Progress (spacecraft)
Country of origin | Soviet Union / Russia |
---|---|
Operator | Roscosmos |
Applications |
|
Specifications | |
Spacecraft type | Cargo |
Payload capacity | 2,400 kg (5,300 lb) |
Volume | 7.6 m3 (270 cu ft) |
Design life | 180 days docked to a space station[a] |
Dimensions | |
Length | 7.23 m (23.7 ft) |
Diameter | 2.72 m (8 ft 11 in) |
The Progress (
Progress has supported space stations as early as Salyut 6 and as recently as the International Space Station (ISS). Each year there are between three and four Progress flights to the ISS. A Progress remains docked until shortly before being replaced with a new one or a Soyuz (which will use the same docking port). Then it is filled with waste, disconnected, and de-orbited, at which point it burns up in the atmosphere. Due to the variation in Progress vehicles flown to the ISS, NASA uses its own nomenclature where "ISS 1P" means the first Progress spacecraft to ISS.
Progress was developed because of the need for a constant source of supplies to make long duration space missions possible. It was determined that cosmonauts needed an inflow of consumables (food, water, air, etc.), plus there was a need for maintenance items and scientific payloads that necessitated a dedicated cargo carrier. Such payloads were impractical to launch with passengers in the restricted space of a Soyuz. As of 15 February 2021, there have been 168 Progress flights with three failures. All three failures have occurred between 2011 and 2016.
Design
Progress is of much the same size and shape as Soyuz. It consists of three modules:
- A pressurized forward module. This carries the supplies for the crew such as scientific equipment, clothes, prepackaged and fresh food, and letters from home. The docking drogue is similar to that of the Soyuz but features ducting for the Unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine (UDMH) fuel and N2O4 oxidiser.
- A fuel compartment. The reentry module of the Soyuz was replaced with an unpressurized propellant and refueling compartment with ducting along the outside of the spacecraft. This meant that if a leak occurred, the poisonous gas would not enter the station's atmosphere. The fuel is carried in two tanks.
- A propulsion module. The propulsion module, at the rear of the spacecraft, remained unchanged from the Soyuz and contains the orientation engines used for the automatic docking. It may be used to boost the orbit of the station once docked.
Reduction in mass was possible because the Progress was designed to be uncrewed and disposable. This means that there is no need for bulky life support systems and heat shields. A small amount of weight is saved due to the lack of automatic crew rescue systems and the lack of parachutes. The spacecraft also has no ability to split into separate modules. After undocking, the spacecraft performs a retrofire and burns up in the atmosphere.
Versions
There were many small variations between the different flights, but the major upgrades are reflected in the change of name.
Progress (1978–1990)
There were 42 spacecraft built using the initial Progress design, the last one being launched in May 1990.
The bureau in charge of designing the freighter was
This first version of Progress had a mass of 7,020 kg (15,480 lb) and carried 2,300 kg (5,100 lb) of cargo, or 30% of its launch mass. It had the same diameter as the Soyuz at 2.2 m (7 ft 3 in), but was 8 m (26 ft) in length – slightly longer. The autonomous flight time was 3 days, the same time as that of the Soyuz ferry. It could spend 30 days docked. Progress always docked to the aft port of the station it was resupplying (the aft being where the main rocket engines of the station and their tankage, for refueling by the Progress, are located).
- Launch mass: 7,020–7,249 kg (15,476–15,981 lb)
- Mass of cargo:
- ~2,300 kg (5,100 lb) (before Progress-24)
- ~2,500 kg (5,500 lb) (from Progress-24)
- Length: 7.94 m (26.0 ft)
- Diameter of cargo modules: 2.2 m (7 ft 3 in)
- Maximum diameter: 2.72 m (8 ft 11 in)
- Volume of cargo compartment: 6.6 m3 (230 cu ft)
Progress-M 11F615A55 (1989–2021)
The upgraded Progress M (
The Progress M is essentially the same spacecraft as the Progress, but it features improvements based on the
- Launch mass: 7,130 kg (15,720 lb)
- Cargo mass: 2,600 kg (5,700 lb)
- Dry cargo mass: 1,500 kg (3,300 lb)
- Liquid cargo mass: 1,540 kg (3,400 lb)
- Length: 7.23 m (23.7 ft)
- Diameter of cargo modules: 2.2 m (7 ft 3 in)
- Maximum diameter: 2.72 m (8 ft 11 in)
- Dry cargo compartment volume: 7.6 m3 (270 cu ft)
- Solar array span: 10.6 m (35 ft)
Progress-М 11F615A60 (2008–2015)
A new modification of the Progress spacecraft, with new TsVM-101 digital flight computer and MBITS digital telemetry system,[5] was first launched on 26 November 2008, at 12:38 UTC from the Kazakhstan's Baikonur Cosmodrome spaceport aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket. The first spacecraft of this series was Progress M-01M.
The spacecraft belongs to the so-called 400 series (
Progress M-27M was launched on 28 April 2015, but communication with the vessel was lost soon after, and it was destroyed as it re-entered the atmosphere on 8 May 2015.[7] The last launch was Progress M-29M.
Progress M1 (2000–2004)
Progress M1 is another variant, capable of carrying more propellant (but less total cargo) to the space station. There have been 11 of these flights.
- Mass: 7,150 kg (15,760 lb)
- Capacity cargo: 2,230 kg (4,920 lb)
- Capacity dry cargo: 1,800 kg (4,000 lb)
- Capacity propellant: 1,950 kg (4,300 lb)
Progress M2
Progress M2 was a planned variant, which was a proposed design for the proposed Mir-2 space station, but was dropped due to financial issues. The M2 variant would have a larger service module for larger cargo or space station modules and would have been launched on a Zenit rocket as the spacecraft is bigger.
Progress MS (2015–present)
Progress MS is an improved variant which first launched on 21 December 2015. It has the following improvements:[8][9][10][11]
- New external compartment that enables it to deploy satellites. Each compartment can hold up to four launch containers. First time installed on Progress MS-03.
- Enhanced redundancy thanks to the addition of a backup system of electrical motors for the docking and sealing mechanism.
- Improved Micrometeoroid (MMOD) protection with additional panels in the cargo compartment.
- Luch Russian relay satellites link capabilities enable telemetry and control even when not in direct view of ground radio stations.
- GNSS autonomous navigation enables real time determination of the status vector and orbital parameters dispensing with the need of ground station orbit determination.
- Real time relative navigation thanks to direct radio data exchange capabilities with the space station.
- New digital radio that enables enhanced TV camera view for the docking operations.
- The Ukrainian Chezara Kvant-V on board radio system and antenna/feeder system has been replaced with a Unified Command Telemetry System (UCTS).
- Replacement of the Kurs A with Kurs NA digital system.
Current status
Progress spacecraft are used to resupply the
On 9 July 2018, Progress MS-09 broke a previous record by reaching the ISS in 3 hours and 48 minutes, carrying about 2,450 kg (5,400 lb) of cargo and supplies. It delivered food, fuel and supplies, including 705 kg of propellant, 50 kg (110 lb) of oxygen and air, 420 kg (930 lb) of water.
The European Space Agency (ESA) operated its own type of robotic supply freighter, the Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV). The first of these, named Jules Verne, was launched at 04:03 UTC on 9 March 2008. ATVs can carry up to 8.85 tonnes of cargo into space, roughly three times as much as the Progress, and were launched annually by Ariane 5 rockets from 2011-2014 as part of ESA contribution to ISS upkeep. The design is adopted as the Service Module of the Orion spacecraft.
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Launch of Progress M-11M
See also
- List of Progress flights
- Uncrewed spaceflights to the International Space Station
- Comparison of space station cargo vehicles
- Cargo spacecraft– Spacecraft without people on board
- Automated Transfer Vehicle – Uncrewed cargo spacecraft developed by the European Space Agency
- Cygnus (spacecraft) – Uncrewed cargo spacecraft developed by Orbital Sciences
- SpaceX Dragon – Family of SpaceX spacecraft
- H-II Transfer Vehicle – Uncrewed cargo spacecraft developed by JAXA
- Orbital Technologies Commercial Space Station
Notes
- ^ Progress MS-14 remained docked more than one year
References
- ^ "Progress". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 26 December 2001. Retrieved 29 March 2013.
- ^ "Return to selections: 1". Spacecraft Names. Archived from the original on 6 February 2012. Retrieved 29 March 2013.
- ^ "Russian Designations". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 29 March 2013.
- ^ "NASA Launch Schedule and NASA". This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ Krebs, Gunter. "Progress M-01M – 25M (11F615A60, 7KTGM)". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 29 March 2013.
- ^ Krebs, Gunter. "Soyuz-TMA 01M – 16M (7K-STMA, 11F747)". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 29 March 2013.
- ^ "РОСКОСМОС: ТГК "ПРОГРЕСС М-27М" ПРЕКРАТИЛ СУЩЕСТВОВАНИЕ". Federal Space. 8 May 2015. Archived from the original on 8 May 2015. Retrieved 15 December 2015.
- ^ "Upgraded Progress Transport Cargo Spacecraft Getting Ready for Launch". Yuzhny Space Center. 10 August 2015. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
- ^ Krebs, Gunter (1 December 2015). "Progress-MS 01-19". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
- ^ Zak, Anatoly (16 November 2018). "Progress-MS". RussianSpaceWeb.com. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
- ^ Blau, Patrick. "Progress MS Spacecraft". Spaceflight101.com. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
- ^ Chris Bergin (4 July 2009). "Constellation battle numerous Top Risks – Orion loses unmanned capability". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 29 March 2013.
External links
- Russian Progress Spacecraft – NASA page discussing the Progress spacecraft, updated May 2005
- Progress cargo ship – History, photos and details at RussianSpaceWeb.com