KAZAKHSTAN: Preparations for the launch of the 13th crew to the International Space Station has entered its final stage
Record ID:
872599
KAZAKHSTAN: Preparations for the launch of the 13th crew to the International Space Station has entered its final stage
- Title: KAZAKHSTAN: Preparations for the launch of the 13th crew to the International Space Station has entered its final stage
- Date: 28th March 2006
- Summary: CREW WALKING UPSTAIRS TOWARDS THE ROCKET, FLIGHT ENGINEER JEFFREY WILLIAMS WAVING TO PRESS
- Embargoed: 12th April 2006 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Kazakhstan
- City:
- Country: Kazakhstan
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- Reuters ID: LVA9IJTWETGBIQ5N81EHPPCEKWY7
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- Story Text: Preparations for the launch of the 13-th crew to the International Space Station (ISS) from cosmodrome Baikonur have entered their final stage.
At dawn on Tuesday (March 28) the rocket Soyuz was being placed on the launch pad and the countdown for the launch began. The 13th space expedition includes the commander - a Russian cosmonaut Pavel Vinogradov, a NASA astronaut - flight engineer Jeffrey Williams and the first Brazilian cosmonaut - Marcos Pontes. His mission will last for 10 days.
According to the Russian Space Agency the 13th space mission will be long and complicated mainly due to the fact that NASA has delayed the launch of the Discovery shuttle to the ISS from May to July.
The shuttle should have delivered to the ISS a necessary equipment and a new crew member.
After inspecting the rocket, cosmonauts said they are ready for the flight. Pavel Vinogradov, commander, ISS crew-13 says the spacecraft is in a perfect state.
"The spacecraft is in the ideal state, we have checked it for the second time today, looked through everything we had to, the readiness of the spacecraft is 100%, we don't have any problems with it."
This is the first time the Brazilian Marcos Pontes takes part in the mission. He is setting off for the ISS with a 10-day mission. The 43-year old test-pilot has passed the NASA astronauts' training at the Johnson Space Centre in Houston and has also been preparing for the flight in Russia for a year.
The 13th crew is due to lift off on Wednesday (March 29) morning. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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