Watch U.S.-Russian astronaut team launch from Kazakhstan toward International Space Station


A crew of three astronauts blasted off Wednesday afternoon, embarking on a flight from Kazakhstan to the International Space Station, where they will spend five months conducting research.
The Soyuz MS-08 rocket successfully launched NASA astronauts Drew Feustel and Ricky Arnold, along with Russian cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev, into space. The crew will orbit the Earth for two days, before docking at the ISS on Friday, where they will join three other astronauts, who are from Russia, Japan, and the United States.
Once all six members are at the station, NASA reports, they will conduct research to test how certain materials react to a space environment, study the effects of microgravity on bone marrow, and develop the "Veggie" plant growth facility that provides astronauts with "salad-type crops."
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Watch the liftoff below, via CBC News. Summer Meza
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Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.
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