The unpiloted Progress spacecraft will dock with the Zvezda Service Module of the Space Station via the Kurs (Russian for “course”) S-band radar docking system (an automatic docking navigational system made for the Soyuz-TM spacecraft) aboard the ISS and Progress.

The Kurs system uses active response radar to measure the relative motion between two spacecraft (in this case, the ISS and Progress) during rendezvous, proximity operations (such as fly-arounds), and docking (or berthing). The Progress vehicle is equipped with the “active” part of the Kurs system, and the ISS is equipped with the “passive” components.

At about 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the ISS, the Kurs will determine closing rates, distance, and orientation of the Progress spacecraft. At about 200 meters (220 yards) from Zvezda, Russian ground controllers will analyze Kurs data and, if all looks good, will command the Kurs to complete docking of the Progress spacecraft with the Zvezda Service Module at a rate of about two meters (six feet) per second.

Docking at the aft port of the Zvezda Service Module of the International Space Station at scheduled for about 1:10 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, May 15, 2007.

The Progress freighter carries nearly 100 pounds of air, over 925 pounds of water, about 3,042 pounds of dry cargo, and over 1,050 pounds of propellant. If the automatic Kurs system becomes inoperable at any point during the docking, ISS Expedition 15 Russian commander Fyodor Yurchikhin will take over manual operations through the TORU (Telerobotically Operated Rendezvous Unit) docking system.

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