Mongolian pilot cosmonaut 1978-1981. First Mongolian astronaut. Graduated from Zhukovsky Military Engineering Academy, 1977. Aeronautic engineer, Mongolian Air Force. From 2000 Mongolian Secretary of Defense. 1 spaceflight, 7.9 days in space. Flew to orbit on Soyuz 39 (1981).

The final Atlas F research and development flight test missile (21F) was launched down the Atlantic Missile Range. Ten missiles were launched in this series - seven were successes and three failures. The launch of Atlas 21F brought flight testing of Atlas operational missiles from Cape Canaveral to an end after almost five and one-half years. Since the first R&D Atlas was launched on 11 June 1957, 83 Atlas Series A through F missiles had been fired from the Cape - 52 of them successes or partials and 31 failures. Last Atlas F R&D flight.

The first military launches were made from Cuxhaven since the Backfire V-2 launches of 1945. Seliger, under contract to Waffen und Luftruestung AG (Weapons and Air Development Inc) of Hamburg launched a test rocket. The altitude was restricted to 30 km by a new regulation of the Lower Saxony Economy and Trade Ministry.

Transit operational prototype powered by a SNAP-9A nuclear power source. First operational navigation satellite. It was used regularly by both surface and submarine units of the Navy until November 1964. From this point in time the US Navy had continuous use of satellite navigation.

Hamilton Standard successfully tested a life-support back pack designed to meet requirements of the lunar surface suit. The system functioned as planned for more than three hours inside a vacuum chamber, while the test subject walked on a treadmill to simulate the metabolic load of an astronaut on the lunar terrain. The 29.48-kg (65-lb) portable life support system supplied oxygen, pressurized to a minimum 25,510 newtons per sq m (3.7 lbs psi), controlled its temperature and relative humidity, and circulated it through the suit and helmet. The pack pumped cooled water through the tubing of the undergarment for cooling inside the pressure suit. A canister of lithium hydroxide trapped carbon dioxide and other air contaminants to purify the oxygen for reuse.

The group was selected to provide pilot, engineer, and scientist astronauts for space shuttle flights.. Qualifications: Pilots: Bachelor's degree in engineering, biological science, physical science or mathematics. Advanced degree desirable. At least 1,000 flight-hours of pilot-in-command time. Flight test experience desirable. Excellent health. Vision minimum 20/50 uncorrected, correctable to 20/20 vision; maximum sitting blood pressure 140/90. Height between 163 and 193 cm.

Mission Specialists: Bachelor's degree in engineering, biological science, physical science or mathematics and minimum three years of related experience or an advanced degree. Vision minimum 20/150 uncorrected, correctable to 20/20. Maximum sitting blood pressure of 140/90. Height between 150 and 193 cm.. 10 pilots and 25 mission specialists selected from over 2,400 applicants. 9 additional international astronauts.

Spacecraft engaged in practical applications and uses of space technology such as weather or communication (US Cat C). Launch vehicle put payload into geosynchronous transfer orbit Positioned in geosynchronous orbit at 100 deg W in 1987-1999 Last known longitude (27 July 1999) 100.33 deg W drifting at 0.027 deg W per day.

"Star Wars" theme music as background, Darth Vader's voice awoke the crew with a message followed by satirical lyrics sung to The Beatles tune,"Do You Want to Know a Secret?" The recording was produced by Houston radio station KKBQ's Mike Cahill, Pat Brennan, and Mark Richardson. 

On 4 Dec. 1991 during pass in orb. 33171 (1103 UTC) Volkov spoke with a Pyotr (might have been Klimuk) about the Ukraine. Volkov made a passing reference to the fact that the crew discovered 2 small holes In one of the solar panels of Module-D. About this damage the cosmonauts spoke during the first 3 passes on 5 Dec. 1991. They made images with a TV camera, but these were not good enough for analyses. To get better images the cosmonauts had to install a special camera in the transition section (P.Kh.O.) and therefor they had to deploy and connect a cable. In Krikalyov's opinion the only way to get a good insight in the damage a space-walk (EVA) will be necessary. On 5 Dec. they spoke about 2 great holes and 1 small hole. Krikalyov even uttered the possibility that the damage has been arisen during the period in which the American Space shuttle 44, Atlantis, had to alter course to avoid a collision with the 3rd of a Soviet rocket launched long ago. So again a substantial problem for the cosmonauts. For a long time the crew are struggling with the water regeneration system Elektron and the attitude control of the complex.

During the last days Mir almost permanently remained in sunlight and for the orientation of the sensors they used sun-vectors.

DIVERTING CAPABILITIES OF THE Mir-COMPLEX IN CASE OF 'COLLISION DANGER' :

In comparison with the American (and Soviet-) Space Shuttles the Mir-station is a 'lame duck '. Even if Norad (or its Soviet opposite side) would warn Mir and TsuP for an object on collision course a quick diverting manoeuvre cannot be executed (within a few minutes). With the engines of the freighter Progress-M and the ferry Soyuz-TM the altitude of the complex can be altered, but this process lasts too long for comfort. The present crew consist of phlegmatic and crisis proof cosmonauts and they seem not to bother about this all. During radio amateur conversations they state that all is going well.

1ST STAGE ENERGIYA ROCKET BLOWN UP DURING FIRE TEST:

This news comes from a radiologist in Omsk, N. Spinov. S., also a member of the State Committee for Ecology, reported that on 20 November 1991 near the village Krutaya Gorkia (55 KM from the Siberian town Omsk) the 1st stage of the Energiya rocket exploded due to a failure in the cooling system. In a huge orange cloud the heath of the explosion dispersed and S. demands a detailed investigation for during the last years the number op persons suffering of cancer alarmingly increased.

(The 1st stage of the Energiya consists of 4 'strap on' boosters, each of which is a modified version of the 1st stage of the Zenith (SL-16) rocket. Fuel is kerosene, oxidiser LOX).

Chris van den Berg, NL-9165/A-UK3202

The group was selected to provide pilot, engineer, and scientist astronauts for space shuttle flights.. Qualifications: Pilots: Bachelor's degree in engineering, biological science, physical science or mathematics. Advanced degree desirable. At least 1,000 flight-hours of pilot-in-command time. Flight test experience desirable. Excellent health. Vision minimum 20/50 uncorrected, correctable to 20/20 vision; maximum sitting blood pressure 140/90. Height between 163 and 193 cm.

Mission Specialists: Bachelor's degree in engineering, biological science, physical science or mathematics and minimum three years of related experience or an advanced degree. Vision minimum 20/150 uncorrected, correctable to 20/20. Maximum sitting blood pressure of 140/90. Height between 150 and 193 cm.. Four pilots and 15 mission specialists, nine civilians and ten military. Chosen from 2054 applicants, 87 of which screened in December 1991/January 1992. Five additional international astronauts.

On 3.12 RKK Energiya published changes of the EVA plan for December 1997. This publication suggested that EVA's had been planned for 6, 12 and 30.12.97. In the sequence of these EVA's the most difficult one was scheduled for 6.12.97, i.e. the installation of rails and anchors at the outer surface of the module Spektr. However radio traffic during the last days did not give any indication of preparations or exercises for the first EVA: on the contrary the Russians used all the available time for so called prescribed activities: maintenance, repairs (for instance of a cooling circuit) and monitoring the air pressure regulation. David Wolf indefatigably continued his experiments. Meanwhile the 'disinformation' of RKK Energiya has been silently erased.

Future plans:

The departure of Progress-M36 will take place on 17.12.97. After undocking Progress-M36 will release the mini-satellite Inspektor for a test in the framework of a Russian/German project. Inspektor will make video- and photo's of Progress-M36 as well as of the Mir-space station.

The next EVA's are still scheduled for 5 and 9.01.1998.

Radio-amateurism:

Vinogradov prepared the radio-amateur system in the module Priroda for the test which had been proposed by the Amsat organisation. The purpose of this test was to see whether it would be possible to use a split band configuration (uplink 437.850 mc, downlink 145.800 mc) of the PMS station on 145.985 mc. During many conversations via the geostationary Altair-2 Vinogradov co-ordinated his activities with the Mir radio-amateur manager, Sergey Samburov (RV3DR).

It was clear that not all went as had been planned. Vinogradov also had problems with cable connections and he had to look for adapters to connect different cables. He told that he also tried to use 145.800 and 145.550 mc, but this was not a success due to dense traffic on these frequencies. (Unclear whether he used these frequencies split -with 437.850 m down- or simplex on 2 m. only). Stations on earth received him loud and clear but his reception was very poor.

Chris v.d. Berg, NL-9165/A-UK3202.

Launch delayed from November 28. The Israeli commercial imaging satellite EROS A1 was owned by ImageSat (an Israeli-led company registered in the Netherlands Antilles) and built by IAI using the Ofeq-3 design. EROS A1 was placed in a sun-synchronous orbit together with the DS 5th stage. The 250 kg (dry mass) triaxially stabilized spacecraft carried a black and white high resolution (1.8 m) CCD camera, to obtain images (with terrain width of 12.6 km) of locations chosen by Israeli military or world-wide commercial clients, and downlink them at one of the 14 ground stations.

The spacewalk began on December 5 with depress at 1718 GMT, hatch open around 1719 GMT and battery power at 1721 GMT. Repress was at 2358 GMT. The astronauts connected up P6 to the station, inspected the tension wires on wing 2B, and relocated the S-band antenna to the top of P6. They unlatched the aft TCS radiator, which was deployed sometime early on December 6.

ISS Logistics flight, launch delayed from November 30 and December 4. Gorie, Kelley, Godwin, Tani, Onufrikeno, Bursch, Walz STS-108 flew the UF-1 Utilization Flight mission to the International Space Station. The UF designation distinguished this from earlier Station flights which were considered assembly flights. The shuttle would deliver the Expedition-4 crew of Onufrikeno, Bursch, and Walz to the station and return the Expedition-3 crew to earth. In addition to the crew swap, UF-1 brought supplies to the Station aboard the Raffaello module, and Godwin and Tani conducted a spacewalk to add thermal blankets to the gimbals on the Station's solar arrays. Endeavour reached an orbit of approximately 58 x 230 km (according to the NASA PAO) at 2228 GMT. At 2259 GMT it fired its OMS engines to raise perigee to 225 km. Mass after OMS-2 was 114,692 kg. Endeavour soft docked with the International Space Station at 2003 GMT on December 7. Problems with aligning the vehicles delayed hard dock until 20:51 GMT, and the hatch was opened at 22:43 GMT. The Raffaello module was unberthed from Endeavour at 1701 GMT on December 8 and berthed to the Unity module of the station at 1755 UTC.

STS-108 cargo bay payload was dominated by the Raffaello (MPLM-2) logistics module with 4 RSP and 8 RSR resupply racks. Also in the cargo bay were the MACH-1 and LMC experiment trusses flown under the Goddard small payloads program. MACH-1 was an MPESS-type Hitchhiker bridge carrying the CAPL-3 capillary thermal control experiment on top. On its forward side was the Starshine-2 launch canister, the CAPL-3 avionics plate, the Hitchhiker avionics plate, and the SEM-15 canister. On the aft side was the G-761 canister containing experiments from Argentina, the PSRD synchrotron detector (a prototype for the AMS antimatter experiment which will fly on Station later), and the COLLIDE-2 and SEM-11 canisters. The SEM (Space Experiment Modules) are collections of high school experiments. LMC, the Lightweight MPESS Carrier carried four canisters with materials science and technology experiments: SEM-12, G-785, G-064 and G-730. In addition, an adapter beam on the starboard sidewall carried G-221 and G-775, with materials science and biology experiments.

Raffaello was transferred back to the Shuttle payload bay on December 14. Endeavour undocked from the Station at 17:28 UTC on December 15 and made a half loop around the station before making a small separation burn at 1822 UTC. The Starshine-2 reflector satellite was ejected from the MACH-1 bridge in Endeavour's payload bay at 1502 UTC on December 16. Endeavour landed on runway 15 at Kennedy Space Center at 1755 UTC on December 17. The Expedition 3 crew of Culbertson, Dezhurov and Tyurin returned to Earth aboard Endeavour, leaving the Expedition 4 crew of Onufrienko, Bursch and Walz in charge of the Station.

Delayed from October 29, November 21 and 23. The third and final Advanced Tracking and Data Relay Satellite satellite separated from the Centaur upper stage 30 minutes after launch. This completed the $800 million, three satellite contract. Last launch of the Atlas 2A booster. Flight delayed from October 29, November 21 and 23. As of 2007 Mar 10 located at 40.92W drifting at 0.012E degrees per day.

Exploration Flight Test 1 used an Orion Crew Module (probably around 9400 kg) with an LAS launch escape tower, atop a dummy Service Module with jettisonable side panels, which in turn was fixed to the OSA (Orion-to-Stage-Adapter). This vehicle was mounted on the second stage of a Delta IV Heavy vehicle 369. Delta 369's second stage was inserted into a 185 km x 888 km x 28.8 deg orbit at 12:22 GMT, 17 minutes after launch. The stage made a second burn at 14:00, entering a -37 km x 5.807 km orbit; apogee was at 1510. At 15:28 the Orion CM separated from the stage. The Orion CM made a small RCS adjust burn at 16:02 and entered the atmosphere at 8.9 km/s at 16:18, landing at 16:29 off Baja California at 23.60 deg N x 116.46 deg W. It was recovered by the USS Anchorage.

Russia carried out the second launch of the Soyuz-2-1V rocket, carrying the 440 kg Kanopus-ST military satellite as its primary payload. Kanopus-ST carried optical, infrared and microwave imagers to test technology to locate submerged submarines. The two-stage core of Soyuz-2-1V reached a 208 x 681 km x 98.2 deg transfer orbit. The Volga upper stage coasted to apogee and at about 1503 UTC made a circularization burn to reach a 684 x 693 km sun-synchronous orbit. The KYuA-1 satellite was successfully ejected at about 1540 UTC, but one of several latches on the Kanopus-ST failed to open, and the payload failed to separate.The two payloads were given the public cover names Kosmos-2511 (Kanopus-ST/Volga) and Kosmos-2512 (KYuA-1). Following the failure, at about 0200 UTC Dec 6 the Volga reignited in an attempt to deorbit the Kanopus/Volga stack and prevent it becoming long-lived space debris. This burn reached an orbit of 106 x 655 km. Natural orbital decay from atmospheric drag quickly set in. On Dec 7, with the orbit at 90 x 348 km, the spacecraft split into two pieces, possibly but not certainly the Kanopus satelite and the Volga stage. The two pieces reached an orbit of 88 x 297 km on Dec 8 before reentry.