Subject: MIRNEWS.369
From: "C.M. van den Berg" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>
Cc: <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 12 Jul 1997 21:23:22 +0200

MIRNEWS.369                                               11 JULY 1997

Progress-M35:  In contrast with the normal practice after dockings this
time the crew had to wait with the opening of the hatches until the next
day  to conserve power and to enable the crew to have a good night's rest. 
The subjects discussed during radiocommunications in the passes in the
first 3 orbits after the docking  had nothing to do with the arrival of the
Progress-M. They spoke about the replacement of watertanks, the switching
on and off of the Elektron for oxygenproduction and the  work on the
accumulators. They had problems with the BKV-3 (air conditioning) and
something was wrong with the Vozdukh, the CO2 scrubber.  The next day the
crew got permission to open the hatches and to start the unloading and
loading of the freighter. They immediately began to pump water into the
tanks of the complex.  Foale had seen his 'goodies'  for which he had been
anxiously waiting, but due to the congestion of goods he could not yet 
reach them.  This week radiotraffic revealed circumstances which did not
get much attention in the press and statusreports. Everybody is aware of
the fact that the module Spektr is as dead as a doornail, but the
powershortage also paralyzed another 2 huge modules, i.e. Kristall and
Priroda.  Greatest anxieties causes the module Kristall.  Near the docking
device for the Space shuttle (the SO, dockingcompartment is attached at the
Kristall)  the high humidity causes a lot of condensation and there but
also  in other places Foale and Lazutkin try to absorb this water as much
as possible using towels.  Foale reported that the temperature in Kristall
is abt 4 a 5 degrees Celsius. Tsibliyev told TsUP that he blew air into
Kristall for warming up. The most important subject remained the
preparations for the coming spacewalk (IVA). The lion's share of this work
is in the hands of Tsibliyev. When this report went to press there was not
yet a  complete scenario for the IVA. This meant that Tsibliyev regularly
has been confronted with changes.  This also in relation to the equipment
and tools which they must have at hand during the IVA.  Tsibliyev asked for
a definitive list of all what has to be put in the IVA bag. Thusfar he
several times had to replace things. He also urged TsUP to avoid
unnecessary delays. Now and then TsUP and the crew discuss the collision.
Foale and Tsibliyev repeat much what they have told earlier.  TsUP is still
trying to trace the spot where Spektr's hull has been perforated. TsUP
asked Lazutkin to give his opinion based on that what he heard during the
collision. He told where he heard the hissing (or: sizzling,   Russian word
'shipeniye'). When you should enter the module this must be in the wall on
the left hand side. At first the blow was at the radiator, which is
installed between the 2d and 3d plane.  In the nearest (seen from the place
where Lazutkin was) 'quarter'.  If that is the place of the fixation at the
suspension obviously the puncture must be there. 

Radio-amateurism:

The Packet Radio 'circular saw rattles'  can be heard again on 145.985 mc.
Now and then Foale  (KB5UAC) publishes by P/R small statusreports.  For
instance:

On docking day:   'Progress docked normally this morning. We are waiting 3
orbits before we start to unload it, checking the integrity of the hatch
seals. (In fact they had to put this back until the next morning) The
station attitude controls system is working well, using the girodynes, and
the power STH (?)  the base block and module Kvant 2 powered (airlock and
toilet) with modules Kristall and Priroda unpowered. 
                                                       -2-

                                                       -2-

Greenhouse experiment is continuing, using power from the base block, to
dry the seed pods that have formed quite nicely.'

After collision day: Our packet pwr supply failed, and we had to rewire the
equipment to a newer one. All previous msgs here were lost. TNC Paccomm
nolonger holds its parameters, if pwr is turned off, since the Progress
collision.    Mike, KB5UAC.'

And today: 'The crew is now extremely busy, trying to crawl through all the
bags unloaded from Progress, which are now stored in dark, wet modules,
which have no power. We are trying to inventory and assemble the 30 or so
cables and adapt, required to install the hatch umbilical. 
                     A training run will be done on the 15th and the real
eva sometime after that. I will get some refresher training on preparing
the soyuz for evacuation, and will be in a spacesuit, b, in the Soyuz
during the eva itself.'

Foale: During the period just after the collision Foale had his quarters in
the P.Kh.O. (transitionsection). This P.Kh.O. will serve as airlock during
the IVA and so Foale had to remove.  He is now living in the module Kvant-2
(Module-D), which certainly will be more comfortable than the P.Kh.O. 

Attitude control: During this week the gyrodynes did not function
continuously: sometimes all of them of just 1 were spinned down for
powerconservation and in these periods for attitude control the small
thruster jets of MIR and (now) the Progress-M35 are used. 

Chris Vandenberg, NL-9165/A-UK3202