With Japan's cargo freighter safely arriving at the International Space Station early Thursday, Russia has launched its next resupply ship loaded with more provisions and even a tiny amateur radio satellite that spacewalkers will deploy from the orbiting outpost.

Credit: Tsenki TV

Liftoff of the Soyuz booster carrying the Progress vessel from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan occurred Thursday night at 8:31 p.m. EST (0131 GMT), beginning Russia's 41st such cargo delivery mission to the space station.

The preliminary orbit was achieved after a nine-minute ascent provided by the three-stage rocket, and onboard commands were issued to unfurl the craft's communications and navigation antennas and extend two power-generating solar arrays that span 35 feet.

A series of precise engine firings over the next two days will guide the Progress toward an automated rendezvous with the station. The docking is slated for Saturday night at 9:39 p.m. EST (0239 GMT).

The 24-foot long ship will attach itself to the open port on the Pirs compartment, which was vacated Sunday when a previous Progress was jettisoned to burn up in the atmosphere.

Thursday's launch was known in the station's assembly matrix as Progress mission 41P. The spacecraft's formal Russian designation is Progress M-09M.

The craft will bring two-and-a-half tons of supplies to the station. The "dry" cargo tucked aboard the Progress amounts to 3,080 pounds in the form of food, spare parts, life support gear and experiment hardware.

The refueling module carries 1,918 pounds of propellant for transfer into the Russian segment of the complex to feed the station's maneuvering thrusters. The vessel also has 926 pounds of water and 110 pounds of oxygen.

Among the cargo is ARISSat-1, a 66-pound spacecraft produced in a joint venture between the Radio Amateur Satellite Corp., NASA and RSC Energia. The craft will support amateur radio operators, transmit still pictures of Earth from onboard video cameras and play recorded greetings in 15 languages.

ARISSat-1. Credit: Energia

The space station is staffed by the Expedition 26 crew of commander Scott Kelly, fellow NASA astronaut Cady Coleman, Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli and Russian cosmonauts Alexander Kaleri, Oleg Skripochka and Dmitry Kondratyev.

The cosmonauts will be standing by Saturday to take over manual control of the approaching Progress spacecraft if the autopilot experiences a problem. They will spend time this week checking out the backup system.

After the Progress arrives, the station crew will turn its focus toward a very busy February that includes a Russian-based spacewalk, the second-ever European Automated Transfer Vehicle arriving and the long-awaited mission by space shuttle Discovery.

The ATV 2 will be launched atop an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana on February 15 for docking on February 23. The Russian EVA by Kondratyev and Skripochka, which will toss ARISSat-1 into orbit, is slated for February 16.

Discovery is scheduled to launch from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on February 24 at 4:50 p.m. EST. The shuttle will dock with the station two days later to install the Permanent Multipurpose Module and an external equipment carrier.

You can follow along with Discovery's launch countdown and flight in our Mission Status Center.

The following Progress freighter timeline shows the key events scheduled from launch until docking:

Day 1 events - Thursday

Event	Mission Time	Eastern Time
LAUNCH	0/00:00:00	8:31:39 p.m.
Orbit Insertion	0/00:08:45	8:40:24 p.m.

Day 2 events - Friday

Event	Mission Time	Eastern Time
Maneuver DV1 (13.95 m/s)	0/03:38:45	12:10:24 a.m.
Maneuver DV2 (28.21 m/s)	0/04:13:01	12:44:40 a.m.
Maneuver DV3 (2.00 m/s)	1/00:41:18	9:12:57 p.m.

Day 3 events - Saturday

Event	Mission Time	Eastern Time
Start Automated Rendezvous	1/22:44:58	7:16:37 p.m.
DV4 / Impulse 1 (17.549 m/s)	1/23:06:55	7:38:34 p.m.
Impulse 2 (1.242 m/s)	1/23:27:15	7:58:54 p.m.
Progress Kurs-A activation	1/23:31:21	8:03:00 p.m.
Zvezda Kurs-P activation	1/23:33:21	8:05:00 p.m.
DV5 / Impulse 3 (11.232 m/s)	1/23:53:34	8:25:13 p.m.
Good Kurs-P data (Range 80 km)	1/23:55:38	8:27:17 p.m.
Orbital sunrise	2/00:05:10	8:36:49 p.m.
Kurs-A and Kurs-P short test (Range 15 km)	2/00:16:38	8:48:17 p.m.
Start Zvezda transmitter for TORU link (Range 9 km)	2/00:22:38	8:54:17 p.m.
Progress TV activation (Range 8 km)	2/00:23:58	8:55:37 p.m.
Start Progress receiver for TORU link (Range 3 km)	2/00:31:58	9:03:37 p.m.
Impulse 4 (6.732 m/s)	2/00:32:19	9:03:58 p.m.
TORU command link test (Range 2 km)	2/00:34:38	9:06:17 p.m.
Impulse 5 (5.461 m/s)	2/00:36:59	9:08:38 p.m.
Impulse 6 (2.188 m/s)	2/00:39:39	9:11:18 p.m.
Start flyaround	2/00:42:48	9:14:27 p.m.
Start stationkeeping	2/00:49:51	9:21:30 p.m.
Start final approach	2/00:56:21	9:28:00 p.m.
Orbital sunset	2/01:01:41	9:33:20 p.m.
DOCKING	2/01:07:21	9:39:00 p.m.

Data source: NASA

Additional coverage for subscribers:
VIDEO: HTV 2 ATTACHED TO SPACE STATION DOCKING PORT PLAY
VIDEO: STATION'S ROBOTIC ARM GRABS THE FREE-FLYING HTV 2 PLAY
VIDEO: HTV 2 CARGO SHIP APPROACHES THE SPACE STATION PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH OF H-2B ROCKET WITH HTV 2 FREIGHTER PLAY
VIDEO: H-2B ROCKET ROLLED TO LAUNCH PAD PLAY

VIDEO: FULL EXPERIENCE FROM LIFTOFF TO ORBIT PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH REPLAYS FROM 3 DIFFERENT ANGLES PLAY
VIDEO: CREW DEPARTS SITE 254 FOR LAUNCH PAD PLAY
VIDEO: VIPS MEET THE CREW ON LAUNCH MORNING PLAY
VIDEO: CREW MEMBERS DON THEIR SOKOL SPACESUITS PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH MORNING TRADITIONS AT CREW QUARTERS PLAY

VIDEO: PRE-LAUNCH INTERVIEW WITH CADY COLEMAN PLAY
VIDEO: PRE-LAUNCH INTERVIEW WITH PAOLO NESPOLI PLAY
VIDEO: PRE-LAUNCH INTERVIEW WITH DMITRY KONDRATYEV PLAY

VIDEO: SOYUZ ROCKET ROLLED TO THE LAUNCH PAD PLAY
VIDEO: POST-ROLLOUT COMMENTS FROM NASA VIPS PLAY
VIDEO: WEEKEND BEFORE LAUNCH OF EXPEDITION 26 PLAY
VIDEO: HIGHLIGHTS OF CREW'S ACTIVITIES AT BAIKONUR PLAY
VIDEO: CREW'S DEPARTURE FROM STAR CITY TRAINING BASE PLAY
VIDEO: PRIME AND BACKUP CREWS MEET WITH REPORTERS PLAY

VIDEO: EXP. 25 CREW WELCOMED BACK TO EARTH PLAY
VIDEO: LANDING SITE VIDEO OF CREW EXITING CAPSULE PLAY
VIDEO: SOYUZ TMA-19 DEPARTS THE SPACE STATION PLAY
VIDEO: CREW BOARDS SOYUZ CAPSULE FOR DEPARTURE PLAY
VIDEO: SPACE STATION CHANGE OF COMMAND CEREMONY PLAY
VIDEO: THANKSGIVING MEAL FOR THE CREW ON STATION PLAY

VIDEO: WATCH PROGRESS 40P FREIGHTER DOCKING PLAY

VIDEO: WELCOME CEREMONY FOR NEW EXPEDITION 25 PLAY
VIDEO: POST-DOCKING NEWS BRIEFING IN RUSSIA PLAY
VIDEO: SOYUZ TMA-01M DOCKS TO THE SPACE STATION PLAY

VIDEO: FULL EXPERIENCE FROM LIFTOFF TO ORBIT PLAY
VIDEO: CREW DEPARTS SITE 254 FOR LAUNCH PAD PLAY
VIDEO: VIPS MEET THE CREW ON LAUNCH MORNING PLAY
VIDEO: CREW MEMBERS DON THEIR SOKOL SPACESUITS PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH MORNING TRADITIONS AT CREW QUARTERS PLAY

VIDEO: BIOGRAPHIES OF KELLY, KALERI AND SKRIPOCHKA PLAY
VIDEO: PRE-LAUNCH INTERVIEW WITH SCOTT KELLY PLAY
VIDEO: PRE-LAUNCH INTERVIEW WITH ALEXANDER KALERI PLAY
VIDEO: PRE-LAUNCH INTERVIEW WITH OLEG SKRIPOCHKA PLAY

VIDEO: SOYUZ ROCKET ROLLED TO THE LAUNCH PAD PLAY
VIDEO: POST-ROLLOUT COMMENTS FROM NASA VIPS PLAY
VIDEO: ASSEMBLY OF SOYUZ COMPLETED IN THE HANGAR PLAY
VIDEO: HIGHLIGHTS OF CREW'S ACTIVITIES AT BAIKONUR PLAY
VIDEO: CREW'S DEPARTURE FROM STAR CITY TRAINING BASE PLAY
VIDEO: PRIME AND BACKUP CREWS MEET WITH REPORTERS PLAY

VIDEO: REMARKABLE VIDEO OF CREW EXITING CAPSULE PLAY
VIDEO: AERIAL FOOTAGE OF THE SOYUZ SAFELY LANDING PLAY
VIDEO: SOYUZ TMA-18 DEPARTS THE SPACE STATION PLAY
VIDEO: CREW BOARDS SOYUZ CAPSULE FOR DEPARTURE PLAY
VIDEO: SPACE STATION CHANGE OF COMMAND CEREMONY PLAY

VIDEO: WATCH CARGO FREIGHTER DOCK TO SPACE STATION PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH OF SOYUZ ROCKET WITH PROGRESS 39P PLAY

VIDEO: POST-SPACEWALK NO. 3 STATUS BRIEFING PLAY
VIDEO: SPACEWALKERS CONCLUDE THE THIRD EVA PLAY
VIDEO: AMMONIA HOSES ARE ATTACHED TO THE PUMP PLAY
VIDEO: POWER AND DATA LINES BRING PUMP TO LIFE PLAY
VIDEO: REPLACEMENT PUMP SECURELY BOLTED DOWN PLAY
VIDEO: PUMP INSERTED INTO SPACE STATION SLOT PLAY
VIDEO: SPACEWALKER HAULS PUMP OVER TO TRUSS PLAY
VIDEO: RETRIEVING THE REPLACEMENT PUMP PLAY
VIDEO: SPACEWALK NO. 3 BEGINS PLAY

VIDEO: POST-SPACEWALK NO. 2 STATUS BRIEFING PLAY
VIDEO: FAILED COOLANT PUMP REMOVED FROM THE STATION PLAY
VIDEO: ROBOT ARM MANEUVERS SPACEWALKER AROUND PLAY
VIDEO: POWER AND DATA LINES UNPLUGGED PLAY
VIDEO: TROUBLESOME UMBILICAL DETACHED PLAY
VIDEO: NO REPEAT OF AMMONIA LEAK PLAY

VIDEO: POST-SPACEWALK NO. 1 STATUS BRIEFING PLAY
VIDEO: PROBLEM CONNECTOR FINALLY FREED BUT THEN LEAKS PLAY
VIDEO: LEFT-HAND AMMONIA UMBILICAL COMES OFF WITH EASE PLAY
VIDEO: SKIPPING OVER PROBLEM CONNECTOR TO DO ANOTHER PLAY
VIDEO: TROUBLES AND ADVICE FOR STUCK AMMONIA LINE PLAY
VIDEO: PUMP'S SMALL COOLING LINE UNPLUGGED PLAY
VIDEO: SPACEWALKER DOUG WHEELOCK WORKS ON OLD PUMP PLAY
VIDEO: BRIEFING ON PUMP FAILURE AND SPACEWALKS PLAY

VIDEO: FULL BROADCAST OF SUPPLY SHIP'S DOCKING PLAY
VIDEO: WATCH CARGO FREIGHTER DOCK TO SPACE STATION PLAY
VIDEO: PROGRESS 38P FREIGHTER LAUNCHED PLAY

VIDEO: ORANGE COUNTY AND AL JAZEERA MEDIA INTERVIEWS PLAY

VIDEO: SOYUZ RELOCATED FROM ZVEZDA TO RASSVET PLAY

VIDEO: WELCOME CEREMONY FOR THE NEW RESIDENTS PLAY
VIDEO: POST-DOCKING NEWS BRIEFING IN RUSSIA PLAY
VIDEO: SOYUZ DOCKS TO THE SPACE STATION PLAY

VIDEO: FULL EXPERIENCE FROM LIFTOFF TO ORBIT PLAY
VIDEO: ENTIRE EXPEDITION 24 LAUNCH BROADCAST PLAY
VIDEO: CREW DEPARTS SITE 254 FOR LAUNCH PAD PLAY
VIDEO: VIPS MEET THE CREW ON LAUNCH MORNING PLAY
VIDEO: CREW MEMBERS DON THEIR SOKOL SPACESUITS PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH MORNING TRADITIONS AT CREW QUARTERS PLAY

VIDEO: SOYUZ ROCKET ROLLED TO THE LAUNCH PAD PLAY
VIDEO: POST-ROLLOUT COMMENTS FROM NASA OFFICIAL PLAY
VIDEO: ASSEMBLY OF SOYUZ COMPLETED IN THE HANGAR PLAY
VIDEO: HIGHLIGHTS OF CREW'S ACTIVITIES AT BAIKONUR PLAY
VIDEO: CREW'S DEPARTURE FROM STAR CITY TRAINING BASE PLAY
VIDEO: PRIME AND BACKUP CREWS MEET WITH REPORTERS PLAY
VIDEO: CEREMONIAL VISIT TO RED SQUARE IN MOSCOW PLAY
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