MIRNEWS.380    25 AUGUST 1997

Internal Spacewalk (IVA):

accomplished on 22.08.97 from 1114-1430UTC. Some minor technical irregularities
caused a delay of more than 2 hours. The crew worked according to a checklist
(cyclogram). This checklist contained hundreds of items. The activities
according to this checklist continued when the MIR was out of range of tracking
stations or the geostationary Altair-2. This time Altair-2 was in use for phone
conversations only. Altair-2 was active long before the IVA began, for instance
during orbit 65734 from 0640-0732UTC. The crew donned their spacesuits and
Foale went on board Soyuz-TM26.

According to plan the preparations for the IVA had to be concluded and the
hatch to Spektr had to be opened during the window in orb. 65735, 0826-0910UTC.
A valve (KVD) between the P.Kh.O. and one of the modules (possibly module-T)
could not be closed which caused a delay of about 1 hour.

In orbit 65736 (0958-1043UTC) all went well and at 1015UTC the pressure in
P.Kh.O. (serving as airlock for this IVA) was 50 mm. At that moment the
pressure in the space suit of Vinogradov decreased due to a leak in his left
glove. The crew immediately repressurized the P.Kh.O. They did this before the
end of the window and Vinogradov could put on a spare glove. At 1114UTC when
the MIR was out of range the hatch to Spektr had been opened.

Orbit 65737, 1135-1216UTC.:

IVA going on. All went well. Solovyov had joined Vinogradov inside the module.
Vinogradov had already connected cables at the connectors of the new hatch and
except for a single cable he did not met problems. During this window and the
following one (orb. 65738/39, 1310-1400UTC) V. and S. inspected the interior
of Spektr and retrieved a lot of thusfar not specified items from there. During
these activities they consulted Foale. Vinogradov reported that he saw
ventilators and pumps which were still working. He and S. did not find traces
of exploded monitors or test-tubes. They did not succeed in finding places
where the hull of Spektr had been penetrated. At last V. and S. left the Spektr
to prepare the closure of the hatch. Foale , keeping a log book, reported that
the hatch had been closed at 1430UTC.

After repressurizing the P.Kh.O. in orb. 65740 (1448-1528UTC), Foale joined his
colleagues over there. In a short statement he expressed his admiration for the
achievements of his crewmates and those on Earth who had been working on this
operation.

Chris v.d. Berg, NL-9165/A-UK3202.