Russia's Soyuz MS-17 spacecraft reaches ISS in record time

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 14:27, October 15, 2020

MOSCOW, Oct. 14 (Xinhua) -- The Russian spacecraft Soyuz MS-17 has successfully reached the International Space Station (ISS), setting a new world record for its journey to the orbital complex in three hours and three minutes, the Russian state space corporation Roscosmos said in a statement on Wednesday.

"For the first time in the world, a manned spacecraft docked to the ISS, having completed only two orbits around the Earth," the statement read.

"In addition, a new record was set for flights to the International Space Station. The total time from launch to docking of the Soyuz MS-17 was 3 hours and 3 minutes," it added.

The Russian spacecraft, launched earlier in the day from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, carried a crew of three, namely two Roscosmos astronauts Sergei Ryzhikov and Sergei Kud-Sverchkov, and NASA astronaut Kate Rubins, the Roscosmos reported.

"The previous record belongs to the Progress MS-15 cargo ship, which took 3 hours and 18 minutes," it added.