Crew Moves Station Soyuz Capsule To New Docking Port

STATION NEWS

The Soyuz TMA-5 spacecraft a few seconds after physical separation from the Pirs Docking Compartment. Credits: NASA.

Houston TX (SPX) Nov 30, 2004
It was a short trip, considering they were moving at about five miles a second.

Space Station crewmembers, Soyuz Commander Salizhan Sharipov and Expedition 10 Commander Leroy Chiao, flew their Soyuz TMA-5 spacecraft from the Pirs Docking Compartment to a docking port about 45 feet away on the Zarya module. The move early Monday was made to prepare for two spacewalks from Pirs early next year.

Sharipov and Chiao undocked their Soyuz from Pirs at 4:29 a.m. EST. After backing about 100 feet from the Station, they flew the Soyuz forward about 45 feet to a point below the nadir docking port of Zarya.

They rotated the Soyuz to align it with the new docking port, then slowly maneuvered it toward Zarya. They docked the Soyuz at 4:53 a.m.

During the short relocation, the Station had gone almost a third of the way around the Earth at its orbital velocity of 17,500 mph.

In preparation for the Soyuz relocation, Chiao and Sharipov had configured the Station to operate without a crew, in the unlikely event that they were unable to redock the Soyuz.

STATION NEWS

ISS Crew Vacate Station To Reposition Soyuz Spacecraft

Washington DC (SPX) Nov 29, 2004
Expedition 10 Commander and NASA Station Science Officer Leroy Chiao and Flight Engineer Salizhan Sharipov will briefly vacate the Station on Monday. After configuring Station systems for autonomous operation, they will fly their Soyuz spacecraft from one parking spot to another on the orbiting laboratory.

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