Soyuz T-13
Mission dates | |||
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Mission: | Soyuz T-13 | ||
COSPAR-ID : | 1985-043A | ||
Spacecraft: |
Soyuz 7K-ST ( GRAY index 11F732) serial number 19L |
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Dimensions: | 6850 kg | ||
Launcher: | Soyuz U2 (GRAY index 11A511U2) | ||
Call sign: | Памир ("Pamir") | ||
Crew: | 2 | ||
Begin: | June 6, 1985, 06:39:52 UTC | ||
Starting place: | Baikonur 1/5 | ||
Space station: | Salyut 7 | ||
Coupling: | June 8, 1985, 08:50 UTC | ||
Decoupling: | September 25, 1985, 03:58 UTC | ||
Landing: | September 26, 1985, 09:51:58 UTC | ||
Landing place: | 220 km NE of Djeskazgan | ||
Flight duration: | 112d 3h 12 m 6s | ||
Earth orbits: | 2645 | ||
Rotation time : | 88.7 min | ||
Apogee : | 222 km | ||
Perigee : | 198 km | ||
◄ Before / After ► | |||
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Soyuz T-13 is the mission designation for the flight of a Soviet Soyuz spacecraft to the Soviet space station Salyut 7, which started on June 6, 1985 . It was the eighth visit of a Soyuz spaceship to this space station and the 74th flight in the Soviet Soyuz program. It was the first space mission in which a spacecraft successfully docked to a "dead" space station and was able to restart it.
crew
Starting crew
- Vladimir Alexandrovich Dzhanibekov (5th space flight), commander
- Viktor Petrovich Savinych (2nd space flight), flight engineer
Janibekov was already in command of the previous Soyuz T-12 flight. With this flight he was the first Soviet cosmonaut and the second spaceman to make five space flights. John Young held the record with six appearances.
Substitute team
- Leonid Ivanovich Popov , commandant
- Alexander Pavlovich Alexandrow , flight engineer
Return crew
- Vladimir Alexandrovich Dzhanibekov (5th space flight), commander
- Georgi Michailowitsch Grechko (3rd space flight), flight engineer
Mission overview
The mission was the first real rescue mission for a previously completely broken down space station. Soyuz T-13 was the first spaceship to be manually coupled to the inactive space station. Therefore, the spaceship was adapted to simplify the approach maneuvers. Vladimir Janibekov and Viktor Savinykh rescued the Salyut 7 station, which had problems with the power supply. The rescue is considered to be one of the greatest achievements in space history.
Vladimir Janibekov certainly did not expect to return to the Salyut station so soon after his Soyuz T-12 flight . As they approached, the crew noticed the non-aligned solar cells of the station, which was slowly rotating around its longitudinal axis. They used a handheld laser to measure their distance from the station and flew around the station once to check that the outside of the station was intact.
Janibekov noticed that the thermal cover of the transfer department looked dull and gray, caused by prolonged exposure to the sun. Once the Soyuz spaceship first docked with this inactive space station, the crew was able to confirm that the station was electrically dead after checking the electrical connections to the station.
Both cosmonauts checked the station's atmosphere before opening the hatch. The air was cold but could be breathed. Frost-covered walls and equipment. The cosmonauts wore winter clothing including fur-lined hats when they entered the station.
The first task was to restore the power supply. The eight batteries were discharged and two of them were destroyed. First the cosmonauts had to charge the batteries. They used the Soyuz spaceship to turn the solar panels into the sun and recharge the intact batteries one by one using specially made jumper cables. On June 10th, they turned on the air heater. The cosmonauts had to rely on the air renewal systems in Soyuz T-13 until they restarted the Salyut systems. The orientation control was switched on again on June 13th . This was a prerequisite for receiving a Progress supply spaceship with urgently needed spare parts. The heating in the walls could only be switched on when all the frost had evaporated, otherwise the condensation would have penetrated the devices. Normal humidity was reached at the end of July. The station's water tanks thawed at the end of June. The frost had destroyed the kettle, so the cosmonauts had to use strong TV lights to warm up.
Savinych stayed on board for 169 days and returned on November 21, 1985 with Soyuz T-14 , Janibekov on September 26, 1985 together with Georgi Grechko, who came with Soyuz T-14, with Soyuz T-13, after being on board for 110 days Salyut 7 had spent. Soyuz T-13 conducted thirty hours of proximity and coupling tests before returning to Earth.
Movie
The mission was filmed in 2017 with the Russian film Salyut-7 , but with a lot of artistic freedom.
See also
Web links
- Nickolai Belakovski: The little-known Soviet mission to rescue a dead space station (English)
- Soyuz T-13 at spacefacts.de
- Soyuz T-13 at space.kursknet.ru (English / Russian , archived 2016)
- Soyuz T-13 in the NSSDCA Master Catalog (English)