[Translator] ...to press the right
and the left buttons Inaudible What did you say,
what do we need to do?
Please come again.
[Commentator] And our first view from cameras
on the International Space Station of the Soyuz
as it continues what so far has been a flawless approach
for docking to the Poisk module.
The two spacecraft travelling 254 statute miles just off the
NE coast of South America moving from SW to NE
in an orbit inclined 51.6 degrees
to either side of the equator.
[Translator] We have reached 40 minus point seven.
The angular size is nominal.
[Commentator] The Soyuz continuing an automated approach
through the Kurs automated rendezvous system.
It is honing in on the beginning of the fly-around which will get
under way just momentarily.
In the Zvezda service module at the control panel
in the unlikely event something would happen
with the Kurs system, Yuri Malenchenko is standing
by to operate the TORU
or telerobotically operated rendezvous unit
to manually fly the Soyuz in, but so far, so good.
Everything functioning perfectly with the 06M spacecraft
under the command of Oleg Novitskiy in the center seat
of the descent module.
And of course this view from station cameras
of the Soyuz spacecraft as its preprogrammed approach begins
to put the brakes on, if you will,
for the start of stationkeeping.
Not quite there yet, just a few meters to go.
The Soyuz solar arrays precisely aligned for final approach
and the eventual contact and capture with the Poisk module.
[Translator] Can you see the station through [inaudible].
Is everything fine?
Everything's fine.
[Commentator] And the visiting vehicle officer
at Mission Control Houston reports the beginning
of stationkeeping at a distance of about 197 meters.
The Soyuz will remain still now
to enable Russian flight controllers here
at the Russian control center here in Korolev an opportunity
to assess the alignment of the forward docking probe
with the Poisk docking port that you see just
above the crosshairs on this engineering view
from the Soyuz external camera.
At the bottom of your screen you're looking
at the Zarya module - the first component, the first element
of the International Space Station that was launch on Nov.
20, 1998 atop a Proton rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome.
Its solar arrays folded like an accordion never
to be used again.
The Zarya drawing power not only from the Russian segment
through the solar arrays on the Zvezda service module but also
from the U.S. segment of the International Space Station.
[Translator] We can see the docking assembly clearly.
Copy. We can see everything's fine through trajectory.
We can see on the station camera.
Copy. [Commentator] Yuri Malenchenko
in the Zvezda service module offering a quick reading
to Novitskiy indicating that everything looks normal
from their perspective inside the International Space Station.
The two craft currently flying over Algeria.
[Translator] 100 and point six range rate.
Copy Two and a half squares is the angular size
of the service module.
We can see the target clearly.
Copy. Range is approximately 35.
The target is aligned and the cross...
Copy. The target is at the center
of the crosshairs, are aligned, copy.
Proceed. The target is at the center.
We are expecting...
[Commentator] Docking confirmed.
Contact and captured confirmed at 7:29 a.m. central time,
4:29 p.m. Moscow time, over the Southern Ukraine.
Three new residents have arrived
at the International Space Station.