2009年9月23日星期三

New ISS crew takes final tests before flight

MOSCOW, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) -- The crew members of a new mission to the International Space Station (ISS) started their final tests at a space training center near Moscow Tuesday, news reports said.

During the two-day exams, Russian cosmonaut Maxim Surayev, U.S. astronaut Jeff Williams and their backup crew members will take tests on a ground simulator of the Russian segment of the ISS and on a Soyuz spacecraft simulator.

Canadian billionaire Guy Laliberte, founder and CEO of the world-renowned acrobatic group Cirque du Soleil, will join the mission as a space tourist if he passes the exams.

A special commission will announce the final list of the crew on Thursday.

The mission is scheduled to leave for the ISS in the Soyuz TMA-16 spacecraft on Sept. 30.

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