Kristall

Kristall

Kristall in 1997
Module statistics
COSPAR ID	1990-048A
Part of	Mir
Launch date	May 31, 1990 (1990-05-31) (UTC)
Launch vehicle	Proton-K
Docked	June 10, 1990 (UTC)
Reentry	March 23, 2001
Mass	19,640 kg (43,300 lb)
Length	11.9 m (39 ft)
Diameter	4.35 m (14.3 ft)
Pressurised volume	60.8 m3 (2,150 cu ft)
Configuration
Diagram of Kristall in its original configuration.

Kristall (Russian: Кристалл, lit. 'Crystal'), was the second module on the Mir space station. It was the second module to be installed on Mir. It was launched May 31, 1990 on a Proton-K and docked autonomously on June 10, 1990.

Kristall, like previous modules on Mir, was based on the 77K (TKS) design. The module was designed with the Buran programme in mind, with the aft node having two APAS-89 docking ports.^[1]: 166

The module contained several materials processing furnaces, a biotechnology experiment, a hothouse for growing plants like radishes and lettuce, two cameras for earth resource experiments, an ultraviolet telescope augmenting the one installed on Kvant-1, a gamma ray telescope, a gamma spectrometer, a magnetic spectrometer, and an astrophysical spectrometer. The biotechnology and furnace experiments were capable of generating up to 100kg of raw materials for use back down on Earth.^[1]: 167 The hothouse successfully grew Brassica rapa in 1997.^[2]

Additionally, Kristall carried six gyroscopes for attitude control and to augment those already installed on the station, and most notably had 2 collapsible solar arrays, which were designed to be retracted and re-deployed up to several times. One of these arrays was later installed on Kvant-1 consequently due to the Shuttle–Mir programme, and was later disposed of in November 1997. The other solar array was never moved, and remained partially deployed for the rest of its lifetime.^[1]: 167

As mentioned, Kristall was designed in relation with the Buran programme, and carried two APAS-89 docking ports which were designed to be compatible with the Buran shuttle.^{[1]: 166-167} After the Buran programme was cancelled, the lateral docking node was used in conjunction with the Shuttle–Mir program, the radial port never seeing use. The lateral port in 1993, before being docked with the shuttle, was tested by Soyuz TM-16, which was modified to use an APAS-89 docking port rather than the standard SSVP docking system.

As a result of the Shuttle–Mir programme, Kristall was moved from the -Y node on the Mir core module, and moved between the -X node and -Z node before finally remaining at the -Z node, and with the arrival of STS-74, the Mir docking module was attached to Kristall permanently on its lateral docking node.^{[1]: 13, 17, 24}

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kristall (Mir module).

• Russian Space Web
• Encyclopedia Astronautica
• Gunter's Space Page - information on Kristall