Human Spaceflights

International Flight No. 262

Soyuz TMA-14

Altair

Russia

Russia
Patch Soyuz TMA-14 Patch Soyuz TMA-14

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Launch, orbit and landing data

Launch date:  26.03.2009
Launch time:  11:49:18.120 UTC
Launch site:  Baikonur
Launch pad:  1
Altitude:  340 - 351 km
Inclination:  51.64°
Docking ISS:  28.03.2009, 13:04:49 UTC
Undocking ISS:  11.10.2009, 01:07:16 UTC
Landing date:  11.10.2009
Landing time:  04:31:43.1 UTC
Landing site:  51°01'26.1" N, 67°12'07.74" E

walkout photo

Crew Soyuz TMA-14

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alternative crew photo

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alternative crew photo

Crew

No.   Surname Given names Position Flight No. Duration Orbits
1  Padalka  Gennadi Ivanovich  Commander 3 198d 16h 42m 25s  3130 
2  Barratt  Michael Reed  Flight Engineer 1 198d 16h 42m 25s  3130 
3  Simonyi  Charles "Károly"  Spaceflight Participant 2 12d 19h 25m 52s  201 

Crew seating arrangement

Launch
1  Padalka
2  Barratt
3  Simonyi
Soyuz TMA spacecraft
Landing
1  Padalka
2  Barratt
3  Laliberté

Backup Crew

No.   Surname Given names Position
1  Surayev  Maksim Viktorovich  Commander
2  Williams  Jeffrey Nels  Flight Engineer
3  Dyson  Esther  Spaceflight Participant
Crew Soyuz TMA-14 (backup)

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Patch Soyuz TMA-14 backup  

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Hardware

Launch vehicle:  Soyuz-FG (No. 3M134S Yu15000-027)
Spacecraft:  Soyuz TMA-14 (TMA No. 224)

Flight

Launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome; ISS Expedition 19. Landing 88 km NNE of Arkalyk.

Charles Simonyi became the first space tourist launching twice. Following a two-day solo flight Soyuz TMA-14 docked to ISS on March 28, 2009. Gennadi Padalka and Michael Barratt replaced Expedition 18 crew members Michael Fincke and Yuri Lonchakov.

The Soyuz spacecraft is composed of three elements attached end-to-end - the Orbital Module, the Descent Module and the Instrumentation/Propulsion Module. The crew occupied the central element, the Descent Module. The other two modules are jettisoned prior to re-entry. They burn up in the atmosphere, so only the Descent Module returned to Earth.
The deorbit burn lasted 260 seconds. Having shed two-thirds of its mass, the Soyuz reached Entry Interface - a point 400,000 feet (121.9 kilometers) above the Earth, where friction due to the thickening atmosphere began to heat its outer surfaces. With only 23 minutes left before it lands on the grassy plains of central Asia, attention in the module turned to slowing its rate of descent.
Eight minutes later, the spacecraft was streaking through the sky at a rate of 755 feet (230 meters) per second. Before it touched down, its speed slowed to only 5 feet (1.5 meter) per second, and it lands at an even lower speed than that. Several onboard features ensure that the vehicle and crew land safely and in relative comfort.
Four parachutes, deployed 15 minutes before landing, dramatically slowed the vehicle's rate of descent. Two pilot parachutes were the first to be released, and a drogue chute attached to the second one followed immediately after. The drogue, measuring 24 square meters (258 square feet) in area, slowed the rate of descent from 755 feet (230 meters) per second to 262 feet (80 meters) per second.
The main parachute was the last to emerge. It is the largest chute, with a surface area of 10,764 square feet (1,000 square meters). Its harnesses shifted the vehicle's attitude to a 30-degree angle relative to the ground, dissipating heat, and then shifted it again to a straight vertical descent prior to landing.
The main chute slowed the Soyuz to a descent rate of only 24 feet (7.3 meters) per second, which is still too fast for a comfortable landing. One second before touchdown, two sets of three small engines on the bottom of the vehicle fired, slowing the vehicle to soften the landing.

Note

Charles Simonyi landed on April 08, 2009 at 07:15:09.8 UTC with Soyuz TMA-13 spacecraft.

Relocations of Manned Spacecrafts

Spacecraft from Undocking Time UTC to Redocking Time UTC
Soyuz TMA-14 ISS - Zvezda 02.07.2009 21:29:09 ISS - Pirs 02.07.2009 21:54:55
 

Photos / Graphics

Soyuz TMA spacecraft Soyuz TMA landing module
Soyuz TMA-14 rollout Soyuz TMA-14 on launch pad
Soyuz TMA-14 launch traditional in-flight photo Soyuz TMA-14
Simonyi onboard ISS Soyuz TMA-14 landing
Soyuz TMA-14 landing Soyuz TMA-14 recovery

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Last update on March 29, 2020.

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