in an attempt to bring them closer
together so they could tell what
each was likely to do.
Back in Star City more mundane
chores had to be done, Helen had
to be fitted for her space suit. “It’s
the best made to measure outfit
that I’ve ever had” she enthused
but then it’s hardly surprising seeing
as she was measured in 72 different
places before the suit was made.
Once in the suit Helen explained
how difficult it was to stand upright
because the shoulders and the
sides of the suit have wire in them
for support and durability, “When
you see them (the cosmonauts) on
their way to the launch pad the look
education and certain laws that
she had encountered. The one
which came to mind was one of
the Newtonian laws of motion,
“every action has an equal and
opposite reaction”, this would be so
true once the rocket she was to fly
on had lifted of from the Baikonur
Cosmodrome at Tyuratam near
Vladivostok in eastern Russia.The
thrust being ejected from the rocket
so powerful that it overcomes any
problem of gravity.
“The launch is exiting not having
done one before but it’s also rather
mundane” Helen recounted, the
reason being that the crew are
strapped into their seats many
East meets West: Anatoly Artsebarsky, Helen Sharman and Sergei Krikalyov.
hunched up, this is not because
they have had too much vodka to
drink or that they are tired due to
lack of sleep, it’s just that the wire
makes movement so difficult”.
The seat in which Helen and
all cosmonauts sit is also made to
measure but at the base there
is a gap of about 4-5 cm where
ones back fits. Helen continued,
“Because your spine stretches in
the weightless environment this little
gap is essential to allow for the 2cm
or more stretch that the spine will
experience, I liked that, it made me
feel taller for a time”.
When the time for the launch
approached
Helen
couldn’t
help herself thinking back to her
24
24
hours before the launch itself, “It’s
not scary” she told the by now
enthralled,
captive
audience
“As there is no unknown, you feel
really prepared”. At launch the
acceleration builds, drops then
builds yet again as the various
stages of the rocket are used up
and after approximately 8 minutes a
bang is heard and orbit is attained.
I took the time to ask Helen about
the launch phase of the mission
and her on orbit rendezvous with
Mir were there any problems?
“The mission I took part in had its
problems too; we had an O2 leak
during the launch which had to be
sorted out quickly in the spacecraft
as we lifted off. The automated
docking had to be aborted and
a manual docking carried out
and we had minor problems with
other equipment also. That is what
space flight is like, and your training
prepares you for all the possible
malfunctions that may take place.
You are aware that you could be
killed at any time, I’m catching
the train back down to London
this evening and something could
happen on that, it’s something you
try to put out of your mind”.
Although Helen was still strapped
tightly into her seat, she could no
longer feel her back on it but felt as
if the straps that were holding her in
place, were, somehow, doing their
job a little more efficiently. During
the launch Helen had also lost some
2 litres of sweat and was ready to
have a drink, and with so little
space inside a Soyuz-T space craft
they had to take it in turns. During
the first few hours in orbit the crew
had to change into their flight suits
which are in fact specially designed
so that they produce no dust what
so ever, important as any dust could
impair respiratory functions or even
damage the space craft itself.
During the two days before the
docking with Mir was completed,
the crew’s bodies underwent many
changes, changes induced by their
new environment; “ H^Y\