The Soyuz MS-23 spacecraft raised off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 7:24 p.m. EST.
Credit: NASA TELEVISION Following the launch at 7:24 p.m. EST on Thursday, February 23, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, the uncrewed Soyuz spacecraft is safely in orbit headed for the International Space Station (ISS). Soyuz MS-23 is called a “rescue” spacecraft in the media, NASA refers to it as a “replacement.” The ship will return the crew originally indicated to ride Soyuz MS-22 back to Earth, before it was deemed “not practical for a normal team return” because of a radiator coolant leak, After a two-day journey, the unpiloted spacecraft will dock instantly to the Poisk modules space-facing port at 8:01 p.m. Saturday, February 25. NASA coverage of rendezvous and docking will begin at 7:15 p.m. on NASA Television, the NASA app, and the companys site.
In the foreground, is the Soyuz MS-21 team ship docked to the Prichal docking module which is itself attached to the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module. The Soyuz MS-22 transported NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin to the space station last September. The 3 crew members will return to Earth on the brand-new Soyuz MS-23 later on this year.
By NASA
February 24, 2023
Following the launch at 7:24 p.m. EST on Thursday, February 23, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, the uncrewed Soyuz spacecraft is securely in orbit headed for the International Space Station (ISS). NASA coverage of rendezvous and docking will start at 7:15 p.m. on NASA Television, the NASA app, and the firms website.
The Soyuz MS-22 carried NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin to the space station last September.
The damaged Soyuz MS-22 is arranged to undock from the station in late March and return to Earth for an uncrewed parachute-assisted landing in Kazakhstan, and post-flight analysis by Roscosmos.