A new crew of three launched and arrived at the International Space Station after lifting off from Russia’s Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan early this morning. The crew will replace the existing Soyuz crew on the ISS; both crews consist of two Russian cosmonauts and one NASA astronaut.
Soyuz MS-28 lifted off from its launch site in Kazakhstan at 4:27 AM ET Thursday morning and later docked with the ISS at 7:34 AM ET. The short trip, a staple of most Soyuz launches, is always an impressive feat to witness but is partially necessary due to the Soyuz’s small interior.
The Soyuz spacecraft was designed in the 1960s and, along with its rocket of the same name, has remained mostly unchanged. Outside of new digital flight computers and a few safety upgrades, the Soyuz is a Soviet relic that is the most flown and most reliable spacecraft in the business.
The crew of MS-28, Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, Sergey Mikaev (yup, two Sergey’s), and NASA astronaut Chris Williams will spend an 8-month stay on the station. This is an increase from the regular 6-month rotations that have been the norm for all of the ISS’s life.
The extended mission will save Roscosmos, Russia’s space agency, money each year in its budget. NASA is potentially planning to make a similar change as the ISS partnering nations prepare for the ISS’s end of life in the early 2030s.
MS-28 will relieve the crew of Soyuz MS-27, which included NASA astronaut and former Navy SEAL Jonny Kim.
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