Soyuz Takes First Korean Into Space
BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan — A Russian capsule carrying two cosmonauts and Korea’s first astronaut blasted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome Tuesday, en route to the international space station.
The Soyuz TMA-12 craft lifted off on time, roaring into the evening skies over Kazakhstan’s barren steppes before turning down range and entering its preliminary orbit about 10 minutes later.
South Korean bioengineer Yi So-yeon, 29, and cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Sergei Volkov will spend two days in the cramped capsule before docking at the orbiting station. It’s the first space flight for all three, including Volkov, the son of a decorated Soviet-era cosmonaut.
Live footage broadcast from inside the capsule showed Yi smiling, waving and giving the thumbs-up sign.
“Everything is in order,” Volkov said.
The U.S. space agency NASA said Yi was the world’s youngest-ever female astronaut.
Hundreds of Korean, Russian and U.S. officials, relatives and other onlookers watched, mostly in silence, as the rocket climbed slowly over the launch pad. Yi’s mother, Jung Kum-suk, screamed, then collapsed into the arms of her husband, and four medics in jumpsuits rushed to help her.
“I have no religion, but I pray for the success of the flight,” said Ko San, the Korean scientist who was Yi’s backup for the launch.
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Thursday, April 10th, 2008 at 7:15 pm under