 Soyuz 40 is launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on 14 May 1981. | |
| Operator | Soviet space program |
|---|---|
| COSPAR ID | 1981-042A |
| SATCATno. | 12454 |
| Mission duration | 7 days, 20 hours and 41 minutes |
| Orbits completed | 124 |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft type | Soyuz 7K-T |
| Manufacturer | NPO Energia |
| Launch mass | 6,800 kilograms (15,000 lb) |
| Crew | |
| Crew size | 2 |
| Members | Leonid Popov Dumitru Prunariu |
| Callsign | Dnieper |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 14 May 1981, 17:16:38 (1981-05-14UTC17:16:38Z) UTC |
| Rocket | Soyuz-U |
| Launch site | Baikonur1/5 |
| End of mission | |
| Landing date | 22 May 1981, 13:58:30 (1981-05-22UTC13:58:31Z) UTC |
| Landing site | 225 km SE ofDzhezkazgan |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Perigee altitude | 198.1 kilometres (123.1 mi) |
| Apogee altitude | 287 kilometres (178 mi) |
| Inclination | 51.6 degrees |
| Period | 89.6 minutes |
| Docking withSalyut 6 | |
| Docking date | 15 May 1981, 18:50 (1981-05-15UTC18:50Z) UTC |
| Undocking date | 22 May 1981, 10:37 (1981-05-22UTC10:38Z) UTC |
| Time docked | 6 days, 15 hours and 47 minutes |
  L-R: Popov and Prunariu | |
TheSoyuz 40 mission was a 1981Sovietcrewed spaceflight and the final flight of theSoyuz 7K-T spacecraft. It was a collaboration between the Soviet Union andRomania.[1]
| Position | Crew | |
|---|---|---|
| Commander |  Leonid PopovSecond spaceflight | |
| Research Cosmonaut |  Dumitru PrunariuOnly spaceflight | |
| Position | Crew | |
|---|---|---|
| Commander | Yuri Romanenko | |
| Research Cosmonaut | Dumitru Dediu | |
Soyuz 40 was the 16th expedition to Salyut 6 and carried the ninth international crew. It also ended the first phase of theIntercosmos program by carrying Romanian cosmonaut Dumitru Prunariu and Soviet cosmonaut Leonid Popov to the station. In all, nine Intercosmos missions were launched between 1978 and 1981.
Soyuz 40 was the last of the original Soyuz spacecraft (due to its replacement by the Soyuz-T) and the last Soyuz spacecraft to dock withSalyut 6. During the crew's stay, Prunariu studied the Earth's magnetic field. Earth observations had to be delayed until the last day of the flight, when Salyut 6 passed over Romania in daylight. During this time the crew also tested the station's orientation system.
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Uncrewed missions are designated asKosmos instead ofSoyuz; exceptions are noted "(uncrewed)". The † sign designates failed missions.Italics designates cancelled missions. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
