Soyuz TMA-M
The final planned flight of the baseline Soyuz-TMA design was Soyuz TMA-22, launched November 14, 2011 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome's Gagarin's Start launch pad in Kazakhstan, at 04:14:03 UTC. The new modernized Soyuz TMA-M series was developed and built by RKK Energia as an upgrade of the baseline Soyuz-TMA. Thirty-six obsolete pieces of equipment have been replaced with 19 new-generation devices and the vehicle's total mass has been reduced by 70 kilograms (154 lbs). In particular, the reliable but heavy (70 kg) Argon digital computer and analogue systems, which has been used on Soyuz ships for more than 30 years, has been replaced with a new digital computer, the TsVM-101, and digital avionics. Power consumption has been reduced throughout the ship. There are also changes to the spacecraft's structure, such as replacing the magnesium alloy used in the instrument module frame by aluminum alloy, to make the ship easier to manufacture.
The modernized Soyuz will also enable engineers to test new equipment which may also be used in Russia's next generation manned space ship that is currently under development.
NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, part of Soyuz TMA-01M's crew, praised the ship's new displays, saying that they make flying easier and less operator intensive.
Two flight development flights have been launched: Soyuz TMA-01M on Oct 7, 2010 and Soyuz TMA-02M on Jun 7, 2011. The third ship, Soyuz TMA-03M, launched on 21 December 2011 and was used for qualification tests. In addition to verifying the nominal operation of the spaceship, the testing included verification of off-nominal modes, such as manual attitude control, issuing of orbital maneuvering pulses using four berthing and attitude thrusters, and flying around the ISS in manual control mode.
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