Progress MS-09 (), identified by

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

as Progress 70P, was a

Progress Progress is movement towards a perceived refined, improved, or otherwise desired state. It is central to the philosophy of progressivism, which interprets progress as the set of advancements in technology, science, and social organization effic ...

spaceflight operated by

Roscosmos The State Corporation for Space Activities "Roscosmos", commonly known simply as Roscosmos (), is a State corporation (Russia), state corporation of the Russian Federation responsible for space science, space flights, List of space agencies, c ...

to resupply the

International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is a large space station that was Assembly of the International Space Station, assembled and is maintained in low Earth orbit by a collaboration of five space agencies and their contractors: NASA (United ...

(ISS). This was the 161st flight of a Progress spacecraft.

History

The

Progress-MS The Progress MS (; GRAU: 11F615A61) is the latest version of the Russian Progress spacecraft series, first launched in 2015. The "MS" stands for "modernized systems," reflecting upgrades primarily focused on the communications and navigation su ...

is an uncrewed freighter based on the

Progress-M Progress-M (, GRAU indices 11F615A55 and 11F615A60), also known as Progress 7K-TGM, is a Russian, previously Soviet spacecraft which is used to resupply space stations. It is a variant of the Progress spacecraft, originally built in the late 1 ...

featuring improved avionics. This improved variant first launched on 21 December 2015. It has the following improvements: * New external compartment that enables it to deploy satellites. Each compartment can hold up to four launch containers. First time installed on

Progress MS-03 Progress MS-03 (), identified by NASA as Progress 64P, was a Progress spaceflight operated by Roscosmos to resupply the International Space Station (ISS). It was the first Progress MS to have an external compartment for releasing satellites. ...

. * Enhanced redundancy thanks to the addition of a backup system of electrical motors for the docking and sealing mechanism. * Improved

Micrometeoroid A micrometeoroid is a tiny meteoroid: a small particle of rock in space, usually weighing less than a gram. A micrometeorite is such a particle that survives passage through Earth's atmosphere and reaches Earth's surface. The term "micrometeoro ...

(MMOD) protection with additional panels in the cargo compartment. * Luch Russian relay satellites link capabilities enable telemetry and control even when not in direct view of ground radio stations. *

GNSS A satellite navigation or satnav system is a system that uses satellites to provide autonomous geopositioning. A satellite navigation system with global coverage is termed global navigation satellite system (GNSS). , four global systems are op ...

autonomous navigation enables real time determination of the status vector and orbital parameters dispensing with the need of ground station orbit determination. * Real time relative navigation thanks to direct radio data exchange capabilities with the space station. * New digital radio that enables enhanced TV camera view for the docking operations. * The Ukrainian Chezara Kvant-V on board radio system and antenna/feeder system has been replaced with a Unified Command Telemetry System (UCTS). * Replacement of the Kurs A with Kurs NA digital system.

Launch

Progress MS-09 launched on 9 July 2018 from the

Baikonur Cosmodrome The Baikonur Cosmodrome is a spaceport operated by Russia within Kazakhstan. Located in the Kazakh city of Baikonur, it is the largest operational space launch facility in terms of area. All Russian Human spaceflight, crewed spaceflights are l ...

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

. It used a

Soyuz-2.1a Soyuz2 (; GRAU index: 14A14) is a Russian expendable medium-lift launch vehicle and the seventh major iteration of the Soyuz rocket family. Compared to its predecessors, Soyuz-2 features significant upgrades, including improved engines and ...

rocket. NASA confirmed on 28 June 2018 that if Progress MS-09 launches on 9 July 2018, the mission succeeded a super fast-tracked rendezvous with the Station, docking to the ISS just 3 hours (2 orbits) after launch - making it the fastest orbital rendezvous ever-attempted with the International Space Station.

Docking

Progress MS-09 docked as scheduled with the

nadir The nadir is the direction pointing directly ''below'' a particular location; that is, it is one of two vertical directions at a specified location, orthogonal to a horizontal flat surface. The direction opposite of the nadir is the zenith. Et ...

docking port of the Pirs module on 10 July 2018 at 01:31 UTC. The new version features the upgraded

Kurs-NA Kurs () is an automated system for docking spacecraft used by the Soviet and later the Russian space program. The system is primarily used by Progress cargo spacecraft, Soyuz spacecraft and to dock new modules to the Russian Orbital Segment of t ...

rendezvous system, featuring the AO-753A antenna replaced the earlier 2AO-VKA antenna and three AKR-VKA antennas, while two older 2ASF-M-VKA antennas are retained. Kurs-NA will increase the reliability and safety during docking operations. The new SUD flight control system allows for autonomous trajectory measurements using the

GLONASS GLONASS (, ; ) is a Russian satellite navigation system operating as part of a radionavigation-satellite service. It provides an alternative to Global Positioning System (GPS) and is the second navigational system in operation with global cove ...

(Uragan) navigation satellites. The communications system is also upgraded to use the Luch-5 data relay satellites. Also improvements were made to the micrometeoroid protection, the lighting system and the docking port.

Cargo

The Progress MS-09 spacecraft delivered 2,450 kg of cargo and supplies to the International Space Station. The following is a breakdown of cargo bound for the ISS: * Dry cargo: 1,275 kg * Fuel: 705 kg * Oxygen and Air: 50 kg * Water: 420 kg

Cubesats

Beginning with the Progress MS-03, the Progress can optionally carry four

CubeSat A CubeSat is a class of small satellite with a form factor of cubes. CubeSats have a mass of no more than per unit,, url=https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5418c831e4b0fa4ecac1bacd/t/5f24997b6deea10cc52bb016/1596234122437/CDS+REV14+2020-07-3 ...

deployers for a total of 24 CubeSat-units.

Undocking and decay

Undocking occurred on 25 January 2019, at 12:55 UTC. Later that day, the spacecraft burned up in the atmosphere and its debris fell into the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

References

{{Orbital launches in 2018 Progress (spacecraft) missions Spacecraft launched in 2018 2018 in Russia Supply vehicles for the International Space Station Spacecraft launched by Soyuz-2 rockets Spacecraft which reentered in 2019