News

September 26, 2014
Soyuz TMA-14М was launched to the International Space Station! The space vehicle carried onboard the crew consisting of A. Samokutyaev, E. Serova and B. Wilmore

Under the International Space Station (ISS) Mission Program and the Russian side commitments under - taken under this International Project, at 00 hours: 25 minutes Moscow Time (MT) transport space vehicle (TSV) Soyuz TMA-14М was launched from Baikonur cosmodrome.

Purpose of the launch is to deliver 3 persons to the ISS in order to increase the number of crewmembers of the 41^st ISS-41 Prime crew up to six people.

Crew of Soyuz TMA-14M space vehicle is as follows: Russian cosmonauts Alexandr Samokutyaev (mission crew commander) and Elena Serova (flight engineer 1) and American astronauts Barry Wilmore (flight engineer 2).

The space vehicle is put into reference earth orbit with the following parameters: inclination of 51.65 degrees; minimum altitude of 201.25 km; maximum altitude of 257.33 km; orbital period is 88.79 min.

Onboard systems of the space vehicle operate in design mode. Deployable structural elements of the space vehicle are brought into an operating position. It was recorded that one of the two solar array panels failed to deploy; so this off-nominal situation is being analyzed and the ways to resolve it are being investigated.

Decisions on the space vehicle prelaunch processing and launch on the cosmodrome were taken by the State Committee on the basis of the Technical Management conclusions.

By telemetry data and reports of the crew working onboard the ISS, onboard systems of the station operate in design mode. The ISS is ready to dock with the space vehicle.

 

For reference:

1. RSC Energia is the leading enterprise of Russian rocket-space industry in the field of manned space flights programs, responsible for building Russian Segment (RS) of the ISS, its integration into station and utilization, including manufacture and operation of the main RS modules (Zvezda, Pirs, Poisk, Rassvet, etc.); building, launch and operational use of space vehicles Soyuz TMA, Progress M.
2. ISS-41 crew currently works onboard the ISS. Its composition is as follows: Russian cosmonaut Maxim Suraev, American astronaut Reid Wiseman and European astronaut Alexander Gerst.
3. Mission Program of manned space vehicle Soyuz TMA-14M prescribes rendezvous and docking of the space vehicle with the ISS by "accelerated scheme" following space vehicle orbital injection. Space vehicle docking is scheduled for September 26, 2014 at 06 hours: 15 minutes MT following 6 hours after the launch, to the docking assembly of Russian module Poisk. Should any off-nominal situation occur during rendezvous by this scheme, it is foreseen to change over safely to a two-day rendezvous scheme.
4. Elena Serova, the fourth female cosmonaut in the national cosmonautics history, is the member of the Soyuz TMA-14M crew sent to the ISS.