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Space Digest                Sat,  3 Oct 92       Volume 15 : Issue 278

Today's Topics:
    Electronic Journal of the ASA (EJASA) - October 1992 [Part 1]

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Date: Fri, 2 Oct 1992 17:26:44 GMT
From: Larry Klaes <[e-mail]>
Subject: Electronic Journal of the ASA (EJASA) - October 1992 [Part 1]
Newsgroups: sci.astro,sci.space,sci.misc,sci.skeptic

                          THE ELECTRONIC JOURNAL OF
                  THE ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE ATLANTIC

                      Volume 4, Number 3 - October 1992

                         ###########################

                              TABLE OF CONTENTS

                         ###########################

          * ASA Membership and Article Submission Information

          * Soviet Spacecraft Docking Experience - Adam R. Brody

          * First International Conference on Optical SETI

               - Dr. Stuart A. Kingsley

                         ###########################

                         ASA MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION

        The Electronic Journal of the Astronomical Society of the Atlantic
    (EJASA) is published monthly by the Astronomical Society of the
    Atlantic, Incorporated.  The ASA is a non-profit organization dedicated
    to the advancement of amateur and professional astronomy and space
    exploration, as well as the social and educational needs of its members.

        ASA membership application is open to all with an interest in
    astronomy and space exploration.  Members receive the Journal of the
    ASA (hardcopy sent through United States Mail - Not a duplicate of this
    Electronic Journal) and the Astronomical League's REFLECTOR magazine.
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        For information on membership, you may contact the Society at any
    of the following addresses:

        Astronomical Society of the Atlantic (ASA)
        c/o Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy (CHARA)
        Georgia State University (GSU)
        Atlanta, Georgia  30303
        U.S.A.

        [e-mail]

        ASA BBS: [phone], 300/1200/2400 Baud.

        or telephone the Society Recording at [phone] to leave your
    address and/or receive the latest Society news.

        ASA Officers and Council -

        President - Don Barry
        Vice President - Nils Turner
        Secretary - Ingrid Siegert-Tanghe
        Treasurer - Mike Burkhead
        Directors - Bill Bagnuolo, Eric Greene, Tano Scigliano
        Council - Bill Bagnuolo, Bill Black, Mike Burkhead, Frank Guyton,
                  Larry Klaes, Ken Poshedly, Jim Rouse, Tano Scigliano,
                  John Stauter, Wess Stuckey, Harry Taylor, Gary Thompson,
                  Cindy Weaver, Bob Vickers

        ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS -

        Article submissions to the EJASA on astronomy and space exploration
    are most welcome.  Please send your on-line articles in ASCII format to
    Larry Klaes, EJASA Editor, at the following net addresses or the above
    Society addresses:

        [e-mail]
        or - ...!decwrl!verga.enet.dec.com!klaes
        or - [e-mail]
        or - [e-mail]

        You may also use the above addresses for EJASA back issue requests,
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        When sending your article submissions, please be certain to include
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        Back issues of the EJASA are also available from anonymous FTP
    at chara.gsu.edu (131.96.5.29)

        DISCLAIMER -

        Submissions are welcome for consideration.  Articles submitted,
    unless otherwise stated, become the property of the Astronomical
    Society of the Atlantic, Incorporated.  Though the articles will not
    be used for profit, they are subject to editing, abridgment, and other
    changes.  Copying or reprinting of the EJASA, in part or in whole, is
    encouraged, provided clear attribution is made to the Astronomical
    Society of the Atlantic, the Electronic Journal, and the author(s).
    Opinions expressed in the EJASA are those of the authors' and not
    necessarily those of the ASA.  This Journal is Copyright (c) 1992
    by the Astronomical Society of the Atlantic, Incorporated.


                    SOVIET SPACECRAFT DOCKING EXPERIENCE

                    Copyright (c) 1991 by Adam R. Brody
                             Sterling Software
                        @ NASA Ames Research Center

        Any discussion of spacecraft docking operations would be
    incomplete without mention of the accomplishments that the Soviets
    have had in this area.  In 1991, the Soviets inhabited their eighth
    Earth-orbiting space station, named MIR.  Through July of 1990, the
    Soviets have had thirty-five successful autonomous dockings in space
    (Friedman and Heinsheimer, 1990).

        Cosmonauts inhabit the MIR space station for many months at a time
    and unmanned vehicles automatically dock for resupply.  Most of the
    information that follows was gleaned from the ALMANAC OF SOVIET MANNED
    SPACE FLIGHT, by Dennis Newkirk (1990).

        The Soviets began contemplating spacecraft docking operations when
    they realized these techniques were necessary for racing the United
    States to place the first humans on Earth's Moon in the 1960s.  Their
    first plan was an Earth orbital rendezvous (EOR) leading to a lunar
    fly-by.  They were to use the same A-2 boosters and launch facilities
    being developed for the VOSKHOD (meaning "Sunrise") program and
    unmanned missions.  Each mission would involve five launches.  SOYUZ
    V tankers would automatically rendezvous and dock and then fuel the
    SOYUZ B rocket waiting in Earth orbit.  The manned SOYUZ (meaning
    "Union") would dock with the fueled rocket and then be launched
    around the Moon.

        By 1964, the Soviets realized they were not developing the docking
    techniques fast enough to beat the U.S. to the Moon.  They decided to

    adopt a direct ascent profile, which involved launching directly from
    Earth to the Moon, eliminating the need for docking.  After a series of
    unmanned failures, ZOND 5B (meaning "Probe") achieved the first lunar
    fly-by and return in September of 1968.  The spacecraft contained
    plants, turtles, flies, and worms.

        Some modifications were needed, however:  The returning capsule
    experienced between ten and sixteen g's (Earth gravities), more than a
    human could endure.  ZOND 6 performed a similar mission in November of
    that year, but with g-forces reduced by one-half.  Technical difficulties
    delayed the December launch of ZOND 7A (which most likely would have been
    manned) by one month, allowing the U.S. the first manned lunar orbital
    mission with APOLLO 8 in December of 1968.

        The race to the Moon was not without a high cost to both the
    Soviets and the Americans.  On January 27, 1967, during a launch pad
    rehearsal for APOLLO 1, astronauts Virgil I. Grissom, Edward H. White
    II, and Roger Chaffee died in a fire which happened aboard their
    spacecraft.  Cosmonaut Vladimir Komarov plunged to his death when
    the SOYUZ 1 parachute shroud lines twisted while returning from Earth
    orbit in April of 1967.  These accidents delayed both the APOLLO and
    SOYUZ manned launches for over one year.  "APOLLO 1 and SOYUZ 1 taught
    the world that victories in space would be neither easy nor cheap."
    (Aldrin and McConnell, 1989, page 172)

        In October of 1967, two SOYUZ vehicles, modified after the SOYUZ 1
    tragedy, tested and perfected automatic docking operations.  KOSMOS
    (Cosmos) 188 was launched three days after KOSMOS 186 and completed
    a rendezvous on the first revolution.  KOSMOS 186 became the active
    vehicle and docked with KOSMOS 188, which was cooperatively main-
    taining a stable attitude.  KOSMOS 186 was the first SOYUZ to have
    maneuvered in orbit.  This was also the first automatic docking and
    the first to be achieved by unmanned vehicles.  Six months later, in
    April of 1968, KOSMOS 212 and KOSMOS 213 repeated this procedure.
    Television cameras transmitted the undocking to ground control.  These
    vehicles were essentially stripped-down SOYUZ spacecraft and the
    procedure they pioneered is similar to what is used today.  A brief
    description follows.

        Radar contact between the two spacecraft is established in the
    capture phase.  Both vehicles align themselves to a common axis.  The
    chaser vehicle closes with a range rate of about two meters per second
    at 350 meters.  This is about six times faster than suggested by NASA's
    "0.1 percent rule," which limits approach velocity to no greater than
    0.1 percent of the range per second (Sedej and Clarke, 1985; Oberg,
    1988).

        The target vehicle, such as a space station, then uses attitude
    control rockets to maintain orientation in the mooring phase.  The
    chaser craft extends a probe to effect a soft docking.  "The extended
    probe prevents the airtight seals of the two spacecraft docking collars
    from being damaged if the initial contact is hard or off-center" (New-
    kirk, 1990, page J65).  The vehicles complete soft docking when small
    latches on top of the probe catch the center of the drogue.

        "In the docking phase, the active ship reels its probe in and the
    ship's butt docking collars make an airtight connection" (Newkirk,
    1990, page 66).  Latches in both collars hold the spacecraft together
    so electrical connections for communication and power may then be
    made.  With the unmanned PROGRESS supply spacecraft, refueling
    connections also are consummated.  Springs are used for disengaging.

        In October of 1968, Colonel Georgiy Beregovoy attempted docking
    maneuvers in SOYUZ 3.  This was the first time the Soviets launched
    the passive target vehicle, SOYUZ 2, just as the U.S. did in the
    GEMINI program two years earlier.  An automatic system guided SOYUZ 3
    from direct ascent to a range within 180 meters.  Television cameras
    transmitted the image of the approaching target to the Soviets.  This
    flight was intended to accomplish the first Soviet manned docking, but
    all docking attempts failed (Newkirk, 1990).  In one instance, ground
    control directed a maneuver calculated from data transmitted by the
    rendezvous antennae on each vehicle (Baker, 1982).

        "Only 10 weeks after SOYUZ 3,...the shortest gap between non-
    related manned space missions to that time" (Clark, 1988, page 50),
    the Soviets launched SOYUZ 4.  "The launch [sic] of SOYUZ 4 and SOYUZ
    5 in January 1969 marked the first winter launch in the Soviet manned
    space programme, suggesting that the flights had to be urgently
    completed" (Clark, page 51).

        Another descendent of the lunar fly-by mission was the first
    manned docking in January of 1969 with SOYUZ 5.  After practicing
    almost eight hundred dockings in the simulator at Star City, cosmonaut
    Vladimir Shatalov accomplished an objective of the failed SOYUZ 1
    mission, i.e., the first Soviet manned docking.  In SOYUZ 4, Shatalov
    flew a manual approach to within a few kilometers of SOYUZ 5.  He then
    activated the automatic system, which reduced the range to one hundred
    meters.  Shatalov regained control and docked during a live Soviet
    television broadcast.  This docking set a precedent in that it did not
    occur during the first orbit.  The Soviets announced the combined
    spacecraft "as the world's First Experimental Space Station" (Clark,
    page 51).  Fellow cosmonauts Yevgeniy Khrunov and Aleksey Yeliseyev
    used the opportunity to perform the first transfer from one spacecraft
    to another.

        The SOYUZ spacecraft was later modified for use as a space station
    ferry.  SOYUZ 10 and 11 were the only flights with the original SALYUT
    ferry.  The most important change was the introduction of a crew
    transfer system, which precluded the necessity to go EVA (Extra-
    Vehicular Activity) to board the station.

        The Soviets used Volga trainers to prepare for the docking
    operations.  The Volga consisted of movable mockups of both SOYUZ and
    SALYUT mounted on rails.  They would respond to commands made by the
    cosmonauts.  A television view of the SALYUT was presented to the
    SOYUZ model's periscope system to give the crew a simulation of an
    actual approach to the space station (Clark, 1988).

        While manual control has been relegated to a back-up position for
    unmanned supply vehicles, the Soviets have utilized manual control for
    manned dockings to space stations.  This began with SOYUZ 10, in April
    of 1971, which brought the first crew of Vladimir Shatalov, Aleksey
    Yeliseyev, and Nikolay Rukavishnikov to SALYUT 1.  SALYUT 1 (meaning
    "Salute"), humanity's first true space station, was launched in April
    of 1971 aboard the Soviet Union's most powerful space launcher, the
    PROTON, known in the West as the D-1.  SALYUT 1 returned to Earth upon
    burning up in the atmosphere in October of the same year.

        The SALYUT assisted in the docking maneuver not only by
    maintaining attitude control, but "also made four orbit changes to
    match orbit with the approaching SOYUZ" (Newkirk, 1990, page 99).  At
    a range of 180 meters, Shatalov took over control from the automatic
    system and performed a manual docking.  Problems, most likely with the
    SOYUZ, prevented the crew from boarding.

        The Soviets and the Americans both advocate manual back-up for
    automatic docking maneuvers.  However, the Soviets only resort to the
    manual system upon failure of the automatic one, while the Americans
    tend to use manual control whenever it is available, not just as a
    back-up control mode.  Such is the case with Space Shuttle (and other
    advanced aircraft) landings, where the mere existence of a manual
    control capability is cited as a justification for using pilot control
    instead of the automated system.

        In an October, 1970 meeting in Moscow, the United States and the
    Soviets started formulating plans for the APOLLO-SOYUZ Test Project
    (ASTP).  During a June, 1971 meeting in Houston, Texas, "[Boris]
    Petrov expressed the preference of the Soviet Academy of Sciences for
    a joint docking flight employing the androgynous docking system"
    (Baker, 1982, page J408).  This could be accomplished either with a
    SOYUZ docking with a SKYLAB/APOLLO or an APOLLO docking with a
    SALYUT/SOYUZ.  The latter was established as the baseline mission.

        In June of 1971, SOYUZ 11 was the next (and last) vehicle to dock
    with SALYUT 1.  The automated system reduced the range from six
    kilometers to 100 meters.  Georgi Dobrovolsky then took over control
    at a range of 100 meters and a velocity of 0.9 meters per second (m/s)
    (This is nine times faster than suggested by the 0.1 percent rule).
    By sixty meters, he reduced the range rate to 0.3 m/s.  Dobrovolsky
    then completed the docking maneuver.

        The crew of SOYUZ 11 became the first to inhabit the space
    station.  After a record twenty-four-day stay in space, the mission
    ended in disaster when the air in SOYUZ 11 escaped through an open
    valve eleven minutes before the craft entered the atmosphere.  Twelve
    pyrotechnic devices, used for separation, fired simultaneously rather
    than sequentially, releasing a seal on the spacecraft's pressure
    equalization valve.  The atmosphere escaped in approximately thirty
    seconds while the cosmonauts were in the middle of a sixty-second
    procedure to close the valve manually.  All three men suffocated in
    space.  Worst of all, the cosmonauts were not wearing their pressure
    suits, which was a common procedure during return at the time.

        Shatalov consequently replaced General Nikolai Kamanin as head of
    the cosmonaut corps.  A redesign of the space station was necessary,
    but since this would take longer than the SALYUT's lifetime in space
    to complete, the station was de-orbited.  More than two years passed
    before the next manned Soviet mission.

        The SOYUZ Ferry was created to bring crews to SALYUT space
    stations.  It contained an automatic rendezvous and docking system
    known as Igla, or "needle".  As in earlier SOYUZ docking missions,
    both spacecraft maneuvered actively.  The SOYUZ Ferry had its first
    manned flight, SOYUZ 12, in September of 1973.  Since both SALYUT 1
    and 2 had failed in the previous year, this flight was able only to
    simulate transport to a space station.  SALYUT 2 most likely had an
    attitude control thruster stuck on and broke up in orbit before it
    could be manned.

        SOYUZ 13, launched in December of 1973, was an independent mission
    and did not dock with a station.  SOYUZ 14 was the first operational
    use of the ferry and took the only SALYUT 3 crew to orbit in July of
    1974.  Automated rendezvous was used to reduce the range from one
    thousand meters to within one hundred meters.  Pavel Popovich then
    performed manual docking.

        This procedure of manual control takeover at approximately 100
    meters continued with Alesksei Gubarev on SOYUZ 17 in January of 1975.
    Pyotr Klimuk performed similarly in May of 1975 with SOYUZ 18B.

        SOYUZ 19, better know as the APOLLO-SOYUZ Test Project, "was the
    first Soviet manned launch ever whose time was announced in advance
    and was the first to be televised live" (Newkirk, 1990, page 140).
    APOLLO 18 was the active vehicle because of its greater fuel supply.
    The SOYUZ merely had to maintain a fixed attitude toward the
    approaching APOLLO and match roll rates during the historic docking
    in July of 1975.

        SOYUZ 20 was a test of the PROGRESS automated cargo transport
    system in November of 1975.  PROGRESS 1, however, did not fly until
    January of 1978.  The PROGRESS, based on the SOYUZ, carried twice as
    much rendezvous and docking instrumentation as the SOYUZ Ferry.  A
    second video camera was mounted on the outside to give ground
    controllers a stereo view of the automatic docking.  "Simultaneous
    transmissions of telemetry from PROGRESS to SALYUT and the ground
    enabled both the control center and the cosmonauts to assist with
    docking if necessary" (Baker, 1982, page 524).

        PROGRESS 1 took two days approaching SALYUT 6 as SOYUZ 20 had
    done approaching SALYUT 4.  Manned spacecraft typically perform the
    approach in one day.  "Since the PROGRESS was unmanned, the crew did
    not retreat to the SOYUZ during the docking as when the SOYUZ 27
    docked.  They instead manned the station's controls ready to maneuver
    away from the approaching PROGRESS in case of a malfunction" (Newkirk,
    1990, page 179).  Since the PROGRESS was expendable, plume impingement
    upon it caused by an emergency SALYUT separation maneuver was not a
    concern.  None of the PROGRESS missions through May of 1988 had any
    docking problems, although there were occasional problems with manned
    missions.

        The SOYUZ T was the replacement for the SOYUZ Ferry.  It "included
    a new computer system and was claimed to be more automated than the
    earlier SOYUZ variants; however, in flight the cosmonauts often had
    to take over manual control when the automatic systems apparently
    malfunctioned during docking maneuvers" (Clark, 1988, page 98).
    SOYUZ T-1 flew in an unmanned configuration in December of 1979.

        In June of 1980, the Argon docking computer flew its maiden launch
    on the first manned SOYUZ T flight, SOYUZ T-2.  Argon selected which
    of several possible approaches to fly to a space station and then flew
    it with manual override capability.  It similarly controlled descent.
    Its operation required that the crew study computer programming.  This
    training may have saved the mission, as the automated docking system
    failed at a range of 180 meters from SALYUT 6.  "This was a problem
    which would be regularly repeated during SOYUZ-T missions" (Clark,
    1988, page 120).

        Yuri Malyshev, a rookie cosmonaut, took over control and completed
    a successful manual docking.  Aleksey Yeliseyev explained that the
    crew and flight controllers had not practiced the approach the
    computer selected, so the crew decided to take over control to be
    better prepared in the event of an emergency.  The crew claimed the
    automated system would have been successful if given the opportunity
    (Newkirk, 1990).

        SOYUZ 38, the seventh international crew, was launched in
    September of 1980 with the first black cosmonaut, a Cuban.  The
    automated system controlled not only the rendezvous but also the
    docking.  The next manned flight, SOYUZ T-3, was launched in November
    of 1980.  Its Argon automatic docking system performed the docking
    maneuver from a range of five kilometers.

        The Soviets' MIR (meaning both "World" and "Peace") space station
    evolved from earlier SALYUT designs and was launched in February of
    1986.  The station contains five docking drogues with a manipulator
    system that moves incoming modules from the forward port where they
    have docked to a side port.  The Kurs ("Course") docking system was
    incorporated into the forward port.  This eliminated the need for
    attitude control by the station during the docking maneuver (Newkirk,
    1990).  Clark (1988) claims the rear port was also outfitted with
    the Kurs system in addition to the old Igla system, which would
    accommodate PROGRESS freighters.

        MIR's first crew was launched March of 1986 on SOYUZ T-15 with
    live Soviet television coverage.  The Igla system controlled the
    approach to within 200 meters of MIR's aft docking port, which was
    compatible with SOYUZ T and PROGRESS.  Leonid Kizim then flew around
    to the forward port, which was instrumented with the new Kurs system
    to be used with SOYUZ TM and STAR modules.  The SOYUZ was incapable
    of automatic docking at the forward port.  However, the laser range
    finder that was first used on the SOYUZ T-13 flight in June of 1985
    aided Kizim.  Kizim completed a manual docking from an initial range
    of sixty meters.

        In May, the crew performed the first station-to-station transfer
    by flying over to SALYUT 7 to reactivate it.  Again, the hand-held
    laser range finder was used to generate range data.  The automatic
    system was used from five kilometers until Kizim took over manual
    control and docked.  The crew returned to MIR at the end of June.
    After the crew used the Igla rendezvous system to reduce the range
    from 200 meters, Kizim took over control at a range of fifty meters
    from the rear docking port and maneuvered to dock at the forward port.

        The Kurs rendezvous system was demonstrated in May of 1986 with
    an unmanned SOYUZ TM-1.  This system does not require target vehicle
    transponders and can dock with a station at any relative attitude.
    It "makes contact with the station at a range of 200 km and docking
    lock-on begins at 20 to 30 km distance" (Newkirk, 1990, page 313).
    Kurs presents closing rate data from the docking radar to the
    cosmonauts.

        On March 31, 1987, the KVANT ("Quantum") module, the first to
    be sent to MIR, was launched one degree out of plane with MIR in an
    approach similar to that of STAR modules.  During its approach to MIR
    on April 5, the cosmonauts were suited up in the SOYUZ TM in case of
    a collision.  The spacecraft started its approach at seventeen
    kilometers distance using the old Igla docking system.  At 500 meters
    distance, the KVANT's forward docking camera was activated and the
    docking probe extended.  When KVANT was only 200 meters from the
    station and preparing for final docking maneuvers, Flight Director
    Ryumin radioed to the cosmonauts that KVANT had lost its lock-on to
    MIR's docking transponders.  "[KVANT drifted slightly and] was
    rotating slightly as it passed within 10 meters of MIR" (Newkirk,
    1990, pages 321-322). "The KVANT thrusters failed to slow down the
    module and it flew past MIR" (Clark, 1988, page J155).

        Mission controllers spent several days analyzing the problem
    during which time the KVANT drifted to a range of 400 kilometers.
    Ground controllers brought KVANT back to the vicinity of MIR.  The
    Igla automatic docking system was activated at a range of twenty-two
    kilometers.  Lock-on to MIR's docking transponder signal was achieved.
    At a range of one thousand meters, the approach velocity was 2.5
    meters per second (This is 2.5 times the rate suggested by NASA's 0.1
    percent rule).  The relative velocity was decreased to 0.32 meters
    per second at 26 meters (12.3 times the 0.1 percent rule rate of 0.026
    meters per second).  Soft docking was achieved within twenty-one
    minutes of Igla lock-on.

        During the docking of PROGRESS 33 in November of 1987, the Soviets
    experimented with new station orienting procedures since the Igla
    system, used by the PROGRESS, required active maneuvering by the
    target vehicle.  Typical fuel expenditures for docking a PROGRESS to
    MIR were approximately 192 kilograms using the old system.  "The new
    Igla procedure reduced this amount to about 82 kg" (Newkirk, 1990,
    page 322).

        The first launch of the PROGRESS M, a modified PROGRESS, occurred
    in August of 1989.  It has an increased on-orbit stay time, "an
    improved automated docking system and also is able to transfer unused
    fuel to the space station" (Rains, 1990b, page 8).  The PROGRESS M
    also possesses a return capsule, which was successfully tested on the
    PROGRESS M5 mission in November of 1990 (Kiernan, 1990).

        Docking Failures

        Despite their great experience with docking both manned and
    unmanned spacecraft, the Soviets have had several failures during
    docking maneuvers.  Failures occurred with SOYUZ 15 in August of 1974,
    SOYUZ 23 in October of 1976, SOYUZ 25 in October of 1977, SOYUZ 33 in
    April of 1979, and SOYUZ T-8 in April of 1983.

        The failure of SOYUZ 15 to dock with SALYUT 3 was due either to a
    repeated system failure to initiate the manual control phase at a
    range of 100 meters (Clark, 1988), or "the automatic system
    malfunctioned twice, pushing the ship out of control with excessive
    engine burns while only 30 to 50 meters from the station" (Newkirk,
    1990, page 128).  With a limited battery and fuel supply, the vehicle
    had to de-orbit when the docking failed.

        In October of 1976, SOYUZ 23 was aborted because of a malfunction
    in the automatic docking system.  This occurred before the range of
    the SOYUZ to the SALYUT 5 station was reduced to 100 meters.  Since
    the crew of Vyacheslav Zudov and Veleri Rozhdestvenski were trained
    to take over from 100 meters, but not before, the crew were forced to
    land as soon as possible.  The manual back-up mode was not extensive
    enough to save this mission.  As the Tass news agency reported:  "The
    spaceship SOYUZ 23 was put into the automatic regime for the approach
    to SALYUT 5.  Docking with the SALYUT 5 station was canceled because
    of an unplanned operation of the approach control system of the ship"
    (Clark, 1988, page 74).

        Viktor Grobatko flew a successful docking of SOYUZ 24 in February
    of 1977 after taking over control at a range of eighty meters.  The
    Soviets' success was short-lived, however, as failure plagued SOYUZ
    25 in October of that year.  Vladimir Kovalyonok began the docking
    maneuver from 120 meters, but five docking attempts to the SALYUT 6
    station failed, due to a faulty docking fixture on the SOYUZ.  As
    the news release stated:

        "At 07.09 [sic] Moscow Time today [10 October] the automatic
    rendezvous of the SOYUZ 25 ship and the SALYUT 6 station was begun.
    From a distance of 120 metres, the vehicles performed a docking
    maneuver.  Due to deviations from the planned procedure for docking,
    the link-up was called off.  The crew has begun making preparations
    for a return to Earth (Clark, 1988, pages 104-105)."

        While soft docking was achieved, hard docking enabling electrical
    connections to be made was not.  This failure resulted in the
    prohibition of all-rookie crews.  Romanenko and Ivanchenkov from the
    all-rookie back-up crew were each paired with veteran cosmonauts.

        SOYUZ 33, with the fourth international crew (Bulgaria), was
    launched in April of 1979.  The Igla system was implemented at a range
    of nine kilometers.  While approaching a range of one kilometer from
    SALYUT 6, the SOYUZ automatically fired its main engine for only three
    of its scheduled six seconds, causing tremendous shaking.  The second
    attempt with Igla also failed when it immediately shut down the engine.
    As Tass reported:  "During the process of approach there occurred
    deviations from the regular mode of operation of the approach correc-
    ting propulsion unit of the SOYUZ 33 spacecraft, and the docking of
    the craft with the SALYUT 6 was aborted" (Clark, 1988, page 114).

        The Soviets determined the problem to reside in the SOYUZ main
    engine, which was terminating thrust upon a failure to attain normal
    combustion pressure.  This was the first on-orbit failure of the SOYUZ
    propulsion system.  The crew returned to Earth without docking.  This
    amounted to the second failed visit to a SALYUT for Nikolay Rukavish-
    nikov, the Soviets' first civilian commander.  As a result, the SOYUZ
    32 crew in SALYUT 6 did not receive supplies until PROGRESS 6 brought
    them in May.

        Another failure occurred in April of 1983 with the aborted SOYUZ
    T-8 mission.  Although the launch shroud accidentally removed the
    rendezvous radar antenna, mission controllers decided to violate their
    own rules and let Vladimir Titov attempt an optical rendezvous from
    ten kilometers.  This had never been done before by the Soviets and was
    particularly risky since Titov later claimed he had not previously
    trained for manual approach and docking.  Flight directors assisted
    Titov by computing the range rate after Titov reported SALYUT size
    estimates.

        After a range of 330 meters was passed, the SOYUZ slipped out of
    contact with the ground.  Without his range rate source, Titov was not
    sure of his closing rate.  Although he was able to reduce his range to
    75 meters with the aid of the SOYUZ's floodlight, he approached at too
    high a velocity and, fearing a collision, fired thrusters to change
    orbits and abort the docking (Newkirk, 1990).

        There had been ten manned launches to SALYUT 1, 3, 4, and 5.  Of
    these, one had failed to reach orbit (SOYUZ 18A), two had failed to
    dock with their SALYUTs (SOYUZ 15 and 23), one had docked but the crew
    was unable to transfer to their SALYUT (SOYUZ 10), and one crew had
    perished during their return to Earth (SOYUZ 11).  This left the
    Soviets with a fifty percent success rate if we deem SOYUZ 21 as a
    successful mission, even though it was terminated earlier than planned.

        From 1977 to 1981 there were sixteen SOYUZ spacecraft launched
    towards SALYUT 6.  Of these only one failed to dock (SOYUZ 33) and one
    docked but the crew could not transfer (SOYUZ 25).  In addition, there
    were four launches of SOYUZ T craft, twelve launches of PROGRESS
    craft, and the KOSMOS 1267 mission, all of which successfully docked
    with SALYUT 6.  The success rate for SALYUT 6 was ninety-four percent
    (Clark, 1988, pages 126-127).

        Docking Recoveries

        Not all failures resulted in the loss of the mission.  During
    the SOYUZ T-6 mission in June of 1982, cosmonaut Vladimir Dzhanibekov
    rescued the docking with a manual maneuver after the automatic system
    failed.  After turning the spacecraft around to perform the braking
    maneuver, at nine hundred meters from SALYUT 7, the Argon computer
    failed and would not realign with the station.  Dzhanibekov
    disconnected the computer and maneuvered the SOYUZ along all three
    axes to resume pointing at the station.  His successful docking from
    such a far range under manual control was a major achievement
    (Newkirk, 1990).  The regular failure of the SOYUZ T system during
    final approach was usually followed by manual recovery and presumably
    led to computer improvements in the SOYUZ TM spacecraft (Clark, 1988).

        Vladimir Dzhanibekov was no stranger to docking operations:  The
    SOYUZ T-6 mission was his third.  After five flights he was the Soviet
    Union's most experienced cosmonaut.  He was the first cosmonaut to fly
    more than three space missions.

        Dzhanibekov served as back-up commander to Alexei Leonov (the
    first man to "walk" in space during the VOSKHOD 2 mission of 1965) for
    ASTP.  He did not fly in space until January of 1978 with the SOYUZ 27
    mission, where he achieved the first double docking with a manned
    space station.  In March of 1981, Dzhanibekov flew his second flight
    in SOYUZ 39 with Mongolian cosmonaut Jugerdemidiin Gurragcha.  In July
    of 1984, on SOYUZ T-12, he accompanied Svetlana Savitskaya in the first
    extra-vehicular activity (EVA) by a female (Hillyer, 1986).

        As prime commander of the SOYUZ T-13 mission, Dzhanibekov had
    the privilege of testing a new manual docking system in June of 1985.
    The primary purpose of this flight was to rescue SALYUT 7 after it
    had lost all power and was tumbling aimlessly in Earth orbit.  As
    Dzhanibekov said:

        "There were great difficulties with preparation for docking with
    this object.  The station seemed to us as a dead space object and
    nothing more.  And specialists were afraid that it would rotate in
    space at too high a speed in three axes.  So we had to train and to
    find out this optimum way to maneuver around the station to find the
    best light conditions of the Sun.  And of course to train our hand...
    everything had to be done manually" (Hillyer, 1986, page 17).

        Equipped with a laser range finder, Dzhanibekov compared the
    measured range to SALYUT 7 with the range computed by his spacecraft.
    At ten kilometers, Dzhanibekov interrupted the automated approach to
    input SALYUT 7 attitude data into the SOYUZ docking computer.  The
    automatic approach resumed until "3 km distance, at a rate of 12, and
    later 6 meters/second when Dzhanibekov took control" (Newkirk, 1990,
    page 270).  At three kilometers, "there started to be a difference
    between our measurements and the radar-calculated data.  So I had to
    take the handles and step in to direct manually" (Hillyer, 1986, page
    17).  "At 2 km, the crew used a new optical guidance system, hand-held
    laser range finder and a night vision instrument, to see and measure
    distance to the station" (Newkirk, page 270).

        At a range of two hundred meters, Dzhanibekov nulled the approach
    velocity because the Sun was behind the station, making visibility
    poor.  For ten minutes he circled the station on damage patrol.  Then,
    in a roll-matching maneuver, he docked with the station.  "Later
    Dzhanibekov would say, 'Docking is like driving a seven-ton truck with
    fragile freight on an icy road into a narrow gate at the end of this
    road'" (Kramer, 1990, page 57).  The docking was successful and
    Dzhanibekov has similar opinions about manual control as APOLLO 11
    astronaut Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin:  "He shares Aldrin's skepticism about
    automated systems and claims that manual control gives the ability to
    'operate in [a] wider range'" (Hillyer, page 18).

        SALYUT 7 entered Earth's atmosphere on February 7, 1991 ("Soviet
    SALYUT 7", 1991, page 15).  The SALYUT 7-KOSMOS 1686 system was the
    largest object (43 tons) to re-enter since SKYLAB re-entered over
    Australia on July 11, 1979.  The SALYUT's demise was accelerated by
    a peak in solar flare activity during 1989.  Earth's atmosphere was
    heated by the flares and subsequently rose, causing more drag on the
    SALYUT (and other spacecraft in Earth orbit) than would have occurred
    with a less active Sun.

        Admittedly, one of the main reasons for manual control is
    emotional or political:  Namely, pilots would rather fly than watch.
    However, the successful rescues mentioned previously would not have
    been possible without human intervention.

        Another recovery was made with SOYUZ TM-5 (the thirteenth
    international crew, a Bulgarian) in June of 1988.  Although the Kurs
    system malfunctioned during the final approach, flight controllers
    diagnosed the problem and a successful docking was completed within
    two days of the launch.

        In June of 1990, a docking recovery was achieved with an unmanned
    vehicle.  Docking of the KRISTALL ("Crystal") module with the MIR space
    station was automatically aborted when a KRISTALL computer discovered
    a malfunction in one of its attitude control thrusters.  Ground
    controllers used a backup set of thrusters to complete the docking
    operation successfully (Rains, 1990a).

        References -

    Aldrin, Edwin B., and M. McConnell, MEN FROM EARTH, Bantam Books,
    New York, 1989

        Baker, D., THE HISTORY OF MANNED SPACE FLIGHT, Crown Publishers,
    Inc., New York, 1982

        Clark, Phillip, THE SOVIET MANNED SPACE PROGRAM, Orion Books,
    New York, 1988

        Friedman L. H., and T. Heinsheimer, "Build a U.S.-Soviet Team for
    Mars", SPACE NEWS, July 2-8, 1990, pages 15-16

        Hillyer, M. S., "Cosmonauts Have the Right Stuff, Too: A Conver-
    sation with Vladimir Dzhanibekov", SPACE WORLD, September, 1986,
    pages 17-20

        Kiernan, V., "New PROGRESS Capsule Completes Successful Sample-
    Return Mission", SPACE NEWS, December 3-9, 1990, page 28

    Kramer, S. B., "The Rescue of SALYUT 7", AIR & SPACE SMITHSONIAN,
    February/March, 1990, pages 54-59

    Newkirk, Dennis, ALMANAC OF SOVIET MANNED SPACE FLIGHT, Gulf
    Publishing Company, Houston, Texas, 1990

    Oberg, James E., RENDEZVOUS AND PROXIMITY OPERATIONS HANDBOOK,
    (JSC-10589), NASA Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center Mission Operations
    Directorate Flight Design and Dynamics Division, Houston, Texas, 1988

    Rains, L., "KRISTALL, MIR Dock on Second Try; Space Walk Next",
    SPACE NEWS, June 10-16, 1990a, pages 1, 4, 21

    Rains, L., "Soviets Seek to Solve MIR Bottleneck with PROGRESS M",
    SPACE NEWS, September 10-16, 1990b, page 8

    Sedej, D. T., and S. F. Clarke, RENDEZVOUS AND PROXIMITY OPERATIONS
    WORKBOOK (RNDZ 2102), NASA Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center Mission
    Operations Directorate Training Division Flight Training Branch,
    Houston, Texas, 1985

    "Soviet SALYUT 7", AVIATION WEEK & SPACE TECHNOLOGY, February 11,
    1991, page 15

        Related EJASA Articles -

        "The Great Moon Race: The Soviet Story, Part One", by Andrew J.
    LePage - December 1990

        "The Great Moon Race: The Soviet Story, Part Two", by Andrew J.
    LePage - January 1991

        "The Great Moon Race: New Findings", by Andrew J. LePage - May 1991

        About the Author -

        Adam R. Brody received S.B. and S.M. degrees in Aeronautics and
    Astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in
    Cambridge, Massachusetts, and a diploma as a member of the founding
    conference of the International Space University (ISU).  Adam also
    received his M.A. degree in Psychology from San Jose State University
    in California.

        Adam is a senior aerospace engineer/experimental psychologist
    for Sterling Software, Palo Alto, California.  Among the NASA Ames
    Research Center organizations with which he has worked are the
    Centrifuge Facility Project Office, Human Interface Research Branch,
    EVA Systems Branch, and the Aerospace Human Factors Research Division.
    Adam is the author of over thirty-five research papers on various
    topics relating to performance aspects of humans in space.  Adam
    pioneered a comprehensive study of the human factors and manual
    control aspects of orbital flight and he developed the Space Station
    Proximity Operations Simulator at Ames for his studies.  He also
    initiated a research program to quantify EVA rescue requirements, and
    created of an orbital trajectory planning tool for the Macintosh
    computer system.

        Adam's research interests include the human factors and manual
    control requirements of space station proximity operations and other
    manned space flight operations.  Recent work includes development
    and simulation of an EVA self-rescue technique using the Virtual
    Interactive Environmental Workstation (VIEW).  Currently, he serves
    as the human factors expert on the systems engineering staff of the
    Centrifuge Facility Project Office at Ames, where he developed the
    Payload Resource In Space Monitor (PRISM) for tracking resources on
    the FREEDOM space station.  He is currently using object-oriented
    rapid prototyping to develop software requirements for the space
    station facility.

        Adam is a member of the Space Operations and Support Technical
    Committee of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics,
    where he is chairman of the Human Factors, Automation and Robotics
    Sub-committee.  He is also a member of the National Air and Space
    Museum, the Union of Concerned Scientists, a founding sponsor of the
    CHALLENGER Center, and a charter member of the Technology Center of
    Silicon Valley.  His biography is listed in Personalities of America,
    the Dictionary of International Biography, Who's Who of Emerging
    Leaders in America, Who's Who Among Young American Professionals,
    and Who's Who in the West.

        Adam may be reached through E-mail at [e-mail]


                 FIRST INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON OPTICAL SETI

                            Dr. Stuart A. Kingsley

        From the author of the January 1992 six-part EJASA article (Vol. 3,
    No. 6A-6F) on Optical SETI (OSETI):

        As a result of that article and floppy disk versions that I mailed
    to key members of the laser communications community, I was asked during
    the summer by Dr. David L. Begley of Ball Aerospace Systems Group, to
    organize a conference on Optical SETI for SPIE (The International
    Society of Optical Engineering).  This was originally planned to be a
    single session in SPIE's Free-Space Laser Communication Technologies V
    conference, chaired by Dr. Stephen Mecherle of TRW, Inc.  Twelve months
    ago, I would not have believed that one year after publication of
    the EJASA article, we would be in the position to organize what is
    effectively, though unofficially, the First International Conference
    on Optical SETI.

        Even though the summer vacation period was a difficult time to
    organize a conference, I was able to get so many papers at short notice,
    that the single session was extended into a dedicated conference with
    three sessions and a separate published proceedings (approximately 200
    pages).  The latter will be available (hopefully) shortly after the
    conference and will constitute the first publication on this subject.
    The OSETI conference follows on immediately after the Free-Space Laser
    Communication Technologies V conference.

        This event will be of particular interest to laser communications
    scientists and engineers.  It presents the opportunity to help resolve
    the dichotomy within NASA that while lasers are fine for GEO to GEO, GEO
    to LEO, deep-space and interstellar communications, ETIs would not use
    such technology to signal emerging technical civilizations (us).  The
    first session has been devised to bring the laser communications
    community up to speed on Microwave (Conventional) SETI (MSETI) and
    general SETI related matters.  The second and third sessions are
    specifically devoted to Optical SETI topics.  Since I thought it
    important to get a variety of opinions as to the veracity of SETI and
    the efficacy of the optical approach, I have included many shades of
    opinion.

        We are fortunate in being able to have Arthur C. Clarke kick off
    this conference from his home in Sri Lanka.  We are working to set up a
    live international satellite link with Arthur C. Clarke but at a minimum
    we will have a video-taped address.  These days, Clarke's health
    precludes extensive travelling.  We are also investigating the
    possibility that NASA Select TV could cover the entire conference on a
    live or taped-delayed basis.  If you cannot attend this conference but
    would like to see it transmitted by NASA Select, write to SPIE and NASA
    Headquarters requesting this coverage.  The more people lobby for this
    the more likely we will get the cooperation of the concerned parties.
    For those with a TVRO (TeleVision Receive Only) satellite dish, NASA
    Select TV is available on Satcom F2R (72 W), Transponder 13.

        The "Grand Old Man" of SETI, Dr. Bernard M. Oliver, who is extremely

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End of Space Digest Volume 15 : Issue 278
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