Soyuz TM-20

Soyuz TM-20
Mission type Mir crew transport
Operator Rosaviakosmos
COSPAR ID 1994-063A
SATCAT № 23288
Mission duration 169 days, 5 hours, 21 minutes, 35 seconds
Orbits completed ~2,760
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft Soyuz 7K-STM No.69[1]
Spacecraft type Soyuz-TM
Manufacturer RKK Energia
Launch mass 7,170 kilograms (15,810 lb)
Crew
Crew size 3
Members Alexander Viktorenko
Yelena Kondakova
Launching Ulf Merbold
Landing Valeri Polyakov
Callsign Ви́тязь (Vityaz' - Knight)
Start of mission
Launch date October 3, 1994, 22:42:30 (1994-10-03UTC22:42:30Z) UTC[1]
Rocket Soyuz-U2
Launch site Baikonur 1/5
End of mission
Landing date March 22, 1995, 04:04:05 (1995-03-22UTC04:04:06Z) UTC
Landing site 50°31′N 67°21′E / 50.52°N 67.35°E / 50.52; 67.35
Orbital parameters
Reference system Geocentric
Regime Low Earth
Perigee 392 kilometres (244 mi)
Apogee 394 kilometres (245 mi)
Inclination 51.6 degrees
Period 92.42 minutes
Epoch 3 November 1994[2]
Docking with Mir
Docking port Core forward
Docking date 6 October 1994, 00:28:15 UTC
Undocking date 22 March 1995, 00:43:08 UTC


Soyuz programme
(Manned missions)
 Soyuz TM-19 Soyuz TM-21

The Soyuz-TM crew transports (T - транспортный - Transportnyi - meaning transport, M - модифицированный - Modifitsirovannyi - meaning modified) were fourth generation (1986–2002) Soyuz spacecraft used for ferry flights to the Mir and ISS space stations. It added to the Soyuz-T new docking and rendezvous, radio communications, emergency and integrated parachute/landing engine systems. The new Kurs rendezvous and docking system permitted the Soyuz-TM to maneuver independently of the station, without the station making "mirror image" maneuvers to match unwanted translations introduced by earlier models' aft-mounted attitude control.

Soyuz TM-20 was the twentieth expedition to the Russian Space Station Mir.

Mir as seen from Space Shuttle Discovery during STS-63, with Soyuz TM-20 seen at the top

Crew

Position Launching crew Landing crew
Commander Russia Alexander Viktorenko
Fourth spaceflight
Flight Engineer Russia Yelena Kondakova
First spaceflight
Research Cosmonaut Germany Ulf Merbold
Third and last spaceflight
Russia Valeri Polyakov
Second and last spaceflight

Mission highlights

20th expedition to Mir.

Carried 10 kg of equipment for use by Merbold in ESA’s month-long Euromir 94 experiment program. During automatic approach to Mir’s front port, the spacecraft yawed unexpectedly. Viktorenko completed a manual docking without additional incident.

References

  1. 1 2 McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  2. McDowell, Jonathan. "Satellite Catalog". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
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