The drowning of Progress-M51 has been postponed for ten days in order to conduct a series of technical experiments on board the spacecraft, reported Russian Deputy Mission Control Chief Viktor Blagov.
"This cargo spacecraft, like previously Progress M1-11, was used to conduct new experiments to determine the future orientation of autonomous modules," he said.
As a rule, cargo spacecraft that exhausted their resource and have been filled with litter, are drowned in the ocean within a day of the last operation. However, the success of experiments on board Progress M1-11 encouraged Mission Control Center experts to continue similar practices on board Progress-M51.
Fragments of Progress-M51 left the passage through atmosphere will drown at 20:03 (Moscow time) at the "spacecraft cemetery" located on the 40th parallel in the Pacific Ocean, near Easter Island. The legendary Russian space station Mir was drowned in that region of the ocean in February 2000, after 15 years of work in outer space.
Another cargo spacecraft, Progress-M52, docked with the ISS on March 2. It brought food, fire-extinguishing means, medical supplies, fresh linen and personal hygiene means to the station. In addition, it supplied the ISS with reserve fuel for re-orientation boosters, potable and technical water, and scientific equipment.
