A Russian Soyuz rocket carrying three astronauts to the International Space Station blasted off Saturday, two days after its launch was aborted at the last minute. The spacecraft carrying NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson, Russian Oleg Novitsky and Marina Vasilevskaya of Belarus launched smoothly from the Russian-leased Baikonur launch facility in Kazakhstan.
Quick Read
- Russian Soyuz rocket successfully launches with three astronauts to the ISS, two days after an aborted attempt.
- The crew includes NASA’s Tracy Dyson, Russia’s Oleg Novitsky, and Belarus’s Marina Vasilevskaya.
- Initial launch delay due to a voltage drop in a power source, as stated by the head of the Russian space agency.
- The spacecraft entered orbit eight minutes post-launch, embarking on a two-day journey to the ISS.
- The crew will join existing station members from NASA and Russia, with a return planned for April 6.
- The ISS remains a key symbol of international cooperation, with hopes to extend its operation until 2030.
- Russia continues to use Soviet-designed rockets for space missions amid ongoing geopolitical tensions.
The Associated Press has the story:
A Russian Soyuz rocket with 3 astronauts blasts off to International Space Station
Newslooks- MOSCOW (AP) —
A Russian Soyuz rocket carrying three astronauts to the International Space Station blasted off Saturday, two days after its launch was aborted at the last minute.
The spacecraft carrying NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson, Russian Oleg Novitsky and Marina Vasilevskaya of Belarus launched smoothly from the Russian-leased Baikonur launch facility in Kazakhstan.
The launch had been planned for Thursday but was halted by an automatic safety system about 20 seconds before the scheduled liftoff. The head of the Russian space agency, Yuri Borisov, said the launch abort was triggered by a voltage drop in a power source.
The space capsule atop the rocket separated and went into orbit eight minutes after the launch and began a two-day, 34-orbit trip to the space station. If the launch had gone as scheduled on Thursday, the journey would have been much shorter, requiring only two orbits. Docking is now expected at 1510 GMT Monday.
The three astronauts were to join the station’s crew consisting of NASA astronauts Loral O’Hara, Matthew Dominick, Mike Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, as well as Russians Oleg Kononenko, Nikolai Chub, and Alexander Grebenkin.
Novitsky, Vasilevskaya and O’Hara are to return to Earth on April 6.
The space station, which has served as a symbol of post-Cold War international cooperation, is now one of the last remaining areas of collaboration between Russia and the West amid tensions over Moscow’s military action in Ukraine. NASA and its partners hope to continue operating the orbiting outpost until 2030.
Russia has continued to rely on modified versions of Soviet-designed rockets for commercial satellites, as well as crews and cargo to the space station.
