NASA
astronaut Jeffrey Williams tries out a seat custom-made for his trip to the
International Space Station (ISS) next week.
Williams,
flight engineer for Expedition
13 set to launch on March 29 EST, is destined for a six-month tour aboard
the ISS with cosmonaut station commander Pavel Vinogradov (upper right) and
Brazilian astronaut Marcos Pontes (center).
All three men are shown clad in their Russian-built Sokol
spacesuits, and must make sure their custom-fitted "couches" fit properly
before they launch spaceward aboard their Soyuz TMA-8 spacecraft. Vinogradov
and Williams will replace the station's current crew - Expedition 12
commander Bill McArthur and flight engineer Valery Tokarev - who have been
living aboard the ISS since October 2005.
Pontes, Brazil's first astronaut, will spend about eight days aboard the ISS before returning to
Earth with the Expedition 12 crew on April 8, NASA officials said.
-- SPACE.com Staff
Credit: RSC Energia.
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