Pirs Docking Compartment
The SO-1 module docked to the International Space Station
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| Station statistics | |
|---|---|
| Part of | International Space Station |
| Launch date | September 14, 2001 |
| Launch vehicle | Soyuz-U/Progress M-SO1 |
| Docked | September 16, 2001 |
| Undocked | TBA 2017 (planned) |
| Reentry | TBA 2017 (planned) |
| Mass | 3,580 kg |
| Length | 4.91 m |
| Diameter | 2.55 m |
| Living volume | 13 cubic metres (460 cu ft) |
Pirs (Russian: Пирс, meaning "pier") -- also called "Stykovochny Otsek 1" or "SO-1" (Russian: Стыковочный отсек, "docking module", or DC-1 (docking compartment) -- is one of the two Russian docking compartments originally planned for the ISS. Pirs was launched in August 2001. It provides the ISS with one docking port for Soyuz and Progress spacecraft, and allows egress and ingress for spacewalks by cosmonauts using Russian Orlan space suits.
A second docking compartment, "Stykovochniy Otsek 2" or SO-2, was initially planned with the same design. However, when the Russian segment of the ISS was redesigned in 2001, the new design no longer included the SO-2, and its construction was canceled. After another change of plans the SO-2 module finally evolved into the Poisk module, which was added to the ISS in 2009.
Pirs was scheduled to be detached from the ISS and deorbited in 2017 by Progress MS-06, to make room for the Russian Multipurpose Laboratory Module Nauka, however due to the repetitive delays with the module, this maneuver was postponed for Progress MS-09 in 2018.
The Docking Compartment has two primary functions: Provide a docking port and serve as an airlock.
The docking port can accommodate one Soyuz-TMA or one Progress-M spacecraft. Visiting spacecraft can deliver people and cargo to and from to the space station. In addition, the Docking Compartment can transport fuel from the fuel tanks of a docked Progress resupply vehicle to either the Zvezda Service Module Integrated Propulsion System or the Zarya Functional Cargo Block. It can also transfer propellant from Zvezda and Zarya to the propulsion system of docked vehicles—Soyuz and Progress.
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