NSSDCA/COSPAR ID: 2000-064A
An improved version of cargo freighters used to supply the Mir space station, the Progress M series had greater cargo capacity, a modernized approach/docking system and carried 2 solar panels to generate electrical power. Progress M can fly for 30 days independently and 108 days docked with Mir. Spare propellent in Progress M's tanks can be transferred to Mir before it is consigned to burn up in reentry. In the past, extra fuel was abandoned with the craft. Future Progress vehicles will carry a recoverable reentry capsule for the speedy return of up to 150 kg of material from Mir to earth.
Progress M-43 was launched from Baikonur at 21:27 UT by a Soyuz-U rocket. It carried food and fuel for a probable crew that may enter Mir early 2001. It docked with Mir after four days of orbiting, rather than the usual two days. This slow docking enabled the cargo ship to conserve 150 kg of fuel that will be spent in raising Mir to a higher altitude from the currently perilous orbit.
Launch Date: 2000-10-16
Launch Vehicle: Soyuz-U
Launch Site: Tyuratam (Baikonur Cosmodrome), Kazakhstan
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