NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Pre-launch Checkout

Expedition 10 Commander Leroy Chiao (right), Flight Engineer Salizhan Sharipov (center) and Russian Space Forces Cosmonaut Yuri Shargin (left) donned their launch and entry suits and climbed aboard their Soyuz TMA-5 spacecraft October 5, 2004 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan for a dress rehearsal of launch day activities. They're set to launch for the International Space Station late on October 13 (Eastern time). Chiao and Sharipov will spend six months on the Station, while Shargin will return to Earth October 24 with the Station's current residents, Expedition 9 Commander Gennady Padalka and Flight Engineer Mike Fincke.

Photo Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls

+ Larger Image | + Spacewalk Training | + Mission Patch | + Crew Portrait | + More on Expedition 10