An? unmanned Russian cargo vessel failed to? dock with the? International Space Station early Tuesday morning due to? technical complications.
The? Progress craft had separated from? the space station Sunday to? perform a? series of? engineering tests and? was due to? try out an? upgraded docking system that will facilitate future Russian missions to? the station, U.S. space agency NASA said in? a statement on? its website.
NASA scientists said two separate docking attempts had failed, the first at around 4:30 a.m. Moscow time and the? second at 6 a.m., and? that the? failures appeared to? be caused by? the new Kurs-NA docking system.
The system, which transfers to microprocessors the function of processing certain signals, replaced the Kurs-A and is twice as light and uses three times less electricity than its predecessor.
A? source in? the Russian Mission Control Center told Interfax that its scientists were analyzing the? problem, adding that the? Progress craft was at? a safe distance from? the station when it automatically aborted the docking process.
The? Progress M-15M craft will reattempt docking Sunday and will not interfere with the Friday arrival to the space station of a? Japanese Harmony cargo ship, since mission control in Moscow has moved its supply vessel about 400 kilometers from the station, the Federal Space Agency said in a statement.
Out of? a team of? six, there are currently three Russian astronauts living and? carrying out tests on? the space station: Gennady Padalka, Sergei Revin and? Yury Malenchenko.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.