. Russian Space Agency Roscosmos established a working group with representatives from RSC-Energia and TSNIImash, the manufacturers and developers of the Soyuz systems. Proposals of the working group were considered during an additional General Designers’ Review led by RSC-Energia president Vitaly Lopota. After analyzing the submitted data by the Review, Roscosmos decided to set April 4 as the new launch date.Pre-launch processing
The Soyuz TMA-21 spacecraft arrived at Baikonur Cosmodrome on February 9, 2011. On the same day, the RSC-Energia technicians, tested the spacecraft's Kurs system.Crew training
Roscosmos' Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center (GCTC) hosted a two-day exam session for the prime and backup crews of Soyuz TMA-21 on March 4-5. On March 4, the prime crew of Samokutyayev, Borisenko and Garan were tested through integrated training in the ISS simulator and their backup crew of Shkaplerov, Ivanishin and Burbank were tested in the Soyuz mockup. On the next day, the crews were swapped and examined. The two groups of crews successfully passed the exams after solving all the tasks for which they were examined. Anatoly Perminov, the head of Roscosmos hosted the traditional tea-party with Soyuz TMA-21 prime and backup crews on March 11. On March 17, cosmonauts and astronauts left GCTC for Baikonur. On March 19, Roscosmos Board gave its final approval of the crews to go through training at the Baikonur Cosmodrome.Launch
The Soyuz TMA-21 spacecraft launched on schedule from the Baikonur CosmodromeBaikonur 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...
's Gagarin's Start
Gagarin's Start
Gagarin's Start is a launch site at Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, used for the Soviet space program and now managed by the Russian Federal Space Agency....
launch pad in Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
, at 23:18:20 UTC on April 4, 2011. Souyz Commander Samokutyaev was launched from the Soyuz's center seat with flight engineer Borisenko strapped in to his left and NASA astronaut Ronald Garan on his right.
The Soyuz-FG
Soyuz-FG
The Soyuz-FG launch vehicle is an improved version of the Soyuz-U, from the R-7 family of rockets, designed and constructed by TsSKB-Progress in Samara...
rocket followed a nominal ascent, and successfully inserted the spacecraft into orbit 8 minutes and 45 seconds after liftoff. In orbit, the spacecraft deployed its two solar panels and communications antennas as planned.
Samokutyayev, carried a small stuffed dog given to him by his daughter. Hanging in front of the crew, live NASA TV launch footage showed that the dog begun to float as the spacecraft soared skywards, an indication of the weightlessness of space. "Launch was great, and we are in orbit and we are doing great," said Samokutyaev after the launch. Replying back the Moscow Mission Control said "This is a great anniversary flight, and have a great one".
Docking
The Soyuz TMA-21 spacecraft docked with the International Space StationInternational 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...
(ISS) on April 6 at 23:09 UTC. The docking to the Poisk module occurred as the two spacecraft were orbiting over the Andes Mountains in Chile. Hatches between the Soyuz TMA-21 and the ISS were opened at 2:13 UTC on April 7. The three Soyuz crew members floated into the ISS. They were welcomed aboard for a crew greeting ceremony and a mandatory safety orientation by Expedition 27 Commander Dmitry Kondratyev and Flight Engineers Catherine Coleman and Paolo Nespoli.
Return to Earth
The Soyuz TMA-21 crew had been due to come back on September 8 but its return was delayed due to the crash of the Progress M-12MProgress M-12M
Progress M-12M , identified by NASA as Progress 44 or 44P, was an unmanned Progress spacecraft that was lost in a launch failure in August 2011, at the start of a mission to resupply the International Space Station. It was the twelfth modernised Progress-M spacecraft to be launched...
on August 24.
The Soyuz TMA-21 spacecraft undocked from the International Space Station on September 16, 2011 at 00:38 UTC. Due to an apparent communications malfunction, voice communications from the crew were lost shortly after the deorbit burn, prompting some tense moments on the ground, but otherwise the reentry and descent went perfectly. There was no immediate explanation for the communications drop out.
Soyuz Commander Aleksandr Samokutyayev and Flight Engineers Andrei Borisenko and Ronald Garan returned to Earth on 16 September 2011 at 03:59 UTC, landing on target in central Kazakhstan. Russian search and rescue teams, along with NASA flight surgeons and space station program managers, were standing by to help the Soyuz crew. Three Antonov airplanes, 14 Mi-8 helicopters, and seven rescue vehicles took part in the search for the capsule. Samokutyayev was the first to be extracted out of the Soyuz descent module, followed by Garan and Borisenko. All three appeared relaxed and in good health as they rested in recliners near the descent module. After quick medical examinations inside a nearby erected tent, the crew were flown to Karaganda
Karaganda
Karagandy , more commonly known by its Russian name Karaganda, , is the capital of Karagandy Province in Kazakhstan. It is the fourth most populous city in Kazakhstan, behind Almaty , Astana and Shymkent, with a population of 471,800 . In the 1940s up to 70% of the city's inhabitants were ethnic...
for an official welcome home ceremony. From there Samokutyaev and Borisenko flew to Star City near Moscow while Garan boarded a NASA jet to fly back to the Johnson Space Center in Houston.
Call sign
The crew of Soyuz TMA-21 selected Tarkhany as their call sign of respect for Mikhail LermontovMikhail Lermontov
Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov , a Russian Romantic writer, poet and painter, sometimes called "the poet of the Caucasus", became the most important Russian poet after Alexander Pushkin's death in 1837. Lermontov is considered the supreme poet of Russian literature alongside Pushkin and the greatest...
's work. Lermontov grew up in the village of Tarkhany
Tarkhany
Tarkhany is an estate in Russia where the Romantic writer Mikhail Lermontov spent his childhood and is buried. The late 18th Century–early 19th Century estate is located in the village of Lermontovo in the Belinsky District of Penza Oblast. Tarkhany is the main tourist attraction of Penza...
(in the Penza
Penza
-Honors:A minor planet, 3189 Penza, discovered by Soviet astronomer Nikolai Stepanovich Chernykh in 1978, is named after the city.-Notable residents:...
Governorate), which now preserves his remains. Year 2011 also marks the 170th anniversary of his fatal duel with fellow army officer Nikolai Martynov
Nikolai Martynov
Nikolai Solomonovich Martynov was the Russian army officer who fatally shot the poet Mikhail Lermontov in a duel on July 27, 1841.-External links: *...
in 1841.