MOSCOW, July 25. /TASS/: The Pirs module will be undocked from the International Space Station (ISS) on July 26, chief of Russia’s state space corporation Roscosmos Dmitry Rogozin said on Sunday.
"The Pirs module will be undocked from the Russian segment of the ISS at 13:56 Moscow time on July 26 and incombustible elements will fall into the Pacific at 17:51 Moscow time on the same day," he wrote on his Telegram channel.
The Pirs module was docked to the nadir port of the Zvezda service module. Its place will be taken by the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module, which has been launched from the Baikonur spaceport and is currently on the orbit. It was originally planned to undock Pirs on July 23.
The Nauka multi-functional laboratory module is designated for implementing the Russian program of applied research and experiments. With the launch of the Nauka research module into operation, the Russian segment of the International Space Station will get additional space for equipping workplaces, storing cargoes and accommodating water and oxygen regeneration equipment.
The Nauka module will provide a second toilet for Russian cosmonauts (the first is located in the Zvezda module) and a room for a third crewmember. It will also use the European Robotic Arm (ERA) that will help perform some operations without spacewalks. The Nauka module will deliver water containers, handrails, ventilators, cables and other cargo to the ISS.
