Soyuz TMA-2A
Original archive entry. The text, images and links below are kept as they were written.
Venturestar docks to ISS, 1994 Concept. Lockheed-Martin's "Aeroballistic Rocket" spaceplane -- now called Venturestar -- docks with the Space Station. This 1994 illustration shows what the "Alpha" International Space Station would look like, without Russian modules.
Credit: NASA via Marcus Lindroos
Soyuz TMA-2 was originally to switch lifeboats on the ISS. After the loss of Columbia, and grounding of the remaining shuttles, it was instead flown by a two-man skeleton crew to keep the station alive until shuttle flights could resume.
The crew would have returned to earth in the Soyuz TMA-1 already docked to the station. The presence of Kotov in the third seat of the spacecraft was not confirmed up to the time of the Columbia disaster. After the loss of Columbia, and the grounding of the remaining shuttles, it was decided instead that the EO-6 crew (Bowersox, Budarin, and Pettit) aboard the station would return in Soyuz TMA-1. Soyuz TMA-2 would be instead flown by a two-man skeleton crew (Malenchenko and Lu) to keep the station alive until shuttle flights could resume.
Related
- Spacecraft
- Soyuz TMA
Chronology
1 event
2003 April 18
- Soyuz TMA-2A (cancelled) - .
Crew: Duque,
Kotov,
Padalka.
Nation: Russia.
Related Persons: Duque,
Kotov,
Padalka.
Agency: RAKA.
Program: ISS.
Class: Manned.
Type: Manned spacecraft. Flight: Soyuz TMA-2A.
Spacecraft Bus: Soyuz.
Spacecraft: Soyuz TMA.
Soyuz TMA-2 was originally to switch lifeboats on the International Space Station. The crew would have returned to earth in the Soyuz TMA-1 already docked to the station. After the loss of Columbia, and the grounding of the remaining shuttles, it was decided instead that the EO-6 crew (Bowersox, Budarin, and Pettit) aboard the station would return in Soyuz TMA-1. Soyuz TMA-2 would be instead flown by a two-man skeleton crew (Malenchenko and Lu) to keep the station alive until shuttle flights could resume.