The Russian Orbital Station MIR

The Mir station, which is the only station orbiting around our planet, is a unique scientific laboratory. While as a microgravity laboratory, Mir is used for basic research, it is also an incredible platform for observing the Earth and the universe. The main station module was launched on 19 February 1986 by a Proton Launcher. Since 1986, the station has grown with the addition of complementary modules and is now a space complex weighing almost 130 tonnes.

Mir, which gradually became an international station, has been receiving astronaut experiment specialists from all over the world. As part of French/Russian co-operation, French astronauts have stayed on the Russian station for up to more than three consecutive weeks during successive missions. Today the world space community is preparing for the future International Space Station which is due to be commissioned at the beginning of the year 2000.

For about ten years, astronauts explored space in uncomfortable small capsules where the only positions possible were crouching or lying down. It soon became apparent that a bigger structure was needed, which would offer better conditions for staying and working in space, thus enabling astronauts to perform useful scientific experiments.

From 1971 to 1982 the USSR orbited and exploited seven Salyut stations, all of which have since been destroyed.The Mir station is thus its eighth orbital laboratory. Launched without passengers, it was designed for manned flight. During its eleven years of service it has frequently been occupied, receiving several international crews for short and medium duration missions. Fifteen Russian cosmonauts stayed there for long periods of time. The record is held by the Russian doctor, Valkri Poliakov, who spent 467 days on Mir from 1994 to 1995 and who has spent a total of more than 707 days in orbit, counting both stays. In order to prepare for future operations for assembling and operating the International Space Station, eight joint American/Russian missions took place from 1995 to 1997, with orbital rendezvous between the American shuttle and the Mir station (first docking of the American Atlantis shuttle on 29 June 1995).


The main station module :
The new generation, central module of the Mir station is very impressive: a 13 m long cylinder, its diameter sometimes reaches 4.2 m and its weight is 20.4 tonnes. It is both a command post and living space and has improved furnishings and especially, at each end, six docking modules (one at the rear and five others fore). As the central station element, the working space, with a length of 7.6 m, has a living space of about 100 m2. In the middle, a large room is used for piloting the station, for working (scientific experiments), for cooking and for sports training.

In order to help astronauts orient themselves, since microgravity deprives them of other reference frames, the floor was covered with dark-green wall-to-wall carpeting, the walls are a light green colour and the ceiling is white with fluorescent lamps. Thirteen portholes are used for visual observation or for installing scientific instruments. The internal temperature is maintained between 18 and 28�C and atmospheric humidity between 30 to 70%. The air has the same composition and pressure as on Earth. The main module is also equipped with a refrigerator, food stores and drinking water, a small wash basin, shower and toilet. Two individual cabins are reserved for the main crew. They have a porthole, a small working table and a tip-up seat as well as a sleeping bag along the lateral wall.

Complementary modules docked to the station:
Since 1986 the Mir station has grown with the docking of several complementary modules which have been added almost like a Meccano set. The assembly, called by the Russians the orbital train, measures more than 40 m in length and weighs almost 130 tonnes.

Kvant 1 (1987) is an 11 tonne structure with a length of 5.80 m which added to the length of the station. This module has telescopes and is a laboratory dedicated to research in astrophysics and the study of atmospheric and space phenomena. Kvant 1 is also fitted with a biotechnology laboratory (specialised in research into anti-viruses).

Kvant 2 (1989), a 19.6 tonne module, added various capabilities to the station: water, oxygen supplies, showers, washing equipment as well as an EVA access chamber. Divided into three pressurised compartments it also has a laboratory for biological research. Kvant 2 is equipped for providing Earth observation data.

Kristall (1990), weighing 19.6 tonnes and 11.9 m in length, docked to the station one year later on the opposite site to Kvant 2. It has two retractable solar arrays and also carries scientific equipment. With Kristall, it can be used to develop biological products and materials in a space environment.

Spektr (1995), weighing 19.6 tonnes and with a length of about 12 m, docked to the station in the place previously occupied by the Kristall module (which was then placed opposite Prioroda). This module generates the most electricity (7000 watts) by means of its two large solar arrays of 35 m2. It also has scientific instruments including more than 800 kilos of American equipment. Its main objective is Earth observation and more particularly the study of natural resources, the atmosphere and X and gamma rays. Spectra, which collided on 25 June 1997 with a Progress spacecraft, suffered damage to its solar panels which led to a significant loss of electricity for the station. An interface module attached to the Kristall module was launched by the American shuttle Atlantis in 1995. It is used for the docking of American space shuttles with the Mir station.

Priroda (1996) was the last module to be added to the Mir station. It docked on 26 April 1996 and increased the station�s Earth observation capacity. Dedicated to research into ecological and environmental problems, it is used to determine the effect of major industrial zones, to study the concentration of ozone, the temperature of oceans and also clouds.

Mir station
Launching of main module: 19 february 1986 Orbit: between 380 and 410 km in altitude Inclination: 51.60� in relation to the equator Complementary modules: 1987: Kvant 1 1989: Kvant 2 1990: Kristall 1995: Spektr 1996: Priroda Total weight: 130 tonnes Total length: 40 m Working volume: 400 m3 Spacecraft linking the station to the Earth The Mir station has relatively limited autonomy and requires regular supply for continued operation.
It was thus designed to receive several types of spacecraft :

  • The manned Soyuz spacecraft, used to carry astronauts (limited to 3 people) and a small amount of equipment between Earth and the station (and from the station to the Earth). They were designed for five days of autonomous flight (2 days are needed to travel between Earth and Mir) and may stay docked to the station for 180 days. With a total mass of 7 tonnes and a volume of 10 m3, the Soyuz has three pressurised compartments: one for instruments, a life module and a descent module weighing 3 tonnes. The Soyuz are also emergency spacecraft for astronauts needing to leave the station,
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  • The Progress spacecraft, which are capable of reaching the station and docking automatically. They are used for supplying it with food and water. They carry scientific equipment but also mail and personal items for the astronauts, about once every six to eight weeks. They are also used to re-supply the station engines with propellant, which is used to adjust the station orbit when atmospheric drag brings it too close to the ground. (Definition: propellant is the fuel used by launcher rockets, satellites and other engines on the Mir station. All space launchers use chemical propulsion. The gas is created through combustion of liquid or solid substances known as propellants.)
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  • The American space shuttle, since 1995.(picture)
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    Experiments on the station:

    The Mir station is an exceptional experimental laboratory free of Earth gravity. Indeed, elements of a system which are normally in free fall are now in a microgravity situation. (Definition: microgravity is a unique characteristic of the environment of a spacecraft in orbit, which cannot be reproduced on the ground. It eliminates the normal effects of gravity.) Mir is thus a unique test facility for basic or applied research into very varied physical, chemical, biological, and physiological phenomena whose manifestations are normally affected by gravity. Hundreds of experiments conducted on Mir have focused in particular on astronomy, astrophysics, Earth observation, geophysics, medicine, biology, botany and materials science.


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