Posted on 12/15/2010 11:12:00 AM PST by BenLurkin
A Russian Soyuz spacecraft is poised to blast off from Central Asia today, carrying three new crewmembers to the International Space Station.
NASA astronaut Catherine Coleman, Russian cosmonaut Dmitry Kondratyev and European astronaut Paolo Nespoli are set to launch today (Dec. 15) at 2:09 p.m. EST (1909 GMT) from Kazakhstan's Baikonur Cosmodrome. The trio will fly to the station aboard a Russian Soyuz TMA-20 spacecraft.
Coleman, Kondratyev and Nespoli will round out the space station's existing Expedition 26 crew — station commander Scott Kelly of NASA and flight engineers Alexander Kaleri and Oleg Skripochka of Russia. The three new crewmembers will dock at the orbiting outpost on Friday (Dec. 17) at 3:12 p.m. EST (2012 GMT). [Graphic: Inside and Out: The International Space Station]
During their long-duration mission, Coleman, Kondratyev and Nespoli will participate in a range of scientific research and experiments, including fluid physics, radiation, biology, technology demonstrations and education outreach. Cosmonauts Kondratyev and Skripochka are also scheduled to perform at least one spacewalk to perform maintenance activities on the station's exterior.
The crewmembers will also be on hand for two space shuttle visits — the STS-133 flight of Discovery in February 2011, and the subsequent STS-134 flight of Endeavour, which is now targeted to fly in April. Discovery's liftoff was originally planned for November, but technical issues with the shuttle's external fuel tank have grounded the orbiter until at least early February.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
NASA/Carla Cioffi This image provided by NASA shows the Soyuz TMA-20 spacecraft as it arrives at the launch pad Monday, Dec. 13, 2010 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. NASA astronaut Catherine Coleman, Russian cosmonaut Dmitry Kondratyev and Paolo Nespoli of the European Space Agency are set to launch in the Soyuz to the International Space Station on Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2010, at 2:09 p.m. EST.
Hey, can we request some guest riders?!
ping
We need our own space capsules!
Another stunning accomplishment of USA’s suicidal policies of moving from a production economy to a service economy.
We have now officially outsourced our space program to the the Russians.
You say this like it's a bad thing. Are you worried that the Russians will be the first to land a person on Mars?
I was a boy when I turned on the radio next to my bed in Philly and found the Russians had beaten us into space. JFK “saved” me. I had the same feeling today seeing the Russians beat us again. I am really “pissed off.” I guess most would say: so what. We were immigrants. We were told over and over again we were Americans. We could not speak the “native tongue.” Only English. Dad became a dentist, mom a school teacher, me a doctor and my sister a Phi Beta Kappa from the U of P. We are the greatest nation ever and giving it up for a bunch of politicians giving money away for nonsense needs to stop. I rambled but this is how I feel.
Let the Russians squander their resources. That’s what brought down the soviet union. Squandering resources on things that didn’t give any payback. Manned space exploration is one of those many horribly expensive things governments do that don’t have any economic justification. Better the Russians and the Chinese taxpayers get stuck for it than us.
I respect but disagree with your position.
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