Foton
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Foton-12
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A series of recoverable microgravity science satellites based on Zenit-class
Soviet spy spacecraft of the type that also served as Gagarin's Vostok
capsule. The Foton consists of a spherical reentry capsule sandwiched between
a battery pack that separates before reentry and an expendable service module
with a solid-propellant retrorocket. The total mass is about 6.5 tons of
which 400 kg is science payload. Foton satellites remain in an approximately
215 × 380 km × 63° orbit for 12 days, carrying out experiments
such as materials processing, before de-orbiting. The first Foton was launched
on Apr. 16, 1985, and the most recent, Foton-12, in 1999.
Related category
• SATELLITES
AND SPACE PROBES
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