Archivo del Autor: yoda

At the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, NASA astronaut Serena Auñón-Chancellor, Alexander Gerst of ESA (European Space Agency), and Sergey Prokopyev of Roscosmos are preparing for their launch to the International Space Station. Their journey to the station will begin with a lift off at 7:12 a.m. EDT Wednesday (4:12 p.m. in Baikonur). Live launch coverage will begin at 6:15 a.m. EDT on NASA Television and the agency’s website.

The three will join Expedition 56 commander Drew Feustel and flight engineers Ricky Arnold of NASA and Oleg Artemyev of Roscosmos. The Expedition 56 crew members will contribute to more than 250 experiments in fields such as biology, Earth science, human research, physical sciences and technology development.

Below is the crew’s launch timeline in EDT:

EDT          L-Hr/M/Sec   Event

10:12:41pm        9:00        Crew wakeup at Cosmonaut Hotel (June 5)
1:12:41am        6:00        Crew departs Cosmonaut Hotel
1:27:41am        5:45        Batteries installed in booster
1:57:41am        5:15        Crew arrives at Site 254
2:12:41am        5:00        Tanking begins
2:42:41am        4:30        Crew suit up
3:07:41am        4:05        Booster loaded with liquid Oxygen
3:42:41am        3:30        Crew meets family members on other side of the glass
4:07:41am        3:05        First and second stage oxygen fueling complete
4:12:41am        3:00        Crew walkout from 254 and boards bus for the launch pad
4:17:41am        2:55        Crew departs for launch pad (Site 1)
4:37:41am        2:35        Crew arrives at launch pad (Site 1)
4:47:41am        2:25        Crew boards Soyuz; strapped in to the Descent module
5:37:41am        1:35        Descent module hardware tested
5:52:41am        1:20        Hatch closed; leak checks begin
6:12:41am        1:00        Launch vehicle control system prep; gyro activation
6:15:00am     :57:41        NASA TV LAUNCH COVERAGE BEGINS
6:27:41am        :45:00        Pad service structure components lowered
6:28:41am        :44:00        Clamshell gantry service towers retracted
6:30:00am        :42:41        NASA TV: Crew pre-launch activities played (B-roll)
6:35:41am        :37:00        Suit leak checks begin; descent module testing complete
6:38:41am        :34:00       Emergency escape system armed
6:57:41am        :15:00       Suit leak checks complete; escape system to auto
7:02:41am        :10:00        Gyros in flight readiness and recorders activated
7:05:41am        :07:00        Pre-launch operations complete
7:06:41am        :06:00        Launch countdown operations to auto; vehicle ready
7:07:41am        :05:00        Commander’s controls activated
7:08:41am        :04:00        Combustion chamber nitrogen purge
7:09:41am        :03:00        Propellant drainback
7:09:56am        :02:45        Booster propellant tank pressurization
7:11:11am        :01:30        Ground propellant feed terminated
7:11:41am        :01:00        Vehicle to internal power
7:12:06am        :00:35        First umbilical tower separates
Auto sequence start
7:12:11am        :00:30        Ground umbilical to third stage disconnected
7:12:26am        :00:15        Second umbilical tower separates
7:12:29am        :00:12        Launch command issued
Engine Start Sequence Begins
7:12:31am        :00:10        Engine turbo pumps at flight speed
7:12:36am        :00:05        Engines at maximum thrust
7:12:41am        :00:00        LAUNCH OF SOYUZ MS-09 TO THE ISS
7:21:26am        +8:45        THIRD STAGE SHUTDOWN; SOYUZ ORBITAL INSERTION

For launch coverage and more information about the mission, visit: https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/. Get breaking news, images and features from the station on Instagram at: @iss and on Twitter @Space_Station and @ISS_Research.

The Soyuz rocket that will launch three new Expedition 56-57 crew members to the International Space Station stands at its launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Soyuz Commander Sergey Prokopyev and Flight Engineers Serena Auñón-Chancellor and Alexander Gerst are in quarantine today preparing to blast off Wednesday at 7:12 a.m. EDT on a two-day trip to the station. Live NASA TV coverage begins at 6:15 a.m.

The trio representing Roscosmos, NASA and the European Space Agency will orbit Earth for two days before arriving at the station’s Rassvet module Friday at 9:07 a.m. The crew will enter its new home after the hatches open around 11:30 a.m. to begin a six-month mission aboard the orbital laboratory. NASA TV will begin its live docking coverage Friday starting at 8:15 a.m.

Three veteran station residents will greet the newcomers Wednesday when Expedition 56 grows to its full complement of six team members. Station Commander Drew Feustel and Flight Engineers Ricky Arnold and Oleg Artemyev have been living in space since March 21 and will help familiarize their new crewmates with station systems and safety procedures.

Meanwhile, the three orbiting Expedition 56 crewmates managed to work on scientific gear and prepare for next week’s spacewalk. Feustel cleaned samples cartridges inside the Electro-Static Levitation Furnace as Arnold readied the Plant Habitat-01 for upcoming botany research. The duo also assembled and tested spacewalking gear ahead of a June 14 spacewalk to install wireless communications gear on the Harmony module.