MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

ISS Welcomes 3 New Crew Members Aboard

Soyuz capsule docks with International Space Station.

Three new crew members from the U.S., Russia and Japan became the newest additions to the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday, arriving in Russia's Soyuz spacecraft after nearly a six-hour journey from Kazakhstan. NASA announced Soyuz Commander Oleg Kononenko, Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui and NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren arrived one minute ahead of schedule at 10:45 p .m. EDT. The three men join NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko and Expedition 44 Commander Gennady Padalka. NASA added the port solar array did not actually deploy as first reported, but the error didn't cause any problems on the trip or docking at ISS.