DATE FOR DEORBITING RUSSIAN SPACE STATION MIR








MISSION CONTROL CENTRE /Moscow Region/, March 7. /RIA Novosti correspondent Eduard Puzyryov/. The Mir space station is expected to finally leave its orbit on March 19-21, RIA Novosti was told at Rosaviakosmos on Wednesday.


	According to sources, this will occur outside the radio visibility area of Russian tracking stations.


	The station will be monitored during this period by other countries' space agencies. 


	According to Rosaviakosmos, the dumping procedure will consist of two stages. Initially, two impulses to lower the station will be sent from the Mission Control Centre when the station is down to an altitude of 215-220 kilometres and within the radio visibility zone of Russia's ground facilities.


	Following two circuits around the Earth, at an altitude of 170 kilometres /required to know its orbit parameters more precisely/, the Centre will send a last impulse and the station will dash towards the Earth in the area of dumping - the southern part of the Pacific between Australia and South America. This second stage will be tracked by non-Russian ground services. It will not last longer than 40-50 minutes.


	This is the decision taken by Russian specialists, stressed Rosaviakosmos.


	Examined before this decision, an alternative plan for plunging the station on March 10 was rejected on the grounds that on that day the station will be at an altitude of 240-250 kilometres and much more fuel would have been required to decelerate it.


	"The exact date of sending the first impulse to brake the station will be fixed after March 18," it was noted at Rosaviakosmos. "It will depend on the parameters of the Earth's atmosphere, which are directly related to solar activity. It is impossible to foresee its activity now."