Q&A with Keith Gendreau, principal investigator of the first X-ray space communications experiment (members only)

A day before blastoff with two Intelsat communications satellites, an Ariane 5 rocket rolled into position on its launch pad in French Guiana on Tuesday behind a 540-horsepower Titan truck, and these close-up snapshots show technicians preparing for the journey.

Crew members aboard the International Space Station are investigating a tiny pressure leak on the Russian side of the orbiting outpost. The crew traced the leak to a small hole on the Soyuz MS-09 spacecraft, which ferried a three-person crew to the station in June. Mission control is examining options to repair the damage, and NASA says the crew is not in danger.

Mission leaders Tuesday gave approval for rollout of the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket on Wednesday morning, leading to liftoff Thursday night of the Magnetospheric Multiscale science project for NASA.