The "Soyuz-2.1a" launch vehicle has been installed on the launch pad of the Baikonur Cosmodrome before the launch of the "Soyuz MS-29" spacecraft to the International Space Station. The launch is scheduled for July 14, and a crew of two Russian cosmonauts and an American astronaut will go into space.
Preparations for the launch have been completed at Baikonur site No. 31. The rocket was rolled out of the assembly and testing facility and moved to a vertical position on the launch complex, where specialists will continue final checks before launch.
Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina, as well as NASA astronaut Anil Menon, will travel to the ISS aboard the manned "Soyuz MS-29" spacecraft. The backup crew consists of Russian cosmonauts Konstantin Borisov and Dmitry Petelin, and American Denise Burnham.
The planned duration of the expedition will be 261 days. During this time, the crew will carry out a program of scientific research and technical work aboard the orbital complex.
For the current launch, the rocket received a special design. Images dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Rocket and Space Corporation "Energia", which produces "Soyuz" series spacecraft, as well as the "Iskra" Machine-Building Design Bureau, the developer of the crew emergency rescue system, were applied to the body.
In addition, drawings by children undergoing treatment for oncological diseases, as well as thematic images within the framework of charitable projects, were placed on the rocket.
The launch of "Soyuz-2.1a" will be another stage of the Russian manned program, ensuring the delivery of crews to the International Space Station.