3 Russian cosmonauts launch for International Space Station
A Russian rocket blasted off successfully Friday carrying a trio of Russian cosmonauts to the International Space Station
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A Russian rocket blasted off successfully Friday carrying a trio of Russian cosmonauts to the International Space Station.
Russian space corporation Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveyev and Sergey Korsakov safely reached a designated orbit in their Soyuz MS-21 spacecraft minutes after launching at 8:55 p.m. Friday (11:55 a.m. EDT) from the Russia-leased Baikonur launch facility in Kazakhstan. Their ship is set to dock at the station later Friday.
The blastoff marked the first space crew launch since Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24.
The war has resulted in canceled spacecraft launches and broken contracts, and Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin has warned that the U.S. would have to use “broomsticks” to fly into space after Russia said it would stop supplying rocket engines to U.S. companies. Many worry that Rogozin is putting decades of a peaceful off-planet partnership at risk, most notably at the International Space Station.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson played down Rogozin’s comments, telling The Associated Press: “That’s just Dmitry Rogozin. He spouts off every now and then. But at the end of the day, he’s worked with us,”
“The other people that work in the Russian civilian space program, they’re professional,” Nelson told the AP on Friday. “They don’t miss a beat with us, American astronauts and American mission control.”