Progress M1-5
Rosaviakosmos[1] | |
COSPAR ID | 2001-003A |
---|---|
SATCAT no. | 26688![]() |
Mission duration | 58 days, 1 hour, 30 minutes |
Spacecraft properties | |
Spacecraft | Progress M1-5 No. 254 |
Spacecraft type | Energia |
Launch mass | 7,082 kg (15,613 lb)[2] |
Start of mission | |
Launch date | 24 January 2001, 04:28:42 | UTC
Rocket | Soyuz-U |
Launch site | Baikonur, Site 1/5 |
End of mission | |
Disposal | Deorbited |
Decay date | 23 March 2001, 05:59:24 | UTC
Orbital parameters | |
Reference system | Geocentric |
Regime | Low Earth |
Perigee altitude | 256 km (159 mi) |
Apogee altitude | 282 km (175 mi) |
Inclination | 51.6° |
Period | 89.89 minutes |
Epoch | 26 January 2001[3] |
Docking with Mir | |
Docking port | Kvant-1 aft |
Docking date | 27 January 2001, 05:33:31 UTC |
Cargo | |
Fuel | 2,678 kg (5,904 lb)[a] |
Progress Mir flights |
Progress M1-5 was the
Launched in January 2001 after a short delay due to a problem with Mir, on 27 January Progress M1-5 became the last spacecraft to dock with the station. It spent two months attached to the Kvant-1 module before deorbiting the station on 23 March 2001. Mir re-entered the atmosphere with Progress M1-5 still docked, disintegrating over the Pacific Ocean, with debris falling into the ocean at around 06:00 UTC. During the early stages of the uncrewed Progress M1-5 mission, a crewed Soyuz was placed on standby to launch in order to complete the mission if a problem occurred. The decision to deorbit Mir attracted both praise and criticism for Rosaviakosmos, while several campaigns to save the station were conducted.
Background

Mir was the seventh and last crewed space station to be launched as part of the
In November 2000, Rosaviakosmos decided to deorbit Mir,
Mission
Launch and docking
Progress M1-5 was launched by a
Preparations for the launch resumed on 22 January, and the launch occurred successfully at 04:28:42 GMT on 24 January.[26] Following the launch, Progress M1-5 spent three days in free flight before docking with the rear port of the Kvant-1 module of Mir at 05:33:31 GMT on 27 January.[18][27][28][29] The docking port had previously been occupied by Progress M-43, which departed at 05:19:49 on 25 January,[28][30][31] and subsequently remained in orbit until Progress M1-5 had docked with Mir.[31] Progress M-43, which had originally been launched to carry supplies and raise Mir's orbit, in anticipation of crewed flights which were never launched,[32] was subsequently deorbited at 02:12 GMT on 29 January, burning up during re-entry at 02:58.[32][33] Free-flights of Progress spacecraft typically lasted two days from launch to docking with Mir,[30] however Progress M1-5 took three days to reach Mir in order to conserve fuel for the deorbit burn. If it had launched on 18 January it would have spent four days in free flight.[22]
Post-docking
Progress M1-5 spent two months docked to Mir before the deorbit burn occurred. The gap between docking and deorbit was in order to allow the spacecraft to dock whilst Mir was still in a stable orbit, but then to allow some natural decay, or decrease in altitude, to occur in order to conserve the Progress' fuel. Controllers determined that they should wait for the station's orbital altitude to reach 250 kilometres (160 mi) before deorbiting it. In addition,
On 20 February, Mir was predicted to descend to 250 kilometres within five days of 9 March.[22] By 1 March, it was at an altitude of 265 kilometres (165 mi), and descending at a rate of 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) per day. On 7 March, the Russian space agency opted to delay the deorbit burn until the station reached 220 kilometres (140 mi) as a result of natural decay, in order to allow more fuel for the burn, giving a greater range of options in the event of an anomaly during the deorbit manoeuvre.[22] It was predicted that without intervention, the station would have naturally entered the atmosphere on 28 March. On 12 March computers aboard Mir were reactivated ahead of deorbiting,[35] along with the control system on 13 March.[36] On 14 March it was announced that the procedure would be conducted on 22 March.[37] On 19 March it was delayed one day further due to a lower than expected descent rate, with the start of the first deorbit burn being set for 00:31 GMT.[38]
Deorbit
Progress M1-5 carried 2,678 kilograms (5,904 lb) of fuel with which to perform the manoeuvres to deorbit Mir.
Contingency planning

Like all Progress spacecraft, M1-5 carried two docking systems,
Progress M-43, which had been launched in 2000, undocked from Mir the day after Progress M1-5 launched, and was kept in orbit until Progress M1-5 docked.[31] In the event that Progress M1-5 had been unable to dock, Progress M-43 would have returned to the station and provide supplies of food and oxygen for the Soyuz crew.[22] Progress M-43 was deorbited after Progress M1-5 docked successfully.[33] If Progress M1-5 had launched on 16 January, the Soyuz launch would have occurred on 10 February if it had been required.[23] It was stood down around 22 February, after the decaying altitude of Mir made it too dangerous to send a crew to it.[22] If Mir's main computer had failed after Progress M1-5 had docked, then the flight plan would have been modified to use either the station's BUPO rendezvous system, or the Progress for control. Under this plan, the third deorbit burn would have been conducted 24 hours after the first two burns, with the station being spin-stabilised again between the second and third burns. Controllers also planned for a failure of Mir's power system, which would have resulted in the deorbit being delayed one day, with all guidance and control functions being handled by the Progress spacecraft.[22][37]
It was reported that Rosaviakosmos had taken out an insurance policy worth $200 million to cover damage caused by falling debris.
Reaction
The reaction to Russia's announcement and subsequent execution of its plan to deorbit Mir was mixed. Several cosmonauts expressed regrets at the loss of the station, but support for the decision to end the programme; Vladimir Titov described the station as "a good ship", but said that he agreed with the decision to prioritise the International Space Station,[60] while Vladimir Dezhurov said that he felt "sad about Mir but we have to look into the future."[60] In November 2000, shortly after plans to deorbit Mir were announced, members of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia passed a resolution in the Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, aimed at preventing it.[61] On 8 February 2001, a protest against the deorbiting of the station was held in Moscow, and a petition was subsequently sent to Russian president Vladimir Putin.[62] Gennady Zyuganov, the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, described deorbiting the station to be "incorrect and harmful", and the act of a "helpless, weak-willed, inefficient and not very responsible" government.[63] Iran attempted to buy the space station, with president Mohammad Khatami offering to fund it for two to three years in return for Russian assistance with cosmonaut training,[64] however by this stage it was too late for such a transaction to be completed.[65]
The major Russian
The US Government welcomed the decision to deorbit Mir, as it freed up Russian resources for the International Space Station programme.
See also
References
Notes
- ^ Gross mass, which includes propellant needed to rendezvous with Mir and hence unavailable for the deorbit burn.
Citations
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