Progress cargo ship to dock to ISS in automatic mode

The International Space Station (ISS) crewmen, Michael Foale and Alexander Kaleri, have tested the TORU Teleoperator Control System ahead of the docking with the Progress cargo ship, due on Saturday 4.20 p.m. Moscow time, said Valery Lyndin, a Russian Mission Control spokesman.

"Yesterday, the crew tested the docking system's manual mode they will switch to in case the Progress fails to dock to the station in the automatic mode," said Mr Lyndin.

The Progress was launched on January 29 from the Baikonur launching site, Kazakhstan. The spacecraft will bring equipment to supplement the onboard systems of Russia's Zarya module, equipment to measure gas composition, underwear, toiletries and parcels.

Moreover, the cargo contains medicines, a toolkit to repair the running track and equipment to monitor the microbiological composition of water.

Besides, the Progress will replenish the station's fuel supply for the orientation control engines, water, containers with foodstuffs, research equipment, two radiation metering devices and new Orlan space suits. The cargo weighs a total of 2,408 kilograms.