Image above: The Soyuz TMA-10 spacecraft moves away from the International Space Station shortly after undocking. Credit: NASA TV

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Station crew moves Soyuz

International Space Station crew members docked their Soyuz TMA-10 spacecraft to the aft port of the Zvezda service module at 3:47 p.m. EDT Thursday, completing a move of 80 feet.

During the flight they were traveling at 17,500 mph - almost five miles a second - and went about a third of the way around the world.

Station Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin, Flight Engineers Oleg Kotov and Clay Anderson KD5PLA moved their Soyuz from the Earth-facing port of the station's Zarya module to clear that port for the arrival of Expedition 16.

Peggy Whitson, KC5ZTD

Commander Peggy Whitson KC5ZTD, Flight Engineer Yuri Malenchenko RK3DUP and Malaysian spaceflight participant Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor 9W2MUS are scheduled to launch in their Soyuz TMA-11 craft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan Oct. 10.

Expedition 15's Yurchikhin RN3FI and Kotov, with Shukor aboard, are scheduled to undock their Soyuz for their return to Earth Oct. 21. Their departure will clear the Zvezda aft port for subsequent arrival of a Progress unpiloted cargo carrier.

For the relocation the Soyuz undocked from Zarya at 3:20 p.m. The spacecraft moved away from the station, then parallel to it and finally back to the station and its new docking port.

The station crew members, wearing their Russian Sokol launch and entry suits, reached the Zvezda port 27 minutes after undocking.

Preparations for the move included station crew members putting systems in unmanned configuration. That was done to prepare for the unlikely eventuality that the Soyuz could not redock at the station. If that had occurred, the crew would have had to return to Earth