Cargo spacecraft "Progress M-40"

Russia

Launch, orbit & landing data:

Designation	25512 / 98062A
Launch date - time	25 Oct 1998 - 04:14:57 UT
Launch site	Baikonur, LC1
Launch vehicle	Soyuz 11A511U (#660)
OKB name - S/N°	7K-TGM (#239)
Mass (kg)
Total cargo mass (kg)
Earth orbit on :
- Perigee / Apogee	km
- Inclination	°
- Period	min

Docking date - time	27 Oct 1998 - 05:34:41 UT
Target spacecraft/port	Mir / Aft-Kvant
Docking orbit:
- Perigee / Apogee	194 x 238 km
- Inclination	51.6°
- Period	88.6 min
Undocking date - time	04 Feb 1999 - 09:59:32 UT
Deorbit burn date - time	05 Feb 1999 - 10:16:05 UT
Destroyed date - time	05 Feb 1999 - 11:09:30 UT
Flight Duration (dd:hh:min)	101d 04h 33m
Nbr orbits

Equiped with Sputnik-41 (98062C) satellite.

Mission:

Delivery of cargo to the orbital station "Mir"
Cargo ship Progress M-40 was launched from Baykonur on 1998 Oct 25. It docked with the Mir orbital station to provide supplies on Oct 27. It also carries the Znamya-2.5 solar illumination experiment.
The Progress M-40 cargo craft will undock on Feb 4 and deploy the 25-m diameter Znamya-2.5 reflector, which may be visible from as a flash brighter than the full Moon in various locations around the world. The reflector, attached to the nose of Progress, will reflect a patch of sunlight about 6km wide on the surface. Znamya-2.5 is developed by the Space Regatta Consortium (SRC), led by the RKK Energiya company which operates Mir. Mir commander Padalka will use the TORU manual control system to point the reflector at the Earth. An earlier experiment, Znamya-2, was carried out in Feb 1993. Astronomers have expressed concern about the potential that experiments like Znamya may interfere with observations of the night sky. Although Znamya-2.5 itself isn't really a big deal, the fact that there is currently no international regulation controlling the launching of bright satellites which could destroy sensitive astronomical detectors has led the International Astronomical Union to oppose the Znamya-2.5 experiment on the grounds of the precedent it would set. SRC's long term idea is that Znamya could lead to a constellation of huge space mirrors to illuminate Arctic cities, which raises a lot of environmental, political and practical concerns. Nevertheless, Znamya-2.5 is also an important test of the technology of deployable large structures and solar sails, with many useful potential applications, and presumably Energiya's main intention is that the publicity will generate Western contracts for further, less controversial, experiments with deployable structures which would use their expertise.
Progress M-40 undocked on Feb 4, 1999 at 0959 UTC, but the attempt to deploy the Znamya-2.5 reflector ran into trouble when it caught on an antenna. Two attempts failed to deploy the antenna, and the experiment was abandoned. Progress M-40 fired its engines for the deorbit burn at 1016 UTC on Feb 5 and reentered over the Pacific.

Astrophilately covers:

Undocking cancel Korolev. Credit: J. Vd Dr.

Ref.: #7(JR378,387), #21, #125, #210, #415 - update: 20.04.19

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