Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Soyuz 40
| Mission Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Mission Name: | Soyuz 40 |
| Call Sign: | Dnieper |
| Number of Crew Members: | 2 |
| Launch: | May 14, 1981 17:16:38 UTC Baikonur LC1 |
| Landing: | May 22, 1981 13:58:30 UTC 225 km SE of Dzhezkazgan |
| Duration: | 7 days 20 hours 41 minutes 52 seconds |
| Number of Orbits: | 124 |
Crew
- Leonid Popov (2)
- Dumitru Prunariu - Romania (1)
Mission Parameters
- Mass: 6800 kg
- Perigee: 198.1 km
- Apogee: 287 km
- Inclination: 51.6°
- Period: 89.06 minutes
Mission Highlights
16th expedition to Salyut 6. 9th international crew. Carried intercosmos osmonaut from Romania. Last Soyuz Ferry flight; ended the first phase of the Intercosmos program, which concentrated on placing citizens of Soviet bloc states into space. In all, nine Intercosmos missions were launched between 1978 and 1981.
Soyuz 40 was the last Soyuz Ferry and the last Soyuz spacecraft to dock with Salyut 6. It also ended the first phase of the Intercosmos program by carrying Romanian cosmonaut Dumitriu Prunariu and Soviet cosmonaut Leonid Popov to the station. Prunariu studied Earth’s magnetic field. Earth observations had to be delayed until the last day of his flight, when Salyut 6 at last passed over Romania in daylight. During this time the crew also tested the station’s orientation system.
| Previous Mission: Soyuz 39 |
Soyuz programme | Next Mission: Soyuz T-5 |
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