The crew of a new expedition went to “the Union” on board the ISS – TASS

MOSCOW, July 9. / TASS /. The crew manned spacecraft of the new series “MS Union”, earlier on Saturday docked to the International Space Station (ISS), opened the passageways and went to the station, told Tass in Moscow Mission Control Center (MCC).

“Transitional hatches between the spacecraft and the station are open”, – said in the MCC

Earlier MCC reported that the ship was docked with the station went normally, “the estimated time,” adding that the estimated docking time was 07:. 12 MSK, and in fact it took place at 07:06 MSK.

On the “Union” arrived Russian Anatoly Ivanishin, American Kathleen Rubens and Japanese Takuya Onishi. For Rubens and Onishi’s first space flight, Ivanishin launched into space for the second time – the first time he had been in orbit in 2011-2012 and spent 165 days. Aboard the station, they were met by Russian cosmonauts Alexei Ovchinin and Oleg Skripochka and US astronaut Jeffrey Williams.

Immediately after the meeting the two crews who for the first time on the ISS, will introduce a station, hold on a route for emergency evacuation in case of PE, then held a teleconference with a combined crew of the Moscow region and the Houston TsUPami. It is planned that the new members of the crew carry out ISS in orbit more than 150 days. During the semi-annual expedition they, in particular, to adopt a series of Russian spacecraft “Soyuz” and “Progress”. Scientific program provides performance of 40 experiments.

“MS Union” with a new expedition to the ISS was launched on 7 July, the Baikonur cosmodrome.

Modifying the “MS Union” is the result of deep modernization of a series of ships “TMA-M Union”. It differs from previous versions of the new command and telemetry system that can work through relay satellites “Luch”, a new rendezvous and docking systems “Kurs-NA” and other equipment. In addition, on ships of new series of improved power supply system, and the solar panels produce more energy.

Manned spacecraft “Soyuz MS.” Profile

The Russian carrier rocket “Soyuz-FG”. Profile

The expedition ISS-48/49. Profile