Soyuz 6 (, ''Union 6'') was part of a joint October, 1969, mission with
Soyuz 7 and
Soyuz 8 that saw the three
Soyuz spacecraft in orbit together at the same time, carrying a total of seven
cosmonauts. The crew of
Georgy Shonin and
Valeri Kubasov were meant to take high-quality movie photography of the
Soyuz 7 and
Soyuz 8 docking, but the
rendezvous systems on all three spacecraft failed.
It is still not known exactly what the actual problem was, but it is often quoted as being a
helium
Helium (from ) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol He and atomic number 2. It is a colorless, odorless, non-toxic, inert gas, inert, monatomic gas and the first in the noble gas group in the periodic table. Its boiling point is ...
pressurisation integrity test.
[M. Sharpe, ''Space: The Ultimate Frontier''] The version of
Soyuz 7K-OK spacecraft used for the missions carried a
torus-shaped docking electronics equipment housing surrounding the motor assembly on the back of the service module, which is thought to have been pressurised with helium to provide an inert environment for the electronics. It was then jettisoned after docking to lower the mass of the spacecraft for reentry. Due to unstable temperature, disparity between the frequencies of the transmitters and receivers, which were stabilised by special
quartz resonators, occurred. The piezocrystals were supposed to be in
thermostats at a strictly constant
temperature
Temperature is a physical quantity that quantitatively expresses the attribute of hotness or coldness. Temperature is measurement, measured with a thermometer. It reflects the average kinetic energy of the vibrating and colliding atoms making ...
.
[B. Chertok, ''Rockets and People'', Vol. IV]
The crew was made up of Shonin and Kubasov, who carried out experiments in
space welding. They tested three methods: using an
electron beam, a low-pressure
plasma arc and a consumable
electrode. While welding, Kubasov almost burned through the hull of the vehicle's Living Compartment, which in the absence of spacesuits could have resulted in a catastrophic situation.
The apparatus was designed at the
Paton Institute of Electric Welding,
Kyiv
Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...
,
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
. The weld quality was said to be in no way inferior to that of Earth-based welds.
After eighty orbits of the Earth, they landed on 16 October 1969, northwest of
Karaganda,
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 ...
.
The radio call sign of the spacecraft was , referring to the Greek hero ''
Antaeus'', but at the time of the flight, however, it was also the name of the largest practicable aircraft, the Soviet
Antonov An-22, made in
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
. But unlike the call signs of
Soyuz 7 and
Soyuz 8, it was not the name of a squadron in Soviet military training, of uncertain role, for the one that begins with the letter 'a' is , meaning "active".
Crew
Backup crew
Reserve crew
Mission parameters
* Mass:
* Perigee:
[ ]
* Apogee:
* Inclination: 51.68°
* Period: 88.67 minutes
Mission
The mission objectives included:
[ ]
* checkout and flight test of spaceborne systems and the modified structure of the
Soyuz craft,
* further improvement of the control, orientation, and orbital stabilisation systems and navigation aids,
* debugging the piloting systems by orbital maneuvering of the spaceships in relation to one another,
* testing of a system for control of the simultaneous flight of three spacecraft,
* scientific observations and photographing of geological-geographical subjects and exploration of the
Earth's atmosphere,
* studying circumterrestrial space,
* conducting experiments of
engineering research and
biomedical engineering importance.
Return
Stable two-way radio communications was maintained between the spaceships and the ground stations, and TV coverage was broadcast from the ships during flight. The most significant objective was testing alternate methods for welding using remote handling equipment in the high vacuum and weightless conditions of outer space. In Soyuz 6, the welding unit had the name Vulcan and was controlled remotely by electric cable. Of the three types of welding tried (low pressure compressed arc, electron beam, and arc with a consumable electrode), electron beam was the most successful. Soyuz 6 also performed group flight with Soyuz 7 and Soyuz 8, but it did not dock with either spacecraft.
References
External links
Astronautix
{{DEFAULTSORT:Soyuz 06
Crewed Soyuz missions
Spacecraft launched in 1969
1969 in the Soviet Union
Spacecraft which reentered in 1969