RAS ISR' Conclusion on the scientific results received in the orbital complex Mir

Confirm
Director of the RAS ISR
RAS Academician
A.A.Galeev

RAS ISR' Conclusion on the scientific results received in the orbital complex Mir, the conditions of its systems and scientific equipment and the prospects of the Mir exploitation for the time of launching of the ISS.

Astrophysics module Kvant of the orbital complex Mir launched in 1987 contains the largest on the station complex of the scientific equipment named the orbital observatory Roentgen.

Observatory Roentgen consists of 4 X-ray telescopes, jointly exceeding the range of energies from 2 to 800 keV. Russia (leading RAS ISR), Germany, UK, Netherlands and ESA take part in the observatory Roentgen project.

More than 3 thousand sessions of the observations were carried out for the past time. Among the most significant results that were received in the observatory Roentgen are:

detection of the hard X-ray emission in the spectrum of the flare of Supernova 1987A in the Big Magellanic Cloud (with this result the flight of the station Mir will go down in the history of the astrophysics);
discovery of the hard component in the spectrums of the X-ray novas - generally acknowledged as would-be black holes; unique spectral and temporary investigations into several sources of this kind, inaccessible to the other units with shorter lifetime;
construction of the broadband spectrums of different types of X-rays in the range of energies 2-500 keV; detection of the two main types of the spectrums of the galaxy's would-be black holes;
discovery of the bright soft component and spectroscopy of the galaxy sources with the faster-than-light flight of the radiocomponents in the standard X-ray range;
X-ray representation of the area of the Center of our Galaxy;
measurement of the periods of 9 X-ray pulsars;
discovery of 11 X-ray sources of our Galaxy not known before, they were named KS (Kvant Source) with proper coordinates.

The run of the interesting observations of the part of the sky near to the Center of Galaxy was carried out in 1995- beginning of 1996. Bright transient sources have recently flared up in this part of the sky were under investigation: GRO J1735-27, detected on August 1995 by the unit BATSE from the satellite GRO and identified as a source KS1732-273 that was discovered by the telescope TTM from the module Kvant in 1989; new X-ray pulsar GRO J1750-27 and the brightest source of the repeat X-ray eruptions GRO J1744-28 that were discovered in the end of 1995 and also X-ray nova GRS1739-278 in the constellation of Snakebearer that was detected by the devices of the satellite Granat and module Kvant on March 1996. It is interesting that no one of the foreign experiments, started in 90-ies and possessed the higher sensitivity failed to detect the source GRS1739-278. Only on April 1996 it is became known from the USA that BATSE device managed to separate the X-ray emission from GRS1739-278 in the background of GRO J 1744-28, using the TTM information about the location of these sources.

Last time the investigations into two the brightest galaxy sources with the faster-than-light flight of the X-ray streams went on: GRS1915+05 and GRO J1655-40. The investigation of these objects gives a unique opportunity to understand better the processes taking place near to the extramassive black holes in quasars and cores of the active radiogalaxies. On October 1995 unit TTM for the first time detected the source GRS1915 + 105 in a low hard spectral state. This fact completely confirms the interpretation of this object as a galaxy would-be black hole.

Hundreds articles based on the Module Kvant data published in Russian and foreign astrophysics magazines. Every year several telegrams of the International Astronomy Council are published, master's and doctors thesises are defended. All of these confirm the urgency and high reliability of the received scientific information. At present the units of the module are in working conditions and it is itself the world leader in the duration of active work in orbit.

At present the telescopes of the observatory Roentgen and service systems of the module Kvant and station Mir are in a working condition, observances are carried out practically every day of the flight. It is necessary to take into consideration that the flight of the station Mir will remain the only opportunity for Russia to carry out the space researches in the field of the astrophysics of the high energies for several years. In the case of stopping the flight of the station Mir these opportunities will be lost. Constructing the complex of the scientific equipment like the observatory Kvant in the Russian segment of the ISS will take not less than 7-10 years providing the necessary financing (70-75 million USD). Several important experiments with participating RAS ISR (Obstanovka, Tros and Module-M) are planned on the final stage of the flight of the OS Mir.

By this time a large amount of work is carried out according to them, among their number the experiment Module-M aimed at the development of a new technology of the planetary researches. The Czech Institute of the physics of the atmosphere, NASA Lewis Center and Boeing take part in the experiment. Stopping of the station Mir's flight in the middle of 1999 makes it impossible to fulfill these researches in the very near future.

Setting up the Russian segment in the ISS in the conditions of the hard financial limitations will be connected with maximum cutting down the means for the scientific equipment. It means that the loss of the station Mir will cause the stopping of the thorough and applied researches in the conditions of the space station for 5 years at least.

Taking into account the above RAS ISR consider it necessary to continue the flight of the OC Mir during the period of launching ISS (3-5 years) and impossible its earlier liquidation.

Director of Department V.G.Rodin
Deputy Director of Department Ph.D. O.V.Terehov.