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 Previous: QRP Community: Low Power Visits the Low Bands (Part 2 of 2) |  Next: The K7RA Solar Update |
 Astronaut Mike Fincke. [NASA Photo] |
NEWINGTON, CT, Feb 6, 2004--After replacing the commander of the next International Space Station crew less than a month ago, NASA and its ISS partners now have announced the assignment of an altogether new crew. The Expedition 9 crew now will consist of astronaut Mike Fincke and cosmonaut Gennady Padalka, RN3DT. Padalka, 45, will serve as Expedition 9 commander and Soyuz commander, while Fincke, 36, will be the NASA ISS science officer and flight engineer. They have been training together as a space station crew for nearly two years, NASA said. Their experience as a team was cited as a primary reason for the personnel shift. The Expedition 10 crew assignments also will change.
"As we've continued to evaluate the best use of crew training and resources, we altered our plans to accommodate a change in the Expedition 9 and 10 crews," NASA Chief Astronaut Kent Rominger said. "After a very thorough evaluation by our partners, I'm confident that these assignments make the very best use of our crew resources and skills and will ensure the flights' full success."
Although not yet licensed, Fincke is
attending a ham radio class and could have his ticket in hand by later this
month--in plenty of time for Expedition 9's April 18 launch. Having an US Amateur
Radio licensee aboard is necessary if the Amateur Radio on the International
Space Station--or ARISS--program is to continue its schedule of school
group contacts via NA1SS.
 Cosmonaut Gennady Padalka, RN3DT. [NASA Photo] |
Last November, NASA and Russia had decided on William McArthur Jr, KC5ACR, as Expedition 9 crew commander and cosmonaut Valery Tokarev as flight engineer for the six-month mission. Last month, however, NASA swapped McArthur for Leroy Chiao, due to a temporary medical issue related to McArthur's qualification for long-duration spaceflight. Chiao and Russian cosmonaut Salizhan Sharipov now have been assigned to Expedition 10, scheduled to launch in October. Chiao also has been studying for his ham radio license while undergoing training in Russia.
Chiao and Sharipov also will serve as the backup for Expedition 9, while McArthur and Tokarev will serve as the Expedition 10 backup crew.
Russia proposed the new Expedition 9 crew assignment to the ISS partners through the Multilateral Crew Operations Panel, which okayed the exchange this week. The decision remains subject to internal review by each agency, NASA said, adding that it anticipates that process to be completed soon.
European Space Agency astronaut Andre Kuipers will join Fincke and Padalka aboard the Soyuz in April. Kuipers will spend about a week aboard the ISS conducting experiments under a commercial agreement between the ESA and Russia. He'll return to Earth with Expedition 8 crewmembers Mike Foale, KB5UAC, and Sasha Kaleri, U8MIR, aboard the Soyuz vehicle now attached to the ISS.
This will mark Fincke's first space flight and Padalka's second. Padalka lived aboard the Russian Mir space station for 198 days in 1999.
During its stay aboard the orbiting research
laboratory, the Expedition 9 crew will conduct scientific studies in earth
sciences, life sciences, fundamental biology and microgravity.--NASA
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