MIRNEWS.390                                     15 OCTOBER 1997
Progress-M36:  The opening of the hatches took place on 9.10 at abt 0830UTC. 
Thsufar the crew did not spend much time f or the unloading of the ship.  
Among the normal cargo Pr-M36 delivered the spare SUD (attitude control) 
computer,   the
 mini-sputnik-1 and the German/Russian satellite Inspector. 
On 12.10 during a long TV-session via Altair-2  with relatives the crew 
showed the little Sputnik.  
MIR-routine: The crew replaced some accumulators in the Base Block and the 
Module-D (Kvant-2) and rearranged other batt eries to ensure a better 
charging.  Now and then the crew has to collect condensation water.  
Vinogradov reported that the module Priroda is dry. 
The next spacewalk (EVA, so this time an IVA) will be made inside the module 
Spektr. This is the 3d one for this MIR-cr ew (the 3d for Solovyov) the 2d 
for Vinogradov. The  IVA is on schedule for 20.10 from 0855UTC and will last 
about 5hrs
 30mins. 
The preparations for this IVA began after the arrival of Pr-M36 and 
intensivated from 13.10.97.  The crew will have to replace an electronic unit 
in the Spektr. This unit has to control the servomotors to aim the 
solarpanels.  The unit in
 the Spektr did not survive the vacuum in that module and will be replaced by 
the same device still installed in the mo dule Kristall.  On 13 and 14.10 the 
cosmonauts worked on the spacesuits (this time again the Orlan-DMA). They 
connected
 tanks,  devices,  a.s.o. and  checked the airtightness. On 14.10 the  crew 
continued the preparations for the work to be done. On 15.10 they underwent 
medical tests. 
The 4th EVA  MIR-crew: This external spacewalk is tentatively scheduled for 
3.11.97.  During this EVA they will have to
 remove the old solar panel on the module E (Kvant-1).  The  new Russian 
solar panel which is still stored at the outer surface of the SO (docking 
compartment) will be installed during an EVA in the future. 
Minor technical problems: Now and then minor technical problems emerge: On 
10.10 a minor repair of the Elektron and the
 BKV (a.c.) and in the evening TsUP derives from Telemetry that the pressure 
in a KOB (heating loop) increased. On 12.1 0 they had to economize electrical 
energy and to switch off some systems. On 14.10  a ventilator of the Vozdukh 
CO-2 sc rubber failed and had to be switched off. During the next orbit the 
Vozdukh worked well. 
David Wolf:  
David is very busy with his experiments.  He even sometimes had no  time for 
lunch. Like his predecessor Foale he also handles the Packet Radio traffic on 
the service channel. In a conversation with relatives (possibly his parents 
and gra ndmother) he said that all was well, but that he was yearning for a 
pizza and a beer. Now and then David can be heard d uring 
radio-amateurtraffic on 145.985 mc. 
Mini-sputnik-1: This little satellite (3 KG) will be jettisoned during the 
first EVA,  so possibly on 3.11.97.  The tra nsmissions can be heard on 
145.800 mc.  The output  will  be 0.2 Watt. The antenna polarisation is 
circular, but as the re is no attitude control the received signal may have 
clockwise or counter clockwise polarisation.  The modulation wil l be FM and 
the audio tone about. 1.3 kc varying with the temperature. The endurance of 
the power supply batteries  wil l be about  30 days. 
Chris Vandenberg, NL-9165/A-UK3202. 
--- Maximus 2.01
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