News

November 7, 2013
Manned spacecraft Soyuz TMA-11M has docked with the ISS!

A manned transportation spacecraft Soyuz TMA-11M has docked with the International Space Station (ISS).

Approach to it, its fly-around, stationkeeping and docking were performed normally, in automatic mode.

The initial contact with the docking port on the module Rassvet of the ISS Russian segment occurred at 14:27:52 Moscow Time, 6 hours 14 minutes after the lift-off from the Baikonur launch site.

The mission control and the monitoring of the spacecraft systems status during rendezvous and docking were provided by the Lead Operations Control Team working at the Mission Control Center near Moscow (MCC-M). The Flight Director is the RSC Energia First Deputy General Designer V.A. Soloviev.

The final flight operations in the course of the spacecraft rendezvous and docking with the space station were supervised by the State Commission for manned systems flight tests and the Technical Manager for flight tests of manned space systems, the RSC Energia President and General Designer V.A. Lopota.

After a leak test of the spacecraft compartments and the docking unit, and equalization of pressure between the space station and the spacecraft, the transfer hatches were opened. The spacecraft crew transferred to the Russian segment of the ISS.

A joint international crew of 9 began its work on-board the space station, consisting of: Russian cosmonauts Fyodor Yurchikhin, Oleg Kotov, Sergei Ryazansky, Mikhail Tyurin, US astronauts Karen Nyberg, Michael Hopkins, Richard Mastracchio, a European astronaut Luca Parmitano, and a Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata.

On-board systems of the ISS, and spacecraft Progress M-20M, Soyuz TMA-09M, Soyuz TMA-10M and Soyuz TMA-11M operate normally.

Present at MCC-M during the final operations of the spacecraft rendezvous and docking with ISS were representatives of Roscosmos, and foreign space agencies.

 

For information:

1. RSC Energia is the prime organization for developing and operating the ISS Russian segment, its modules and spacecraft Soyuz TMA and Progress M.
2. Working at present within ISS are 5 Russian-made modules (Zarya, Zvezda, Pirs, Poisk, Rassvet) and 4 Russian transportation spacecraft, three of which are manned.
3. Soyuz TMA-11M brought to the ISS some objects carrying the symbols of the 22nd Winter Olympic Games of 2014, including an Olympic torch adapted for flight conditions. During an upcoming spacewalk, this item will be taken to the outer surface of the ISS, to be subsequently returned onboard and then back to Earth. Flight safety considerations dictate that the torch, during its delivery to the ISS and onboard operations, cannot be operated, that is, it cannot be lit up and the flame cannot be maintained.
4. The return of the crew of ISS-36 consisting of: F. Yurchikhin, L. Parmitano and K. Nyberg is scheduled for November 11 onboard Soyuz TMA-09M. This crew will return to Earth the Olympic torch that has been to space.