♪ Good evening, you are look at
a picture from a balcony camera
overlooking the Russian mission
control center in the town of
Korolyov on the outskirts of
Moscow where the countdown is
proceeding for launch with an
unpiloted the progress resupply
ship just 21 minutes from now,
from site 31 at the Baikonur
Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
We are standing by for video
from the launch site to be
received here in Houston, where
the flight control team here in
mission control is standing by
to work alongside with its
Russian partners in overseeing
not only the launch of this 75th
progress resupply ship to the
International Space Station but
also its rendezvous and docking
to the aft port of the Bethesda
service module about three hours
and change after launch.
>> Aboard the International
Space Station the expedition 63
crew is in a split at this hour,
the two Russian cosmonauts on
board who arrived on the station
just a fortnight ago Anatoly
Ivanishin and Vagner are awake
and they will be awake through
the docking of the progress
vehicle to the International
Space Station, the commander of
the International Space Station
and expedition 63, NASA's Chris
Cassidy is asleep at this hour.
He is likely to be awake by the
time the progress arrives in the
vicinity of the International
Space Station for an expected
docking 12 minutes after
midnight central time, 1:12a.m.
eastern time.
It is just one hour after
sunrise at the launch site of
the Baikonur Cosmodrome.
The Soyuz booster on-site 31's
launchpad is fully fueled, ready
for launch, the count down is
proceeding on track, no issues
being reported by the launch
engineers at the blockhouse at
Baikonur.
Seventy-fifth progress
resupervisor play ship that is
about to go skyward to the
International Space Station is
loaded with 1,543pounds of
propellent, 110pounds of
oxygen, 926pounds of water, and
almost 3,000pounds of dry
cargo, 2.78tons of food, fuel
and supplies being delivered for
the expedition 63 crew on board
the International Space Station.
The launch into a two orbit
fast-track rendezvous for the
progress resupply vehicle will
come at 8:51and 41 seconds
central time, 9:51and 41
seconds eastern time.
The International Space Station
actually will pass directly over
the Baikonur Cosmodrome 41
seconds after launch and will
leapfrog past the progress,
which will then be in a ketchup
mode for its two orbit
rendezvous after a preprogrammed
series of engine firings to not
only raise the progress's orbit
to match that of the
International Space Station but
to fine-tune its path to the
International Space Station.
It will take eight minutes and
46 seconds from the time of
launch until the progress
separates from the third stage
of its Soyuz booster and begins
to put out its antennas for the
chase to catch up to the
International Space Station.
As mentioned, tonight's launch
of the progress resupply ship
from site 31 of the Baikonur
Cosmodrome coming off the same
launchpad that Chris Cassidy,
Anatoly Ivanishin and a Ivan
Vagner launched off of just two
weeks ago for its four orbit
rendezvous to reach the
International Space Station and
the start of a six and a half
month mission on the orbital
outpost.
We are just one week past the
time that the departing
expedition 62 crew, that was
Alex proch ca and NASA
astronauts Andrew Morgan and
Jessica Meir returned home for a
landing on the steps of
Kazakhstan and back at their
respective locations in star
city Russia and here in Houston
after post flight debriefings.
>> The Soyuz 2Don 1 A booster
and its progress resupply ship
encapsulated in the upper stage
rolled out to the launchpad a
short distance on Wednesday
morning, just after 7:00a.m.
Baikonur time.
You can see on the upper stage
of the Soyuz booster the logo
75th.
That is representative of the
fact that this launch of the
75th progress is coming on the
75th anniversary of the day that
Soviet and American troops met
at the Elba river in Germany
marking an important step to the
end of World War II in Europe.
Marking that moment in history
the Soyuz boost search decorated
today with memorial logo as it
sits on the launchpad fully
fueled, the federal space agency
is calling this vehicle the
victory rocket.
That rollout took less than 40
minutes from the time it left
the integration building at site
31 until the time it was raised
vertically on its launchpad,
allowing launchpad technicians
to hook up electrical cables and
data cables to set the stage for
launch, which is scheduled just
15 minutes from now.
At the time of launch, the
International Space Station will
be flying about 260miles above
the Earth, crossing the border
between Uzbekistan and
Kazakhstan, 329 statute miles
behind the Soyuz booster and as
mentioned it will leapfrog past
the progress and the Soyuz,
enabling the progress to begin
its trek to catch up to the
station just two orbits or just
over three hours after launch.
The sequence of events following
the launch calls for the Soyuz's
first stage separation to occur
just one minute and 58 seconds
after launch, the launch route
jettison will come at about the
three minute and 3-second mark.
That will be the precursor to
second stage shut down at four
minutes, 37 seconds and second
stage separation10 seconds
later.
The third stage skirt
jettisoning will occur10
seconds after that at just under
the five minute mark, and third
stage shutdown and orbital
insertion will come at the eight
minute, 46 second mark,
spacecraft separation just
seconds after that, setting the
stage for the solar array
deployment and navigation
natural antenna deployment on
the progress as it begins its
journey to reach the
International Space Station and
the dock -- docking at
12:12a.m. central time, the
1:12a.m. eastern time Saturday
morning.
>> This is mission control
Houston coming up on the ten and
a half minute mark before
launch.
Count down preparations are
continuing at the Baikonur
Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan as we
approach the10 minute mark
until launch.
>> Once the progress reaches its
preliminary orbit a series of
preprogrammed engine firings
will be conducted to place the
progress on a pinpoint path to
the International Space Station.
The sew ca, so-called automated
rendezvous sequences are
scheduled to begin just before
din p.m. central time tonight
that will enable the progress to
arrive in the vicinity of the
International Space Station for
a fly around maneuver that will
precisely align the lower
docking probe on the progress
vehicle to the aft port of the
Bethesda service module to which
the progress will link up to
just after midnight central time
Saturday morning.
>> Readiness reports from the
blockhouse at the Baikonur
Cosmodrome indicate everything
is in good shape, inside eight
minutes now.
At least seven, at the 7minute
mark, a key is inserted into a
start mechanism and then the key
is rotated transitioning the
vehicle that Soyuz booster to an
automatic mode.
It is essentially equivalent to
a ground launch sequence there.
>> The report from Baikonur is
that the progress vehicle is now
on autonomous power as we
approach the six minute mark
until launch.
Down to Baikonur Cosmodrome just
five minutes before launch.
The activation of recorders and
in the launch control center
have been completed.
Telemetry from the launch
vehicle is being received.
Everything is in good shape down
at Baikonur.
Coming up on the purging of fuel
lines and other elements of the
rocket engines, to fireproof
them by removing vapors of fool
and oxidizer.
This feed now that you are
seeing of the progress on the
launchpad courtesy of Roskosmos
as we are approaching the four
minute mark.
Roskosmos.
>> What you are seeing here is
the graphic view of the Soyuz
2.1booster on the launchpad.
This the is generated by
real-time telemetry received by
the Russian mission control
center in Korolyov as we
approach the three minute mark
until launch.
now, standing by for fuel and
oxidizer tanks to be
pressurized.
This will optimize the fuel flow
to the various stages on the
Soyuz 2.1booster and to provide
structural rigidity to the
launch vehicle.
Now just two minutes until
launch.
And now about a minute away from
launch, you see the progress on
the launchpad fully fueled,
drainage has been completed.
There are two umbilical towers
that are butt with dressed
against the side a of the Soyuz
2A.
The first should be retracting
momentarily.
2.a.
standing by for the launch
command.
>> And the first of the
umbilicals now retracting.
Umbilicals once the second
umbilical retracts that will
initiate the launch command for
main engine start.
>> There goes the second
umbilical.
We have a go for main engine
start.
We have main engine start.
Turbo pumps now coming up to
flight speed.
And lift off.
Lift off of the 75th progress
resupply ship on a fast-track to
orbit flight to the
International Space Station.
Roll pitch and yaw program are
in, the 2.a booster arcing out
to the northeast from the
Cosmodrome.
>> All parameters are reported
to be normal.
The International Space Station
is now flying directly over the
Baikonur Cosmodrome.
The Soyuz now moving through the
period of maximum dynamic
pressure, going supersonic as it
heads downrange.
>> Soyuz traveling at 2,500
miles an hour, some 15miles in
altitude now,10miles downrange
from the Baikonur Cosmodrome.
All parameters are reported to
be normal by the engineers at
the blockhouse in Baikonur as we
stand by for first stage
shutdown and separation.
And we have first stage
shutdown.
Second stage engines up and
running, in good shape.
>> Flights is reported to be
proceeding in nominal fashion.
Good structural parameters being
reported.
Soyuz second stage is guiding
the progress resupply ship on a
precise path to its preliminary
orbit.
And we have reports of launch
jettison.
>> All the vehicle parameters
are in good shape, good engine
performance from the second
stage engines.
And this view from a camera on
the upper stage of the Soyuz
2.a.
The Soyuz traveling now at about
7,300 miles an hour 81miles in
altitude, 190miles downrange
from the Baikonur Cosmodrome.
The second stage engine
continues to function normally,
all good structural parameters
being reported.
And we are standing by for
second stage shutdown and
separation.
All good reports coming in from
the blockhouse at Baikonur.
Good structural parameters being
reported.
Flight continues to proceed in
nominal fashion.
The yaw, pitch and roll, good
reports coming in from Baikonur
as the Soyuz continues to do its
job, well over halfway through
its ascent to place the progress
on a path to the International
Space Station.
Third stage engine performance
up and running, in good shape as
we cross the seven minute mark
into the flight.
About one minute and 40 seconds
of powered flight remaining.
Animation now being generate bid
real-time telemetry from the
Soyuz 2.1A booster as we are
about a minute and 15 seconds
away from third stage shutdown
and spacecraft separation.
>> The Soyuz booster traveling
almost 13,000miles an hour,
122miles in altitude, more than
600miles downrange from the
Baikonur Cosmodrome.
Third stage engine continues to
burn in perfect fashion as we
cross the eight minute mark.
Good stable vehicle being
reported.
As soon as the progress
separates from the third stage,
control of the flight of the
progress will revert back to the
Russian mission control center
in Korolyov outside of Moscow.
>> We are standing by now for
third stage shutdown and
spacecraft separation.
>> And away -- and we have third
stage shutdown and separation.
Next event will be the
deployment of the progress's
solar arrays and navigational
antennas.
And you see that function now in
work.
And all of the appendages have
now been deployed, the solar
arrays, the navigational antenna
and the boom on the progress, a
perfect launch and ride to its
preliminary orbit, launch
occurring at 851 and 41 seconds
p.m. central time, 9:50, 41
eastern time, a good ride on its
2.1A booster and so the progress
chase is now on to reach the
International Space Station with
docking scheduled at 12:12a.m.
central time, 1:12a.m. eastern
time.
>> And so about an hour or so
after sunrise at the Baikonur
Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, the
Soyuz 2.1A booster took flight,
delivering the progress resupply
vehicle, the 75th progress
resupply ship to a perfect
orbit, a preliminary orbit, a
series of engine firings
prebrand engine burns now will
raise the progress's orbit and
put it on a path to reach the
International Space Station.
There is our first view through
the progress's external
television camera.
All of the progress systems are
in excellent shape.
The progress carrying 2.78tons
of food, fuel and supplies for
the residents of the
International Space Station.
We will be back on the air at
11:30 p.m. central time, 12:30
a.m. eastern time with our
rendezvous and docking coverage,
docking scheduled again at
12:12a.m. central, 1:12a.m.
eastern time on Saturday
morning.
So be back with us in a couple
of hours and rejoin our coverage
at that time.
Until then, this is mission
control Houston.