Progress M1-3 Arrival

Progress (Прогресс) M1-3 was the first cargo transport spacecraft to visit the ISS.  Also known as Progress 1P, the spacecraft is a variant of the Progress-M, designed to carry cargo, along with propellant used by the Zarya and Zvezda modules' station-keeping engines.

Progress M1-3 was launched atop a Soyuz-U rocket at Site 1/5 of the Baikonur Cosmodrome on August 6, 2000.  The spacecraft autonomously docked with the aft port of Zvezda on August 8. Cargo was unloaded from the spacecraft by and STS-106 and STS-92 shuttle crews visiting the station in late September and October.  The spacecraft was undocked, de-orbited and subsequently burned up in the atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean on November 1, 2000.  The first ISS crew, Expedition 1, arrived at the station the next day aboard  the first Soyuz spacecraft to visit the station, Soyuz TM-31, docking at the recently-vacated Zvezda aft port.

The Progress M kit consists of two pages and is free for download from AXM.  The accompanying instruction manual is 19 pages and contains instructions for assembling both the Progress and Soyuz spacecraft.  The Progress M kit includes insignia used by all Progress M flights to the ISS.

I started the build by cutting and assembling the spherical cargo module.  There are 4 rings that make up this section.  AXM indicates that time should be taken to glue each section and allow it to thoroughly dry before moving to the next ring in order to achieve the best shape.  I followed AXM's prescribed advice and was very pleased with the outcome!

Next, I cut out, curved, and joined the storage tank and propulsion module sections of the spacecraft.  I detached and overlapped the glue tab for each in order to achieve a flush seam. I also used a black color pencil on all join edges to reduce appearance of the seams. I then glued and attached all three parts together.

I then proceeded to cut out the booster attachment structure and scored the backside of each connector tooth in order to obtain a smooth bend along the top edge and bottom flange of the booster attachment.

           

I then cut vertical slits at prescribed locations on the propulsion module section to accommodate insertion of the solar panels.  I cut out the solar panels and glued them together making sure to precisely align the edges of each half.  I allowed enough time for the glue to dry and then used an orange color pencil on all edges of the assembled solar panel.  Next, I inserted the solar panel though the vertical slits and then glued the bottom attitude control engine plate to the bent teeth.

Building upon my success with adding realism to Zvezda build using layering, I layered certain parts onto the attitude control engine plate in order to achieve some depth. Raising the height of key elements on this section certainly added to the realism!

Next, I attached the docking port ring, service port hatches, horizon sensors, docking camera, and large Kurs antenna shields.  I embellished the printed forward, side, and aft Kurs antennas using tips of a bamboo skewer painted white to introduce more depth and realism.

I then assembled the forward-facing Kurs-1 and Kurs-2 antennas and attached them underneath the large Kurs shields.

I concluded the build by assembling the docking mechanism and inserting it into the top of the spacecraft.  I placed a magnet under the docking probe tip in order to facilitate future docking of the spacecraft (re-branded to coincide with follow-on missions) to the nadir and zenith docking ports on Zvezda and Zarya. 

 Progress M1-3 has since been docked to Zvezda's aft port.

The next component in the assembly sequence is the Z1 Truss.  Stay tuned!

Zvezda Has Docked!

Zvezda has been docked to Zarya and is now hanging from my office ceiling!

Stay tuned for the upcoming arrival of  Progress M1-3.

A "Star" On The Horizon

Zvezda (Звезда́, meaning "star" in Russian), is the third component of the ISS. Also known as DOS-8 and Service Module (SM), the module provides the structural and functional capabilities for the Russian Orbital Segment of the station.

The module was launched atop a Proton rocket emblazoned with the Pizza Hut logo from launch pad Number 23 in Area 81 of the Baikonur Cosmodrome on July 12, 2000.  The module autonomously docked with the aft section of Zarya a few days later on July 25.  Arrival of the module introduced life support capabilities, living quarters for two crew personnel, and functional control and power systems that were crucial to support the first ISS crew who would arrive at the station later in the year.

The kit for this module is part of the free ISS Russian segment kit offered by AXM. The kit consists of 2 pages containing main module components, one page containing the solar array panels, and another page containing the Service Module Debris Panel (SMDP) bundles. The SMDP panels were delivered and installed on Zvezda in 2002 (Expedition 5, EVA 1) and 2007 (Expedition 15, EVA 1 and 2) . These panels shield vulnerable sections of Zvezda's mid-section conical area from micro meteoroid impacts. The SMDP parts will be added to the project module in the future, following the overall ISS assembly timeline.

I started the build by cutting out the parts comprising the large cylindrical section and joiner tab (detached from the section in order to perform an overlap join, as mentioned in previous build posts).

Zvezda contains a total of 14 windows. Both the large and small cylindrical sections of the module contain a majority of these windows. The large cylinder has two windows, oriented on the port and starboard sides where crew living compartments are located. The small cylinder and conical section connecting the two cylindrical sections contain a total of seven windows on the nadir plane that are used for earth observation. 

I wanted to add detail for the windows in order to to provide a more realistic look.  I decided to cut out the portholes for windows depicted in the plans that aren't covered and layer a piece of clear plastic (plastic wrap from a cigarette carton works best) under each cutout in order to introduce a window glass reflection when the light catches these areas.

I backed each cutout area with a printout of the window area  that was printed on regular paper.  I used regular paper here in order to alleviate introduction of extra stiffness when forming the cylinder curve.

I also cut out the porthole covers from another printout of the page and layered these covers over the printed covers in order to achieve a more realistic three dimensional look.  You can see one of the covers not yet affixed in the photo below just to the left of the part.

Next, I cut out the fore and aft end caps for the large diameter cylinder.  I then affixed a neodymium magnet to the inside of the cylinder for ceiling mount purposes, placing the magnet just forward of the zenith roll thruster cluster. I then affixed the cylinder end caps, built and affixed the thruster blocks to the aft endcap, inserted the aft docking tube and outer ring. 

I moved onto cutting out the part for the conical area located between the two cylindrical sections.

I then formed the conical section, affixed the inner circular stiffener cutouts, affixed the large nadir-facing window porthole cover and space target circle.  I then attached the completed cone to the forward end cap of the large cylinder.

Next, I joined end caps to the small cylinder, cut out and formed the forward conical reduction sections, affixed the forward conical sections to the forward end of the small cylinder, and then attached the small cylinder to the large cylinder via the mid-line conical connection. I layered port hole covers and other panels on the conical section to increase detail and realism. 

I then moved onto building the spherical transfer compartment.  This part is identical to the one built for the Zarya module. I first cut out the cylindrical part for this component.

Next, I cut out the zenith and nadir docking port parts, assembled them, and affixed them to the cylinder. I then affixed the port, starboard and forward cones, capped the port and starboard cones, glued neodymium magnets to the inside of the zenith and nadir docking ports to accommodate future docking of modules to these ports, and inserted the docking cylinder into the forward docking port.

I then affixed the spherical transfer compartment to the front of the module by applying a fine bead of glue along the back edge of the sphere and then applying pressure to adhere it to the forward cone by standing the module on its forward end.

Next, I built the forward docking port and inserted it into the cylinder.  Note that this part is removable to accommodate insertion of the docking tube when Zvezda is mated to the aft docking port of Zarya.

I then formed the window shades for three windows located on the nadir plane of the small cylinder and attached them. 

I then proceeded to build the OHA antenna and affix it to the aft of the module.  I also added the fixed star mappers to prescribed positions on the forward zenith plane of the small cylinder.

Next, I cut out select portions of the aft section detail patterns and layered then over the existing patterns to enhance the three dimensional perspective. I also added the regul antennas at the 2 and 8 o'clock positions.

I decided to build up the small cylinder zenith base point platform to increase detail and realism.  I achieved this by cutting out the platform pattern from another copy of the small cylinder, fabricating a box form using a copy of one of the docking ring outer covers, and then placing the platform pattern atop the box form.  I  implemented additional height of the circular and square patterns by layering the same pattern for each shape until the desired height was achieved.  I also layered the hand holds in this area to add depth.

I then worked on the solar panels, cutting out the front and back parts, gluing them together using a glue stick, and affixing the post mount points.  I trimmed the q-tip stem to the proper length and cut down the diameter on each end so that the stem would snugly fit into the post mount points.

I then fabricated Regul Omni and Kurs-P antennas using tips from bamboo skewers and small watch washers.  These antennas reside on the end of each solar panel. A short piece of 28-gauge wire was inserted into the end of each antenna to facilitate attachment of antennas to the solar panel edge.

The next step involved adding small wire segments for the six CTTV antennas on the large cylinder near the aft of the module.

I also fabricated a mast for the magnetometer using a piece of 28-gauge white coated wire with a small segment of wire insulation affixed perpendicular to the end.  The magnetometer will be added after Progress M1-3 has been docked to the aft port of Zvezda to coincide with the ISS build timeline.  

The SMDP panels are added to Zvezda much later in the build sequence.  However, I went ahead and cut out the panels, creased and bent the edge folds, and grouped the panels into four designated sets to facilitate adding them to the module at the appropriate time.

Zvezda has been relocated to my office and is currently on display affixed to a display stand on one of my desks.  I will soon relocate it to the ceiling, where it will be docked to Zarya.