Crew

Launched:

• Alexander A. Volkov (2)
• Sergei Krikalev (1)
• Jean-Loup Chrétien (2)

Landed:

• Alexander A. Volkov (2)
• Sergei Krikalev (1)
• Valeri Polyakov (1)

(1) number of spaceflights each crew member has completed, including this mission.

Mission parameters

• Mass: 7000 kg
• Perigee: 194 km
• Apogee: 235 km
• Inclination: 51.6°
• Period: 88.8 minutes

Mission highlights

7th expedition to Mir. Launched crew includes French astronaut.

Original launch date of November 21 was moved back to permit French president Francois Mitterand to attend the launch. Arrived at the Mir station carrying a three-man crew, including French cosmonaut Chrétien on his second flight into space. Titov, Manarov, and Chrétien returned to Earth in Soyuz TM-6. Alexander Volkov, Sergei Krikalev, and Valeri Polyakov remained aboard Mir. On April 28, 1989, they left Mir in mothballs and returned to Earth in Soyuz-TM 7. The Soyuz-TM land landing system is effective at reducing velocity in the vertical direction. However, according to cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev, winds at the landing site often impart considerable horizontal velocity. As a result, about 80% of all Soyuz descent modules come to rest on their sides. During the rough landing, Krikalev suffered a minor injury to his knee.

Preparations for the first EVA involving a non-Soviet/non-U.S. space traveler forced the cosmonauts to cut short a TV meeting with diplomats from 47 countries on December 8. On December 9 Chrétien and Volkov depressurized the multiport docking adapter and clambered outside Mir. Chrétien was first out. He installed handrails, then attached the 15.5 kg Échantillons experiment rack to the handrails by springs and hooks. He also attached electrical wires leading from the rack to Mir’s power supply. Échantillons carried five technological experiments with applications to the Hermes shuttle program. Volkov and Chrétien then assembled the 240 kg ERA experiment. They attached a mount to handrails on the frustum linking the multiport docking unit to the small-diameter portion of the work compartment. After resolving problems with cables linking ERA to a control panel inside Mir, they attached the folded ERA structure to a support arm on the platform. The structure was designed to unfold to form a flat six-sided structure 1 m deep by 3.8 m across. From inside Mir, Krikalev commanded the structure to unfold, but to no avail. Volkov then kicked ERA, causing it to unfold properly. According to Krikalev, taking the ERA outside helped relieve the crowding problems. The EVA lasted 5 h and 57 min.