Expedition 57 – Page 2 – Spaceflight Now

Soyuz crew rocket arrives on the pad for first time since dramatic launch abort

December 2, 2018 Stephen Clark

Keeping up a tradition dating back to the dawn of the Space Age, a Russian Soyuz rocket emerged from a hangar at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan before sunrise Saturday for rollout to Launch Pad No. 1 at the Central Asia space base, moving into position for liftoff Monday with a U.S.-Russian-Canadian crew heading for the International Space Station.

Japanese cargo capsule succeeds in re-entry tech demo

November 20, 2018 Stephen Clark

A miniature cargo return vehicle carried aboard a Japanese supply ship splashed down in the Pacific Ocean earlier this month in the first test of a new capsule to bring home experiment samples from the International Space Station.

Space station receives second of back-to-back cargo deliveries

November 19, 2018 Stephen Clark

Wrapping up a two-day chase since launching from Virginia’s Eastern Shore, a commercial Cygnus cargo craft arrived at the International Space Station Monday with more than 7,200 pounds of supplies and experiments, the second freighter to reach the orbiting complex in 15 hours.

Russian freighter arrives at International Space Station

November 18, 2018 Stephen Clark

Two days after launching from the steppe of Kazakhstan, a Russian Progress resupply and refueling freighter docked with the International Space Station Sunday.

Dramatic on-board video shows moment of Soyuz booster failure

November 1, 2018 Stephen Clark

New video released by the Russian space agency Thursday shows the moment a Soyuz rocket ran into trouble around two minutes after liftoff with a two-man crew Oct. 11, when one of the vehicle’s four first stage boosters crashed into the Soyuz core stage.

Departing crew snaps spectacular photo survey of space station’s exterior

November 1, 2018 Stephen Clark

A three-man crew that departed the International Space Station on Oct. 4 flew their Soyuz spaceship into position to take spectacular photos of the orbiting research complex as officials prepare to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the first element’s launch.

Russians trace Soyuz launch abort to faulty sensor

November 1, 2018 William Harwood

Russian investigators have traced the cause of a dramatic Oct. 11 Soyuz launch abort to a “deformed” sensor in a system that controlled the separation of a strap-on first-stage booster from the rocket’s central core stage, triggering a dramatic emergency escape for the Russian mission commander and his NASA co-pilot, senior managers said Thursday.

NASA administrator says Russians on track for December Soyuz flight to station

October 23, 2018 William Harwood

Russian engineers have a “really, really good idea” about what went wrong during a Soyuz launch to the International Space Station Oct. 11, forcing the ship’s two-man crew to carry out an emergency abort, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said Tuesday. He added that he expects the Russians to resume piloted Soyuz flights in December.

NASA astronaut unfazed by frightening launch abort

October 16, 2018 William Harwood

Two minutes after launch aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket last week, NASA astronaut Nick Hague knew something had gone badly wrong.

Soyuz failure probe narrows focus on collision at booster separation

October 13, 2018 Stephen Clark

Russian investigators believe a malfunction during separation of the Soyuz rocket’s four liquid-fueled first stage boosters two minutes after liftoff from Kazakhstan led to an emergency landing of a two-man crew heading for the International Space Station, officials said Friday.