VBK-Raduga
VBK-Raduga ( Russian Радуга for rainbow ) is the name of the unmanned return capsules that were used to transport material back from the Russian Mir space station to Earth. They were brought to Mir aboard Progress-M transport spacecraft. For the return, Raduga was installed in place of the coupling sensor before Progress left the station. After the descent of the transporter to an altitude of around 120 km to 125 km, the capsule was ejected and returned to earth independently of it, hanging on a parachute.
The Raduga capsule is 1.5 m long and has a diameter of 60 cm. The curb weight is 350 kg. It can bring back up to approximately 150 kg of luggage to Earth. With Raduga on board, the maximum payload of Progress is reduced by 100 kg.
| capsule | Start date | Carrier spaceship | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| VBK-Raduga 1 | September 27, 1990 | Progress-M 5 | |
| VBK-Raduga 2 | March 19, 1991 | Progress-M 7 | lost on re-entry |
| VBK-Raduga 3 | August 20, 1991 | Progress-M 9 | |
| VBK-Raduga 4 | 17th October 1991 | Progress-M 10 | |
| VBK-Raduga 5 | April 19, 1992 | Progress-M 12 | |
| VBK-Raduga 6 | 15th August 1992 | Progress-M 14 | |
| VBK-Raduga 7 | March 31, 1993 | Progress-M 17 | Return with Progress-M 18 |
| VBK-Raduga 8 | August 10, 1993 | Progress-M 19 | |
| VBK-Raduga 9 | October 11, 1993 | Progress-M 20 | |
| VBK-Raduga 10 | March 22, 1994 | Progress-M 22 |