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Soyuz TMA-02M - Undocking and Landing
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Crew of Expedition 28/29 returns to Earth safely
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November 21, 2011
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The Crew of
ISS Expedition 28/29 has safely returned to Earth with their Soyuz TMA-02M
Spacecraft. Landing occurred on time at 9:26pm EST on the steppes of
Kazakhstan.
The Crew’s day started with final Return Preparations that included stowing time-critical science payloads and samples inside the Entry Module for the return trip to Earth. When all preparatory steps were complete, the Crews said Good Bye to one another before taking their respective positions on the correct sides of the Hatch to the Syouz Vehicle. Hatches were closed at 2:41pm EST. A series of leak checks followed and were completed with normal results. Inside the Soyuz Capsule, Mike Fossum, Satoshi Furukawa and TMA-02M Commander Sergei Volkov donned their Launch and Entry Suits. They took their seats and strapped themselves in as part of normal undocking preparations.
The Crew’s day started with final Return Preparations that included stowing time-critical science payloads and samples inside the Entry Module for the return trip to Earth. When all preparatory steps were complete, the Crews said Good Bye to one another before taking their respective positions on the correct sides of the Hatch to the Syouz Vehicle. Hatches were closed at 2:41pm EST. A series of leak checks followed and were completed with normal results. Inside the Soyuz Capsule, Mike Fossum, Satoshi Furukawa and TMA-02M Commander Sergei Volkov donned their Launch and Entry Suits. They took their seats and strapped themselves in as part of normal undocking preparations.
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The undocking sequence was nominal. The ISS put its solar arrays into a protective configuration and Attitude Control was handed from the US to the Russian Segment. The Station maneuvered to the correct undocking orientation. Three minutes prior to undocking, the Command to open Hooks and Latches was issued. Physical Separation occurred on time at 06:00:17pm EST and the Capsule started to drift away from the complex. Sergei Volkov ativated the new Digital Autopilot that is a new addition to the Soyuz System as part of TMA-M Upgrades. He performed a small thruster impulse to increase the opening range and waited for the Soyuz to reach a point about 165 feet away from the Docking Port. At that point, a brief period of Stationkeeping was initiated. Just like on the TMA-01M flight, the new Soyuz Vehicle underwent a short test of its Digital Autopilot for evaluation by the Astronauts on board and Mission Controllers in Russia. Volkov performed a 40-degree Roll and the ISS made a very small maneuver to the proper attitude for the test.
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During the test
sequence, Sergei Volkov made small thruster firings to Pitch and Yaw the
vehicle in order to evaluate the Digital Autopilot and its execution of the
inputs that were given by the Cosmonaut. The test concluded successfully and
Volkov manually initiated the second Separation Burn. This engine burn took the
Soyuz to a distance of 12 kilometers to ISS. At that point, the large Deorbit
Burn was started at 8:32pm EST. This 4-minute and 16-second engine burn slowed the Soyuz down
by 115.2m/s – just enough for it to drop out of orbit on a pre-planned
trajectory. Three minutes before hitting the atmosphere, the Soyuz Entry
Module separated from the orbital and instrumentation compartments in
preparation for re-entry.
Photo: NASA TV
Rare Footage of the Soyuz Modules Re-Entering the Atmosphere captured by the International Space Station
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The capsule
hit Earth’s atmosphere at 170m/s at an altitude of 101km. Re-Entry Guidance was
enabled at 80km in altitude and the vehicle made its track through the dense
atmosphere. Commands were issued to open the parachutes. Execution of these
commands was nominal and the Soyuz was slowed down while flying under its main
chute. Touchdown was on time at 9:26pm EST and the Mission of the three
Astronauts that spent 165 days aboard ISS, came to an successful end. At the landing site, the Astronauts were faced with typical conditions in Kazakhstan at this time of year. Temperatures of 5°F, up to 5 inches of snow and chlling winds greeted the home-coming ISS residents. The Vehicle landed on its side - not unusual under windy conditions.
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Credit: NASA TV
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The crew
was extracted from the capsule and all three astronauts appeared to be in good
condition – all with big smiles on their faces. With that, Volkov now has 366 Days in Space under his belt; Mike Fossum has logged 194 days on three flights and Satoshi Furukawa has now completed his first mission totaling 167 days in space.
They will leave the landing site quicker than usual because of the harsh weather conditions. All three are flown to a nearby airstrip where – after six months together – their ways will part. Sergei Volkov will board a plane that takes him back to Star City near Moscow; Satoshi Furukawa and Mike Fossum will fly back to Houston for initial post-flight medical checks and evaluations. Both will be able to spend Thanksgiving with their families.
They will leave the landing site quicker than usual because of the harsh weather conditions. All three are flown to a nearby airstrip where – after six months together – their ways will part. Sergei Volkov will board a plane that takes him back to Star City near Moscow; Satoshi Furukawa and Mike Fossum will fly back to Houston for initial post-flight medical checks and evaluations. Both will be able to spend Thanksgiving with their families.
Landing Video
Full Undocking and Landing Timeline
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November 21, 2011
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Return Preparations in Full Swing
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November 20, 2011
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The Crew of the 27S Soyuz is getting ready to return to Earth to end Expedition 29. Mike Fossum, Satoshi Furukawa and Sergei Volkov will depart the ISS on Monday.
The 28S Crew of Anatoly Ivanishin, Anton Shkaplerov and Dan Burbank just docked last Wednesday. Since then a busy period of Handover activities and Return Preparations kicked off. Mike Fossum will hand the command over the Space Station over to fellow NASA Astronaut Dan Burbank on Sunday afternoon. The Russian ISS Lead will also be handed over. To set the stage for the departure of the 27S Crew, the ISS was boosted to a higher orbit. The three and a half minute engine firing was conducted by Zvezda Service Module Engines and raised the Station’s orbit by seven miles on apogee. This engine burn was within normal limits, however a slight over-burn was observed. The Soyuz TMA-02M is set to undock at 5:58pm EST on Monday, leave the vicinity of the ISS, perform its deorbit burn and land at 9:24pm EST in Kazakhstan. Weather forecasts indicate typical winter conditions in the steppes of Kazakhstan. Forecasts include below-zero and windy conditions with the possibility of precipitation. |
Photo: NASA
The current Crew of Six
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After Undocking, the Expedition 30 Increment will begin with three crewmembers. The next Soyuz to fly to ISS is expected to launch in December and bring Oleg Kononenko, Don Pettit and Andre Kuipers to the Station for their long duration mission and to restore the ISS crew to six astroanuts. Until then, the three crewmembers that have just arrived at ISS will spent time with nominal ISS maintenance and science operations. Science time aboard ISS will be increased when the crew is back to six.
