Facts about Salyut 7

1. 06

   The solar panels on Salyut 7 generated approximately 6.5 kilowatts of electrical power during peak sunlight exposure, enabling continuous operation of the station's scientific instruments and life support systems.

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2. 05

   Salyut 7 contained 90 metric tons of mass and measured 14.4 meters in length, making it the heaviest single space station module launched by the Soviet Union during the 1980s.

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3. 04

   During its final years, Salyut 7 reached a maximum altitude of 475 kilometers above Earth before gradually decaying due to atmospheric drag.

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4. 03

   Salyut 7 hosted 16 crewed missions between 1982 and 1986, with cosmonauts conducting experiments in materials science, earth observation, and biological research during its operational lifetime.

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5. 02

   Salyut 7 orbited Earth for 32,369 days before reentering the atmosphere over Argentina on February 7, 1991, burning up in the sky.

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6. 01

   In 1985, cosmonauts Vladimir Dzhanibekov and Viktor Savinykh manually restored power to the abandoned Salyut 7 space station during a dramatic two-month repair mission.

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