Satellite News

The transportation spacecraft Soyuz TMA-17M carrying an international crew of Expedition ISS-44/45, consisting of Roskosmos cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko, Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui and U.S. astronaut Kjell Lindgren, has successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS). However, just as last year during the launch of Soyuz TMA-14M, one of the vessel’s solar panels did not initially deploy.

Payload preparations for Arianespace’s next Ariane 5 launch are now in full swing, with the mission’s two satellite passengers – Eutelsat 8 West B and Intelsat 34 – undergoing checkout procedures at the Spaceport in French Guiana.