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Mir...one day to oblivion.
Mar. 22nd, 2001 09:15 amThe Mir space station will be deorbited tomorrow, between 9 and 10 am, Moscow time, which is between 11 and midnight tonight.
The process will begin when the station descends to exactly 220 km. At that moment, the Progress M1-5 cargo vehicle docked to the station will execute three retrograde burns that will slow the station's orbit, causing it to descend to an orbit of 170 km, which is just above the bulk of the Earth's atmosphere. The Progress will then execute two more burns: one over the western coast of Africa; the other, over the Black Sea. At that point, the station will descend into the atmosphere; as the orbit takes the station over the Pacific Ocean, the aerodynamic drag on the station will increase to the point where the hardware will begin to burn. The lightweight parts will burn up completely. A number of larger chunks of the station, however, will burn only incompletely; what is left will splash down into the Pacific Ocean.
I spent several years helping NASA support a joint program of flights to Mir. I've studied its systems and have translated probably a couple of million words related to the station and the joint program.
I feel really bad about seeing it go down, but not anywhere near as bad, I think, as the people who really devoted themselves to making Mir fly, and who spent the better part of two decades or more of their lives on this project. Compared to them, my psychological "stake" in this station is tiny.
On the plus side, of course, is the fact that - despite many troubles - Mir flew for 15 years, exceeding by 10 years the design lifetime of the station. Just try that with your Ford or Chevy on the highways here on Earth.
Cheers...
The process will begin when the station descends to exactly 220 km. At that moment, the Progress M1-5 cargo vehicle docked to the station will execute three retrograde burns that will slow the station's orbit, causing it to descend to an orbit of 170 km, which is just above the bulk of the Earth's atmosphere. The Progress will then execute two more burns: one over the western coast of Africa; the other, over the Black Sea. At that point, the station will descend into the atmosphere; as the orbit takes the station over the Pacific Ocean, the aerodynamic drag on the station will increase to the point where the hardware will begin to burn. The lightweight parts will burn up completely. A number of larger chunks of the station, however, will burn only incompletely; what is left will splash down into the Pacific Ocean.
I spent several years helping NASA support a joint program of flights to Mir. I've studied its systems and have translated probably a couple of million words related to the station and the joint program.
I feel really bad about seeing it go down, but not anywhere near as bad, I think, as the people who really devoted themselves to making Mir fly, and who spent the better part of two decades or more of their lives on this project. Compared to them, my psychological "stake" in this station is tiny.
On the plus side, of course, is the fact that - despite many troubles - Mir flew for 15 years, exceeding by 10 years the design lifetime of the station. Just try that with your Ford or Chevy on the highways here on Earth.
Cheers...
