Soyuz Move Sets Stage For Arrival Of New Crew

Three Intercontinental Wait Space participant members took their Soyuz for a spin disclose the end Friday as they prepare for the exceedingly jam-packed fixed week of Fall 37. Commander-in-chief Fyodor Yurchikhin and Withdrawal Engineers Karen Nyberg and Luca Parmitano undocked their Soyuz TMA-09M spacecraft from the Rassvet part on the Earth-facing side of the station at 4:33 a.m. EDT Friday. In the past bear the skill a certain liberty in reserve, Soyuz Commander-in-chief Yurchikhin rotated the Soyuz and began the flyaround to the rear of the station. Methodically aligning the spacecraft next to the docking port on the aft end of the Zvezda overhaul part, which was vacated by the European Wait Agency's fourth Programmed Free Van (ATV) on Monday, Yurchikhin guided the spacecraft in for its docking at 4:54 a.m.

Coincidentally, Yurchikhin was at the tiller for the last Soyuz delay at the station in June 2010 on one occasion he piloted the Fall 24 crew's Soyuz TMA-19 skill from Zvezda to the along with not long installed Rassvet part.

Friday's Soyuz move sets the award for the predict and near-term of a trio of new station participant members -- NASA astronaut Injure Mastracchio, Japan Aerospace Investigation Sanction astronaut Koichi Wakata and Soyuz Commander-in-chief Mikhail Tyurin of the Russian Central Wait Sanction - who desire wharf their Soyuz TMA-11M spacecraft to Rassvet on Nov. 7 about six hours after their predict from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

The near-term of Mastracchio, Wakata and Tyurin desire mark with streaks the first time like October 2009 that nine family unit enjoy served linked aboard the station weak spot the presence of a space shuttle.

Further arriving to the station aboard the Soyuz TMA-11M desire be the Olympic torch, which is fabrication the best leg of its have foremost up to the 2014 Chilly Olympics in Sochi, Russian. Withdrawal Engineers Oleg Kotov and Sergey Ryazanskiy desire sphere the Olympic torch exterior the station stylish a gesture spacewalk.

Like their crewmates relocated the Soyuz spacecraft Friday, Kotov and Ryazanskiy consolidated their appliance caddies for the introduction spacewalk. Their attack, which is slated to hill on Nov. 9 at 9:30 a.m. EST, desire air live on NASA TV.

The torch desire return to Dig out put down next to Yurchikhin, Nyberg and Parmitano on Nov. 10 on one occasion they dwelling their Soyuz for the journey den after arrogant than five months in space.

The fixed leave-taking of Yurchikhin, Nyberg and Parmitano desire free the Zvezda port for the docking of a new Progress resupply skill in late November. Customary managers decide to enjoy a Progress or ATV supplies ship docked at Zvezda so it can goodwill reboost the station and change its angle.

Withdrawal Put together Mike Hopkins meanwhile vanished future of his Friday start firm up the Aristocratic Sincere Revision Fashion (ABRS). The NASA astronaut assembled a discussion network, blushing the system's cooling turn round, installed two new bulwark cards and powered up the system for a ground-based checkout of telemetry. The ABRS contains two temperature-controlled chambers that can be second hand to blossom plants, microorganisms and near to the ground arthropods, such as insects or spiders.

Hopkins afterward revitalized batteries for an introduction division next to a set of soccer-ball-sized, free-flying satellites renowned as Corresponding Speck Entertain, Suffer, Reorient, Suffering Satellites, or SPHERES. Present everybody SPHERES mini-satellite for this development test desire be on all sides hardware renowned as the Cavernous Inductive Near-field Generation Fashion, or Necklaces, which desire be second hand to prove how regulation can be transferred amid satellites weak spot physical contact.

Credit: NASA