space2

Mir Space Station

Mir Deorbit Groundtrack

A brief history of Mir

Before Mir

In April 1971, the Russians put into Earth orbit the first manned space station Salyut 1. In 1972, the American orbital space station Skylab was put into Earth orbit. Then 13 years later, on February 20th 1986, the former Soviet Space Agency put in orbit the core module of the Mir space station (Salyut 7).

The Mir Space Station

Mir is the largest and longest-lasting space station ever built. Mir, a Russian station, became a base for international cooperation in exploring space,including dockings by United States space shuttles. The station consists of a number of separately launched spacecraft or modules. An assembly of the permanent modules, a Soyuz-TM vehicle for transporting crew members, and a remote-controlled Progress supply ship measures 107 feet (33 meters) in length. Mir is Russian for peace.

The Soviet Union began to assemble Mir during the years of the "space race" competition between the Soviet Union and the United States. The first module went into orbit in 1986. The Soviets intended to operate Mir for five years. But the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, and what became the Russian space industry went into decline. As a result, the Russians extended Mir's lifetime, rather than build another station.

Equipment breakdowns and human errors led to several accidents. In an especially dangerous accident in June 1997, a Progress ship collided with a module known as Spektr. The crash opened a small hole in the module, which began to leak air. The crew quickly sealed off Spektr. Today it remains abandoned.

The first part of Mir to go into orbit was the Core Module, or Base Block. This module is a modified version of Salyut space stations that the Soviets orbited from 1971 to 1982. The module has docking ports at both ends. Docked at one end is the Kvant 1 laboratory and life-support module, which was launched in 1987. Kvant 1 has a second docking port for Progress ships and other vehicles.

Attached at the other end of the Core Module is the Transfer Node, a large, hollow ball with five docking ports and a door to the Core Module. All the ports face different directions, like the sides of a cube. The port oppposite the Core Module is available for Soyuz-TM vehicles. Permanently docked at the other four ports are (1) Kvant 2, a lab with a large airlock and life-support facilities, launched in 1989; (2) Kristall, launched in 1990 as a docking module for a planned Soviet shuttle; (3) Spektr, a science laboratory, launched in 1995; and (4) the Priroda earth observatory, launched in 1996. In 1995, the U.S. shuttle Atlantis left a special docking module attached to Kristall for future shuttle flights.

Mir's orbit is about 235 miles (375 kilometers) above the earth. The orbit takes Mir as far from the equator as 52° north latitude and 52°south latitude. The station flies around the earth in about 90 minutes.

Russia's Mir Space Station (Mir means peace in Russian) has been in orbit for 15 years. The first element of the station was launched in February 20th 1986 at an inclination of 51.6 degrees. The current Mir Space Station is actually a complex of different modules that have been pieced together.
Mir History Cont. >>

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Before Mir
In April 1971, the Russians put into Earth orbit the first manned space station Salyut 1. In 1972, the American orbital space station Skylab was put into Earth orbit. Then 13 years later, on February 20th 1986, the former Soviet Space Agency put in orbit the core module of the Mir space station (Salyut 7).

Mir is the largest and longest-lasting space station ever built. Mir, a Russian station, became a base for international cooperation in exploring space,including dockings by United States space shuttles. The station consists of a number of separately launched spacecraft or modules. An assembly of the permanent modules, a Soyuz-TM vehicle for transporting crew members, and a remote-controlled Progress supply ship measures 107 feet (33 meters) in length. Mir is Russian for peace.
The Soviet Union began to assemble Mir during the years of the "space race" competition between the Soviet Union and the United States. The first module went into orbit in 1986. The Soviets intended to operate Mir for five years. But the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, and what became the Russian space industry went into decline. As a result, the Russians extended Mir's lifetime, rather than build another station.
Equipment breakdowns and human errors led to several accidents. In an especially dangerous accident in June 1997, a Progress ship collided with a module known as Spektr. The crash opened a small hole in the module, which began to leak air. The crew quickly sealed off Spektr. Today it remains abandoned.
The first part of Mir to go into orbit was the Core Module, or Base Block. This module is a modified version of Salyut space stations that the Soviets orbited from 1971 to 1982. The module has docking ports at both ends. Docked at one end is the Kvant 1 laboratory and life-support module, which was launched in 1987. Kvant 1 has a second docking port for Progress ships and other vehicles.
Attached at the other end of the Core Module is the Transfer Node, a large, hollow ball with five docking ports and a door to the Core Module. All the ports face different directions, like the sides of a cube. The port oppposite the Core Module is available for Soyuz-TM vehicles. Permanently docked at the other four ports are (1) Kvant 2, a lab with a large airlock and life-support facilities, launched in 1989; (2) Kristall, launched in 1990 as a docking module for a planned Soviet shuttle; (3) Spektr, a science laboratory, launched in 1995; and (4) the Priroda earth observatory, launched in 1996. In 1995, the U.S. shuttle Atlantis left a special docking module attached to Kristall for future shuttle flights.
Mir's orbit is about 235 miles (375 kilometers) above the earth. The orbit takes Mir as far from the equator as 52° north latitude and 52°south latitude. The station flies around the earth in about 90 minutes.
Russia's Mir Space Station (Mir means peace in Russian) has been in orbit for 15 years. The first element of the station was launched in February 20th 1986 at an inclination of 51.6 degrees. The current Mir Space Station is actually a complex of different modules that have been pieced together. Mir History Cont. >>