| Mission insignia | |
|---|---|
 Mir insignia | |
| Mission statistics | |
| Mission name | Mir |
| Call sign | Mir |
| Launch | February 19, 1986 21:28:23 UTC Baikonur, USSR |
| Reentry | March 23, 2001 05:50:00 UTC |
| Crew | 28 long duration crews |
| Occupied | 4,594 days |
| In orbit | 5,511 days |
| Number of Orbits |
89,067 |
| Apogee | 393 km /244 mi |
| Perigee | 385 km /239 mi |
| Period | 89.1 min |
| Inclination | 51.6 deg |
| Distance traveled |
3,638,470,307 km / 2,260,840,632 mi |
| Orbital mass w/Spektr, Kristal, etc. |
124,340 kg |
| Configuration | |
| |
| Mir space station | |
Mir (Мир, which can mean both world and peace in Russian) was a highly successful Soviet (and later Russian) orbital station. It was humanity's first consistently inhabited long-term research station in space. Through a number of collaborations, it was made internationally accessible to cosmonauts and astronauts of many different countries. Mir was assembled in orbit by successively connecting several modules, each launched separately from February 19, 1986 to 1996. The station existed until March 23, 2001, at which point it was deliberately de-orbited, and broke apart during atmospheric re-entry.
History
Mir was based upon the Salyut series of space stations previously launched by the Soviet Union (seven Salyut space stations had been launched since 1971). It was mainly serviced by Russian-manned Soyuz spacecraft and Progress cargo ships, but it was anticipated that it would also be the destination for flights by the later abandoned Buran space shuttle. The orbiting Mir's purpose was to provide a large and habitable scientific laboratory in outer space.
The United States had planned to build Space Station Freedom as its counterpart to Mir, but this project was cancelled after the fall of the Soviet Union made an international cooperation possible (see International Space Station). Also, the space shuttle Challenger exploded less than a month before Mir was launched into orbit (see Space Shuttle Challenger disaster). In later years, after the end of the Cold War, the Shuttle-Mir program combined Russia's Mir capabilities with United States space shuttles and allowed a couple of American and other western astronauts to visit or stay long-term on the station. The visiting US shuttles used a modified docking collar originally designed for the Soviet Buran shuttle, mounted on a bracket originally designed for use with Space Station Freedom. With the space shuttle docked to Mir the temporary enlargements of living and working areas amounted to a complex that was the world's largest spacecraft at that time in space history, with a combined mass of 250 tons.
Inside, the 100-ton Mir looked like a cramped labyrinth, crowded with hoses, cables and scientific instruments – as well as articles of everyday life, such as photos, children's drawings, books and a guitar. It commonly housed three crewmembers, but it sometimes supported as many as six for up to a month. Except for two short periods, Mir was continuously occupied until August 1999.
The journey of the 15-year-old Russian space station ended on March 23, 2001, as Mir re-entered the Earth's atmosphere near Nadi, Fiji, and fell into the South Pacific Ocean. Near the end of its life, there were plans for private interests to purchase Mir, possibly for use as the first orbital television/movie studio. A privately funded Soyuz mission carried two crew members to the station to carry out some repair work with the hope of proving that the station could be made safe; however this was to be the last manned mission to Mir. Whilst Russia was optimistic about the future of Mir, commitments to the International Space Station project meant that there was no funding to support the ageing station. Early proposals by Russia to use Mir as the core of the ISS were firmly rejected by NASA, and when the first ISS components were launched NASA insisted upon an orbit which effectively prevented transfer between the two stations. Many in the space community still felt that at least some of Mir was salvageable and that considering the extremely high costs of getting material into orbit, disposing of Mir was a wasted opportunity.
In addition to Soviet/Russian cosmonauts, Mir hosted international scientists and U.S. astronauts.
Mir modules
The Mir space station was constructed by connecting several Mir modules, each launched into orbit separately by the Proton rocket, except for the Docking Module, which was brought to Mir by the Space Shuttle.
| Module | Launch Date | Launch vehicle | Docking Date | Mass | Soyuz | Purpose | Configuration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core | February 19, 1986 | Proton 8K82K | N/A | 20,100 kg | N/A | Living quarters | 
|
| Kvant-1 | March 31, 1987 | Proton 8K82K | ~April 9, 1987 | 10,000 kg | TM-2 | Astronomy | 
|
| Kvant-2 | November 26, 1989 | Proton 8K82K | December 6, 1989 | 19,640 kg | TM-8 | Newer, more sophisticated life support systems. | 
|
| Kristall | May 31, 1990 | Proton 8K82K | June 10, 1990 | 19,640 kg | TM-9 | Technology, material processing, geophysics and astrophysics laboratory | 
|
| Spektr | May 20, 1995 | Proton 8K82K | June 1, 1995 | 19,640 kg | TM-21 | House experiments for the US-Russian Cooperation program. | 
|
| Docking Module | November 12, 1995 | STS-74 Atlantis | November 15, 1995 | 6,134 kg | TM-22 | Used as a docking port for the Space Shuttle. | 
|
| Priroda | April 23, 1996 | Proton 8K82K | April 26, 1996 | 19,000 kg | TM-23 | Remote sensing module | 
|
Core Module
The Core Module provided living quarters and station control. It was equipped with six docking ports, and it served as a core of the multi-modular space station. It was launched on February 19, 1986 at 21:28 UTC from Baikonur LC200 with a Proton 8K82K. Its initial orbit had a Perigee of 387 km and Apogee of 395 km. The inclination was 51.6 deg for the duration of the station (and is the same for the International Space Station). The initial period was 92.4 min.
Although the Core Module resembled Salyut 6 and Salyut 7, there were also major differences between them. Because most of the additional instruments can be placed onboard "add-on" modules, much of the scientific equipment found on Salyut space stations was absent. It was equipped with six docking ports, and it served as a core of the later multi-modular space station.
Kvant-1
Kvant-1 (means "quantum") was originally planned to dock with Salyut 7 , Mir's predecessor. The module experienced technical problems during its development, however, and it was reassigned for Mir. The module carried the first set of six gyroscopes for attitude control. The module also carried instruments for X-ray and ultraviolet astrophysical observation.
The initial rendezvous of the Kvant-1 module with Mir on April 5 1987 was troubled by the failure of the onboard control system. After the failure of the second attempt to dock, the onboard cosmonauts conducted a spacewalk to fix the problem. They found a trash bag between the module and the station, which prevented the docking. The bag was left in orbit after the departure of one of the cargo ships. They removed the bag and completed docking on April 12.
Kvant-2
The Kvant-2 module was based on a TKS transport spacecraft. It contained scientific instruments and the crew's shower. It also contained a second set of gyroscopes that was mounted on the exterior of the spacecraft, and a new life support system for recycling water and generating oxygen.
It was divided into three sections. One of them was a large airlock featuring a one-metre hatch. It was used for conducting spacewalks and thus contained a special backpack. Its size and functions are similar to the US Manned Maneuvering Unit.
Kristall
Kristall (meaning "crystal" in Russian) was a technology, material processing, geophysics and astrophysics laboratory.
The main purpose of the Kristall module was to serve as a docking port for the Soviet's Buran-class space shuttle. It was to be used in a planned Shuttle Ptichka mission in the early 1990's. This never happened as the Soviet's space shuttle program was terminated in the 1990s, and the module was used later to serve as the docking port of the American Space Shuttle instead.
Other equipments included the Crater-V electrical furnace, the Svetlana experiment, and the experiments Buket, Marina and Glazar. The Crater-V electrical furnace was designed for the purpose of creating high quality gallium arsenide and zinc oxide crystals. The Svetlana experiment included a small greenhouse for the cultivation of plants, equipped with a source of light and a feeding system. Finally, the experiments Buket, Marina and Glazar were designed for ultraviolet astronomy observations.
Spektr
Spektr served as the living and working space for American astronauts. The module moved positions on the station on July 17, 1995 to its final position by the robotic arm aboard the station.
Docking Module
During the STS-71 mission, Atlantis docked directly with the Kristall module, using the docking port intended for the Soviet-era Buran shuttle. In order to provide sufficient clearance between the shuttle and Mir's solar arrays, the Kristall module had to be shifted from its usual position to Mir's axial docking port. This left only one docking port for use by Soyuz or Progress vehicles, preventing Mir from receiving supplies, exchanging crews, or replacing a docked Soyuz.
The problem was solved by attaching the Docking Module to Kristall's docking port, thereby providing enough clearance for a shuttle to dock with Mir without moving Kristall or coming too close to the station's solar arrays.
Priroda
Priroda conducted Earth remote sensing.
Before, during and after the Shuttle-Mir Program, Mir was tended and resupplied by manned Soyuz capsules and unmanned Progress cargo vehicles.
Names
In Russian, Mir (Мир) can mean both "peace," or "world." Kvant (Квант) means "quantum," a name derived from its purpose to provide research in astrophysics by measuring electromagnetic spectra and x-ray emissions. Kristall (Кристалл) means "crystal," and a main purpose of this module is to develop biological and materials-production technologies in the space environment. Spektr (Спектр) means "spectrum," so named for its atmospheric sensors. Priroda (Природа) means "nature." Progress (Прогресс) means the same as it does in English. Soyuz (Союз) means "union," so named for the USSR (Sovietskii Soyuz, Советский Союз = Soviet Union) and because the spacecraft was a union of three smaller modules.
International cooperation
In September 1993 U.S. Vice-President Al Gore and Russian prime minister Viktor Chernomyrdin announced plans for a new space station, which would later be called the International Space Station, or ISS. They also agreed that, in preparation for this new project, the U.S. would be largely involved in the Mir project in the years ahead, under the code name Phase One (the ISS being Phase Two). Space shuttles would take part in the transportation of supplies and people to and from Mir. U.S. astronauts would live on Mir for many months on end. Thus the U.S. could share and learn from the unique experience that Russia had with long duration space trips.
Starting from March 1995 seven U.S. astronauts consecutively spent 28 months on Mir. During their stay the space station went through rough times and several acute emergencies occurred, notably a large fire on February 23 1997, and a collision with a Progress (unmanned) cargo ship on June 25 1997. In both occasions complete evacuation (there was a Soyuz escape craft for return to earth) was avoided by a narrow margin. The second disaster left a hole in the Spektr module, which then was sealed off from the rest of the station. Several space walks were needed to restore full power to Mir (one of the "space walks" was inside the Spektr module from which all the air had escaped).
The cooperation between the U.S. and Russia proved far from easy. Distrust, lack of coordination, language problems, different views of each others' responsibilities and divergent interests caused many problems. After the emergencies, the U.S. Congress and NASA considered whether the U.S. should abandon the program out of concern for astronauts' safety. NASA administrator Daniel S. Goldin decided to continue the program. In June 1998, the final U.S. Mir astronaut Andy Thomas, who was actually an Australian, left the station aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery.
The story of Phase One is described in great detail by Bryan Burrough in his book Dragonfly: NASA and the Crisis Aboard Mir (1998).
The Mir space station was originally planned to be followed by a Mir 2, and elements of that project, including the core module (now called Zvezda) which was labeled as "Mir-2" for quite some time in the factory, are now an integral part of the International Space Station.
Mir in popular culture
- French musician Jean Michel Jarre had a connection with Mir during his Oxygen in Moscow concert, with 3.5 million people attending on September 6 1997.
- Two amateur radio call signs were assigned to Mir in the late 1980s, allowing radio operators on Earth to communicate with the cosmonauts. One of the call signs was U2MIR, U being a letter that Soviet call signs could begin with. [citation needed]
- The station played a prominent role as a refueling depot in Michael Bay's 1998 movie Armageddon (although it was referred to simply as the "Russian Space Station"). The station was "destroyed" in the movie following a fuel leak during the refueling. The lone Russian cosmonaut was said to have been on Mir for the prior 18 months.
- The station served a minor role as a refuge for S.R. Hadden in the 1997 movie adaptation of Contact.
- A confidence trickster Peter Llewellyn almost got a free ride on Mir in 1999 after promising US$100 million for the privilege. [1]
- In the South Park episode "Pink Eye", Kenny's first death in the episode is that of Mir crashing on his body.
- Although it has little to do with the space station, there was a series a MMORPG's entitled "The Legend of Mir".
- In the pilot episode of the Showtime series Dead Like Me, the lead character George (Ellen Muth) was killed when Mir's zero-gravity toilet seat fell to earth and hit her. The fictional event occurred more than two years after the station's actual re-entry (assuming the events of the episode matched the air date of 1 June 2003).
- In anticipation of the reentry of Mir, the owners of Taco Bell towed a large target out into the Pacific Ocean. If the target was hit by a falling piece of Mir, every person in the United States would be entitled to a free Taco Bell taco. The company bought a sizable insurance policy for this "gamble."[2] No piece of the station struck the target.
- In episode 5F21 of The Simpsons, Homer has a flashback of himself sabotaging Mir[3], while in episode CABF03 the Simpsons family car is hit by a sturgeon from the space station [4].
Expeditions, spacewalks and crews
See also
- Space station for statistics of occupied space stations
- Salyut
- Skylab
- Soyuz
- Progress
- International Space Station
- Asteroid 11881 Mirstation was named after the space station.
- Shuttle-Mir Program
References
- ^ No Mir flight for British businessman BBC News: May 27, 1999
- ^ Taco Bell press release March 19, 2001
- ^ Simpsons episode 5F21
- ^ Simpsons episode CABF03
External links
