Soyuz TM-32 spacecraft docks with the International Space Station

Being launched from Baikonur cosmodrome on April 28, 2001, the Russian
Soyuz TM-32 transport spacecraft has been docked with the International
Space Station (ISS) following a 2-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 Orbital Complex.

Before the spacecraft approached the station, on April 29, 2001 at 21
hours 34 minutes Moscow Summer Time the Endeavour Space Shuttle separated
from the ISS upon completion of the joint flight program with the ISS.

Having performed a fly-around of the station, the Soyuz T-32 spacecraft
approached a free nadir port of the ISS Russian Segment Functional Cargo
Block (FGB) Zarya.

At 11 hours 58 minutes the spacecraft has come in contact with the nadir
port, when the spacecraft and the ISS were within a visibility zone
of the Russian ground measuring stations.

The spacecraft was piloted by the first visiting crew (VC-1) of the
station, which included the Russian cosmonauts Talgat Musabayev, Yuri
Baturin and the U.S. citizen Dennis Tito.

Upon completion of the mechanical capture, retraction and the interface
leak check operations, the VC-1 crew opened transfer hatches between
the spacecraft and Zarya Module and moved aboard the ISS Russian Segment.

There is the combined crew, the prime crew of the ISS-2 station and
VC-1 crew, onboard the ISS Orbital Complex. The combined crew makeup
is as follows: the Russian cosmonauts Yuri Usachev, Talgat Musabayev,
Yuri Baturin; the US astronauts Jim Voss, Susan Helms and Dennis Tito
as a space flight participant.

Following the docking, the ISS Complex is staying in orbit in the following
content: Soyuz TM-32 spacecraft – Zvezda Service Module – Functional
Cargo Block Zarya – Soyuz TM-31 spacecraft – Unity Module – Destiny
Module. Total mass of the Complex is about 120.2 t.

The Complex is flying in a near-earth orbit with an inclination of 51.6o,
maximum and minimum altitudes 411.4 and 381.1 km, respectively; an orbital
period of 92,3 min.

Onboard systems of the transport spacecraft and the ISS Modules operate
normally. The ISS combined crew is conducting the activities in orbit
under the Flight Program.

Free flight of the Soyuz TM-32 spacecraft was commanded by the Lead
Operational Control Team (LOCT) based in Moscow Mission Control Center
(MCC-M, Korolev) and working in close cooperation with the specialists
from the American Mission Control Center (MCC-H, Houston). The LOCT
involves the managers and leading specialists from RSC Energia after
S. P. Korolev, experts from other enterprises and entities. Flight Director
is Pilot – Cosmonaut V. A. Solovyov.

During the Soyuz TM-32 spacecraft/ISS Complex docking in Moscow MCC-M
(Korolev) there were Yu. P. Semenov, the academician of the Russian
Academy of Sciences, General Designer of RSC Energia after S. P. Korolev;
Technical Director of the Russian Manned Space Programs; specialists
from RSC Energia, the representatives from NASA, ESA and subcontractors
throughout the industry.

Upon completion of the docking process and the crew transfer aboard
the ISS, the news conference was held at MCC-M for the Russian and foreign
journalists of the leading information agencies and TV programs, who
witnessed the docking. The academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Yu. P. Semenov and Flight Director V. A. Solovyov answered the questions
asked by the journalists.