South Korean astronaut Yi So-yeon and Russian cosmonaut and flight commander Sergei Volkov wave after putting on a space suit, shortly before boarding the spacecraft, at Baikonur cosmodrome April 8, 2008.
Photo: Reuters
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World's First Spacewoman Saw Off First Spacewoman of South Korea In Tears
World's first woman-cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova burst in tears when seeing off South Korean first astronaut Yi So-yeon, RIA Novosti reported with reference to the telephone conversation with Roskosmos briefer Alexander Vorobiev, who is currently in Baikonur.
“In Baikonur, Alexei Leonov and Valentina Tereshkova were seeing off Russia’s-Korean crew that is to blast off today at 3:16 p.m. from Gagarin’s launching pad. Valentina Vladimirovna's attitude to Yi So-yeon was particularly hearty, she couldn’t keep in the tears of happiness,” Vorobiev said.
Chief of Russia’s space agency Roskosmos Anatoly Perminov introduced Yi So-yeon to Tereshkova yesterday, calling her “the Korean Valentina Tereshkova.”
The ISS mission of the crew includes ensuring docking of U.S. Shuttles, Russia’s Progress cargo spaceships as well as re-docking of Soyuz TMA-12 from Zarya (Dawn) to Zvezda (Star) modules. The cosmonauts will have a spacewalk under Russia’s program. They will also set up a number of scientific experiments, including biological, geophysical, educational and medical ones.
The crew will replace Russia’s cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko and U.S. astronaut Peggy Whitson, who will return to the Earth together with Yi So-yeon on April 19.
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