NASASpaceFlight.com Forum
International Space Flight (ESA, Russia, China and others) => Russian Launchers - Soyuz, Progress and Uncrewed => Topic started by: jacqmans on 04/28/2014 03:18 pm
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On 27 April 2014, Andreas Mogensen announced his mission name following a Europe-wide contest.
winning mission name "Iriss", combining names of Greek goddess Iris and ISS!
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The ISS-45/46 crew (and the ISS-47/48 crew) completed their water survival training at the the "179th rescue operations center" in the last week of June. Sarah Brightman did not participate. Instead, Thomas Pesquet showed up.
There were two sessions, one in which the crew jumped out in their Sokol suits, and the other where they had to change in "Forel" suits (inside the capsule) and then jump out.
TsPK has provided lots of pics of this event, plus a nice video.
See:
http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=2568
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkA9qumDHF4
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Launch on October 4th and presumably going from the Gagarin Pad? Nice way to celebrate an extremely important anniversary!
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Japanese citizen Satoshi Takamatsu approved to be the next space tourist Sarah Brightman’s back-up cosmonaut, – Roscosmos representative reported on December 18.
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Sarah Brightman and Satoshi Takamatsu started to prepare for space flight, http://www.roscosmos.ru/21252/ (in Russian)
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Press conference (in Russian and English)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDt-9wByEbs
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Some photos available at http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=2842 (in Russian)
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Sarah Brightman and Satoshi Takamatsu started to prepare for space flight, http://www.roscosmos.ru/21252/ (http://www.roscosmos.ru/21252/) (in Russian)
In English - http://en.federalspace.ru/20364/ (http://en.federalspace.ru/20364/) ;) .
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The Soyuz TMA-18M spacecraft will launch to the International Space Station on September 1, 2015. Commander Sergei Volkov will join the Expedition-45 crew; British soprano Sarah Brightman and Danish ESA-astronaut Andreas Mogensen will spend ten days aboard the orbital outpost before returning to Earth aboard the Soyuz TMA-16M with cosmonaut Gennadi Padalka.
The insignia for Soyuz TMA-18M, shaped like the patch of Apollo-Soyuz, flown exactly 40 years ago, was designed by Dr. Jorge Cartes from Madrid, Spain. Copyright Roscosmos/spacepatches.nl
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Sarah Brightman's personal mission patch as seen during a press conference today. Chasing Dreams, Shaping the future #SarahInSpace
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Andreas Mogensen's patch for his "iriss" mission, launching with TMA-18M (landing with TMA-16M).
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Many reports in Moscow tonight, attributed to Interfax, that Sarah Brightman has unexpectedly left GCTC.
http://www.express-novosti.ru/get/48647/u-yapontsa-bolshe-shansov-poletet-na-mks-chem-u-pevitsyi-saryi-brajtman.html
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Reports from Russia are that within 1 to 2 weeks the decision about who will fly instead of Brightman will be taken.
A Soyuz launch with a crew of two is also possible....
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Reports from Russia are that within 1 to 2 weeks the decision about who will fly instead of Brightman will be taken.
A Soyuz launch with a crew of two is also possible....
So Brightman has confirmed that she is not going?
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Reports from Russia are that within 1 to 2 weeks the decision about who will fly instead of Brightman will be taken.
A Soyuz launch with a crew of two is also possible....
So Brightman has confirmed that she is not going?
YES
Postponement of Flight Plans
Sarah Brightman announced today that she is postponing her plans to launch aboard the upcoming Soyuz TMA-18M spaceflight mission. Ms. Brightman said that for personal family reasons her intentions have had to change and she is postponing her cosmonaut training and flight plans at this time. She would like to express her extreme gratitude to Roscosmos, Energia, GCTC (Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center), Star City, NASA and all the cosmonauts and astronauts, for their support during this exciting time in her life.
“Since 2012, Sarah has shared her story of a lifelong dream to fly to space. Her international fame as the world’s best-selling soprano has enabled her message to circle the globe, inspiring others to pursue their own dreams,” said Eric Anderson, Co-Founder and Chairman of Space Adventures, Ltd. “We’ve seen firsthand her dedication to every aspect of her spaceflight training and to date, has passed all of her training and medical tests. We applaud her determination and we’ll continue to support her as she pursues a future spaceflight opportunity.”
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So she could still turn up on a later mission then?
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Yeah, just seen it. The UK news is trying to make out she's lost confidence since Progress, but I think they are reaching, as the UK media does. We have to respect it is due to the stated reasons, which will be very private (and that's not going to help the media nonsense).
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IMO if Takamatsu have the money, he will fly instead Brightman.
Reports from Russia are that within 1 to 2 weeks the decision about who will fly instead of Brightman will be taken.
A Soyuz launch with a crew of two is also possible....
The other options would be to fly another cosmonaut as FE2, as they did with Soyuz TMA-1 after Lance Bass failed to pay, flying Yuri Lonchakov who was the backup CDR of the Soyuz.
Or as jacqmans said, a 2-men Soyuz with a cargo container instead the FE2.
Maybe could Canada fill this seat with Hansen or Saint-Jacques?
I don't know when the next Canadian will fly to the ISS. Other question would be if they have enough training time.
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IMO if Takamatsu have the money, he will fly instead Brightman.
Reports from Russia are that within 1 to 2 weeks the decision about who will fly instead of Brightman will be taken.
A Soyuz launch with a crew of two is also possible....
The other options would be to fly another cosmonaut as FE2, as they did with Soyuz TMA-1 after Lance Bass failed to pay, flying Yuri Lonchakov who was the backup CDR of the Soyuz.
Or as jacqmans said, a 2-men Soyuz with a cargo container instead the FE2.
Maybe could Canada fill this seat with Hansen or Saint-Jacques?
I don't know when the next Canadian will fly to the ISS. Other question would be if they have enough training time.
Yes, given that Takamatsu has been training with Brightman for a long time - presumably has the funds - so why would it even be a discussion about who would take her place?
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The UK news is trying to make out she's lost confidence since Progress, but I think they are reaching, as the UK media does
She has left Russia well before Soyuz-2-1A launch failure with Progress M-27M, and there were rumours that she had not collected enough money for paying for her flight.
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Yes, given that Takamatsu has been training with Brightman for a long time - presumably has the funds - so why would it even be a discussion about who would take her place?
Because of the word "presumably" ! :D
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I doubt there will be enough time to find another tourist and ensure they are adequately trained between now and launch.
I suspect the extra seat will be filled with another cosmonaut. Although, the entire justification for this flight is now questionable.
Controversial viewpoint I know, but it should never have happened anyway - ISS is not a hotel. I have nothing against Brightman, but private individuals should not be able to have influence over the program like this. :(
I'm wondering if she ever had any intention of flying - or whether it was all a publicity stunt.
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Oh, no!! I was hoping since announcement day for Brightman to fly and she has to call it quits! That's too bad!
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I doubt there will be enough time to find another tourist and ensure they are adequately trained between now and launch.
I suspect the extra seat will be filled with another cosmonaut. Although, the entire justification for this flight is now questionable.
Controversial viewpoint I know, but it should never have happened anyway - ISS is not a hotel. I have nothing against Brightman, but private individuals should not be able to have influence over the program like this. :(
I'm wondering if she ever had any intention of flying - or whether it was all a publicity stunt.
I am unclear if Takamatsu was just training as a back-up, to undertake the training, but had no plans to actually fly. There have been a whole succession of back-up tourists who never came back for a flight, Halik, Barrett, Dyson, Kostenko come to mind. There must be a massive difference in the cost of the back-up slot and the flight itself.
I too wonder if the whole thing was a stunt from the beginning, or if the money was ever really there. I do recall that the funding mechanism she explained at the outset, in 2012, was not straight forward.
It would seem very wasteful to fly an empty seat, although it has been done before. Much better to give a rookie cosmonaut, who is not in the training flow already some experience. How about Anna Kikina? ;-)
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I doubt there will be enough time to find another tourist and ensure they are adequately trained between now and launch.
I suspect the extra seat will be filled with another cosmonaut. Although, the entire justification for this flight is now questionable.
Controversial viewpoint I know, but it should never have happened anyway - ISS is not a hotel. I have nothing against Brightman, but private individuals should not be able to have influence over the program like this. :(
I'm wondering if she ever had any intention of flying - or whether it was all a publicity stunt.
I am unclear if Takamatsu was just training as a back-up, to undertake the training, but had no plans to actually fly. There have been a whole succession of back-up tourists who never came back for a flight, Halik, Barrett, Dyson, Kostenko come to mind. There must be a massive difference in the cost of the back-up slot and the flight itself.
From what I've seen of Takamatsu's businesses (particular the description of SPACE TRAVEL he gives on his linkedin page (https://jp.linkedin.com/pub/satoshi-takamatsu/62/286/553)) it looks like he considers actually undertaking these kind of flights as a critical part of the marketing for them, and that he has been able to arrange advertising activity on the ISS in the past.
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You know I bet Takamatsu could actually pay for his trip by creating an advertising campaign for Space Adventures, that's his specialty after all.
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I doubt there will be enough time to find another tourist and ensure they are adequately trained between now and launch.
I suspect the extra seat will be filled with another cosmonaut. Although, the entire justification for this flight is now questionable.
Controversial viewpoint I know, but it should never have happened anyway - ISS is not a hotel. I have nothing against Brightman, but private individuals should not be able to have influence over the program like this. :(
Please explaine, what kind of influence does not flying Sarah have on the ISS program ?
And ISS has been a hotel for many visitors in the past so kind of strange to make this comment for you, you should know better....
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Please explaine, what kind of influence does not flying Sarah have on the ISS program ?
And ISS has been a hotel for many visitors in the past so kind of strange to make this comment for you, you should know better....
By "influence", I mean all the effort that has been created for both NASA and Roscosmos in planning the flight, adjusting the schedule of other VVs to fit around it, training the crew, ensuring adequate logistics are present, etc. The justification for this flight, and thus all the aforementioned effort, was for Brightman to fly. And so now that she is not flying, she has just caused a lot of inconvenience for the program.
The timetable of some experiments has undoubtedly had to be adjusted to accommodate the VV scheduling that was associated with Brightman's flight, more food will have been manifested to accommodate her stay - upmass that could otherwise have been used for science payloads. I have nothing against space tourism, Space Adventures, or Sarah Brightman, but ISS is not the right platform for it. It's a science lab, not a hotel.
And yes, I know tourists have visited ISS in the past, and I didn't agree with that either, for the same reasons as above.
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I think the main reason for the TMA-18M flight is to get Volkov up to ISS and Padalka down,and that is all because of the one year mission NASA wanted.... a tourist seat was available and Sarah took it, ESA is also flying an astronaut, that seat became available also, and had it not been fot the UK goverment to spent more pounds on spaceflight Peake would fly the mission... a mission in your point of view we should not fly.... The soyuz would have flown anyway with a normal rotation crew in September, no schedule is changed because of this flight....
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The justification for this flight, and thus all the aforementioned effort, was for Brightman to fly.
As far as I know, the justification for this flight is to bring a new Soyuz to the (Almost-)One-Year Expedition...
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Fundamentally, I don't see any justification in flying tourists to the ISS. It should be for professional space crew only. So much taxpayers dollars were spent on building that wonderful laboratory, so let's give the opportunity to the international partners to fly one of their professional crew on a short duration flight. BTW, I am a Sarah Brightman fan.
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Fundamentally, I don't see any justification in flying tourists to the ISS. It should be for professional space crew only. So much taxpayers dollars were spent on building that wonderful laboratory, so let's give the opportunity to the international partners to fly one of their professional crew on a short duration flight. BTW, I am a Sarah Brightman fan.
What the Russians do with that vehicles is there affair and if they want to provide seats to tourists I don't see why they shouldn't. Also such passengers often fire public interest in ISS & its operations. It can't just be all about science but has to include other elements like public outreach as well.
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Tass reports that Russian cosmonaut Sergey Prokopyev or another young cosmonaut may fly onboard the Soyuz spacecraft instead of British singer Sarah Brightman if no new space tourist shows up in the coming days.
http://tass.ru/en/non-political/794579
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Also such passengers often fire public interest in ISS & its operations. It can't just be all about science but has to include other elements like public outreach as well.
This. Even a single tourist generates more positive PR for ISS that all NASA can do in years. People suggesting "ISS is for science" need to keep in mind who picks up the bill for all this. And with their stance being what it is, they should not be surprised that politicians at large don't care about space - this is because their constituents don't know anything about what's going up there.
I'd say anything that can give ISS (and space exploration in general) positive PR should be high on any space agency's todo list.
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The issue here is that you got all the inconvenience and none of the positive PR.
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Also such passengers often fire public interest in ISS & its operations. It can't just be all about science but has to include other elements like public outreach as well.
This. Even a single tourist generates more positive PR for ISS that all NASA can do in years. People suggesting "ISS is for science" need to keep in mind who picks up the bill for all this. And with their stance being what it is, they should not be surprised that politicians at large don't care about space - this is because their constituents don't know anything about what's going up there.
I'd say anything that can give ISS (and space exploration in general) positive PR should be high on any space agency's todo list.
Granted it was CSA and not NASA but it seems to me that Chris Hatfield generated more positive PR than all the tourist combined. Someone at the station for 10 or so days who paid to get there doesn't connect with the public the same way as an astronaut responding to a kid's tweet.
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My question is:
Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
A yearlong mission or a free seat for a tourist?
Thx
Carlos
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A year-long mission.
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Are they going to change the patch for this mission after this change? I am not sure what the procedure for this is but because of Brightman they designed this thing with a lot of musical notes :P
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Are they going to change the patch for this mission after this change? I am not sure what the procedure for this is but because of Brightman they designed this thing with a lot of musical notes :P
The only thing that will change in the patch is a new name of the 3rd crew member, (If a 3rd crewmember will fly at all, that will be decided in June) if only two crewmembers, the place of Brightman will be empty. The Japanese back-up of Brightman will NOT fly.
The musical notes will stay, Volkov liked the patch that much, so it will stay. The patch is called "music of space" Russian cosmonauts and Danish astronauts can sing also :)
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The Japanese back-up of Brightman will NOT fly.
So he was no back-up.
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So he was no back-up.
No, he isn't. We know this from the very beginning. He is a man who paid Roscosmos to have a complete cosmonaut training.
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Isn't it a waste to have a two seater Soyuz? Couldn't they fly the backup for Volkov or Mogensen instead, or even one of the 2014 ISS crew (who should still "remember" the training)?
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When was the information given that the backup is only completing and has paid for only cosmonaut training?
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When was the information given that the backup is only completing and has paid for only cosmonaut training?
1. It is written in this article : http://rbth.com/news/2015/05/14/sarah_brightman_backup_pilot_continuing_training_for_tourist_spaceflight_45996.html
2. It's quite logical. If the Japanese guy wanted to fly, he would have paid about 50M$ for it. One can not imagine that Brightman paid 50M$ to Roscosmos to allow someone else to fly ! The word "backup" has no sense for tourism. If something prevents me to leave on holyday, someone will not take my hotel bedroom ! The Japanese did not paid for a spaceflight, so there is no reason for Roscosmos to give him a Soyuz seat.
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Considering 2 supply vehicles have failed to reach ISS, flying up as much cargo as possible instead of another person would seem to be the most sensible, if not flashy, decision.`The Russian desire/need to garner as much income as possible will likely trump doing the sensible thing, in my humble opinion :)
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If I understand correctly, until about a week ago, no one knew he only paid for training?
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If I understand correctly, until about a week ago, no one knew he only paid for training?
There isn't really a price. You start the process by paying some money, then you pay some more money, then maybe you get invited to Russia, where you pay some money, and maybe you come back again in a few months, and pay some money, and then you get some training, and pay some money and then you take a test - you pay for the test, but maybe you need some more training, and pay some money.... one day you get to fly, if you pay some money.
It's kinda like hiring a lawyer - in fact, that's one of the first things you'll need to do.
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So, why are the called "back-ups" ? They are in fact just paying customers for training.
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So, why are the called "back-ups" ? They are in fact just paying customers for training.
because they get the first opportunity to make the next payment.
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https://youtu.be/Hgz7kJJSksM?list=PLbyvawxScNbsCtYE7cHbqq9O6JvA-HPOL
https://youtu.be/5Xa8LLITkgw?list=PLbyvawxScNbsCtYE7cHbqq9O6JvA-HPOL
https://youtu.be/oE5Z3Uxbezc?list=PLbyvawxScNbsCtYE7cHbqq9O6JvA-HPOL
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http://tass.ru/kosmos/1989300
According to ITAR-TASS at least three candidates are being considered to occupy the Soyuz TMA-18M third seat : Russian businessman Filaret Galchev, Russian cosmonaut Sergei Prokopyev (of the 2010 intake) and Kazakh cosmonaut Aidyn Aimbetov. Galchev will be spending the next week at the Cosmonaut Training Center "to familiarize himself with the cosmonaut training process". A final decision is expected at the end of this month.
According to an article published in Izvestiya on 16 May Galchev has been undergoing medical screening and if he passes the tests is prepared to pay about $50 million for the ride to orbit. Representatives of Galchev first contacted Space Adventures in 2013 to discuss his possible participation in a space mission.
http://izvestia.ru/news/586590
Here's some background on 51-year old Galchev from Forbes, which lists him as the 23rd wealthiest Russian businessman :
http://www.forbes.com/profile/filaret-galchev/
"Filaret Galchev, who started out in coal, made the bulk of his fortune in cement, buying plants from Stern Cement and from Inteko, the construction company owned by Russia's richest woman, Elena Baturina. His Eurocement Group is now Russia's largest cement producer with a 30% market share.It recently announced plans to buy $860 million worth of cement machinery from Chinese manufacturers, using a loan to fund the purchases. Galchev also owns a nearly 11% stake in the Swiss cement business, Holcim."
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Galchev will be spending the next week at the Cosmonaut Training Center "to familiarize himself with the cosmonaut training process". A final decision is expected at the end of this month
NASA astronauts train for over three years to fly on the ISS, and that's not counting their two years of basic training prior to that (and of course their extensive technical qualifications and experience). So how can any ab-initio private citizen possibly "familiarise themselves with the training process" in only one week before a decision is taken?
Adding a tourist to the flight at L-3 months is irresponsible bordering on recklessness. I hope any tourists will be denied access to the USOS on safety grounds.
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Galchev will be spending the next week at the Cosmonaut Training Center "to familiarize himself with the cosmonaut training process". A final decision is expected at the end of this month
NASA astronauts train for over three years to fly on the ISS, and that's not counting their two years of basic training prior to that (and of course their extensive technical qualifications and experience). So how can any ab-initio private citizen possibly "familiarise themselves with the training process" in only one week before a decision is taken?
Adding a tourist to the flight at L-3 months is irresponsible bordering on recklessness. I hope any tourists will be denied access to the USOS on safety grounds.
Not that i really know anything, but there is a really big difference between a tourist and anstronaut/cosmonaut who's actually expected to do some research and possible technical stuf around there. All a tourist really needs to know is to how to use toilet and not to touch anything and where to go if there is a emergency. Possibly how to use fire extinguisher etc. it's not really comparable.
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http://tass.ru/kosmos/1989300
According to ITAR-TASS at least three candidates are being considered to occupy the Soyuz TMA-18M third seat : Russian businessman Filaret Galchev, Russian cosmonaut Sergei Prokopyev (of the 2010 intake) and Kazakh cosmonaut Aidyn Aimbetov.
Out of these three the one who deserves the flight most is undoubtedly Aimbetov. He began training for a visiting flight to the ISS at Star City in 2003, but in 2009 Kazakhstan cancelled the mission due to financial problems. However, plans for such a flight were later resurrected and on 12 October 2012 he was given the official status of "Cosmonaut of the Republic of Kazakhstan". In May last year Talgat Musabayev, the head of the Kazakh space agency, said Aimbetov was the leading candidate for a Kazakh mission to the ISS in 2017.
If Aimbetov gets assigned to Soyuz TMA-18M, that would be an ironic twist of fate for Mukhtar Aimakhanov, another Kazakh-born cosmonaut who trained alongside Aimbetov from 2003 to 2009. After the cancellation of the Kazakh mission, he applied for Russian citizenship in order to be able to enter the Russian cosmonaut team. He received Russian citizenship in 2012 and was officially included in the Russian cosmonaut team on 14 August 2014. Therefore Aimakhanov must be better prepared to fly this mission than Aimbetov, but in his new capacity as Russian cosmonaut the Russians would have to give Aimakhonov a free ride. If they assign Aimbetov, they can charge Kazakhstan the usual price for a Soyuz seat. It remains to be seen though if Kazakhstan can come up with the money at such short notice.
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It seems that Aimbetov has been chosen to fly the mission, as posted by Anik on NK Forum
http://novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/forum/forum10/topic12565/?PAGEN_1=17 (http://novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/forum/forum10/topic12565/?PAGEN_1=17)
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It seems that Aimbetov has been chosen to fly the mission, as posted by Anik on NK Forum
http://novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/forum/forum10/topic12565/?PAGEN_1=17 (http://novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/forum/forum10/topic12565/?PAGEN_1=17)
He's one of the Kazakhstan cosmonauts that are still waiting for a flight after 10+ years, right? Sounds like a good idea to me...
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Next Monday the Interministerial commission for manned missions will approve Aimbetov as the third crewmember of TMA-18M.
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http://plus.google.com/101283321834049836619/posts/FYRjzSPFASZ
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Next Monday the Interministerial commission for manned missions will approve Aimbetov as the third crewmember of TMA-18M.
Looks like he has been officially confirmed: http://tass.ru/kosmos/2061388 (http://tass.ru/kosmos/2061388)
I wonder what he will do on board the ISS given such a short preparation time? Also how did the Kazakhstan government got the money to fly him when earlier plans of the flight (back in 2009 IIRC) went astray? (or was it a barter with the Russians?)
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New and updated crew patch.
Credit: Roscosmos/spacepatches.nl
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Hmm, has Aimbetov started joint training with his crewmates yet?
If this report is correct (http://regnum.ru/news/1935904.html) Aimbetov was in Houston as of late last month/ ::)
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Hmm, has Aimbetov started joint training with his crewmates yet?
If this report is correct (http://regnum.ru/news/1935904.html) Aimbetov was in Houston as of late last month/ ::)
According to http://novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/forum/forum10/topic9135/?PAGEN_1=128
he is in Star City.
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Andreas at Col-CC
ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen’s ‘iriss’ mission will be unlike any other spaceflight for ESA. It will last only 10 days and the whole mission is planned and executed by the team at the Columbus Control Centre in Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany.
Andreas visited the centre in July for the last time before his launch in September to meet the team that will be working round the clock to make his stay on the International Space Station as comfortable and efficient as possible.
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Andreas Mogensen:
Sitting for our official crew photo, with our whole crew finally! (Photo by Miguel)
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Aimbetov will fly as "Flight Engineer n°2", not as a "Spaceflight Participant".
http://novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/news/28801/
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http://ria.ru/world/20150722/1142120705.html
RIA Novosti says the Kazakh space agency is looking for the money needed to fly Aimbetov to the ISS. The Russians have charged Kazakhstan $20 million for the flight, which is 2.5 times less than what Sarah Brightman was supposed to have paid. Since no money had been earmarked for the mission in the Kazakh space agency's 2015 budget, Kazakhstan may pay for the mission by lowering the $115 million rent that Russia annually pays to Kazakhstan for the use of the Baikonur cosmodrome.
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http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3106
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The Assembly of the boosters of Soyuz-FG rocket.
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Members of the primary and backup crews 45/46 expedition to the ISS successfully qualified for space flight
http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3111 (http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3111) (in Russian)
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Back-up crew.
It seems that Satoshi Takamatsu has been replaced by Sergei Prokopyev.
This must have happened recently, because early July he underwent a water landing training session.
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http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3114
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Back-up crew.
It seems that Satoshi Takamatsu has been replaced by Sergei Prokopyev.
This must have happened recently, because early July he underwent a water landing training session.
It seems Prokopyev's assignment was on June 22.
http://www.astronaut.ru/as_rusia/vvs/text/prokopiev01.htm
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Back-up crew.
It seems that Satoshi Takamatsu has been replaced by Sergei Prokopyev.
This must have happened recently, because early July he underwent a water landing training session.
Takamatsu has never been a back-up.
Being a back-up means that, if the main crewmember can't fly, you fly.
But Takamatsu has not paid money to go to space. So, even if the whole Russian cosmonaut Corps was sick, he would not go anyway.
He is just a guy who has paid some dollars to train like an astronaut.
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http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3122
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9zEb5RCW08
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Andreas Mogensen @Astro_Andreas
Reporting to exam commission this morning prior to start of today's ISS exam #iriss #rumrejsendk
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https://youtu.be/lT00bsO2l9E
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http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3126
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Any idea why Sergei Prokopyev didn't participate on the second day of exams (ISS simulator)?
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Expedition 45 - Visiting Crew Qualification Training Simulation Runs at Star City Russia
http://www.space-multimedia.nl.eu.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9547
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Thomas Pesquet @Thom_astro
Today is a big day: after official certification, prime & backup crew sign the logbook in Gagarin's former office!
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Thomas Pesquet @Thom_astro Moskou, Rusland
Next step: flowers on Gagarin's plaque and visit of the Kremlin
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Thomas Pesquet @Thom_astro Moskou, Rusland
This one has a "Yalta conference" feeling to it ;) You have to wonder what @Astro_Andreas was writing...
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https://youtu.be/-YuUeWjyovY
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https://youtu.be/WK6WvjKMmlw
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http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3133
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ROSCOSMOS: CREWS MISSION 45/46 RECOMMENDED TO PERSIST preflight
08/10/2015 17:59
Interdepartmental Commission (IAC), which met in the Cosmonaut Training Center. Gagarin (CPC) recommended that members of the main and backup crews of Expedition 45/46 preflight preparation to continue at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, where the crews will travel for 18 of August.
After the meeting, the IAC held a traditional press conference of cosmonauts and astronauts basic (ROSCOSMOS cosmonaut Sergei Volkov, ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen and the first in the history of the sovereign Republic of Kazakhstan cosmonaut Aydin Aimbetov) and backup (ROSCOSMOS cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka and Sergey Prokopiev and ESA astronaut Thomas sands) crews.
The mission 45/46 ISS reported on the upcoming stages of flight and preparation for it. The greatest interest among journalists has caused the scientific program of the flight. Responding to questions, Sergei Volkov stressed: "The objectives of the expedition are consistent with the objectives" of the annual flight "facing Mikhail Kornienko (Roscosmos) and Scott Kelley (NASA), which means that members of the new mission will be to work on the same experiments, acting the role of researchers and certified assistants. " There will also be a number of joint experiments with ESA, which will give a synergistic effect. Such scientific cooperation will make more experiments, each of them performing more precise.
Journalists interested in Kazakhstan's space program - a representative of the country will go into space after a long break. Aydin Aimbetov spoke about the main studies that plans to carry out, on the whole they continue to develop and the results obtained Talgat MUSAMBAEVYM during his stay on the ISS.
Responding to a reporter's question about the impact of NBC political tensions to work together in orbit, ESA astronaut Dane Andreas Mogensen stressed: "The ISS project - is an example of what can be achieved by working together, noting that without international cooperation ISS project would not take place."
http://www.federalspace.ru/21630/
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcdJVZijQzs
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Expedition 45/Visiting Crew Conducts News Conference in Russia
Expedition 45 Soyuz Commander Sergei Volkov of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and visiting crew members Andreas Mogensen of the European Space Agency (ESA) and Aidyn Aimbetov of the Kazakh Space Agency (Kazcosmos), and their backups, Oleg Skripochka and Sergei Prokopyev of Roscosmos and Thomas Pesquet of ESA visited the Gagarin Museum in Star City, Russia July 8, where they viewed historic space artifacts, then traveled to Red Square in Moscow to lay flowers at the Kremlin Wall where Russian space icons are interred. Volkov, Mogensen and Aimbetov are scheduled to launch on Sept. 2, Kazakh time, in the Soyuz TMA-18M spacecraft to the International Space Station.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcWJG54KCUI
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Expedition 45 - Crew News Conference and Ceremonial Activities
http://www.space-multimedia.nl.eu.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9552
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Thomas Pesquet @Thom_astro
Today is a big day: we leave for Baikonur! Traditional breakfast, press conference and farewell to the families.
Thomas Pesquet @Thom_astro
Our jet is about to depart, the prime crew are already on their way (2 planes, for safety). Baikonur, here we come!
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http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3138
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Soyuz TMA-18M primary and backup crews arrived to the Baikonur launch site
Primary (Sergey Alexandrovich VOLKOV (Roscosmos, Russia), Andreas Enevold MOGENSEN (ESA, Denmark) and Aydyn Akanovich AIMBETOV (KasKosmos, Republic Kazakhstan)) and backup (Oleg Ivanovich SKRIPOCHKA (Roscosmos, Russia), Thomas PESQUET (ESA, France) and Sergey Valerievich PROKOPIEV (Roscosmos, Russia)) crews of the Soyuz TMA-18M manned transportation spacecraft arrived to the Baikonur launch site.
At the airport they were met by members of the State Commission and Technical Management.
Commanders of the crews reported on their readiness for pre-flight training and Soyuz TMA-18M spacecraft acceptance.
http://www.energia.ru/en/iss/iss45/photo_08-18.html
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwIS6Isyf5M
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Has someone hi res portraits of the six cosmonauts?
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_CZFZNYUq0&feature=youtu.be&a
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Andreas Mogensen @Astro_Andreas
Crew selfie from inside our Soyuz. First time sitting in it! Magnificent ship! #iriss
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The first training at the Baikonur.
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From Thomas Pesquet facebook site
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Soyuz TMA-18M crews initiated a final training phase
August 19, 2015
The prime and backup crews for the ISS-45/46 initiated a final training phase in the processing facility.
Sergey Alexandrovich VOLKOV (Roscosmos, Russia), Andreas Enevold MOGENSEN (ESA, Denmark), Aydyn Akanovich AIMBETOV (KasKosmos, Republic Kazakhstan), Oleg Ivanovich SKRIPOCHKA (Roscosmos, Russia), Thomas PESQUET (ESA, France) and Sergey Valerievich PROKOPIEV (Roscosmos, Russia) had training sessions onboard the spacecraft, with laser ranger and satellite phone, acquainted with the onboard documentation and the content of cargoes launched, made a fitting of the Sokol-KB space suits and individual liners, but the backup crew also made an inspection of the SC Progress M-29M.
Today a meeting of Technical Management was held where a decision to fill the Soyuz TMA-18M spacecraft with propellant components and compressed gases was accepted.
http://www.energia.ru/en/iss/iss45/photo_08-19.html
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[youtube]BDTBhCXjFDs[/youtube]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KztwmvvdiJ8
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The primary and backup crews of Soyuz TMA-18M manned transport spacecraft continue their preparation for the upcoming manned launch. Today the flags of the states participating in the space program were raised in a traditional ceremony.
http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3144 (http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3144)
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Fuelled SC Soyuz TMA-18M was delivered to the Spacecraft Assembly and Testing Facility
At Baikonur launch site the preparations continue for the launch of Soyuz TMA-18M transport manned vehicle under the International Space Station program.
Soyuz TMA-18M transport manned vehicle fuelled with propellant components and compressed gases was delivered to the Spacecraft Assembly and Testing Facility for final processing operations.
http://www.energia.ru/en/iss/iss45/photo_08-21.html
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Expedition 45/46 backup crew members participate in a traditional ceremony. Tour of the city.
http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3147 (http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3147) (in Russian)
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A transfer compartment was docked with SC Soyuz TMA-18M
At Baikonur launch site the preparations continue for the launch of Soyuz TMA-18M transport manned vehicle under the International Space Station program.
A transfer compartment was docked with Soyuz TMA-18M transport manned vehicle in the Spacecraft Assembly and Testing Facility.
http://www.energia.ru/en/iss/iss45/photo_08-24.html
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Andreas Mogensen reported (https://twitter.com/Astro_Andreas/status/636465707560108032) that due to the orbit of ISS being "too high" (phase angle or altitude?) their flight on the Soyuz would revert back to the usual 2 day trip:
Andreas Mogensen @Astro_Andreas
Looks like we will be using the old two-day rendezvous profile instead of the new six-hour. ISS orbit is too high #iriss
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https://youtu.be/df06MLJcUHw
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http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3145
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Designers inspection of SC Soyuz TMA-18M and payload shroud roll were performed
August 26, 2015
At Baikonur launch site the preparations continue for the launch of Soyuz TMA-18M transport manned vehicle under the International Space Station program.
Designers inspection of the Soyuz TMA-18M spacecraft was completed.
Payload shroud roll on to the Soyuz TMA-18M spacecraft was performed.
http://www.energia.ru/en/iss/iss45/photo_08-26.html
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August 26, 2015
MEDIA ADVISORY M15-129
NASA Television to Air Launch of Next International Space Station Crew
The next three crew members bound for the International Space Station are set to launch to the orbital outpost Wednesday, Sept. 2.
NASA Television launch coverage will begin at 11:45 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, Sept. 1.
Sergei Volkov of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos), Andreas Mogensen of ESA (European Space Agency) and Aidyn Aimbetov of the Kazakh Space Agency will launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 12:37 a.m. Wednesday (10:34 a.m. Baikonur time). Mogensen and Aimbetov are short duration crew members while Volkov will spend six months on the orbital complex.
The trio will travel in a Soyuz spacecraft, which will rendezvous with the space station and dock two days later to the Poisk module at 3:42 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 4. NASA TV coverage of docking will begin at 3 a.m.
The hatches between the Soyuz and station will be opened at about 6:15 a.m. on Sept. 4, at which time the newly arrived crew members will be greeted by Expedition 44 Commander Gennady Padalka of Roscosmos, as well as Flight Engineers Oleg Kononenko and Mikhail Kornienko of Roscosmos, Scott Kelly and Kjell Lindgren of NASA, and Kimiya Yui of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. NASA TV coverage of the hatch opening will begin at 5:45 a.m.
This will be the first time nine crew members are aboard the station simultaneously since November 2013. Padalka, Mogensen and Aimbetov will return to Earth on Saturday, Sept. 12, leaving Kelly in command of Expedition 45. The change of command ceremony in which Padalka will hand over command of the space station to Kelly will be broadcast on NASA TV on Saturday, Sept. 5 at 2:40 p.m.
Kelly and Kornienko will return in March 2016 after spending a year on the station collecting valuable biomedical data that will improve our understanding of the effects of long duration space travel and aid in NASA’s journey to Mars.
Together, the Expedition 45 crew members will continue the several hundred experiments in biology, biotechnology, physical science and Earth science currently underway and scheduled to take place aboard humanity’s only orbiting laboratory.
For the full schedule of prelaunch, launch and docking coverage, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv
For more information about the International Space Station, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/station
Follow the space station crew members on Instagram and Twitter at:
http://instagram.com/iss
and
http://www.twitter.com/Space_Station
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Expedition 45 - Visiting Crew Activities in Baikonur, Kazakhstan
http://www.space-multimedia.nl.eu.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9571
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Why do they relocate TMA-16M before 18M arrive ?
I have been told, from trusted source ;-) , that Soyuz can dock to any port.
Br,
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They moved TMA-16M to Zvezda, so that after TMA-16M leaves, this will leave the Zvezda port free for Progress vehicles to dock and perform propellant transfers. They could have done a transfer of TMA-18M from Zvezda to Poisk, but that is risky since a failure to redock means a loss of a six month mission, compared to if TMA-16M failed to redock they would have lost only a couple of weeks.
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Two-day Soyuz flight
ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen tweeted earlier that it seems likely that his flight to the International Space Station will take two days instead of the now-common six hours.
Six-hour flights to the International Space Station only started to be common in 2013, with ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano being part of the second crew to reach the Station in record time. Until March 2013 the longer two-day profile was the standard.
When a Soyuz spacecraft is launched into space it catches up with the International Space Station that is orbiting Earth at 28 800 km/h. It has to reach the same speed as well as the same height. Recently the Space Station’s altitude was raised in a standard space-debris avoidance manoeuvre.
Because of the Station’s higher altitude, reaching the weightless research facility in six hours is now more difficult and Roscosmos decided to allow the Soyuz TMA-18M spacecraft more time to rendezvous and dock.
Orbital calculations are incredibly complex and work is continuing to define exact times. The iriss launch time is three minutes later, now set for 04:37 GMT, their return to Earth is unchanged. Docking is now expected at 07:42 GMT on Friday.
Andreas, Sergei Volkov and Aidyn Aimbetov will be in radio contact with ground control during the two days they spend in their Soyuz catching up with the Space Station.
For Andreas Mogensen and the iriss mission planners the shorter time spent on the International Space Station will mean a significant replanning of his time and experiments. Some experiments will undoubtedly have to be left for astronauts to complete at a later date. Mission control will be working through the weekend to fit the pieces in to the new scheduling puzzle.
http://blogs.esa.int/iriss/2015/08/27/two-day-soyuz-flight/
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The launch time has apparently moved by 3 minutes to 04:37:43 UTC - and according to ESA (http://blogs.esa.int/iriss/2015/08/27/two-day-soyuz-flight/) docking with the ISS will be at 07:42 UTC on September 4.
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....
They could have done a transfer of TMA-18M from Zvezda to Poisk, but that is risky since a failure to redock means a loss of a six month mission, compared to if TMA-16M failed to redock they would have lost only a couple of weeks.
True, but this time is special.
This relocation is very important, because failing the redocking would be the return of the one-year-crew after only a six-month stay.
But they have done this before and all of us are confident in the Russian expertise (and Padalka´s skills) doing this!
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anik, can you confirm if this is correct? (https://twitter.com/Astro_Andreas/status/637202299593449473) ;)
Andreas Mogensen @Astro_Andreas
Cool fact! Our launch will be the 500th launch from the same pad that Gagarin used on April 12, 1961! #iriss
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The question is: what are they counting as a launch? I count only launches with liftoff (signal of liftoff contact; сигнал "Контакт подъёма" in Russian). I have verified with many sources, and I count this launch as 498th.
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Expedition 45 - Visiting Crew’s Final Fit Check and Soyuz TMA-18M Preparations
http://www.space-multimedia.nl.eu.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9575
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http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3153
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A check inspection of the SC Soyuz TMA-18M was performed
August 28, 2015
At Baikonur launch site the preparations continue for the launch of Soyuz TMA-18M transport manned vehicle under the International Space Station program.
In the assembly/test building (Sergey Alexandrovich VOLKOV (Roscosmos, Russia), Andreas Enevold MOGENSEN (ESA, Denmark) and Aydyn Akanovich AIMBETOV (KasKosmos, Republic Kazakhstan)) and backup (Oleg Ivanovich SKRIPOCHKA (Roscosmos, Russia), Thomas PESQUET (ESA, France) and Sergey Valerievich PROKOPIEV (Roscosmos, Russia)) crews of the Soyuz TMA-18M transportation manned spacecraft made a check inspection of the spacecraft in the launch configuration.
http://www.energia.ru/en/iss/iss45/photo_08-28.html
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Orbital module of the LV Soyuz-FG with SC Soyuz TMA-18M was transported for the general integration with LV
August 28, 2015
At Baikonur launch site the preparations continue for the launch of Soyuz TMA-18M transport manned vehicle under the International Space Station program.
Orbital module of the Soyuz-FG launch vehicle, containing the Soyuz TMA-18M manned spacecraft was transported from the spacecraft processing facility for the general integration with LV.
http://www.energia.ru/en/iss/iss45/photo_08-28_2.html
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I guess everyone knows what Mogensen will do while at the ISS. What about Aimbetov? Given that his flight has been in the works for years before this seat opened up, I guess Kazakhstan's space agency and other science institutions had experiments planned for him in addition to additional assistance on Russian side experiments? If so, are there any detailed list for that? :P
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I guess everyone knows what Mogensen will do while at the ISS. What about Aimbetov? Given that his flight has been in the works for years before this seat opened up, I guess Kazakhstan's space agency and other science institutions had experiments planned for him in addition to additional assistance on Russian side experiments? If so, are there any detailed list for that? :P
From the media (only in Russian):
«Научная программа сейчас согласуется с РосКосмосом. Основные направления исследований - космический мониторинг: будут наблюдать за состоянием экологии, в частности, за состоянием Аральского моря, за перемещением пыльных бурь, за состоянием Каспийского моря и проблемам нефтезагрязнения. Кроме того, будет проведено исследование в сфере биотехнологии и биомедицины - исследование влияния космического полета на космонавта и др. Нашими учеными прорабатываются различные методики в этих сферах, а их апробация будет осуществляться на борту МКС», - сообщил Еркин Шаймагамбетов.
http://www.inform.kz/rus/article/2801694
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Today experts of Progress rocket and space center accomplished the general assembly of the Soyuz-FG rocket.
In compliance with the technical operation schedule, the upper composite was connected to the third stage of Soyuz-FG carrier rocket. After that, the emergency rescue system propulsion unit was connected to the upper composite, and the resulting aggregate was placed onto the transport and installation aggregate and connected to the composite of the first and the second stage of the carrier rocket.
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The question is: what are they counting as a launch? I count only launches with liftoff (signal of liftoff contact; сигнал "Контакт подъёма" in Russian). I have verified with many sources, and I count this launch as 498th.
Is there a list of the 497 (up to now) launches from LC1?
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The question is: what are they counting as a launch? I count only launches with liftoff (signal of liftoff contact; сигнал "Контакт подъёма" in Russian). I have verified with many sources, and I count this launch as 498th.
Is there a list of the 497 (up to now) launches from LC1?
More precisely this launch declared as 500 launch of Soyuz rocket. So Vostok, Voshod & Molniya launches should not count.
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The rocket is rolled out to the launch pad.
https://twitter.com/fka_roscosmos/status/638262860943069184
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The question is: what are they counting as a launch? I count only launches with liftoff (signal of liftoff contact; сигнал "Контакт подъёма" in Russian). I have verified with many sources, and I count this launch as 498th.
Is there a list of the 497 (up to now) launches from LC1?
More precisely this launch declared as 500 launch of Soyuz rocket. So Vostok, Voshod & Molniya launches should not count.
Yes, they do count, its the same rocket family. As anik said, this is the 498th launch from that pad.
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More photos from rollout here:
http://www.energia.ru/ru/iss/iss45/photo_08-31.html
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Is there a list of the 497 (up to now) launches from LC1?
There were 460 orbital launches from launch pad 1. See them in a file in an attachment. It is in Russian, but search for "Байконур 1/5".
Also there were 37 suborbital launches from launch pad 1.
Dates are in Moscow time.
1. 15.05.1957 R-7
2. 12.07.1957 R-7
3. 21.08.1957 R-7
4. 07.09.1957 R-7
5. 30.01.1958 R-7
6. 29.03.1958 R-7
7. 04.04.1958 R-7
8. 24.05.1958 R-7
9. 10.07.1958 R-7
10. 24.12.1958 R-7
11. 17.02.1959 R-7
12. 25.03.1959 R-7
13. 31.03.1959 R-7
14. 09.05.1959 R-7
15. 31.05.1959 R-7
16. 09.06.1959 R-7
17. 18.07.1959 R-7
18. 30.07.1959 R-7
19. 14.08.1959 R-7
20. 18.09.1959 R-7
21. 22.10.1959 R-7
22. 25.10.1959 R-7
23. 02.11.1959 R-7
24. 21.11.1959 R-7
25. 27.11.1959 R-7
26. 23.12.1959 R-7A
27. 20.01.1960 R-7A
28. 24.01.1960 R-7A
29. 31.01.1960 R-7A
30. 18.03.1960 R-7A
31. 24.03.1960 R-7A
32. 04.06.1960 R-7
33. 05.07.1960 R-7A
34. 07.07.1960 R-7A
35. 14.10.1963 R-7A
36. 27.05.1966 R-7A
37. 25.06.1966 R-7A
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Copyrights: ESA-S. Corvaja, 2015.
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Is there a list of the 497 (up to now) launches from LC1?
There were 460 orbital launches from launch pad 1. See them in a file in an attachment. It is in Russian, but search for "Байконур 1/5".
Thanks anik. That's brilliant
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kALnEZSR-Ug
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEJQReWnT2w
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Expedition 45 - Visiting Crew Soyuz TMA-18M Mating and Rollout to the Launch Pad
http://www.space-multimedia.nl.eu.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9577
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Was this flight prepared for Sarah Brightman or the alteration in the usual pace of rotating the crew is also due to the so called one-year mission? I don't recall any recent (though recent is fairly relative) 10-days stay on the ISS in the post-shuttle era. Why did they've changed the 3 months crew rotation rule?
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Was this flight prepared for Sarah Brightman or the alteration in the usual pace of rotating the crew is also due to the so called one-year mission? I don't recall any recent (though recent is fairly relative) 10-days stay on the ISS in the post-shuttle era. Why did they've changed the 3 months crew rotation rule?
The one year mission means that there is no crew to rotate at this time, although the six month old Soyuz does need to be rotated. Hence, the opportunity for a short duration mission for two crew members. One of these seats was to be sold for a SFP (Brightman). although, in the event she withdrew (or whatever really happened).
Logically, there are unlikely to be any more SFP's or short-term missions, until (or if?) there is another one year mission.
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Moved for live coverage! :)
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Article by Chris Gebhardt!
http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2015/09/soyuz-tma-18m-one-expedition-crewmember-iss/
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Expedition 45 - Pre-Launch Crew News Conference
http://www.space-multimedia.nl.eu.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9579
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https://youtu.be/Ld2NDDGZ1zQ
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http://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=3159
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http://www.federalspace.ru/21693/
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Soyuz should be fueled by now, any news?
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Tsenki feed is up.
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working on and off here..
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Crew arrival video and now back to the pad.
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like this live feed, Gerst pointing to the sky?
player must have "play again" to work :-X
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some camera alignment
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Another view
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This launch strikes me as the first one is quite some time which doesn't have NASA crewmembers onboard - at least for the launch phase.
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Some snaps from ESA TV
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Onboard view
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like this live feed, Gerst pointing to the sky?
player must have "play again" to work :-X
I had the same problem. Get VLC Media Player from
http://www.videolan.org/vlc/index.html
and then select Media -> Open Network Stream... and paste in the following link
http://tsenki-live.ngenix.net/live/tsenkitv.sdp/playlist.m3u8
You can then adjust the aspect ratio as required, as well as saving snapshots which you can upload.
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60 mins, donning gloves. Where is this ESA tv feed? edit: nm, got it
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Here's the crew in the cabin.
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Great picture quality on ESA Livestream
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Pad view. Notice how I changed the aspect ratio to 16:9.
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NASA broadcast begin, they seem to have tweaked the video too.
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can see people walk, nice and clear
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T-60 minutes.
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Long term crew.
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MCC-H.
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ESA and Russian mission control
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MCC-M.
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some faces we know...
46 min to launch
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T-55 minutes.
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wow, camera setup...that's close
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Signing the door.
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Service tower retraction...
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T-40 minutes.
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Suiting up.
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Service tower rectraction is now complete...
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Lowering towers.
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Lost the Tsenki feed for a minute there
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T-35 minutes.
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Sergei Volkov and Andreas Mogensen inside Soyuz TMA-18M.
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Cabin view.
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Aidyn Aimbetov inside Soyuz TMA-18M.
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T-30 minutes.
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the crew ready for launch.
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at the pad..
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Waving goodbye.
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Back to live video from NASA.
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camera guy still working?
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T-25 minutes.
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Beautiful rocket on the launch pad...
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T-22 minutes.
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20 minutes for launch...
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T-20 minutes.
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17 mins
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Soyuz TMA-18M ready for launch!
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T-15 minutes. My apologies for being 10 minutes out in my earlier posts. I've gone back and corrected those times.
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Nice internal views.
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Nice closeup view.
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12 mins, ISS heading towards the launch site overhead.
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10 minutes for launch...
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T-10 minutes.
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T-9 minutes.
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T-8 minutes.
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Suff is there for his final launch, saying farewell after departing the role of ISS manager.
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T-7 minutes.
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Crew inside TMA-18M...
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T-6 minutes. Primary and backup systems checks OK.
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T-5 minutes.
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T-4 minutes. Music being pumped into crew cabin. I was wondering where that was coming from.
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T-3 minutes.
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Launch key inserted.
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2 mins
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T-2 minutes, although the NASA video is saying 3 minutes.
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1 min
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T-2 minutes according the NASA stream.
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T-1 minute. Soyuz transferring to internal power.
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Liftoff!
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LAUNCH!!
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Launch
In honor of native soil ұшыру
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T+1 minute.
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Flying well
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Nominal first stage.
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T+2 minutes. First stage separation.
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Staging.
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Sun shining through the exposed window.
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Tower and booster jettison confirmed
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T+3 minutes. Fairing separation.
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Nominal at T+200 seconds.
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thumbs up
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T+4 minutes.
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Staging
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T+5 minutes. Third stage ignition.
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Smooth flight! All nominal...
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T+6 minutes.
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400 seconds all nominal
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T+7 minutes. No issues to report.
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T+8 minutes.
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"A bit of a kick in the pants" - third stage sep.
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3rd stage sep with a jolt. Arrays deployed.
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T+9 minutes. Third stage separation! You could clearly see the cosmonauts jolt forward.
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everyone happy.....
deployment of solar etc.
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Arrays and antennas deployed (confirmed already!)
That went well!
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Solar arrays deployed.
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the floating pencil :)
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Zero G pen
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Pressure is 805 in cabin and orbital module.
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This is apparently the 300th HSF flight to reach orbit! ;D
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You could clearly see the cosmonauts jolt forward.
Going from ~3G of acceleration to zero-G in zero seconds flat do that :)
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Expedition 45 - Soyuz TMA-18M Pre-launch Activities
http://www.space-multimedia.nl.eu.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9580
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"Congratulations to the entire crew. Good luck."
Congratulations to Roscosmos for the successful launch!
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Got one frame of empty pad from Tsenki, but otherwise lost all video from them this launch.
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Orbit is 200x248 km.
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Congrats to all! Always nice to see a daylight Soyuz launch.
http://youtu.be/zDviRQtF8b8
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Cleared to open helmets.
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Go to open helmets.
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About to go LOS. Nothing to report.
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MCC-M. About to play replays of launch.
"500th launch from Pad No.1"
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Vacant pad.
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Typhoon in background.
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ISS framing a typhoon, nice
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Will be showing replays later.
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Schedule.
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Docking schedule, 9 man party, with liquor onboard ;)
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Great work with the coverage guys! And on to Friday!
Atlas V next today!
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End of NASA coverage. Replays up next.
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September 02, 2015
RELEASE 15-181
Soyuz Heads to Space Station with New Crew, Return Transportation for One-Year Mission Team
Soyuz TMA-18M launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan
Three crew members representing Russia, Denmark and Kazakhstan have launched to the International Space Station to provide a new ride home for the station’s one-year crew and continue important research that advances NASA's journey to Mars.
Sergey Volkov of Roscosmos, Andreas Mogensen of ESA (European Space Agency) and Aidyn Aimbetov of the Kazakh Space Agency launched aboard Soyuz TMA-18M from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 12:37 a.m. EDT on Wednesday (10:37 a.m. in Baikonur). They are set to dock to the station at 3:42 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 4. NASA TV coverage of docking will begin at 3 a.m.
At 2:40 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, NASA TV will provide a live broadcast as Expedition 44 Commander Gennady Padalka of Roscomos hands over command of the space station to Expedition 44 Flight Engineer Scott Kelly of NASA. Expedition 45 begins on Sept. 11 when Padalka, Mogensen and Aimbetov undock from the orbital outpost in the Soyuz spacecraft designated TMA-16M and return to Earth. The Soyuz TMA-16M carried Padalka, Kelly, and Roscosmos’ Mikhail Kornienko to space in March. Because each Soyuz remains in orbit for about six months, the spacecraft swap is necessary at the midway point of the one-year mission.
With the arrival of Volkov, Mogensen and Aimbetov, nine people will be aboard the orbiting laboratory for the first time since 2013. The three join Expedition 44 Flight Engineers Kelly and Kjell Lindgren of NASA, Commander Padalka and Flight Engineers Oleg Kononenko and Kornienko of Roscosmos, and Kimiya Yui of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).
On Tuesday, Sept. 15, Kelly and Kornienko will reach the halfway point of their one-year mission to advance understanding of the medical and psychological challenges astronauts face during long duration spaceflight, in addition to developing countermeasures that will help minimize adverse effects. The pair will spend 342 consecutive days living in space before returning to Earth with Volkov in March 2016 aboard the Soyuz TMA-18M.
In the coming months, Expedition 45 crew members will conduct more than 250 science investigations in fields such as biology, Earth science, human research, physical sciences, and technology development.
The recently installed CALorimetric Electron Telescope (CALET) searches for dark matter, measures cosmic rays and observes sources of high-energy phenomena in the galaxy. CALET seeks answers for several unknowns, including the origin of cosmic rays, how cosmic rays accelerate and move across the galaxy, and the existence of dark matter and its relation to nearby cosmic ray sources. Once scientists take an inventory of the highest-energy radiation in space, they may be able to characterize the radiation environment experienced by humans and encountered by space electronics. This may help determine risk of exposure to this type of radiation.
Ongoing station research also includes the Flame Extinguishment Experiment-2 JAXA (FLEX-2J), a study of combustion in microgravity. Fires burn differently in space, where fuels form spherical droplets and flames burn in a globular shape rather than teardrop. The crew studies the interactions of flames on the motion and ignition, or non-ignition, of millimeter-sized droplets. Results could provide key insights and improve computer modeling of fuel combustion to aid in reducing emissions and improving fuel efficiency in space and on Earth.
During the second half of the marathon one-year mission, the team will continue a wide variety of human research studies, such as the Assessing Telomere Lengths and Telomerase Activity in Astronauts (Telomeres). Telomeres are "caps" on the ends of chromosomes that protect them from fraying, much like the aglet on the end of a shoelace. Telomeres shorten over time, and the rate at which this occurs can be increased by stress, leading to accelerated aging, cardiovascular disease, cancer and an impaired immune system. The Telomeres investigation uses crew member blood samples to examine how telomeres and telomerase, an enzyme that maintains the length of telomeres, are affected by space travel and to better evaluate the impact of future spaceflight.
The International Space Station is a convergence of science, technology and human innovation that enables us to demonstrate new technologies and make research breakthroughs not possible on Earth. It has been continuously occupied since November 2000 and, since then, has been visited by more than 200 people and a variety of international and commercial spacecraft. The space station remains the springboard to NASA's next giant leap in exploration, including future missions to an asteroid and Mars.
For NASA TV streaming video, downlink and scheduling information, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv
For more information about the International Space Station, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/station
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Expedition 45 - Soyuz TMA-18M Launch
http://www.space-multimedia.nl.eu.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9581
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Some replay angles
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Congratulations on a successful launch!
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And photos of the launch from ESA:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/europeanspaceagency/sets/72157658055123162/
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Photos from Yuzhny Space Center:
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Very proud to see my fellow countryman become the first Dane in space! - Great launch and now he will get the *full* Soyuz experience, all 51 hours of it... :-)
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjg3cc87BP8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvAvBZEcQcQ
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ahhh The preferred camera view made from the video release
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Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft makes manoeuvre to avoid collision with space junk
http://tass.ru/en/non-political/818417
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I don't recall any previous DAM during the rendezvous phase.... Anybody?
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It was not DAM at all.
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It was not DAM at all.
Any chance you can clarify?
I agree with Jim that if this was a DAM, it was the first we've heard of during a Soyuz independent flight.
I believe burn NC-5A on the STS-88 rendezvous with Zarya had a collison avoidance component.
- jonathan
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Any chance you can clarify?
It was a usual planned maneuver, which Soyuz performs on 17th orbit in two-day rendezvous profile. It was not related to Japanese debris. It was not DAM. But they saw that after this maneuver at 08:38 UTC there will be close rendezvous with the debris. So they have recalculated many times a probability of collission. And they have seen that debris will be at 4 km distance at the closest rendezvous. No danger at all in terms of ISS program rules.
I believe burn NC-5A on the STS-88 rendezvous with Zarya had a collison avoidance component
You are right, Jonathan, as always.
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Any chance you can clarify?
It was a usual planned maneuver, which Soyuz performs on 17th orbit in two-day rendezvous profile. It was not related to Japanese debris. It was not DAM. But they saw that after this maneuver at 08:38 UTC there will be close rendezvous with the debris. So they have recalculated many times a probability of collission. And they have seen that debris will be at 4 km distance at the closest rendezvous. No danger at all in terms of ISS program rules.
I believe burn NC-5A on the STS-88 rendezvous with Zarya had a collison avoidance component
You are right, Jonathan, as always.
Thanks for the clarification
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Thread realigned for docking.
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Noisy, static filled audio is now on the ISS feed which is presumably audio from the Soyuz either from VHF via ground stations or the link via ISS. No translation is being provided.
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NASA TV coverage in 5 minutes
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Morning boys and girls.
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Composite picture of the full 9 man crew, no way they could have gotten a roster shot in advance this time!
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ESA will be covering too it seems
http://livestream.com/accounts/362/events/4282866
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800 meters.
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Coming into view, 600 meters
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That's even more impressive than usual....
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500 and closing
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400 meters, into flyaround
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Flyaround.
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under 300 in flyaround
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Full 'garage' of vehicles
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Still in flyaround.
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Great view at 200
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nice
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tallyho
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You can just make out KURS antenna spinning :)
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Final approach.
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final approach (missed that thruster firing)
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Not yet, still in station keeping.
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Lining up, 150
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Now in final approach.
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85
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closing
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70 meters.
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40 meters.
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25 and slow in
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20 meters. They've lost external camera views.
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Standing by for contact and capture.
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10
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Capture confirmed
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Docking confirmed! 39 mins past the hour (three minutes early).
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Waiting for hooks to drive in for hard dock, some displays from ESA channel
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Docking hooks closed
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End of coverage until hatch opening, resuming at 5:45 ET
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Expedition 45 - Soyuz TMA-18M Docking
http://www.space-multimedia.nl.eu.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9585
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Back on the air, I'm a bit late.
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Sounds like the station side hatch is already open. New config pic.
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We have video (well we did)
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For a second
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Something delaying the Soyuz side
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Departing program manager Mike Suffredini sending well wishes to Scott Kelly and the crew
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Scott Kelly and Aidyn Aimbetov will meet for the first time today.
https://twitter.com/StationCDRKelly/status/639739719476248576
Welcome to my friends on #Soyuz @Astro_Andreas and @Volkov_ISS and #Kazakh cosmonaut A. Aimbetov whom I've never met. #YearInSpace
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Standing by
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Video back
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All aboard
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Party time
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Gangs all here
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Gennady owns his space hair
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Well wishes from friends and family from Russia
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First Dane in space Andreas Mogensen
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'We're cooperating much better in space than on earth'
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End of event, if I were them I'd break out that Japanese whiskey.
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Press Releae
N°33-2015
Paris, 4 September 2015
ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen begins busy International Space Station tour
ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen arrived at the Internation Space Station today after a two-day flight with Soyuz spacecraft commander Sergei Volkov and Kazakh cosmonaut Aidyn Aimbetov.
Their flight to the International Space Station in the Soyuz TMA-18M spacecraft began at 04:37 GMT (06:37 CEST, 10:37 local time) on 2 September as they were launched into orbit from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
After circling the globe for the following two days, the spacecraft docked at 07:39 GMT (09:39 CEST) this morning, 4 September.
The automated rendezvous sequence began about two hours before docking, with the crew ready to take over manually if required. The trio opened the spacecraft hatch at 10:16 GMT (12:16 CEST) to join six astronauts already in space, bringing the total
number of people on the Station to nine, for the first time since 2013.
Andreas's ESA 'iriss' mission lasts ten days and he is devoting his time in space to test new technologies and improving space operations. His activities include testing a new water-cleaning membrane that mimics nature, hands-free goggles to help with
complex tasks, a tight-fitting suit to alleviate back pain common in astronauts and driving three different rovers on Earth to prepare for missions farther away in our Solar System.
The iriss mission was conceived, planned and carried out by ESA, with mission control working 24/7 at the Columbus Control Centre, located at the German Aerospace Center DLR, in Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany. All of Andreas's experiments use the European
space laboratory Columbus or the European bay-window observatory Cupola.
The Soyuz commander Sergei Volkov will stay on the International Space Station for five months while Andreas and Aidyn return with cosmonaut Gennady Padalka on the Soyuz TMA-16M vehicle. The change of spacecraft is part of the marathon mission for
NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and cosmonaut Mikhail Korniyenko, who are staying on the Station for 11 months. Soyuz spacecraft are designed to stay in space for around six months, so the long-stay crew's vehicle must be replaced by courtesy of Sergei,
Andreas and Aidyn.
Andreas has an essential role in this spacecraft swap, assisting both Soyuz commanders on each flight in his role as flight engineer, or second in command.
ESA will provide continuous updates of Andreas's activities direct from mission control via the iriss blog and Twitter.
Their return flight is planned for 12 September. They will land in the steppe of Kazakhstan with Andreas returning to the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, Germany, for debriefing.
Links:
http://blogs.esa.int/iriss
https://twitter.com/Astro_andreas
https://twitter.com/esaoperations
https://www.esa.int/iriss
www.facebook.com/ESAAndreasMogensen
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Expedition 45 - Soyuz TMA-18M Hatch Opening and Other Activities
http://www.space-multimedia.nl.eu.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9587
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My congratulations to the crew. Welcome to the ISS!
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Expedition 45 - Crew Joint Crew News Conference
http://www.space-multimedia.nl.eu.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9595
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As an amusing postscript, you may want to visit http://www.npr.org/2015/09/04/437597059/take-the-long-way-home-spacefarers-journey-prolonged-by-space-junk?uidt=1441541780&uidt=1442032030&uidt=1442151063#commentBlock
where National Public Radio and its listeners are vigorously promoting the theory that the two-day profile was selected because of the threat of manmade space pollution. Ideological agendas seem to overwhelm fact-based analysis all over, we all need to look for it first in ourselves.
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But Jim - the e-mail response you got from NASA (that you posted in the NPR comments page) makes the situation pretty clear - the proximate reason was a station DAM (debris avoidance maneuver) a several weeks before the launch. They expected the station's trajectory to decay enough to make a 6-hour rendezvous possible, but it didn't, so they used a 2-day trajectory.
I mean, sure, it wasn't a collision risk with the Soyuz per se, but it was a debris threat that caused the change. Not sure that NPR's misinterpretation is a hanging offense. And if it's the comments on the piece that are raising your blood pressure, well, good luck with that.
B.
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The NPR report, with a little effort, could have made the series of events clear. It didn't.
Thanks, Jim, for following up on this.
Thanks also for trying to educate the NPR report commenters. I don't think those two really wanted to learn.
My 2 bits,
Zubenelgenubi
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Things are gearing up for the return.
ISS Daily Summary Report – 02/19/16
Posted on February 19, 2016 at 4:47 pm by cosbourn.
--snip--
Crew Departure Preparation: Kelly packed his personal items for return to the ground. The items will be split between Soyuz 44, SpaceX-8, and SpaceX-9 vehicles.
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3 p.m., Monday, February 29 - ISS Expedition 46/47 Change of Command Ceremony (Kelly hands over ISS command to Kopra) (starts at 3:10 p.m.) (all channels)
4 p.m., Tuesday, March 1 - ISS Expedition 46 Farewells and Hatch Closure Coverage (Kelly, Kornienko, Volkov; hatch closure scheduled at appx. 4:40 p.m. ET) (Starts at 4:15p.m.) (all channels)
7:30 p.m., Tuesday, March 1 - ISS Expedition 46/Soyuz TMA-18M Undocking Coverage (Kelly, Kornienko, Volkov; undocking scheduled at 8:05 p.m. ET) (Starts at 7:45p.m.) (all channels)
10 p.m., Tuesday, March 1 - ISS Expedition 46/Soyuz TMA-18M Deorbit Burn and Landing Coverage (Kelly, Kornienko, Volkov; deorbit burn scheduled at 10:34 p.m. ET; landing near Dzhezkazgan, Kazakhstan scheduled at 11:27 p.m. ET) (Starts at 10:15p.m.) (all channels)
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/schedule.html
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With this mission complete, Scott Kelly's time in space would be approximately 520 days, 10 hours, and 35 minutes: the most for any American astronaut until Jeff Williams' fourth spaceflight.
Mikhail Korniyenko's time in space would total to 516 days, 10 hours, and 3 minutes while Sergei Volkov's time in space would be 547 days, 22 hours, and 22 minutes.
In conclusion, upon landing next Tuesday/Wednesday, Volkov would be the most experienced out of the descent crew of Soyuz TMA-18M.