Russian piloted spaceship Soyuz TMA-1 has docked with the International Space Station

At 08:01, Moscow time, on Friday, the Russian piloted spaceship Soyuz TMA-1, which was launched last Wednesday from the Baikonur cosmodrome, docked with the International Space Station (ISS), RIA Novosti was told in the Mission Control.

The docking of the spaceship with the station took place normally in an automatic regime.

The crew of the Soyuz TMA-1 spaceship, consisting of commander - Russian cosmonaut Sergei Zaletin, flight engineer - Russian cosmonaut Yury Lonchakov, and flight engineer - astronaut of the European Space Agency Colonel of the Belgian Air Force Frank De Winne, have arrived in the station on a short-term visit.

The aim of this one-week visit to the station is to replace the Soyuz TM-34 "ship of safety," which is now on the station and which has exhausted its resource, with the Soyuz TMA-1, as well as to make a number of scientific research and technical experiments on board the International Space Station.

The crew is expected to return to the Earth on the night of November 10th, reported the Mission Control.