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Redocking Soyuz TMA-17 "- is another page of the Russian space exploration history. / May 13, 2010 /

International crew of Soyuz TMA-17 spacecraft (commander Oleg Kotov (Russia), flight engineer-1 Soichi Noguchi (Japan) and a flight engineer-2 Timothy Creamer (USA)) after redocking on May 12 passed from rescue-ship to the International ISS.
Redocking in manual mode performed Oleg Kotov. The entire operation, starting with the closure and transfer hatch to open it, took 5 hours and 40 minutes. During this time, ISS has made four coils around the Earth.
In 17 hours 23 minutes Moscow time Oleg Kotov was given the command to undock. The process of uncoupling took three minutes. Spring pushers provided the impetus and the Soyuz TMA-17 "away from the station at a speed of 12 centimeters per second at a distance of about 40 meters. Valid distance of 50 meters.
Then the ship began to fly the station. Describe a circle of approximately 47 meters manned spacecraft took up a position opposite the equipment bay of the Service Module Zvezda. After building orientation Oleg Kotov, started the engine on the vessel closer to the station. Convergence took place at a speed of 20 centimeters per second. In 17 hours 53 minutes 09 seconds Moscow time the Soyuz TMA-17 docked to the docking port on the equipment bay module Zvezda. The whole flight went smoothly and without angular velocity, ie speed craft in various planes.
During the operation redocking ISS was within sight of ground measuring stations in Ussuriysk, Barnaul, and the Russian research ship «Cosmonaut Victor Patsayev» (home port of Kaliningrad). It is noteworthy that during the redocking ISS and was within sight of the measuring complex, located on the 44 th floor Baikonur cosmodrome, which happens, as seen in the MCC, a rather rare.

After docking, the Soyuz TMA-17 "to the ISS on the journalists’ questions answered, chief of RKK Energiya, the deputy head of Mission of the Russian segment of ISS Management Ph.D., Ph.D. EI Zhuk.

Media representatives interested in, in particular, the question: is there a gradation of complexity of different operations in space?
— Naturally, there are operations more complex, there are less sophisticated, but all the operations in space — complex, — said E. Zhuk. — Redocking very important operation, because we are moving away from the ISS, and can be emergency situation, when the crew was not able to return to the station.
— This has already happened?
— Thank God, never happened. But the crew must be ready for any situation that may arise on board a ship or station. Redocking itself is not the most complicated operation, because it runs in the ISS at low speeds.
— Yevgeny Ilyich, what feature of today’s operation?
— We release the site to dock him a small research module «Dawn» (MIM-1), which is this Friday, May 14, should be sent to the ISS on the shuttle. Since permutation manned spacecraft station ready to receive the new Russian module.
If the start of the American shuttle will be moved to a later date, but this time on the schedule to the station will have to dock the next cargo ship «Progress», we once again translate the manned Soyuz TMA-17 «at the FGB nadir node» Dawn ", freeing Service Module Service Module Zarya for docking with the cargo ship.
— How will be encouraged commander Oleg Kotov for the successful redocking Soyuz TMA-17 "?
— This is the commission which, after completion of the flight and crew return to earth as a result of debriefing, the crew and report a comprehensive assessment of its work will determine who and how to encourage. Or, conversely, punish.
— There was this?
— Yes, when the ship collided with Mir space station, the committee decided to punish the captain, but defended the chief designer of the astronaut and was not punished.

This example from the history of space development has resulted in a conversation with reporters, EI Zhuk.

May 12, 2010 the commander of the manned Soyuz TMA-17 "Oleg Kotov successfully coped with a responsible job.

Tomorrow, this operation will also be a part of history of Russian space exploration.

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