OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE
about the launch of transport cargo vehicle Progress M-51
to the International Space Station


December 24, 2004. Baikonur Cosmodrome.

The Integrated launch vehicle Soyuz-U/Progress M-51 was launched from
Baikonur cosmodrome to deliver necessary cargoes by Progress M-51 transport
cargo vehicle to the International Space Station (ISS) to continue its
manned operation creating living and working conditions for the crew and
re-supplying tanks with propellant and gases.
The ILV was launched at 01:19:34 Moscow time.
The vehicle was injected into a near-earth orbit with maximum altitude of
255.1 km, minimum altitude of 193.0 km, period of revolution of 88.58 min
and inclination of 51.66°.
The vehicle onboard systems operate normally.
According to the ISS program, the vehicle flight is designated by 16P and
implemented to fulfill the Russian obligations under the Project.
This is the 16th flight of Progress cargo vehicles to the International
Space Station. The vehicles of this type are developed at RSC Energia, and
operated since 1978. At present two modern modified vehicles Progress M and
Progress M1 are used for flights.
Progress M-51 carries 480 kg of propellant, 28 kg of oxygen, 21 kg of air
and 420 kg of potable water in the refueling compartment. In the vehicle
cargo compartment there are about 1.35 tons of dry cargoes consisting of
foodstuff, equipment and facilities for the station onboard systems, medical
equipment, underwear, personal hygiene items and individual protection gear,
flight-data files, video and photo materials, parcels for the crew,
structural elements, payloads for the USOS, hardware and materials for space
experiments.
The vehicle berthing is scheduled on 26 December 2004 to the axial docking
port of Russian Service Module Zvezda. Progress M-50, that has been
operating as part of the Orbital Complex since 14 August 2004, cleared the
docking port on 23 December 2004. Following a controllable de-orbit in the
assigned area of the Pacific Ocean the vehicle was burned.
The decision about ILV Soyuz-U/ProgressM-49 launch was taken by the
Government Board (co-chairmen: N.F. Moiseev, V.A. Grin') based on the
conclusion of the Technical Management about the readiness of the Orbital
Complex and ground infrastructure components involved in the ISS program
implementation.
The prelaunch processing was directly led by the responsible representatives
of the prime enterprises and organizations headed by Academician of the
Russian Academy of Sciences Yu.P. Semenov, Technical Manager of Russian
Piloted Space Programs, General Designer of S.P. Korolev RSC Energia.
The vehicle and ISS Russian Segment flight is under control of the Lead
Operational Control Team (LOCT) located in the Mission Control Center in
Moscow (MCC-M), Korolev, Moscow area (Flight Director is V.A. Soloviev, S.P.
Korolev RSC Energia Deputy General Designer, pilot-cosmonaut).
The ISS Orbital Complex operates in orbit with the following parameters:
maximum altitude of 373.6 km, minimum altitude of 352.1 km, period of
revolution of 91.6 min and inclination of 51.66°.
According to the telemetry information and reports made by the ISS
Expedition 10 crew: Russian cosmonaut Salizhan Sharipov (flight engineer)
and US astronaut Leroy Chiao (commander), all station onboard systems
operate in designed modes.
The Orbital Complex is ready for docking with the cargo vehicle.



--
--------------

Jacques :-)

www.spacepatches.info