Soyuz MS-26 spacecraft installed on launch pad for ISS mission with Nasa and Roscosmos crew

People observed the installation of the Soyuz 2.1a rocket booster along with the Soyuz MS-26 spacecraft on the launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on September 8, 2024. (Photo: Reuters)

The rocket booster is set to launch aboard the Soyuz MS-26 to the International Space Station (ISS) on September 11, 2024. (Photo: Reuters)

Nasa astronaut Don Pettit, along with Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner, will launch to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard the Soyuz MS-26 spacecraft. Upon arrival, they will join the Expedition 71 crew to contribute to scientific research on the station. (Photo: Reuters)

Upon boarding, Pettit, Ovchinin, and Vagner will join a larger team of astronauts and cosmonauts, including Nasa astronauts Tracy C. Dyson, Mike Barratt, Matthew Dominick, Jeanette Epps, Butch Wilmore, and Sunita Williams, as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Nikolai Chub, Alexander Grebenkin, and Oleg Kononenko. (Photo: Reuters)

The Soyuz MS-26 is set for a quick two-orbit, three-hour journey to the ISS, with an automatic docking scheduled at 5:33 am on September 12 at the station's Rassvet module. Soon after docking, the hatches between the spacecraft and the station will open, allowing the crew to enter the ISS. (Photo: Reuters)

The three astronauts will spend about six months on the ISS, serving as members of Expedition 71 and 72, before their planned return to Earth in spring 2025. This mission marks the fourth spaceflight for both Pettit and Ovchinin, while it will be the second for Vagner. (Photo: Reuters)

​A pair of newlyweds took a photo while kissing, with the Soyuz 2.1a rocket booster and the Soyuz MS-26 spacecraft being installed on the launch pad in the background. (Photo: Reuters)