Goodnight Mir.(Mir space station has many mechanical and technical problems, and will be brought down)(Brief Article)

From: Science World | Date: March 26, 2001| Author: | Copyright information

The saga of Russian space station Mir reads like a soap opera. Once Russia's greatest pride, its decay has been plagued by a string of embarrassing breakdowns: power loss, computer failure, and a near-fatal collision with another spacecraft.

So after a roller-coaster existence five times longer than experts predicted, the 137-ton Mir will take a permanent vacation. This March it's slated for a computer-controlled burnup over the Pacific Ocean, 3,000 kilometers (1,850 miles) east of Australia.

Mir, the first space station designed for long-term human habitation, has served ...

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