Everything is on schedule for the launch Tuesday of the Soyuz rocket carrying the new Fregat upper stage and inflatable heat shields -- a promising and innovative way of returning cargo from space.
The launch is set to take place February 8, at 6:20 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (4:20 a.m. local time) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
The Fregat upper stage will provide additional capabilities to the new version of the Soyuz launch vehicle used by the Starsem joint venture for the commercial operations.
At 2:40 a.m. EST, Wednesday, February 9 -- about seven hours, or five orbits after the launch -- the Fregat upper stage and a mock-up satellite it is carrying are expected to return safely to Earth, protected on their fiery ride through the atmosphere by two inflatable reentry shields. They are expected to land in Russia.
or IRDT, was developed by the Lavochkin design bureau in Moscow in cooperation with DaimlerChrysler Aerospace AG. It is hoped the technology will be used to return cargo from the International Space Station. Robin Zell, a representative for DaimlerChrysler Aerospace AG, said the search and recovery team that includes representatives from DaimlerChrysler and Lavochkin, has already been assembled on a military base near the city of Orenburg, Russia.
Five recovery helicopters will be hovering near the expected landing area, trying to catch the process of landing on film, Zell said.
If successful, the IRDT could pave the way for new, more compact and cost-effective technology for returning cargo from space.
"We realize that we might not be successful right away -- however, we will keep trying," Zell said.
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