On August 22, 2019 at 03:38 UTC the Russian “Soyuz MS-14” spacecraft was launched from Baykonur Cosmodrome. The space vehicle was orbited by the Russian “Soyuz-2.1a” rocket-carrier. The “Soyuz MS-14” spaceship was launched without a crew. It is the first “Soyuz” crew spacecraft to fly without cosmonauts in 33 years — to allow Russian engineers to conducted a fully automated test flight. The experimental mission is to test the compatibility of the “Soyuz” spacecraft with the upgraded “Soyuz-2.1a” rocket-carrier, a modernized variant of the venerable Russian rocket family that is slated to begin launching crews next March. There was a robot rather than a cosmonaut in the commander’s seat. The spacecraft is to dock with the ISS. Attachments: |