ISS medium altitude successfully increased to create optimal ballistic conditions for the docking with Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft carrying new mission crew members onboard, – MCC representative reported.
Progress M-26M cargo vehicle thrusters have been operating for 248 seconds. As a result of his maneuver ISS medium altitude increased by 900 meters and amounted to 401,4 km, – the spokesman stated.
After adjustment ISS parameters are as follows:
– minimum altitude over the Earth surface – 400,2 km;
– maximum altitude over the Earth surface – 421,4 km;
– orbit time – 92,531 min.;
– orbit inclination – 51,665 degrees;
At the present time the crew working onboard comprises Roscosmos cosmonauts Gennady Padalka and Mikhail Korniyenko and NASA astronaut Scott Kelly. After Soyuz TMA-17M launch scheduled for late July Russian cosmonaut Oleg kononekno, Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui and American astronauy kjell lindgrell will arrive at the orbit. Soyuz TMa-17M will dock with the station six hours after the launch.
On May 16 Progress M-26M thrusters didn’t start at the time planned and orbit adjustment scheduled wasn’t accomplished. Second effort was taken on May 18 and was a success.
