On May 12, 2000, two Russian astronauts performed the 80th and last spacewalk Mir space station they started The event was also the first commercially funded spacewalk.
Mir space station
The Mir space station, which belonged to the Soviet Union and then to Russia, was the first human research station in space where long-term habitation was possible.
The construction of Mir lasted for ten years and this structure was considered the largest existing space structure until 2001. The structure was made mainly of aluminum and lightweight materials and did not contain any hazardous biological or nuclear materials.
The purpose of this station was to improve the understanding of the problems faced by astronauts in a permanent presence in space. The experience gained from the long-term stay of international passengers in Mir was used for the preparation of the International Space Station. This station is like International Space StationIt was a place to conduct various scientific studies, including biology, astronomy, physics and meteorology. The technologies that were developed with Mir’s help gradually provided the possibilities of permanent human life in space.
The Soviets used the station to conduct a variety of scientific research for fifteen years before funding for the program was cut. After Russia agreed to cooperate in the construction of the International Space Station, the station was taken out of orbit on March 23, 2001.
The last walk
A private company named Mircorp The cost of launching two astronauts “Sergei Zalyutin” And “Alexander Callery” in the mission that to Mir Corp It is known, paid.
The goal was to reactivate and repair the station after eight months of being empty. MirCorp decided to lease Mir from the government so they could use it for space tourism.
The two astronauts spent about five hours repairing the damage and conducting experiments outside the station. They also checked the station’s external hardware for signs of wear and tear.
All of this was done to prepare the station for commercial manned missions, which never happened; Because Russia took the Mir space station out of orbit the following year.
