Progress MS-03


Progress MS-03, identified by NASA as Progress 64P, is a Progress spacecraft to be used by Roscosmos to resupply the International Space Station. It is the first Progress MS to have an external compartment for releasing satellites.

Pre-launch

The launch of Progress MS-03 was originally scheduled for on 30 April 2016, but was postponed as a result of an overall reshuffle of the flight manifest for the International Space Station. At the beginning of June 2016, the mission was rescheduled from 4 July to 17 July 2016.

Launch

Progress MS-03 was launched on 16 July 2016 at 21:41:45 on a Soyuz-U from the Baikonur Site 31/6 in Kazakhstan. At the time of launch, the International Space Station was flying at 420 km over Eastern Chad.

Docking

The Progress MS-03 mission used the two-day, 34-orbit trip to the station instead of the currently available six-hour rendezvous profile. Progress MS-03 docked with the nadir docking port of the Pirs module on 19 July 2016 at 00:20 UTC.

Cargo

The Progress MS-03 spacecraft carried about 2425 kg of cargo and supplies to the International Space Station. The spacecraft delivered food, fuel and supplies, including 705 kg of propellant, 50 kg of oxygen and air, 420 kg of water, 22 kg of supplies for NASA and 1230 kg of spare parts, supplies and experiment hardware for the six members of the Expedition 48 crew.

Undocking and decay

The Progress MS-03 cargo ship undocked from the Pirs, on 31 January 2017, at 14:25 UTC, Roskosmos announced. The three-minute braking maneuver was scheduled to begin at 17:34 UTC, followed by reentry into the dense atmosphere at 18:10 UTC. Surviving debris of the spacecraft were calculated to impact the Pacific Ocean at 18:24 UTC on the same day.