Russia Readies ISS Space Freighter Launch

RIA Novosti

17:41 23/01/2012

MOSCOW, January 23 (RIA Novosti) - A Soyuz-U launch vehicle carrying the Progress M-14M cargo spacecraft will be transported to a launch site at the Baikonur space center on Tuesday, Russian space agency Roscosmos said.

“A state commission has approved the transfer of the Soyuz-U rocket carrying the Progress M-14M cargo spacecraft from an assembly hangar to the launch pad Number 1,” Roscosmos said in a statement on Monday.

The Soyuz rocket with the Progress M-14M space freighter will blast off on January 26 to deliver 2.5 metric tons of supplies to the International Space Station (ISS).

The cargo includes fuel, water and food supplies, as well as scientific equipment.

Progress-family freighters have been the backbone of the Russian space cargo fleet for decades. In addition to their main mission as cargo spacecraft, they are used to adjust the ISS's orbit and conduct scientific experiments.