Kizim, Solovyov Completed 125-Day Mir-Salyut 7 Transfer Carrying 400 Kilograms
Updated
Updated · spacedaily.com · Jul 11
Kizim, Solovyov Completed 125-Day Mir-Salyut 7 Transfer Carrying 400 Kilograms
1 articles · Updated · spacedaily.com · Jul 11
Summary
Soyuz T-15 returned to Mir on 26 June 1986 with 350-400 kilograms of instruments from Salyut 7, completing the only crewed round trip ever made between two space stations.
29 hours after leaving Mir on 5 May, Leonid Kizim and Vladimir Solovyov docked with Salyut 7, where they spent 50 days finishing experiments, retrieving exposed samples and conducting two spacewalks.
20 instruments were removed because Salyut 7 was nearing the end of its useful life, while Mir—reached first in March 1986—had just begun operations as the Soviet Union's new modular station.
The transfer worked because both stations shared a 51.6-degree orbital inclination and controllers lowered their orbits to cut the gap from about 4,000 kilometers to roughly 2,500 before each crossing.
The 125-day mission closed Salyut 7's operational history while opening Mir's, and no later human mission has repeated a station-to-station transfer under comparable orbital conditions.
Why was the 1986 Soyuz T-15 mission the only time humans ever flew from one space station to another?
While America's space program was halted in 1986, how did the Soviets achieve their most audacious mission between two space stations?
As a new documentary airs, what forgotten details of the daring 1986 'space taxi' mission are about to be revealed?
Soyuz T-15’s Historic 1986 Dual Docking: How One Mission Bridged Salyut 7 and Mir
Overview
The Soyuz T-15 mission stands out in space history as the only time a crew transferred between two separate space stations, Mir and Salyut 7. This unique achievement in 1986 required a carefully planned orbital chase, made possible because both stations shared a similar orbital inclination. The mission showed remarkable skill in orbital mechanics and human ingenuity, as controllers adjusted Mir’s orbit to help close the distance to Salyut 7. This complex maneuver not only demonstrated technical mastery but also set a foundation for future space station operations and inspired new approaches to managing space infrastructure.