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Soyuz MS-18 mission to support ISS expansion lifts off

The first Russian crew exchange aboard the International Space Station, ISS, in 2021, came at a critical junction in the operation of the outpost's Russian Segment. Launching on April 9, the crew members of the Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft are prepared to support the arrival and integration of the MLM Nauka module with the ISS during the 65th and 66th long-duration expeditions on the ISS.

Previous mission: Soyuz MS-17

Soyuz MS-18 mission at a glance:

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Soyuz MS-18 mission planning

As of 2014, the launch of Soyuz MS-18 was penciled for March 30, 2021, but by early 2020, the start of the mission drifted to April 9, 2021. By that time, Soyuz MS-18 was scheduled to return to Earth with the same crew on September 30, 2021, after 174 days in space.

In the provisional flight manifest prepared by Roskosmos around the end of Summer 2020, the launch of Soyuz MS-18 was moved to April 1, 2021. The mission was then expected to last 195 days and be completed on October 13, 2021.

However, another revision of the ISS flight manifest circa November 2020, settled the launch date for April 9, 2021. In a major change of the flight program, the spacecraft was now scheduled to re-dock from its initial location on the MIM1 Rassvet module to the MIM2 Poisk module on September 25, 2021, to make way for the arrival of the Soyuz MS-19 spacecraft then scheduled for launch on October 5, 2021. After a 12-day overlap with the Soyuz MS-19 mission, Soyuz MS-18 would return to Earth on October 17, 2021, marking the end of Expedition 65 on the ISS.

Finally, according to the February 3, 2021, revision of the ISS manifest (INSIDER CONTENT), the September 25, 2021, re-docking of the Soyuz MS-18 would have the nadir port (INSIDER CONTENT) of the MLM Nauka module as its destination, if the new module arrived before that date. At the time, Nauka's docking with the ISS was scheduled for July 23, 2021. (As of April 2021, the re-docking of Soyuz MS-18 from MIM1 to MLM was rescheduled for Sept. 28, 2021.)

The Russian members of the Soyuz MS-18 crew, Oleg Novistky and Petr Dubrov completed training for the manual control of the Nauka module during its final approach to the station should the automated system fail.

Crew changes aboard Soyuz MS-18

As of early 2020, the Soyuz MS-18 crew was expected to include Russian cosmonauts Oleg Novitsky, Petr Dubrov and NASA astronaut Mark T. Vande Hei onboard, but by August 2020, the official plans called for the Russian cosmonaut Andrey Borisenko to replace Vande Hei on the team, as US-built vehicles were expected to take over crew transport operations for the American Segment of the station. Also, around the Fall of 2020, Russian cosmonaut Sergei Korsakov was expected to replace Borisenko on the Soyuz MS-18 crew. However, behind the scene, NASA was negotiating an option with Roskosmos for keeping Vande Hei on the Soyuz MS-18 crew to preserve the principle of having specialists in both segments of the station in each team.

In the meantime, Russian cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov, Dmitry Petelin and Andrei Babkin comprised the original back-up crew for the mission. However, on January 11, 2021, Roskosmos announced that due to medical reasons, cosmonaut Andrei Babkin had been replaced in the Soyuz MS-18 backup crew with Oleg Artemiev.

On February 9, 2021, NASA announced that it had been "considering obtaining a supplemental seat on the upcoming Spring Soyuz crew rotation mission," (referring to Soyuz MS-18). NASA said it wanted to reserve that seat as a backup for a possible delay or a premature return of the Dragon spacecraft with the second commercial crew scheduled to work aboard the ISS until October 31, 2021, because such situation would leave the American segment of the station unattended. In return, NASA was expected to provide a seat for a Russian crew member aboard one of its commercially procured vehicles. The practice was then expected to continue throughout the ISS project to ensure the presence of mixed crews aboard the outpost at all times.

On March 9, 2021, NASA and Roskosmos officially confirmed that Mark T. Vande Hei would be on the crew as originally planned and NASA astronaut Ann McClain was added to the backup crew, replacing Dmitry Petelin.

In the meantime, the decision by Roskosmos to organize a short trip to the ISS of two non-professional passengers for a movie project with the Soyuz MS-19 mission launching on October 5, 2021, required Dubrov and Vande Hei to give up their seats during the return leg of the Soyuz MS-18 mission on October 17.

After staying in orbit throughout Expedition 66 for almost a year, Dubrov and Vande Hei could return to Earth aboard the Soyuz MS-19 spacecraft. As of February 2021, its landing was scheduled on March 28, 2022.

Preparations for launch

Soyuz MS-18 is being installed on the launch pad at Site 31 on April 6, 2021.

On January 18, 2021, Roskosmos announced that specialists from the Yuzhny space center and RKK Energia had started processing operations with the Progress MS-16 cargo ship and the Soyuz MS-18 crew vehicles. On February 5, radio equipment of Soyuz MS-18's Kurs-NA rendezvous system underwent testing inside the anechoic chamber at Site 254, after which the spacecraft was returned to its processing stand in the same building, Roskosmos said.

The vacuum testing of the Soyuz MS-18 was completed on March 17, 2021, and the checkout of the solar panels with exposure to simulated sunlight was conducted on March 22, 2021.

On March 23, Roskosmos announced that the Soyuz MS-18 would be given the proper name Yu. A. Gagarin to mark the 60th anniversary of the pioneering Vostok mission. A sign with the name Gagarin was added to the exterior of the ship's Habitation Module.

On March 27, members of the primary and backup crews participated in the familiarization training session inside the Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft. On the same day, a meeting of the technical management cleared the Soyuz MS-18 for loading of propellant and pressurized gases, which started on March 29 and was completed on March 30. On the same day, Soyuz MS-18 was returned to the spacecraft processing building at Site 254 and re-installed in its dynamic stand for further operations, which included loading of cargo, the installation of thermal blankets and weighing.

On March 31, the spacecraft was integrated with its launch vehicle adapter serving as an interface with the third stage of the Soyuz-2 rocket. On April 2, 2021, specialists conducted the final visual inspection of the spacecraft, after which it was lowered in horizontal position and rolled inside its payload fairing.

On April 4, the primary and backup crews conducted another familiarization training session inside the Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft, this time in its launch configuration. On the same day, the spacecraft was transferred to the vehicle assembly building at Site 112. Its integration with the Soyuz-2-1a rocket took place on April 5 and on the same day, the State Commission gave the go ahead to the rollout of the vehicle to the launch pad. The rollout operation started on April 6 at 05:30 Moscow Time.

In support of the launch, more than 150 members of the search and rescue team from the Central Military District in Yekaterinburg were deployed in Kazakhstan downrange from the launch site. The force was equipped with more than 20 cars and trucks, including PEM-1, and -2 Sinya Ptitsa all-terrain evacuation vehicles, Mi-8 helicopters, as well as An-26 and An-12 fixed-wing aircraft. In Kazakhstan, rescue teams were stationed at airfields in Karaganda, Baikonur, Zhezkazgan and Arkalyk. Additionally, military rescue teams were activated along the ascent path of the Soyuz MS-18 mission across Russia, at air bases in Uprun, Gorno-Altaisk, Kyzyl and Yekaterinburg.

According to the Russian mission control in Korolev, the Soyuz MS-18 pre-launch operations went according to the following timeline:

• 06:00:00 — 00:05:00: Thermal conditioning of the spacecraft;
• 04:12:00 — 02:47:00: Fueling of the launch vehicle;
  • According to Roskosmos, the fueling operations had the following schedule:
  • 06:15 Moscow Time: Loading of 7.1 tons of kerosene aboard Block I (Stage 3);
  • 06:30 Moscow Time: Loading 45 tons of kerosene to Stage 1 and 26.3 tons to Stage 2;
  • 06:40 Moscow Time: Liquid oxygen loading aboard three stages of the launch vehicle (111.6, 63.8 and 15.7 tons);
  • 07:00 Moscow Time: Loading of hydrogen peroxide on 1st and 2nd stages (4.8 and 2.5 tons);
  • 07:55 Moscow Time: Completion of fueling operations, followed by evacuation of fueling equipment.
• 02:32:00: Arrival of the crew to the launch pad;
• 02:27:00 — 02:02:00: Crew boarding aboard the spacecraft;
• 01:30:00 — 00:30:00: Onboard systems checks;
• 00:45:00 — 00:33:00: Access gantry retraction;
• 00:30:00 — 00:15:00: Launch readiness setup;
• 00:25:00: Emergecy escape system activation;
• 00:10:00: Launch vehicle flight control system ready for launch;
• 00:06:00: Issuance of pre-launch commands;
• 00:00:00: Liftoff.

Soyuz MS-18 launch profile

A Soyuz-2-1a rocket carrying the Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft lifted off from Site 31 in Baikonur on April 9, 2021, at 10:42:40.496 Moscow Time (07:42 UTC, 3:42 a.m. EDT).

Propelled by the simultaneous thrust of the four engines of the first stage and the single engine of the second stage, the rocket headed east to align its ascent trajectory with an orbital plane inclined 51.6 degrees toward the Equator. Slightly less than two minutes into the flight, at an altitude of around 45 kilometers and a velocity of 1.75 kilometers per second, the ship's main emergency escape rocket was jettisoned, immediately followed by the separation of the four boosters of the first stage. Around 35 seconds later, as the vehicle exited the dense atmosphere at an altitude of 79 kilometers and a velocity of 2.2 kilometers per second, the payload fairing protecting the spacecraft split into two halves and fell away.

The second (core) stage of the rocket continued firing until 4.8 minutes into the flight. Moments before the second stage completed its work, the four-chamber engine of the third stage ignited, firing through the lattice structure connecting the two stages. Moments after the separation of the core booster at an altitude of 157 kilometers and a velocity of 3.8 kilometers per second, the tail section of the third stage split into three segments and separated as well.

Following an 8-minute 49-second climb to orbit, the third stage of the rocket released Soyuz MS-18 into an initial parking orbit with an average altitude of 210 kilometers at 10:51:30 Moscow Time.

According to Roskosmos, the parameters of the initial orbit should be as following:

At the time, the ISS was orbiting the Earth at an average altitude of around 419 kilometers.

Soyuz MS-18 conducts fast rendezvous

Soyuz MS-18 followed a two-orbit, 3-hour 25-minute rendezvous profile to reach the International Space Station, ISS. The Russian mission control in Korolev planned a total of six maneuvers with the transport ship's engines, which were apparently executed as scheduled:

The timeline of the Soyuz MS-18 rendezvous operations with the ISS on April 9, 2021, was as following:

• 11:46:25 Moscow Time: Beginning of autonomous rendezvous;
• 12:35:23 Moscow Time: Activation of the Kurs rendezvous system aboard the Zvezda Service Module, SM;
• 12:36:23 Moscow Time: Activation of the Kurs rendezvous system aboard the Soyuz MS-18;
• 13:47 — 13:53 Moscow Time: Fly-around of the station;
• 13:53 — 13:56 Moscow Time: Station-keeping;
• 13:56 — 14:07 Moscow Time: Final approach;
• 14:07:36 Moscow Time: Contact.

According to Roskosmos, the spacecraft was scheduled to automatically dock at the MIM1 Rassvet module, a part of the station's Russian Segment, around 14:07:51 Moscow Time (11:07 UTC, 7:07 a.m. EDT) on the day of the launch. The actual docking took place around two minutes earlier, at 14:05:07 Moscow Time, as the two spacecraft were flying over Northern China.

After a series of leak checks, the hatches between the spacecraft and the station were scheduled to be opened according to the following schedule:

• 14:05:02 Moscow Time: Contact;
• 14:05 — 15:02 Moscow Time: Closure of docking port hooks, docking mechanism drive control, air leak checks in the spacecraft compartments, transfer to the Habitation Module, BO;
• 15:02 — 16:00 Moscow Time: Removal and drying of pressure safety suits; docking port air leak checks;
• 16:00 — 16:30 Moscow Time: Pressure equalization between the spacecraft and the station; opening of the transfer hatches; TV report.

In reality, the station side of the hatch was opened around 16:04 Moscow Time, followed by the crew vehicle hatch at 16:20 Moscow Time, as the station was flying over the South Pacific. The arrival of the Soyuz MS-18 crew brought the total population aboard the outpost to 10 people.

Cosmonauts complete the VKD-48 spacewalk

(INSIDER CONTENT)

Two Russian members of Expedition 65 aboard the International Space Station, ISS, ventured on the exterior of the outpost's Russian Segment on June 2, 2021, to lay the groundwork for the arrival of the long-delayed MLM Nauka module this summer. The spacewalk, designated VKD-48, was the first of nearly a dozen sorties outside the ISS dedicated primarily to the integration of the 20-ton spacecraft with the rest of the station. It was 238th spacewalk aboard the ISS and the sixth in 2021.

Soyuz MS-18 makes first docking at Nauka module

On September 28, 2021, Oleg Novitsky, Petr Dubrov and Mark Vande Hei made a short flight in the vicinity of the ISS aboard their Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft, relocating the vehicle from the Rassvet module, MIM1, to the newly arrived Nauka module, MLM. Soyuz MS-18 thus became the first spacecraft docking to Nauka's nadir passive port.

The undocking of Soyuz MS-18 from Rassvet was scheduled at 15:21:30 Moscow Time (8:21 a.m. EDT). Oleg Novitsky was to use manual controls to guide the vehicle to its new docking location on Nauka. The spacecraft was scheduled to first back away toward the American Segment to take photographs of the station for around seven or eight minutes and then dock to Nauka around 16:00 Moscow Time (9 a.m. EDT).

The transport ship was expected to spend around 40 minutes in autonomous flight, backing away to a maximum distance of between 120 and 140 meters from the station.

The maneuver freed the nadir (Earth-facing) docking port on Rassvet for the automated docking of the Soyuz MS-19 spacecraft on Oct. 5, 2021. The docking to Nauka also confirmed that the new module's port was ready to receive the Progress MS-17 cargo ship scheduled to re-dock to the same location on October 23.

According to the Russian mission control in Korolev, re-docking operations had the following timeline:

• 12:20 - 12:40 Moscow Time: Closing of transfer hatches between Soyuz MS-18 and the ISS;
• 12:40 - 13:40 Moscow Time: Pressure checks in the closed hatches between Soyuz MS-18 and MIM1;
• 13:40 - 15:20 Moscow Time: Preparation of the crew for undocking;
• 15:20 - 15:22 Moscow Time: Undocking;
• 15:22 - 15:38 Moscow Time: backing away of Soyuz MS-18 from the station, station-keeping, photography;
• 15:38 - 16:00 Moscow Time: Flyaround, station-keeping, berthing;
• 16:00:00 Moscow Time: Contact.

Ahead of the re-docking flight, the ISS was pitched 90 degrees from its normal position with the Rassvet module pointing against the direction of the flight. The Soyuz undocked as planned (at 15:21:36 Moscow Time, according to Roskosmos) and first moved to a distance of around 45 meters from the ISS. Around 8:30 a.m. EDT, Dubrov moved to the Habitation Module of Soyuz to take panoramic and detailed imagery of the ISS, including of the Nauka module, with prepositioned video and photo cameras. Around five minutes later, Novitsky began maneuvering the spacecraft to a distance of between 120 and 140 meters and around the ISS toward the US Segment. (According to the crew, the maximum distance reached as far as 175 meters, prompting mission control to remind the crew to stay within the required range).

Shortly after 8:40 a.m. EDT, Soyuz began a flyaround toward its approach position to the Nauka module and reached the starting point of the approach bar at around 8:44 a.m. EDT. Around 8:50 a.m., Novitsky moved Soyuz within 45 meters from Nauka, where the spacecraft entered a planned station-keeping position again to give Petr Dubrov a few minutes to get back to his seat in the Descent Module. Around 8:51 a.m. EDT, Dubrov confirmed that he was ready to return to the Descent Module.

Until that point, a large portion of the autonomous flight was performed beyond the capability of live TV coverage.

At around 8:55 a.m. EDT, Soyuz performed a roll maneuver to correctly align itself with Nauka's port and began the final approach. At around 9:03 a.m. EDT, the spacecraft stopped again within just meters from Nauka for about a minute, and after receiving the final "go" for docking from mission control, proceeded with final contact and capture at 9:04:15 a.m. EDT, as the two spacecraft were flying over Osaka, Japan. According to Roskosmos, the hooks in the docking ports between the two vehicles were closed at 16:10:15 Moscow Time (9:10 a.m. EDT).

According to NASA, it was the 20th re-docking of a Soyuz spacecraft in the ISS program and the first at the international outpost since March 2021.

The Russian mission control in Korolev displayed the following timeline for post-docking operations:

• 16:04:10 Moscow Time: Contact;
• 16:04 - 16:19 Moscow Time: Docking operations between Soyuz MS-18 and the ISS;
• 16:19 - 17:10 Moscow Time: Pressure checks aboard Soyuz MS-18. Pressure suits drying;
• 17:10 - 18:25 Moscow Time: Pressure checks in the docking interface between Soyuz MS-18 and the Pressurized Adapter, GA, of the MLM Nauka module;
• 18:25 - 18:45 Moscow Time: Opening of the transfer hatches (between Soyuz MS-18 and Nauka).

Roskosmos confirmed that hatches between Soyuz MS-18 and Nauka's GA compartment had opened at 19:22 Moscow Time (12:22 p.m. EDT).

Soyuz MS-18 returns to Earth

ISS crew gathered for a meal aboard the American Segment on Oct. 8, 2021.

After more than six months serving as a lifeboat for the crew of the International Space Station, the Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft was prepared to complete its mission with undocking and landing in early hours of October 17, 2021, in Kazakhstan. However, Russian cosmonaut Oleg Novitsky was the only member of the original Soyuz MS-18 crew returning home with the ship.

Novitsky piloted the spacecraft on the way back to Earth accompanied by two members of the "movie crew" — an actress Yulia Peresild and a director Klim Shipenko — who arrived at the station 12 days earlier aboard the Soyuz MS-19 spacecraft. In the meantime, two other crew members who were aboard Soyuz MS-18 during its launch — Russian cosmonaut Petr Dubrov and NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei — had to stay aboard the ISS until Spring 2022 to provide return seats for Shipenko and Peresild. During the flight back to Earth, Novitsky occupied center seat inside Soyuz, with Peresild to his right and Shipenko in the left seat.

Novitsky logged 531 days in space during his three missions, including 191 days during the latest flight, while Peresild and Shipenko 12 days each.

Engine firing incident

On October 15, during preparation of the Soyuz MS-18's propulsion system for landing, the vehicle inadvertently fired its thrusters beyond a planned time for the test, which pushed the International Space Station off its normal orientation in space by as much as 57 degrees. The station's attitude control system then counteracted that motion by activating thrusters of a Progress cargo ship and the Zvezda Service Module, both parts of the outpost's Russian Segment.

According to industry sources, the erroneous firing of Soyuz engines was the result of a procedural error in the instructions sent by mission control to Oleg Novitsky ahead of the propulsion system test.

Fortunately, the flight control system aboard the Soyuz spacecraft had a time limit for the engine testing, which generated a cutoff command as soon as the firing consumed all the propellant allocated for the test. Thanks to that, fuel reserves aboard the spacecraft needed for the upcoming landing remained untouched.

Like the previous inadvertent engine firing aboard the Nauka module, shortly after its docking to the ISS in July, the latest incident did not cause any damage to the station, but it was even harder to counteract, because Soyuz MS-18 (docked at the far end of Nauka), had a larger "lever arm" by virtue of its distance from the ISS' center of gravity.

Moreover, the unexpected rotation of the ISS can lead to problems with communications between the station and mission control, because the outpost's Ku-band and S-band antennas are no longer point at the TDRS satellites that relay signals to the ground. As a result, the ISS crew might be on its own responding to the situation. In addition, the station's solar arrays also stop tracking the Sun, even if not completely interrupting flow of electricity into the outpost's batteries as it happens every time, the spacecraft enters the night side of the planet.

Landing timeline

The closure of hatches between the Nauka module and Soyuz MS-18 was scheduled between 00:45 and 01:05 Moscow time on October 17 (5:45 - 6:05 p.m. EDT on October 16) 2021. However, around an hour earlier, Novitsky, Peresild and Shipenko entered the spacecraft and closed the hatch apparently for a movie scene.

The Russian mission control displayed the following timeline in preparation for undocking:

• 01:05 - 02:05 Moscow Time: Transfer hatches pressure checks, suiting up;
• 02:05 - 02:51 Moscow Time: Crew transfer to the Descent Module, hatch closure between the Habitation Module and Descent Module;
• 02:51 - 03:15 Moscow Time: Space suits pressure checks;
• 03:15 - 03:48 Moscow Time: Habitation/Descent modules hatch pressure checks.

Soyuz MS-18 undocked from the station at 04:14 Moscow Time on October 17 (9:14 p.m. EDT on October 16), as the two spacecraft were flying over Northeastern China. The undocking of Soyuz MS-18 marked the end of the long-duration Expedition 65 and start of Expedition 66 aboard the ISS. In the following minutes, the spacecraft performed eight and 15-second separation burns to increase its distance from the ISS.

After a period of the autonomous flight, Soyuz MS-18 turned tail-first around five minutes ahead of the braking engine firing, which started at 06:41:46 Moscow Time on October 17 (11:41 p.m. EDT on October 16). The engine firing was programmed to last for 279 seconds (4 min. 38 sec.) reducing the ship's velocity by 128 meters per second for the reentry into the Earth's atmosphere. Around 10 seconds after the completion of the maneuver, the Habitation Module of the Soyuz spacecraft was depressurized ahead of the separation of the spacecraft's compartments.

The separation of the Habitation Module, BO, and the Aggregate Compartment, PAO, from the Descent Module, SA, carrying the crew, took place at 07:09:13 Moscow Time (12:09 a.m.) on October 17. The capsule with cosmonauts then hit discernable atmosphere at 07:12:07 Moscow Time (12:12 a.m. EDT). After passing through 4.5-minute-long plasma mode starting at around 07:14 Moscow Time, the capsule initiated the parachute deployment sequence at 07:20:42 Moscow Time (12:20 a.m. EDT).

The touchdown of the Descent Module was scheduled at 07:35:42 Moscow Time (12:35 a.m. EDT) on October 17, 2021. According to Roskosmos, the landing took place at 07:35:44 Moscow Time. The primary landing zone was located 148 kilometers (92 miles) southeast of Dzhezkazgan, at a point with coordinates 47 degrees 21 minutes North latitude and 69 degrees 38 minutes East longitude.

In preparation for landing, Russia's Central Military District deployed Siniya Ptitsa amphibious vehicles with search and rescue personnel in primary and backup areas near Dzhezkazgan and Arkalyk. Four vehicles were sent to the primary landing zone and two others to a backup area. In total, more than 200 members of military personnel were involved in search and rescue operations, as well as 12 Mi-8TV-5-1 helicopters, three An-12 and An-26 aircraft and around up to 20 ground vehicles.

According to NASA, weather forecast in the landing area promised clear skies, low winds and the temperature around mid-40F degrees.

Planned timeline for the Soyuz MS-18 landing on October 17, 2021, according to Roskosmos:

*Oct. 16, 2021

Soyuz MS-18 crews:

This page is maintained by Anatoly Zak; Last update: December 8, 2021

Page editor: Alain Chabot; Edits: April 8, September 28, 2021

All rights reserved

The official logo of the Soyuz MS-18 mission celebrating the 60th anniversary of Gagarin's mission. Credit: Roskosmos

Soyuz MS-18 is being installed inside the anechoic chamber at Site 254 on February 4, 2021, for radio system tests. Click to enlarge. Credit: Roskosmos

Soyuz MS-18 is being prepared for integration with its launch vehicle adapter. Click to enlarge. Credit: Roskosmos

Soyuz MS-18 is being integrated with its payload fairing on April 2, 2021. Click to enlarge. Credit: Roskosmos

Members of the primary crew (left to right): Mark Vande Hei, Oleg Novitsky and Petr Dubrov train inside the space station mockup at Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center circa March 2021. Click to enlarge. Credit: Roskosmos

Members of the backup crew (left to right): Anne McClain, Anton Shkaplerov and Oleg Artemiev pose in front of the Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft in Baikonur on April 4, 2021. Click to enlarge. Credit: Roskosmos

Final assembly of the Soyuz-2-1a rocket with the Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft on April 5, 2021. Like the spacecraft, the rocket carried an insignia dedicated to the Gagarin's mission. Click to enlarge. Credit: Roskosmos

Soyuz-2-1a launch vehicle with the Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft rolls out to the launch pad at Site 31 in Baikonur on April 6, 2021. Click to enlarge. Credit: Roskosmos

Access gantry are raised around the Soyuz-2-1a launch vehicle with the Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft shortly after their arrival to the launch pad at Site 31 on April 6, 2021. Click to enlarge. Credit: Roskosmos

Crew board Soyuz MS-18. Click to enlarge. Credit: Roskosmos

Soyuz MS-18 lifts off on April 9, 2021. Click to enlarge. Credit: Roskosmos

Separation of the 3rd stage during the launch of the Soyuz MS-18. Credit: Roskosmos

Soyuz MS-18 as seen from the third stage of the launch vehicle during the separation. Click to enlarge. Credit: Roskosmos

Members of Soyuz MS-18 crew donned their Sokol entry safety suits in preparation for re-docking from Rassvet to Nauka in late September 2021. Click to enlarge. Credit: Roskosmos

Soyuz MS-18 undocks from the Rassvet, MIM1, module to move to the Nauka module on Sept. 28, 2021. Click to enlarge. Credit: NASA