Soyuz TMA-3

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Soyuz TMA-3
Mission insignia
Soyuz TMA-3 Patch.png
Mission statistics
Mission name Soyuz TMA-3
Spacecraft name Soyuz TMA
Crew size 3
Call sign Ingul
Launch pad Gagarin's Start
Launch date October 18, 2003 05:38:03 UTC
Landing April 30, 2004 00:11:15 UTC
50.38° N, 67.20° E
Mission duration 194 days, 18 hours, 33 minutes, 12 seconds
Number of orbits ~3,170
Apogee 227 km
Perigee 193 km
Orbital period 88.6 min
Orbital inclination 51.67°
Crew photo
Soyuz TMA-3 Crew.jpeg
Related missions
Previous Subsequent
Soyuz TMA-2 Soyuz TMA-2 Soyuz TMA-4 Soyuz TMA-4

Soyuz TMA-3 was a Soyuz (Russian Союз ТМА-3, Union TMA-3) mission to the International Space Station (ISS) launched by a Soyuz FG launch vehicle which was the third flight for the TMA modification of the Soyuz spacecraft, and the 7th Soyuz to fly to the ISS.

Contents

Crew [edit]

Position Launching crew Landing crew
Commander Alexander Kaleri, RKA[1]
Expedition 8
Fourth spaceflight
Flight Engineer Michael Foale, NASA[1]
Expedition 8
Sixth spaceflight
Flight Engineer Pedro Duque, ESA[2]
Second spaceflight
André Kuipers, ESA[1]
First spaceflight

Mission parameters [edit]

[citation needed]
  • Mass: ? kg
  • Perigee: 193 km
  • Apogee: 227 km
  • Inclination: 51.7°
  • Period: 88.6 min

Docking with ISS [edit]

  • Docked to ISS: October 20, 2003, 07:16 UTC (to Pirs module)
  • Undocked from ISS: April 29, 2004, 20:52 UTC (from Pirs module)

Specifications [edit]

  • Max. altitude - 387.1 km
  • Min. altitude - 357.9 km
  • Period - 91.7 min
  • Inclination - 65.64°[3]

Mission highlights [edit]

Soyuz TMA-3 launch.

The commander of the Soyuz was Alexander Kaleri (Russia). The flight engineer was Michael Foale (USA), and Pedro Duque from Spain served as the second flight engineer. After docking with the ISS they exchanged the current crew on ISS and became the eighth station crew, called "ISS Expedition Eight". During the stay on the station Michael Foale was the ISS Commander, while Alexander Kaleri was the engineer. Foale was the first American to have served on both Mir and the ISS. Pedro Duque performed some ESA sponsored science experiments under the mission name Cervantes and then returned with the ISS 7 crew on Soyuz TMA-2.

The backup crew was William McArthur, Valery Tokarev and André Kuipers.

Foale and Kaleri along with André Kuipers, the third seater from TMA-4 landed on April 29, 2004, near Arkalyk, Kazakhstan. A minor helium leak did not affect their mission.

References [edit]

  1. ^ a b c "OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE about the landing of Soyuz TMA-3 descent vehicle". NPO Energia. April 30, 2004. Retrieved December 17, 2008. 
  2. ^ "Return to space for Spanish ESA astronaut". ESA. October 16, 2003. Retrieved December 17, 2008. 
  3. ^ Energia.RU Press Release ISS

External links [edit]