Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski and other astronauts of the AX-4 mission reached the international space station on Thursday. The flight ran perfectly – said Dr. Tomasz Barciński from CBK PAN. The crew spent orbit a day, because this is required by space maneuvers.
Astronauts' journey – in the expert's opinion – took place exemplary.
“As for the flight itself, it – speaking non -non -non -non -non -non -non -non -non -non -non -non -engineering language – ran really beautifully, including even the landing of the first degree Falcon rocket, which took the capsule. The flight took place 'like a string', 'said Dr. Barciński.
During the Thursday broadcast, everyone interested in astronautics could watch an unusual spectacle in which the Dragon capsule was captured by the ISS.
“Thanks to the cameras placed at the station, you could also see the moment of docking carefully. You could see how maneuvering engines precisely, short pulses set the capsule, which then grabs the station port, extending the soft docking mechanism. Dragon attracted to ISS, after which a rigid connection took place. It was the result of an active, robotic connection, which with this movement distracted the remnants of the kinetic energy of the capsule and precisely equalized its position relative to the station port ” – said the specialist.
He noted that the astronauts spent the day, but this is a standard procedure.
“This was due to the fact that the rocket cannot transport the capsules near the station. It is too precise to do it safely. So the capsule is placed at an orbit at a long distance from the ISS. It is located in a slightly lower orbit, thanks to which it has a higher angular speed and the station is getting along, but for this time, before Dragon caught up, both They can imagine the land.
He added that there are several particularly dangerous stages while traveling to ISS.
“The most dangerous is the moment of the so -called Max Q. This is the time when the rocket already has a very high speed, but it is still low and rises through a dense atmosphere. Then the biggest forces act on it. If there are some disadvantages somewhere in the construction, just then they can make themselves felt” – he emphasized.
However, as he noted, even in the event of a disaster, astronauts would have a good chance of rescue. “The system consisting of a Falcon rocket and Dragon capsules allows an emergency disconnection and rejection of the capsule, if there was a disaster. Astronauts can then land safely, even though the rocket explodes. In this scenario, the mission is of course intermittent,” he noted.
Another difficult moment is the already mentioned docking.
“There is no threat here such a difficult situation as the explosion of the rocket. However, theoretically, it may happen that for some reason the automation will fail, and astronauts will not be able to moor to the station manually. Then, after a few attempts, the capsule returns to the ground, because the amount of oxygen and other resources is limited in it” – explained Dr. Barciński.
The most dramatic stage, even when it runs as planned, is a return – he added.
“There are high forces and a huge temperature on the spacecraft then. First, it must maintain the appropriate orientation so that it does not burning thanks to thermal shields. If it enters the atmosphere too sharply, the temperature will rise so much that it will also be destroyed. If the angle is too mild, the vehicle will affect the atmosphere” – emphasized the scientist.
He reassured that there was no reason to worry. “This is a well -known issue. Such maneuvers have been made for many years, routinely, and automatic control systems deal well with it. Astronauts are also well trained,” Dr. Barciński pointed out.
Referring to changes in the flight date, Dr. Barciński pointed out that there was even a risk of putting the mission to many months. “The situation was complex. We were dealing with leaks in the Russian part of the station, which caused a decrease in pressure. The ISS is already 25 years old, so failures can happen. It is difficult to assess exactly how large, but there was a threat that the mission would be postponed for many months” – noted the CBK PAN expert.
He emphasized that in space, security has the highest priority.
“Note that in the 21st century, i.e. in 25 years, there was only one disaster with the participation of astronauts, which concerned Columbia swinging cap. As for cosmic flights, safety is now really high – precisely because the rigors associated with it were significantly increased,” he emphasized.
Marek Matacz
