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 April 21, 2004. Korolev, Moscow Region.The Russian Soyuz TMA-4 manned transport spacecraft docked 
                      to the International Space Station (ISS) Orbital Complex.At 09:01 Moscow time the spacecraft came into contact with 
                      the port of the ISS Functional Cargo Block Zarya, when the 
                      spacecraft and Space Station were within the Russian ground 
                      site coverage.
 Following a two-day free flight in near-earth orbit and 
                      upon completion of all the required rendezvous and berthing 
                      operations in an automated mode with respect to the Space 
                      Station, Soyuz TMA-4 spacecraft approached the ISS Orbital 
                      Complex.
 Upon completion of the mechanical capture, retraction and 
                      interface leak check operations, at 10:25 Moscow time the 
                      transfer hatches between the spacecraft and Zarya Module 
                      were open. The spacecraft crew consisting of Russian cosmonaut 
                      Gennady Padalka, U.S. astronaut Michael Fincke, and European 
                      Space Agency Astronaut (ESA), citizen of the Netherlands 
                      Andre Kuipers transferred to the Russian Segment of the 
                      Station.
 The spacecraft fly-around, rendezvous and berthing operations 
                      were observed by the Expedition Eight Crew (ISS-8) and Russian 
                      and U.S. Mission Control Centers personnel, by using the 
                      trajectory measurements, telemetry and television information 
                      from the onboard TV cameras accommodated on the ISS Russian 
                      and U.S. On-orbit Segments.
 The joint International crew consisting of Russian cosmonauts 
                      Alexander Kaleri, (ISS-8 flight engineer), Gennady Padalka 
                      (ISS-9 commander), U.S. astronauts Michael Foale (ISS-8 
                      commander), Michael Fincke (ISS-9 flight engineer) and ESA 
                      astronaut Andre Kuipers (VC-6 flight engineer) stay aboard 
                      the Orbital Complex. They will have to perform a nearly 
                      8-day joint activity onboard the ISS. During this time the 
                      cosmonauts and astronauts will perform planned scientific 
                      and technological investigations and experiments including 
                      the DSM Delta program (ESA).
 At present the ISS Orbital Complex of about 188.1 tons is 
                      operating in orbit in the following configuration: Functional 
                      Cargo Block Zarya, Service Module Zvezda, Docking Module/Compartment 
                      Pirs, manned spacecraft Soyuz TMA-3, Soyuz TMA-4, cargo 
                      vehicle Progress M1-11 (Russian Segment), as well as modules 
                      Unity, Destiny and airlock Quest and multi-link truss structure 
                      with the deployed solar arrays (U.S. On-Orbit Segment).
 The ISS Russian Segment flight is commanded by the Moscow 
                      Mission Control Center (Korolev, Moscow area) in close cooperation 
                      with the American Mission Control Center (Houston, the USA). 
                      The Flight Director is Pilot-Cosmonaut V.A. Soloviev.
 The ISS Complex is flying in a near-earth orbit with the 
                      following parameters: maximum altitude of 387.0 km, minimum 
                      altitude of 356.6 km, orbital period of 91.7 min.
 The onboard systems of the transport spacecraft and station 
                      modules operate normally. The ISS joint crew is performing 
                      on-orbit flight program activities.
 During the Soyuz TMA-4 spacecraft rendezvous and docking 
                      maneuvers with the ISS MCC-M was attended by members of 
                      the State Board (Co-chairmen: N.F. Moiseev, First Deputy 
                      Director of Federal Space Agency, V.A. Grin, First Deputy 
                      General Director of TsNIIMash), Technical management of 
                      manned space programs (Yu. P. Semenov, Technical Director 
                      of Russian Manned Space Programs, General Designer of S.P. 
                      Korolev RSC Energia, Academician of the Russian Academy 
                      of Sciences), as well as representatives of the Russian 
                      enterprises and organizations participating in the implementation 
                      of the ISS program.
 The rendezvous and docking operations were watched by the 
                      representatives of the Federal Space Agency (FSA), NASA, 
                      ESA, CNES, business circles of the Netherlands and France, 
                      leading Russian and foreign information agencies and TV 
                      companies, as well as relatives and friends of the cosmonauts 
                      and astronauts.
 After the docking a press conference for Russian and foreign 
                      mass media representatives was held at MCC-M. The press 
                      conference was attended by N.F. Moiseev and V.A. Grin, co-chairmen 
                      of the State Board, Yu.P. Semenov, Technical Director of 
                      Russian Manned Space Programs, General Designer of S.P. 
                      Korolev RSC Energia, Academician of the Russian Academy 
                      of Sciences, N.A. Anfimov, General Director of TsNII of 
                      Machine-Building, Academician of RAS, V.V.Tsibliev, Director 
                      of Yu.A. Gagarin CTC RGNII, Frederick D. Gregory, NASA Deputy 
                      Administrator, Michael C. Kostelnik, NASA Deputy Associate 
                      Administrator, Office of Space flights, Jorg Feustel-Buechl, 
                      Director of Manned Spaceflight and Microgravity, Yannick 
                      d'Escatha, CNES President, Hans de Groene and Joris van 
                      Enst, representatives of the Ministry of Economic Affairs 
                      and Education of the Netherlands.
 During the first TV contact with the ISS established after 
                      the meeting of the Soyuz TMA-4 and ISS -9 crews, Yu.P. Semenov, 
                      General Designer of S.P. Korolev RSC Energia, Jorg Feustel-Buechl, 
                      Director of Manned SpaceFlight and Microgravity, Frederick 
                      D. Gregory, NASA Deputy Administrator, Hans de Groene and 
                      Joris van Enst, representatives of the Ministry of Economic 
                      Affairs and Education of the Netherlands congratulated Gennady 
                      Padalka, Mike Fincke, Andre Kuipers on the arrival to the 
                      station and wished successful flight program activities 
                      to the joint international crew.
 The ISS-8 crew is scheduled to return to the ground with 
                      Soyuz TMA-3 on 30 April 2004 and land approximately at 04:07 
                      Moscow time.
 Key data on the experiment program to be performed by Expedition 
                      Crew ISS-9 and visiting crew VC-6 is presented in Internet 
                      at RSC Energia site at addresses:www.energia.ru/eng/iss09/res.html,
 www.energia.ru/eng/iss/researches/delta.html.
  
  
  
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