Soliot 6 is a second generation of space laboratories, it can be in operational use for at least five years and is defined as a "research laboratory in space".
On September 30, 1977, Soliot 6 was launched. The orbit of the space laboratory is 219-275 km, the angle of inclination is 51.6 degrees and the duration of the orbit is 89.1 minutes. The transmission frequencies of the laboratory are the same as those of Soliot 4 and different from those of Soliot 5. On October 7, the course was changed to 336-352 km, the angle of inclination 51.58 degrees and the duration of the lap 91.42 minutes. Two weeks before the launch of Soyuz 26, the trajectory of the laboratory was changed. A week after the flight of Soyuz 25, Giorgi Bergboy wrote in the "Communist" newspaper that extended flights of several months are planned to prepare the ground for interstellar flights.
The structure of the laboratory
Soliot 6 is a second generation of space laboratories, it can be in operational use for at least five years and is defined as a "research laboratory in space". It weighs 20 tons and has equipment from France. The laboratory has two attachment openings, one normal and the other at the back. The additional attachment chamber allows the laboratory to be manned by two spaceships at the same time, change of crews, rescue operations, supply of food and equipment to the space laboratory. The rear attachment opening is identical in origin and connection method to the front opening. It is located between two exhaust nozzles instead of a piece of equipment related to the Soliot propulsion system. This equipment has been moved to another location.
New systems installed in the laboratory are: a facility for recycling materials, a system for testing the temperature in the laboratory and a system for the reference test of the Kas Kad type. The facility for the oxygen cycle is based on Corella Algae. The drinking water, except for that brought by supply spacecraft, is recycled through a circulation system that absorbs moisture from the oxygen and nitrogen atmosphere, purifies it with activated carbon and flows it back to the laboratory.
The movement space in the laboratory is covered by three television cameras, two black and white and one color. On the outer wall of the laboratory there are three suspension points for television cameras, for photographs that are taken outside it. The cameras are the same as those used in the joint space flight with the Americans.
As for hygiene, you can shower like at home. The laboratory has a collapsible plastic container (polythene) into which hot water is poured and pumped out after use, with a pump. The refinements in the instruments and the navigation system were made in a way that eases the workload of the team manning the laboratory and optimizes the attitude control and navigation process in space, with one Soyuz spacecraft on one side of the laboratory and a supply spacecraft on the other, the total length of this complex is 36 meters and its weight is 39 tons.
The toilet and refueling cabin
The previous space laboratories were placed in orbit using two types of fuel: Hydrogen Peroxide for the reference control engines and turbines that pumped Nitric Acid and Hydrazine for the laboratory engines. The use of different fuels unnecessarily complicated the propulsion system of the space laboratory. Knowing that refueling laboratories in the future will be more complex due to the need to refuel each fuel system separately, it was decided to simplify their propulsion system. And although the Soliot 6, which was designed to be fueled occasionally, its engines are powered by Nitrogen tetraoxide and UDMH only (UDMH stands for Hydrozine Dimethyl Unsymmetrical).
Soliot 6 has three fuel tanks and three oxidizer tanks connected to a nitrogen feed system. The nitrogen in his system is stored in tanks at a pressure of 200 atmospheres, through a valve that reduces the pressure to 20 atmospheres. It is injected into the space between the inner wall of the fuel tanks and between the flexible casings inside the tanks where the fuel and oxidizers are stored. Progress spacecraft only refuel four of the six tanks. The two remaining tanks are spare tanks.
In preparation for refueling the laboratory, the nitrogen pressure in them is reduced from 20 atmospheres to three atmospheres with the remainder of the nitrogen being returned to their bottles, thus enabling the flow of fuel from Progress to Soliot. Reducing the nitrogen pressure is done in several stages:
1. The laboratory's convector is charged at intervals by the laboratory's solar racks.
2. At the end of its charge, the convector is fed with electric power from a compressor operating at a power of one kilowatt.
3. The compressor reduces the nitrogen pressure.
The preparations for refueling the laboratory are therefore long. Another use of nitrogen is to clean the remaining liquid left in the refueling tubes so that they do not spill when the laboratory and the supply spacecraft are separated from each other.
Instrumentation
1. Four radio receivers for voice transmissions in the laboratory itself.
2 mobile teletype.
3. A navigation system, named Delta, to perform and calculate accurate data of the laboratory route automatically. This device frees the astronauts from lengthy navigational tracking.
4. The atmosphere freshness device - the device ionizes the laboratory air and makes it more comfortable and pleasant.
5. More biomedical equipment for more intensive tests of physiological changes in the astronauts' bodies.
6. A new cardio vascular device.
7. A device for measuring the heat emitted by the human body under conditions of weightlessness.
8. A device for measuring the concentration of oxygen in tissues under conditions of weightlessness.
9. "Oasis" system for growing plants.
10. Jellyfish - a device attached to the outer wall of the laboratory to test the effect of radiation on live cultures. Such a cell is also inside the laboratory and the results of the two experiments are compared upon their return to Israel. This experiment has practical implications regarding space travel, the investigation of the origin of life and the migration of life in the universe.
11. A furnace brought by the supply spacecraft Progress was placed in the forward passage compartment of the laboratory and weighed 23 kg. The furnace has three cells. One is heated to a temperature of 1100 degrees, the other is heated to a temperature of 700-600 degrees and in the third chamber between them, linear temperature changes occur between the higher chamber and the lower chamber. The location of the furnace in the transit chamber allows it to be opened to the laboratory air, a technique that facilitates the processes of processing the materials and dispersing the heat. The furnace is controlled by a computer with an accuracy of ± 3.5 degrees.
The test samples are packed in capsules and in each capsule are three ampoules of crystals that break when they are put into the furnace. This enables the creation of monocrystals in the intermediate cell and three-dimensional formation in the end cells. Fused material combinations are: aluminum-antimony, aluminum-tungsten, molybdenum-gallium, indium-antimony and copper-indium.
12. Radoga - MKF-6M type camera for observations towards the country. This camera has six lenses at six different wavelengths and is able to photograph an area of 165-220 km with the six lenses at the same time. In the laboratory there are several packages with photographic films and in each package there is enough film to cover an area of 10 million square kilometers in 275 photos. The photographs have geological, geophysical, agricultural and environmental science importance. This program is parallel to the Soyuz 22 research program.
13. Counters for counting micrometeorides that hit the laboratory.
14. An infrared telescope with a 1.5 diameter lens for the investigation of the Orion Nebula, interstellar hydrogen clouds and opportunistic objects (bodies that happen to come into the observation field). The telescope is cooled with helium at a temperature of 269 degrees below zero and is calibrated by a small optical telescope. The helium is injected into the telescope system through a flow system that compresses it into a liquid state with the help of compressors, refrigerators and heat exchangers.
15. Ultraviolet telescope for observations towards stars and the atmosphere.
Progress - supply spacecraft
The Progress spacecraft is a cargo spacecraft that is defined as a "sister" to the Soyuz and its role is to deliver supplies to space laboratories: fuel, food, scientific equipment and more. It is being prepared for single use. When it is emptied of the equipment, it is disconnected from the laboratory and transferred to the burning track in the atmosphere. All operations related to its flight and attachment to the space laboratory - navigation, access and attachment are performed by radio and computer facilities in the spacecraft and with control from the ground.
Konstantin Pyukostikov, one of Soliot's chief planners, said that work began on the cargo spaceship at the same time as the design of the space laboratory. According to him: "We assumed that some of the equipment cannot be stored for a long time in space like photographic films. Biological experiments, gas tanks for the laboratory atmosphere, CO2 absorbers, filters and daily necessities such as water for bathing and clean clothes. We came to the conclusion that each astronaut consumes 30 kg of these items per day.
The structure of the spaceship
The spacecraft in its basic structure is a Soyuz spacecraft. It is 8 meters long and weighs 7 tons. The cargo contains 2.5 tons of which one ton is fuel and oxygen.
The structure of the spacecraft is:
1. The attachment system - the number of hydraulic and other connections compared to those of Soyuz has been increased to ensure the connection of the refueling and water pipes of the laboratory and the spacecraft during the attachment, thereby allowing controlled refueling of the laboratory.
2. The luggage compartment - this is the orbital compartment. In Progress spaceships this compartment is longer compared to the compartment in Soyuz and is intended for carrying dry cargo. The charger is placed inside a frame that occupies part of the cell volume. Small items are stored together in containers. Large loads are attached directly to the frame and have quick release bolts. The bolts are released manually or by turning a quarter turn with a screwdriver. The volume of the chamber is 6.6 cubic meters and it is capable of carrying a load of 1.3 tons - food, water, clothing, cameras, filters and other equipment essential for the work carried out in the laboratory.
Loading the cell with the laboratory waste necessitates its arrangement so that the correct center of gravity is maintained, this to ensure proper disconnection from the laboratory when the time comes. The trunk is hermetically sealed so that it can be entered immediately after attachment.
3. The fuel tanks - this part of the spacecraft replaces the command cabin in Soyuz and its volume is 3.4 cubic meters. Progress has four tanks, two for fuel and two for oxidizers and additional tanks including compressed air and nitrogen for compressing the laboratory's tanks. The refueling pipes go through the attachment opening. At the end of refueling, a special device is activated that cuts off the contact between the two refueling systems and "folds" Soliot's pipes. The refueling itself can be done from the ground or by the laboratory staff.
4. The bathroom cabin - the same as the Soyuz bathroom cabin, except that it was extended by one meter. Another compartment in the back is an instrument compartment containing the necessary equipment to carry out the unmanned mission. The automatic reference control and thermal control systems are different from the Soyuz ones.
Progress has special aids to facilitate sticking with Soliot: three flashlights, and two TV cameras mounted on the outer wall. One camera shines along the longitudinal axis of the spacecraft and the other shoots perpendicular to the first camera. Progress does not have a heat shield, life support system and sun racks. Batteries replace the solar cells.
Since the order of the cells and the electrical circuits were changed, the spacecraft underwent vibration strength tests and more before launch. The meeting and docking information is transmitted directly to the Soliot and the ground. The astronauts can take part in Soliot maneuvers.
