MIRNEWS.156    4 JANUARY 1993

PROGRESS-M15:

This freighter is still docked to the MIR complex (aft
-Kvant-1-port). A few days ago rumours suggested that Pr-M15 had undocked
and decayed. Good sources in Moscow assured me that Pr-M15 will remain
docked to MIR until 5.2.1993, so und docking after the arrival of the new
crew and the return of the present one.

SOYUZ-TM16:

This space-ship will be launched on 24.01.93 and dock to MIR on
26.01.93. Crew of that mission (the 13th MIR-expedition): Manakov and
Polishchuk, stand-in crew Tsibliyev and Balandin. So no foreign guest
cosomonaut this time. S-TM16 will not dock to one of the axial ports and
that is why Pr-M15 can remain where it is now: the aft (Kvant-1) port. S-TM16
will dock to the Module-T (Kristall). This module carries a new version of
the androgenous dockingsystem, used during the ASTP-project in 1975. (Russian
abbreviation: APAS). The Russians cancelled the plan to redock the Kristall
from the lateral to the axial port. To make this possible the solarpanels of
the Kristall should be transferred to the Kvant-1 module. The work done in
preparation for this operation had been put back a long time ago. Folding up
the solarpanels of Kristall was not possible for the complex needs those
panels for the powersupply.

MOVEMENTS CONTROL:

The attitude control motor (VDU) in the soforamast does not work. Memory
devices and computerprograms have to be renewed. The next crew has to try to
put the VDU in operation. This is utmost necessary for after the docking of
S-TM16 to the Kristall, the configuration of the complex will be far from
symmetric and undoubtedly unstable around its X-axis (roll).

RADIO-AMATEUR ACTIVITIES:

These days Solovyov (U6MIR) and Avdeyev (using Solovyov's call) are very
active in that field. There PMS is always open and often they use the
145.550 mc. For special friends and relations they use another frequency in
the 145 mc band. The crew wished everybody on that frequency a Happy New Year.
Avdeyev got congratulations for his 36th birthday on 1.1.1993.

Chris v.d. Berg, NL-9165/A-UK3202.