ROSCOSMOS - Soyuz TMA-12M Mission patch.
March 25, 2014
Image above: Liftoff of Soyuz TMA-12M with 3 new crewmembers for ISS. Image Credit: NASA TV / Screen capture: Orbiter.ch Aerospace.
A new trio of Expedition 39 crewmembers has departed for the International Space Station, launching at 5:17 p.m. EDT from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. They will arrive less than six hours later for a docking to the Poisk module at 11:04 p.m.
Launch of Manned Expedition 39 in Soyuz TMA-12M
Soyuz Commander Alexander Skvortsov and Flight Engineer Oleg Artemyev of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and Flight Engineer Steve Swanson of NASA are riding inside the Soyuz TMA-12M spacecraft. They will orbit the Earth four times before they rendezvous and approach the orbital laboratory.
Watch Docking Live on NASA TV at 10:30 p.m. EDT: http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv
After docking, they will go through a series of leak and pressure checks between the two spacecraft before finally opening the hatches to the station almost two hours later. The trio will enter into the Poisk module and greet Expedition 39 Commander Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and Flight Engineers Rick Mastracchio of NASA and Mikhail Tyurin of Roscosmos.
Image above: Expedition 39 crew members give a thumbs during a press conference at the Cosmonaut Hotel in Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Image Credit: ROSCOSMOS.
After a welcoming ceremony and congratulatory words with family, friends and mission officials, the new orbiting sextet will conduct a mandatory safety orientation. All six crew members then will have an off-duty day Wednesday as they relax having shifted their schedules to accommodate the busy launch and docking activities.
As is customary, Swanson, Skvortsov and Artemyev will have several days set aside to familiarize themselves with their new home in space. The new trio will also assist the veteran crewmates as they adjust to living and working in space for six months.
Image above: The gantry arms begin to close around the Soyuz TMA-12M spacecraft to secure the rocket Image Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls.
Swanson, Skvortsov and Artemyev are scheduled to return home in September as Expedition 40 crew members. They will officially become Expedition 40 when Expedition 39 crew members Wakata, Mastracchio and Tyurin end their mission and undock in their Soyuz TMA-11M spacecraft in May for their return to Earth.
For more information about the International Space Station (ISS), visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html
Images (mentioned), Video, Text, Credits: NASA / ROSCOSMOS TV / NASA TV.
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