Progress MS-03

Progress MS-03 (Russian: Прогресс МC-03), identified by NASA as Progress 64P, is a Progress spacecraft to be used by Roscosmos to resupply the International Space Station (ISS).[1] It is the first Progress MS to have an external compartment for releasing satellites.[2]

Progress MS-03

Progress MS-03 undocking from the Pirs on 31 January 2017.
Mission type	ISS resupply
Operator	Roscosmos
COSPAR ID	2016-045A
SATCAT no.	41670
Mission duration	199 days
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft	Progress MS-03 s/n 433
Spacecraft type	Progress-MS
Manufacturer	RKK Energia
Launch mass	7281 kg
Payload mass	2425 kg
Start of mission
Launch date	16 July 2016, 21:41:45 (UTC)
Rocket	Soyuz-U s/n G15000-147
Launch site	Baikonur, Site 31/6
Contractor	Progress Rocket Space Centre
End of mission
Disposal	Deorbited
Decay date	31 January 2017
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth
Perigee altitude	193.76 km
Apogee altitude	242.47 km
Inclination	51.65°
Period	88.56 minutes
Epoch	16 July 2016
Docking with ISS
Docking port	Pirs
Docking date	19 July 2016, 00:20 UTC
Undocking date	31 January 2017, 14:25 UTC
Time docked	196 days
Cargo
Mass	2425 kg
Pressurised	1230 kg
Fuel	705 kg
Gaseous	50 kg
Water	420 kg
Progress ISS Resupply

Pre-launch

The launch of Progress MS-03 was originally scheduled for on 30 April 2016, but was postponed as a result of an overall reshuffle of the flight manifest for the International Space Station. At the beginning of June 2016, the mission was rescheduled from 4 July to 17 July 2016.

Launch

Progress MS-03 was launched on 16 July 2016 at 21:41:45 (UTC) on a Soyuz-U from the Baikonur Site 31/6 in Kazakhstan. At the time of launch, the International Space Station was flying at 420 km over Eastern Chad.[1]

Docking

The Progress MS-03 mission used the two-day, 34-orbit trip to the station instead of the currently available six-hour rendezvous profile. Progress MS-03 docked with the nadir docking port of the Pirs module on 19 July 2016 at 00:20 UTC.[3][4]

Cargo

The Progress MS-03 spacecraft carried about 2425 kg of cargo and supplies to the International Space Station. The spacecraft delivered food, fuel and supplies, including 705 kg of propellant, 50 kg of oxygen and air, 420 kg of water, 22 kg of supplies for NASA and 1230 kg of spare parts, supplies and experiment hardware for the six members of the Expedition 48 crew.[5]

Undocking and decay

The Progress MS-03 cargo ship undocked from the Pirs, on 31 January 2017, at 14:25 UTC, Roskosmos announced. The three-minute braking maneuver was scheduled to begin at 17:34 UTC, followed by reentry into the dense atmosphere at 18:10 UTC. Surviving debris of the spacecraft were calculated to impact the Pacific Ocean at 18:24 UTC on the same day.[4]

References

Progress MS-03 as seen from the visual scope of the Pirs module at the ISS.

1. Zak, Anatoly (30 December 2015). "Soyuz rocket flies critical test mission with Progress-MS". Russian Space web. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
2. Chris, Gebhardt (16 July 2016). "Russia launches Progress MS-03/64P resupply mission to ISS". www.NasaSpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
3. Chris, Gebhardt (19 July 2016). "Russia Progress MS-03/64P docks with ISS". www.NasaSpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
4. Zak, Anatoly (17 July 2016). "Progress MS-03 heads to the ISS". Russian Space web. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
5. Clark, Stephen (16 July 2016). "Progress supply ship heads for International Space Station". Retrieved 18 July 2016.