A U.S.-Russian crew of three launched Thursday to the International Space Station.
A Soyuz booster rocket lifted off as scheduled from the Russia-leased Baikonur launch facility in Kazakhstan to place the Soyuz MS-28 carrying NASA astronaut Chris Williams and two Russian crewmates, Sergei Mikaev and Sergei Kud-Sverchkov in orbit.
They had been scheduled to dock on the station about three hours after liftoff.
All three are anticipated to spend about eight months on the orbiting outpost. NASA mentioned that is the primary spaceflight for Williams, a phycisist, and Mikaev, a navy pilot. For Kud-Sverchkov, that is the second flight.
At the International Space Station, the trio will be part of NASA astronauts Mike Fincke, Zena Cardman and Jonny Kim, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s astronaut Kimiya Yui and Russian cosmonauts Sergei Ryzhikov, Alexei Zubritsky and Oleg Platonov.
Williams will conduct scientific analysis and know-how demonstrations on the orbiting outpost aimed toward advancing human area exploration and benefiting life on Earth, NASA mentioned.