{"id":10623,"date":"2022-03-18T23:11:53","date_gmt":"2022-03-18T15:11:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/soyuz-carries-three-cosmonauts-to-station-as-nelson-touts-cooperation\/"},"modified":"2022-03-18T23:11:53","modified_gmt":"2022-03-18T15:11:53","slug":"soyuz-carries-three-cosmonauts-to-station-as-nelson-touts-cooperation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/soyuz-carries-three-cosmonauts-to-station-as-nelson-touts-cooperation\/","title":{"rendered":"Soyuz carries three cosmonauts to station as Nelson touts cooperation"},"content":{"rendered":"

STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS & USED WITH PERMISSION<\/p>\n

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With the arrival of three new cosmonauts, the International Space Station is home to a crew of 10 through March 30. Credit: Roscosmos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Three cosmonauts blasted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan Friday, caught up with the International Space Station after a two-orbit rendezvous and moved in for docking at a newly arrived Russian module. The cosmonauts are replacing three crew members \u2014 two Russians and an American \u2014 who are heading home at the end of the month to close out a record-setting flight.<\/p>\n

The launching came amid high tension and strained relations in the wake of Russia\u2019s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, its cancellation of cooperative commercial ventures in response to sanctions and a steady stream of fiercely critical comments from the director of the Russian space agency, raising concern about station\u2019s future.<\/p>\n

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said Friday morning he\u2019s hopeful the two nations will continue their decades-long cooperation in space that extends back to the Cold War. But he said the agency is working on contingency plans just in case.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have our problems with President Putin on Earth,\u201d Nelson said in an interview with CBS News. \u201cThank goodness we\u2019ve seen Europe come together and a strengthening of NATO as we\u2019ve never seen before.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe interesting thing is, even back in 1975 during the Soviet Union, the Cold War, we were able to have cooperation in civilian space with the Russians, in (the) Apollo-Soyuz (project). And that has continued. This very day, three cosmonauts (are launching) from Kazakhstan to the International Space Station.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey will join four Americans, two Russians and a German astronaut,\u201d Nelson continued. \u201cThat\u2019s saying this cooperation, this professional relationship between our astronauts and cosmonauts, it\u2019s consistent, and it\u2019s going to stay.\u201d<\/p>\n

Judging by the smiles, hugs and handshakes the station crew gave the arriving cosmonauts, they hope for the same.<\/p>\n

Soyuz MS-21\/67S commander Oleg Artemyev, a space veteran, and two rookies, Denis Matveev and Sergey Korsakov, took off from Baikonur at 11:55 a.m. EDT (8:55 p.m. local time) atop a Soyuz 2.1a rocket. Eight minutes and 45 seconds later, the Soyuz was in space and on course for a two-orbit rendezvous with the space station.<\/p>\n

Taking over manual control on final approach, Artemyev guided the ship to a smooth docking at the new multi-port Prichal module at 3:12 p.m. After extensive leak checks, hatches were opened at 5:48 p.m.<\/p>\n

Standing by to welcome them aboard were Expedition 66 commander Anton Shkaplerov and his two Soyuz crewmates, Pyotr Dubrov and Mark Vande Hei, along with Crew Dragon NASA astronauts Raja Chari, Thomas Marshburn, Kayla Barron and German astronaut Matthias Maurer.<\/p>\n