When the Expedition 11 crew – NASA astronaut John Phillips and Russian cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev – arrive at the International Space Station in April, they’ll be wearing this crew patch emphasizing the importance of international cooperation. The ISS image shows the configuration of the orbiting Station at the start of the expedition, with docked Soyuz and Progress vehicles and the huge American solar panels. The names of Commander Krikalev and Flight Engineer Phillips appear at the margin.
The crew, expected to be in orbit when the Shuttle Discovery visits on its Return to Flight mission, describes the patch this way: “The beauty of our home planet and the vivid contrasts of the space environment are shown by the blue and green Earth with the Space Station orbiting overhead, and by the bright stars, dark sky, and dazzling sun.”Image Credit: NASA+ Return to Flight