Launch Photos: Space Station's Expedition 41/42 Crew Blasts Off

Farewell, Earth: Soyuz TMA-14M Launch

NASA/Joel Kowsky

A Russian Soyuz rocket launched three new members of the International Space Station's Expedition 41 crew at 4:25 p.m. EDT (2025 GMT) on Sept. 25, 2014. See photos of the launch here in this Space.com gallery. HERE: A Soyuz TMA-14M spacecraft launches on time carrying a new Expedition 41 trio to their new home on orbit. Liftoff occurred on Sept. 26, 2014 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

Soyuz TMA-14M: One Solar Wing

NASA TV

A Soyuz TMA-14M spacecraft, with only one of its two solar arrays deployed, is seen nearing the International Space Station on Sept. 25, 2014 (Eastern Time) to deliver three new members of the Expedition 41 crew. The stuck solar array did not hinder the Soyuz capsule's single-day trip to the space station.

Liftoff for Soyuz TMA-14M

NASA/Aubrey Gemignani

A Russian Soyuz TMA-14M rocket launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Friday, Sept. 26, 2014 carrying Expedition 41 Soyuz Commander Alexander Samokutyaev of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos), Flight Engineer Barry Wilmore of NASA, and Flight Engineer Elena Serova of Roscosmos into orbit to begin their five and a half month mission on the International Space Station.

Liftoff for Soyuz TMA-14 to the ISS

NASA TV

The Soyuz rocket blasts off from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, where the local time at launch was 2:25 a.m. on Sept. 26. Read our launch story here.

NASA Astronaut Butch Wilmore: Space-bound

NASA TV

NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore gives a thumb's up sign while rocketing into space aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft that launched at 2:25 a.m. local time on Sept. 26, 2014 at Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Read our launch story here.

Soyuz TMA-14M Crew Waves Farewell

NASA/Joel Kowsky

Three new crewmembers for the International Space Station wave farewell at their Baikonur Cosmodrome launch pad in Kazakhstan on Sept. 25, 2014. The Expedition 41 crew seen here is: Russian Soyuz commander Alexander Samokutyaev (bottom), NASA astronaut Barry Wilmore (center) and cosmonaut Elena Serova. Read our launch story here.

Space Station Crew Waves Farewell

NASA/Aubrey Gemignani

Expedition 41 Soyuz Commander Alexander Samokutyaev of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos), bottom, Flight Engineer Barry "Butch" Wilmore of NASA, middle, and Elena Serova of Roscosmos, top, wave farewell prior to boarding the Soyuz TMA-14M spacecraft for launch, Thursday, Sept. 25, 2014 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Read our launch story here.

Soyuz TMA-14M Crew Press Conference

NASA/Aubrey Gemignani

NASA astronaut Barry Wilmore (left) and Russian cosmonauts Alexander Samokutyaev and Elena Serova pose for a crew photo after press conference held at the Cosmonaut Hotel in Baikonur, Kazakhstan on Sept. 24, 2014. They will launch from Baikonur Cosmodrome on Sept. 26 local time (Sept. 25 U.S. Eastern Time). Read our launch story here.

Meet the Press: Expedition 41

NASA/Joel Kowsky

Expedition 41 prime crew members Flight Engineer Barry Wilmore of NASA, far left, Soyuz Commander Alexander Samokutyaev of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos), second left, and Flight Engineer Elena Serova, of Roscosmos, center, pose for a picture with Expedition 41 backup crew members Flight Engineer Scott Kelly of NASA, third right, Soyuz Commander Gennady Padalka of Roscosmos, second right, and Flight Engineer Mikhail Kornienko of Roscosmos, far right, at the conclusion of a press conference, Wednesday, September 24, 2014, at the Cosmonaut Hotel in Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Read our launch story here.

Soyuz TMA-14M Crew Portrait

RSC Energia

NASA astronaut Barry "Butch" Wilmore (left) and Russian cosmonauts Alexander Samokutyaev (center) and Elena Serova pose with their Soyuz TMA-14M spacecraft ahead of a September 2014 launch to the International Space Station. Read our launch story here.

Soyuz Rocket Size in Detail

NASA/Joel Kowsky

This NASA photo gives a sense of scale of Russia's Soyuz rocket, which launches the Soyuz crew capsules to the International Space Station. Here, the rocket carrying the Soyuz TMA-14M spacecraft is rolled out to the launch pad by train on Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2014 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Read our launch story here.

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Tariq Malik
Editor-in-Chief

Tariq is the Editor-in-Chief of Space.com and joined the team in 2001, first as an intern and staff writer, and later as an editor. He covers human spaceflight, exploration and space science, as well as skywatching and entertainment. He became Space.com's Managing Editor in 2009 and Editor-in-Chief in 2019. Before joining Space.com, Tariq was a staff reporter for The Los Angeles Times covering education and city beats in La Habra, Fullerton and Huntington Beach. In October 2022, Tariq received the Harry Kolcum Award for excellence in space reporting from the National Space Club Florida Committee. He is also an Eagle Scout (yes, he has the Space Exploration merit badge) and went to Space Camp four times as a kid and a fifth time as an adult. He has journalism degrees from the University of Southern California and New York University. You can find Tariq at Space.com and as the co-host to the This Week In Space podcast with space historian Rod Pyle on the TWiT network. To see his latest project, you can follow Tariq on Twitter @tariqjmalik.