Three-man multinational ISS crew returns to Earth - Video

Expedition 41 Commander Max Suraev of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos), NASA Flight Engineer Reid Wiseman and Flight Engineer Alexander Gerst of the European Space Agency landed safely on the steppe of Kazakhstan near the town of Arkalyk on Nov. 10, Kazakh time, after bidding farewell to the Expedition 42 crew members and undocking their Soyuz TMA-13M spacecraft from the Rassvet module on the International Space Station.

Alexander Gerst of the European Space Agency (L), Max Suraev of the Russian Federal Space Agency (C), and NASA's Reid Wiseman (R) sit in chairs outside the Soyuz TMA-13M capsule just minutes after they landed in Kazakhstan November 10, 2014

A three-man multinational crew of astronauts returned to Earth Monday aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft, after spending 165 days working together at the International Space Station, NASA said.

ISS commander, Russia's Max Suraev, his American colleague Reid Wiseman and German Alexander Gerst from the European Space Agency (ESA) touched down at 10:58 pm Sunday (0358 GMT Monday).

The three men smiled broadly from reclining chairs as medical personnel tended to them amid patches of snow on the barren steppe just northeast of Arkalyk, Kazakhstan, where they landed.

Surayev flashed a V for victory sign while Wiseman pumped his fist as they waited to regain their land legs after nearly half a year of weightlessness.

"Everything was in the spirit of cooperation, so I think that everybody needs to learn and follow the example of the ISS crew members," Surayev said.

"Let's try to live together side by side. This is the most important thing," he added.

While in space the crew traveled more than 70 million miles (112.7 million kilometers), NASA said.

The "bulls-eye" touchdown was executed amid low clouds and fog "following a flawless descent back into the atmosphere," according to NASA TV.

The spacecraft was pulled onto its side by its parachute upon arrival, which NASA TV added was not uncommon.

The US space agency said the "departure of Wiseman, Gerst and Surayev marks the end of Expedition 41," referring to their mission to the ISS to carry out equipment repairs, maintenance and experiments.

Surayev was on his second long ISS mission, having now spent a total of 334 days in space, while the other two astronauts were on their first trip.

The three men were pictured smiling and with their arms around each other before hitching the ride back home, undocking from ISS at 7:31 pm (0031 GMT).

Another three-person crew remains on the ISS to "continue research and maintenance aboard the station" and will be joined by three more astronauts who launch from Kazakhstan on November 23, NASA said.

NASA lost its ability to reach the space station when the shuttle program ended in 2011 after 30 years.

The US space agency has helped fund private companies in a push to restore US access to the ISS.

In the meantime, the world's astronauts must rely on Russia's Soyuz spacecraft to get to the ISS and back, at a cost of $70 million per seat.

There are 15 country participants in the ISS program, though the US and Russia contribute the lion's share of funds for the project.

ISS Russian Cosmonauts conduct Third Spacewalk (EVA) of October

Spacewalker Maxim Suraev works outside the Poisk mini-research module in January 2010.

Image Credit: NASA TV

Russian spacewalkers Max Suraev and Alexander Samokutyaev opened the Pirs docking compartment hatch to the vacuum of space at 9:28 a.m. EDT to begin the third spacewalk for Expedition 41 crew members in as many weeks.

Their spacewalk is expected to last six hours. Two U.S. spacewalks took place Oct. 7 and 15.

Russian spacewalkers Max Suraev and Alexander Samokutyaev.

Image Credit: NASA TV

The duo’s first task is to remove the Radiometriya experiment that was installed on the Zvezda service module in 2011 and which is no longer required for data collection.

They will then jettison it for a later reentry into the atmosphere where it will burn up. The experiment gathered data to help scientists predict seismic events and earthquakes.

The veteran cosmonauts will then move on to another external experiment and remove its protective cover.

They will photograph the Expose-R experiment before taking a break during the orbital night period.

After orbital sunrise, they will take more photographs of the work area, translate back to Pirs and place the protective cover inside.

The European Space Agency study exposes organic and biological samples to the harsh environment of space and observes how they are affected by cosmic radiation, vacuum and night and day cycles.

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ISS Astronauts continue preparations for Spacewalk (EVA)

NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman, Expedition 41 flight engineer, works with tools and equipment on a spacesuit in the Quest airlock of the International Space Station in preparation for two spacewalks scheduled in October 2014.

Image Credit: NASA

With the first planned excursion of Expedition 41 just a week away, the International Space Station’s six-person crew spent Tuesday preparing spacewalking tools and equipment, while managing a packed agenda of scientific research and maintenance.

Commander Max Suraev of the Russian Federal Space Agency and the team of five flight engineers began the day at 2 a.m. EDT, and after some time for morning hygiene, breakfast and an inspection of the station, they conducted a daily planning conference with the flight control teams around the world.

Afterward, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman and Barry Wilmore and European Space Agency astronaut Alexander Gerst went to work in the equipment lock section of the Quest airlock to stage the equipment they’ll need in order to prepare for spacewalks set for Oct. 7 and 15.

During the first six-and-a-half-hour spacewalk, slated to begin on Oct. 7 around 8:10 a.m., Wiseman and Gerst will transfer a previously uninstalled pump module from its temporary stowage location to the External Stowage Platform-2.

The two spacewalkers also will install the Mobile Transporter Relay Assembly (MTRA) that adds the capability to provide “keep-alive” power to the system that moves the station’s robotic arm between worksites.

The two astronauts will venture out on the station’s starboard truss to replace a voltage regulator that failed in mid-May.

Although the station has since operated normally on seven of its eight power channels, replacement of the regulator, known as a sequential shunt unit, is considered a high priority.

Newly Expanded Space Station Crew Tackles Research and EVA Spacewalk Preparation

NASA Flight Engineer Reid Wiseman photo showing Flight Engineers Barry Wilmore (left) and ESA's Alexander Gerst at work in the Kibo laboratory of the International Space Station.

Image Credit: NASA

The International Space Station’s Expedition 41 crew, which doubled the number of humans in space when three new crew members arrived last week, began its first full work week schedule as a six-person crew Monday with biological research and preparations for a pair of U.S. spacewalks.

Alex Samokutyaev

Flight Engineers Barry Wilmore, Alexander Samokutyaev and Elena Serova joined their Expedition 41 crewmates on the station early Friday following a six-hour, four-orbit trek aboard their Soyuz TMA-14M spacecraft from the launch site at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

Wilmore, Samokutyaev and Serova are slated to spend 5 ½ months aboard the station.

Max Suraev

Commander Max Suraev and Flight Engineers Reid Wiseman and Alexander Gerst, who arrived on May 28, will return to Earth in November.

Shortly after the usual 2 a.m. EDT reveille, the entire crew conducted body mass measurements, inspected their orbital home and participated in a daily planning conference with the flight control teams around the world to review the day’s activities.

Yelena Serova

For Wiseman, Gerst and Wilmore, most of those activities were centered primarily on gearing up for their upcoming spacewalks.

During an Oct. 7 excursion outside the station, Wiseman and Gerst will transfer a previously uninstalled pump module from its temporary stowage location to the External Stowage Platform-2.

The two spacewalkers also will install the Mobile Transporter Relay Assembly (MTRA) that adds the capability to provide “keep-alive” power to the Mobile Servicing System (MSS) when the Mobile Transporter is moving between worksites.

Wiseman and Gerst spent some time reviewing the procedures for that spacewalk and later participated in a conference call with spacewalk specialists on the ground.

Wilmore meanwhile began “scrubbing” the cooling loops of the U.S. spacesuits, including the Liquid Cooling and Ventilation Garment that he will wear under his own spacesuit when he joins Wiseman for the second Expedition 41 spacewalk on Oct. 15.

Wiseman completed the spacesuit water recharge in the afternoon and Gerst checked in on the Zebrafish Muscle study.

Zebra Danios

He assessed the water condition inside the Aquatic Habitat, which is housing a school of spacefaring fish popularly known in the aquarium trade as Zebra Danios.

Expedition 41 Astronauts Welcomed Aboard Space Station

The new six-member Expedition 41 crew gathers in the Zvezda service module for a welcoming ceremony with family and friends in Baikonur, Kazakhstan.

Image Credit: NASA TV

NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore and Russian cosmonauts Alexander Samokutyaev and Elena Serova joined their Expedition 41 crewmates when the hatches between the Soyuz TMA-14M spacecraft and the International Space Station officially opened at 1:06 a.m. EDT.

Expedition 41 Commander Max Suraev of the Russian Federal Space Agency and Flight Engineers Reid Wiseman of NASA and Alexander Gerst of the European Space Agency, who arrived at the station in May, welcomed the new crew members aboard their orbital home.

Shortly after docking with the International Space Station, the Soyuz TMA-14M spacecraft's port solar array deployed successfully.

Earlier, the solar array had failed to deploy when the Soyuz reached orbit.

The image of the spacecraft's approach, taken from the ISS, clearly shows only one solar array has been deployed.

NASA and Roscosmos officials have confirmed that the array poses no long term issue to either standard operations at the station for Expedition 41-42, or for the landing of Barry Wilmore, Alexander Samokutyaev and Elena Serova at the conclusion of their mission in March.

ESA’s “Georges Lemaître” ATV-5 docked at the ISS.

Credit: ESA

There are now five spacecraft docked to the station its maximum visiting vehicle capacity.

There are two Soyuz vehicles, one Progress 56 resupply ship, Europe’s “Georges Lemaître” ATV-5 and the SpaceX Dragon commercial space freighter which arrived Tuesday morning.

The new crew floated into their new home for a welcoming ceremony and congratulatory calls from family, friends and mission officials in Baikonur.

After the ceremony ended the new crew will underwent a mandatory safety orientation to familiarize themselves with escape paths and procedures and locations of safety gear.

ISS flies through spectacular Aurora Borealis

Image Credit: NASA /ESA /Alexander Gerst

European Space Agency astronaut Alexander Gerst posted this photograph taken from the International Space Station to social media on Aug. 29, 2014, writing, "words can't describe how it feels flying through an #aurora. I wouldn't even know where to begin…."

Crew members on the space station photograph the Earth from their unique point of view located 200 miles above the surface.

Photographs record how the planet is changing over time, from human-caused changes like urban growth and reservoir construction, to natural dynamic events such as hurricanes, floods and volcanic eruptions.

Crew members have been photographing Earth from space since the early Mercury missions beginning in 1961.

The continuous images taken from the space station ensure this record remains unbroken.

Max Suraev

On Tuesday, Sept. 9 aboard the space station, cosmonaut Max Suraev of Roscosmos takes the helm when Expedition 40 Commander Steve Swanson hands over control during a Change of Command Ceremony at 5:15 p.m. EDT.

Suraev will lead Expedition 41 and stay in orbit until November with Gerst and NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman.

Soyuz Commander Alexander Skvortsov, Swanson and Flight Engineer Oleg Artemyev will complete their mission Wednesday, Sept. 10 at 7:01 p.m. when they undock in their Soyuz TMA-12M spacecraft from the Poisk docking compartment for a parachute-assisted landing on the steppe of Kazakhstan a little less than 3.5 hours later.

Poisk docking compartment on ISS

ESA Timelapse video showing Soyuz TMA-13M liftoff - video

This time-lapse video shows the Soyuz TMA-13M spacecraft during roll out from the MIK preparation building, raise into vertical position on the launch pad, and lift off on 28 May 2014 from the Russian Baikonour cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

After their launch, on board this Soyuz, Expedition 40/41 flight engineer Alexander Gerst of the European Space Agency, Soyuz commander Max Suraev of the Russian Federal Space Agency and flight engineer Reid Wiseman of NASA, made their way to the International Space Station.