astronomy

Soyuz TMA-3

Soyuz TMA-3 is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Soyuz TMA-3 rather than just read about it. In short: Soyuz TMA-3 was a Soyuz (Russian Союз ТМА-3, Union TMA-3) mission to the International Space Station (ISS) launched by a Soyuz FG launch vehicle which was the third flight for the TMA modification of the Soyuz spacecraft, and the 7th Soyuz to fly to the ISS. Crew Original Crew Mission parameters From NASA: Mass: ? kg Perigee: 376 km Apogee: 384 km Inclination: 51.6° Period: 92.20 min Docking with ISS Docked to ISS…

Key takeaways

Soyuz TMA-3 belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Soyuz TMA-3 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Soyuz TMA-3 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Soyuz TMA-3 was a Soyuz (Russian Союз ТМА-3, Union TMA-3) mission to the International Space Station (ISS) launched by a Soyuz FG launch vehicle which was the third flight for the TMA modification of the Soyuz spacecraft, and the 7th Soyuz to fly to the ISS.

Crew

Original Crew

Mission parameters From NASA:

Mass: ? kg Perigee: 376 km Apogee: 384 km Inclination: 51.6° Period: 92.20 min

Docking with ISS Docked to ISS: October 20, 2003, 07:16 UTC (to Pirs module) Undocked from ISS: April 29, 2004, 20:52 UTC (from Pirs module)

Specifications Max. altitude - 387.1 km Min. altitude - 357.9 km Period - 91.7 min Inclination - 65.64°

Mission highlights

The commander of the Soyuz was Aleksandr Kaleri (RKA). The flight engineer was Michael Foale (NASA), and Pedro Duque (ESA) served as the second flight engineer. After docking with the ISS they exchanged the current crew on ISS and became the eighth station crew, called "ISS Expedition Eight". During the stay on the station Michael Foale was the ISS Commander, while Aleksandr Kaleri was the engineer. Foale was the first American to have served on both Mir and the ISS. Pedro Duque performed ESA sponsored science experiments under the mission name "Cervantes" and then returned with the ISS 7 crew on Soyuz TMA-2. The backup crew was William McArthur, Valery Tokarev and André Kuipers. Foale and Kaleri along with André Kuipers, the third seater from TMA-4 landed on April 29, 2004, near Arkalyk, Kazakhstan. A minor helium leak did not affect their mission.

References

External links

RussianSpaceWeb.com: Soyuz TMA-3

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Soyuz TMA-3

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Soyuz TMA-3 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Soyuz TMA-3 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Soyuz TMA-3 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Soyuz TMA-3

In research: Soyuz TMA-3 appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Soyuz TMA-3 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Soyuz TMA-3 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Crewed Soyuz missions, Fully civilian crewed orbital spaceflights, Human spaceflights to the International Space Station, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Soyuz TMA-3 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Soyuz TMA-3 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Soyuz TMA-3 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Soyuz TMA-3 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Soyuz TMA-3 in simple terms?

Why does Soyuz TMA-3 matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Soyuz TMA-3?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Soyuz TMA-3.