In an unusual situation, Roscosmos launched the Soyuz MS-14 crew vehicle without any humans aboard. The move is testing critical upgrades to the Soyuz MS series spacecraft, specifically the vehicle’s abort system interface with the upgraded Soyuz 2.1a rocket which will take over crew launch duties next year.

While no humans were aboard, Soyuz MS-14 carried a humanoid robot, called Skybot, up to the International Space Station. While the liftoff – from Site No. 31/6 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, at 23:38:31 EDT on Wednesday – was nominal. The docking on Saturday was aborted ahead of final approach due to issues with the KURS rendezvous system on the ISS. Following a relocation of Soyuz MS-13, MS-14 docked on Monday night.

No humans for Soyuz MS-14:

Soyuz MS-14 was purposely not carrying any humans to orbit, instead acting as a test vessel to perform in-flight verification and validation of new motion control and navigation systems, a revamped descent control system, and a new abort system software interface with the Soyuz 2.1a carrier rocket.

This non-human test flight is necessary to clear the way for Russian crew launch transition from the Soyuz-FG to the Soyuz 2.1a rocket beginning in Spring 2020.

The Soyuz 2.1a rocket was designed from the outset to be a crew launch vehicle; however, delays to its introduction led to the creation of the Soyuz-FG rocket to bridge the gap between the aging Soyuz-U and the Soyuz 2.1a.

With Soyuz 2.1a now in steady operation and ready to assume crew flight duties, Roscosmos is conducting this non-human mission to verify that the Soyuz MS spacecraft’s Launch Abort System will not trigger when the Soyuz 2.1a rocket rolls onto the proper azimuth (heading) after liftoff.

Prior crew vehicle launches from Russia utilized the Soyuz-U and Soyuz-FG rockets, which both used analog Flight Control Systems. Those systems were incapable of rolling the rocket onto course after launch.

Therefore, the Soyuz-U and Soyuz-FG rockets had to literally be turned on their launch pad to the correct launch azimuth so that all the rocket had to do after liftoff was simply pitch over onto the proper trajectory.

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As such, the Soyuz MS crew spacecraft’s Launch Abort System was designed so that if it detected a roll in the rocket’s orientation it would trigger the abort system to pull the crew away from what would be a failing rocket.

But the Soyuz 2.1a uses digital Flight Control Systems and performs a roll to align itself to the correct launch azimuth after lifting off.

That creates a disconnect between the Soyuz 2.1a rocket and the Soyuz MS-series crew vehicle.

To account for this, Roscosmos has designed a software patch that will now be tested in-flight with Soyuz MS-14.

Essentially, this patch tells the Soyuz MS-14’s flight computers that a roll after liftoff is “Okay” and to not trigger an abort when the roll program begins.

The Launch Abort System for the Soyuz is a critical safety feature – as seen in October 2018 when the Soyuz MS-10 mission aborted at booster separation because of a critical failure of the Soyuz-FG rocket.

The abort saved the lives of the two crewmembers, who are currently on the International Space Station having relaunched on their mission in March 2019.

Здравствуйте, друзья! Сегодня учился открывать бутылку минеральной воды и подносить её к технологическому отверстию, которые вы называете ртом pic.twitter.com/pfrjyHXCih — FEDOR (@FEDOR37516789) July 28, 2019

In addition to the abort system test, this mission is performing in-flight testing of a new navigation system and a revamped descent control system. This will rigorously test these new systems that will be standard on the upcoming Soyuz GVK uncrewed cargo spacecraft that is set to debut in 2022.

A detailed launch to docking rendezvous timeline is available on L2.

While the flight was proceeding without issue, the final leg of its arrival suffered an issue when the KURS system failed to lock on to the Soyuz, resulting in the spacecraft slewing ahead of final approach.

KURS won't lock on for final approach. Soyuz MS-14 is basically slewing all over the place. Won't be final approach unless this is corrected. pic.twitter.com/4peFya8LS0 — Chris B – NSF (@NASASpaceflight) August 24, 2019

With the crew losing sight of the vehicle and having to find it by looking out of the window, controllers in Houston called up to make sure the US crew was awake, as the situation became slightly tense. However, there was no immediate danger to the ISS given the Soyuz was not approaching as final approach was not commanded.

An abort was commanded and the Soyuz began to depart the region surrounding the ISS, called the Keep Out Zone.

Soyuz MS-14 still departing. Aborted docking attempt. KURS failed to lock on and the Russian ISS crew lost track of it. ABORT commanded. MS-14 does not have a TORU back up system. pic.twitter.com/wxrdmxfhmp — Chris B – NSF (@NASASpaceflight) August 24, 2019

The issue was the result of a problem on the ISS – the KURS signal amplifier – as opposed to the Soyuz itself. This system will be replaced while another attempt to dock the Soyuz will take place next week.

However, this will be via a convoluted plan, where the Russian crew enter Soyuz MS-13, move it to another port and then make a second attempt to dock Soyuz MS-14 on the vacated port.

The first part – the relocation of Soyuz MS-13 – was successfully completed.

REDOCKING: Manual relocation of Soyuz MS-13 has been successful. Now Soyuz MS-14 can arrive in less than 24 hours time. pic.twitter.com/bCbbWw5aF6 — Chris B – NSF (@NASASpaceflight) August 26, 2019

Soyuz MS-14 then evenutally followed the mitigation path by docking with the vacated spot on Monday.

A robotic crewmember for Soyuz and the Station:

While Soyuz MS-14 was not carrying humans to space, it does have a crewmember.

Skybot F-850, formerly known simply as FEDOR (Final Experimental Demonstration Object Research), is a Russian humanoid robot – complete with arms and legs – built to replicate the movements of a remote operator.

Skybot can also conduct some actions autonomously.

The robotic humanoid will – in part – provide G-force and temperature information inside Soyuz during the various phases of launch and rendezvous with the Station.

After the rendezvous with the Station, Skybot will be brought inside the ISS where a series of movement tests – both commanded by the Russian crew and autonomously performed – will be carried out by the Russian crew during the robot’s 2 week mission.

In addition to the motion tests, Skybot will also test its voice program and ability to communicate with the Station’s Russian crew. It will also assist the crew with certain task in order to assess the robot’s ability to function in microgravity.

In so doing, Skybot will become the second semi-autonomous robotic humanoid to carry out a mission aboard the Station.

The first was NASA’s Robonaut2.

Unfortunately, the two ISS robotic crewmembers will not meet each other as Robonaut2 is currently on Earth undergoing final upgrades before re-launching to the Station.

After two weeks on Station, Skybot will be placed back inside the Soyuz MS-14’s Descent Module. Soyuz will then undock from the ISS on 6 September for landing back in Kazakhstan.

During Deorbit, Reentry, and Landing, Skybot will once again provide G-force and temperature regime information.

This is currently Skybot’s only planned mission to the Station, though Russian officials have not ruled out a much longer follow-up mission should this one prove successful.

Skybot and Robonaut2 – the ISS’s robotic crewmembers:

Skybot – in a sense – is the Russian cousin of NASA’s Robonaut2 robotic humanoid.

Robonaut2 launched to the International Space Station on 24 February 2011 on the Space Shuttle Discovery’s STS-133 mission.

After 7 years in space, Robonaut2 returned to Earth on 5 May 2018 on the CRS-14 SpaceX Dragon for maintenance, repairs, and upgrades.

At the CRS-14 pre-launch news conference, NASA stated that the plan was to relaunch Robonaut2 in “about a year.”

Now a little more than a year later, NASASpaceflight checked on the status of Robonaut2. In response, NASA said, “As of now, Robonaut2 is targeted for a return to the International Space Station no earlier than (NET) late 2019. Teams continue to prepare Robonaut2 for on-orbit tasks, complete fit checks and train future crew members heading to station.”

Based on the “late 2019” relaunch date, two options are available: The NG-12 Cygnus flight from Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems, which is targeting a NET 21 October launch, or the SpaceX CRS-19 Dragon mission, currently targeting launch NET 4 December. </s> If you would like to see more articles like this please support our coverage of the space program by becoming a Spaceflight Now Member . If everyone who enjoys our website helps fund it, we can expand and improve our coverage further.

With a robot rather than a cosmonaut in the commander’s seat, a Russian Soyuz spacecraft rocketed into orbit from Kazakhstan late Wednesday (U.S. time) en route to the International Space Station on a critical test flight before crews begin riding an upgraded Soyuz booster next year.

A Soyuz-2.1a rocket fired into a clear sky over Site 31 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 11:38:32 p.m. EDT Wednesday (0338:32 GMT; 8:38:32 a.m. local time Thursday), right on time to launch on a trajectory to intercept the space station.

The kerosene-fueled launcher arced toward the east-northeast from Baikonur, shedding its four first stage boosters and launch escape system less than two minutes after liftoff. An aerodynamic shroud later released from the Soyuz spacecraft, and the Soyuz core stage shut down and fell away nearly five minutes into the mission.

On-board video views showed the rocket’s staging events occurring as intended, and a third stage RD-0110 engine powered the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft into orbit. The capsule deployed from the third stage nearly nine minutes into the flight, and the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft’s solar arrays and navigation antennas unfurled moments later, just as they would on a mission carrying a crew to the space station.

But the Soyuz MS-14 spaceship launched without a crew — the first Soyuz crew craft to fly without cosmonauts in 33 years — to allow Russian engineers to conducted a fully automated test flight. The experimental mission was conceived to test the compatibility of the Soyuz spacecraft with the upgraded Soyuz-2.1a booster, a modernized variant of the venerable Russian rocket family that is slated to begin launching crews next March.

The Soyuz-2.1a rocket variant has launched dozens of times since 2004, including ten flights with Progress cargo freighters on missions to resupply the space station.

But one of the Progress supply ships launched on a Soyuz-2.1a booster in April 2015 went into an uncontrolled spin after separating from the Soyuz third stage. Russian engineers traced the failure to a botched deployment of the Progress spacecraft from the Soyuz third stage.

The 2015 Progress accident prompted Russian officials to fly the first Soyuz crew capsule on a Soyuz-2.1a rocket without people aboard.

The Soyuz-FG variant currently used to launch Soyuz crews to the space station is set for retirement later this year.

One more Soyuz-FG rocket remains in Russia’s inventory, and it is scheduled to launch Sept. 25 carrying the Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft into orbit with commander Oleg Skripochka, NASA co-pilot Jessica Meir and flight engineer Hazzaa Ali Almansoori, set to become the first person from the United Arab Emirates to fly in space.

The Sept. 25 launch of the Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft is the final planned mission to lift off from Site 1 at Baikonur, the same facility used on the launch of Yuri Gagarin on humanity’s first orbital flight in April 1961.

Beginning next March, Soyuz crews will launch on Soyuz-2.1a boosters from Site 31 at Baikonur, which is outfitted for the upgraded Soyuz-2 family.

The Soyuz-2.1a’s upgrades include a modernized digital flight control system, replacing the analog guidance system on older Soyuz models, along with improvements to engine injection systems.

The digital control system allows the Soyuz-2.1a rocket to execute a roll program a few seconds after liftoff to reach the correct azimuth to align its flight path with the space station’s orbit. The Soyuz-FG rocket currently used to launch Soyuz crews has to be rotated into the correct orientation on the launch pad before liftoff.

After its successful ride into space, the Soyuz MS-14 vehicle will raise its altitude and match its orbit with the space station, setting up for a docking with the Poisk module at 0530 GMT (1:30 a.m. EDT) Saturday.

Instead of a crew, the Soyuz MS-14 spaceship is hauling 1,450 pounds (657 kilograms) of cargo to the space station, including the Russian Skybot F-850 robot, a two-legged, two-armed humanoid stand-in for a cosmonaut commander.

Skybot F-850 sat in the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft’s center seat during launch, holding a Russian flag in one hand. Soon after reaching orbit, an in-cabin video feed showed the robot turning its head side-to-side.

The Skybot F-850 will not manipulate any flight controls during the Soyuz mission, but sensors on the robot’s body will measure key parameters — such as acceleration, vibrations, temperature and humidity — during the flight, including launch, docking and landing.

Alexander Bloshenko, a science advisor at Roscosmos, said the Skybot F-850 robot will conduct experiments at the space station prepared by Russian engineers.

Russian cosmonaut Alexander Skvortsov will work with Skybot F-850 after it arrives at the station. Skvortsov will be able to communicate with the robot, according to Roscosmos.

Cosmonauts will move Skybot F-850 will into the space station for five days of experiments and tests, before returning the robot to the Soyuz capsule for the trip back to Earth, according to Rob Navias, a NASA spokesperson.

Measuring nearly 6 feet (1.8 meters) tall and weighing about 350 pounds (160 kilograms), Skybot F-850 will replicate the movements of Skvortsov during a series of tests in orbit. If the tests are successful, Russia could launch upgraded robots that could work outside the space station, helping crews with tasks on spacewalks, or allowing cosmonauts to avoid spacewalks altogether, Bloshenko said.

The Skybot F-850 robot is an evolution of Russia’s FEDOR series of robots, which engineers originally developed for rescue operations. Videos from ground testing have shown the FEDOR robot shooting guns, lifting weights and driving a car.

The Russian Foundation for Advanced Research Projects, with a role similar to DARPA in the U.S. government, led the development of the FEDOR robot. FEDOR stands for Final Experimental Demonstration Object Research.

Skybot F-850 is not the first robot to travel to the space station.

NASA’s experimental Robonaut 2 robot launched to the station in 2011, but the robot returned to Earth last year in need of repairs. Robonaut 2 could return to the space station later this year.

Roscosmos created a Twitter account for the Russian robot set to fly to the station, complete with tweets composed from Skybot F-850’s point-of-view.

In one tweet, it wrote that conditions inside the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft were tight. The robot can “barely fit among the cargo in the cabin” of the spaceship, the tweet said.

The Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft will remain at the space station for more than 13 days. The spaceship — with Skybot F-850 — will undock from the Poisk module at 2:13 p.m. EDT (1813 GMT) on Sept. 6, heading for a parachute-assisted landing in south-central Kazakhstan at 5:35 p.m. EDT (2135 GMT).

Navias said the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft will also test new systems during re-entry and landing, which could pave the way for Russia to develop a payload return vehicle based on the Soyuz design.

SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft is currently the only vehicle capable of returning significant cargo to Earth from the space station. There is limited room for crews to bring home equipment or experiment specimens inside the cramped Soyuz descent module. </s> If you would like to see more articles like this please support our coverage of the space program by becoming a Spaceflight Now Member . If everyone who enjoys our website helps fund it, we can expand and improve our coverage further.

An unpiloted Russian Soyuz spacecraft, with a humanoid robot in the commander’s seat instead of a cosmonaut, is scheduled for liftoff late Wednesday (U.S. time) from Kazakhstan on a test flight to verify the spaceship’s compatibility with the new-generation Soyuz-2.1a rocket set to begin launching crews to the International Space Station next year.

Flying without a crew, the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft set for launch from Site 31 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 11:38:31 p.m. EDT Wednesday (0338:31 GMT; 8:38:31 a.m. local time Thursday) to kick off a two-day pursuit of the space station.

The Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft will be the first Soyuz ship to fly without a cosmonaut crew in 33 years. Officials from Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, decided to conduct the unpiloted launch as a full-up test flight of the Soyuz-2.1a rocket with the Soyuz spacecraft.

The Soyuz-2.1a rocket variant has launched dozens of times since 2004, including ten flights with Progress cargo freighters on missions to resupply the space station.

But one of the Progress supply ships launched on a Soyuz-2.1a booster in April 2015 went into an uncontrolled spin after separating from the Soyuz third stage. Russian engineers traced the failure to a botched deployment of the Progress spacecraft from the Soyuz third stage.

The 2015 Progress accident prompted Russian officials to fly the first Soyuz crew capsule on a Soyuz-2.1a rocket without people aboard.

The Soyuz-FG variant currently used to launch Soyuz crews to the space station is set for retirement later this year.

One more Soyuz-FG rocket remains in Russia’s inventory, and it is scheduled to launch Sept. 25 carrying the Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft into orbit with commander Oleg Skripochka, NASA co-pilot Jessica Meir and flight engineer Hazzaa Ali Almansoori, set to become the first person from the United Arab Emirates to fly in space.

The Sept. 25 launch of the Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft is the final planned mission to lift off from Site 1 at Baikonur, the same facility used on the launch of Yuri Gagarin on humanity’s first orbital flight in April 1961.

Beginning next March, Soyuz crews will launch on Soyuz-2.1a boosters from Site 31 at Baikonur, which is outfitted for the upgraded Soyuz-2 family.

The Soyuz-2.1a’s upgrades include a modernized digital flight control system, replacing the analog guidance system on older Soyuz models, along with improvements to engine injection systems.

After launching from Kazakhstan, the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft will raise its altitude and match its orbit with the space station, setting up for a docking with the Poisk module at 0530 GMT (1:30 a.m. EDT) Saturday.

Instead of a crew, the Soyuz MS-14 spaceship will haul 1,450 pounds (657 kilograms) of cargo to the space station, including the Russian Skybot F-850 robot, a two-legged, two-armed humanoid stand-in for a cosmonaut commander.

The Skybot F-850 will not manipulate any flight controls during the Soyuz mission, but sensors on the robot’s body will measure key environmental parameters during the flight, including launch, docking and landing.

Alexander Bloshenko, a science advisor at Roscosmos, said the Skybot F-850 robot will conduct experiments at the space station prepared by Russian engineers.

Russian cosmonaut Alexander Skvortsov will work with Skybot F-850 after it arrives at the station. Skvortsov will be able to communicate with the robot, according to Roscosmos.

Skybot F-850 will copy the movements of Skvortsov during a series of tests in orbit. If the tests are successful, Russia could launch upgraded robots that could work outside the space station, helping crews with tasks on spacewalks, or allowing cosmonauts to avoid spacewalks altogether, Bloshenko said.

The Skybot F-850 robot is an evolution of Russia’s FEDOR series of robots, which engineers originally developed for rescue operations. Videos from ground testing have shown the FEDOR robot shooting guns, lifting weights and driving a car.

The Russian Foundation for Advanced Research Projects, with a role similar to DARPA in the U.S. government, led the development of the FEDOR robot.

Skybot F-850 is not the first robot to travel to the space station.

NASA’s experimental Robonaut 2 robot launched to the station in 2011, but the robot returned to Earth last year in need of repairs. Robonaut 2 could return to the space station later this year.

Roscosmos created a Twitter account for the Russian robot set to fly to the station, complete with tweets composed from Skybot F-850’s point-of-view.

In one tweet, it wrote that conditions inside the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft were tight. The robot can “barely fit among the cargo in the cabin” of the spaceship, the tweet said.

The Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft will remain at the space station for more than 13 days. The spaceship — with Skybot F-850 — will undock from the Poisk module at 2:13 p.m. EDT (1813 GMT) on Sept. 6, heading for a parachute-assisted landing in south-central Kazakhstan at 5:35 p.m. EDT (2135 GMT). </s> Call it one giant leap for a robot. Russia has launched a humanoid robot named "Fyodor" to the International Space Station on the first uncrewed ever to visit the orbiting laboratory.

The Soyuz capsule — which typically carries a crew of three into space — lifted off with food, supplies and from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan late Wednesday (Aug. 21) at 11:38 p.m. EDT (0338 Aug. 22 GMT) It was 8:38 a.m. Thursday local time at the launch site.

The Soyuz capsule launched into orbit atop a Soyuz 2.1a rocket, a variant of Russia's workhorse booster that has only flown uncrewed Progress vehicles until now. Its Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft for the station's six-person crew.

"A flawless climb to orbit for Soyuz MS-14 in its test flight, the first launch of a Soyuz vehicle on a 2.1a booster," NASA spokesperson Rob Navias said during live launch commentary.

Navias said Russia's Skybot F-850, affectionately nicknamed "Fyodor," appeared to be doing well as it sat in the commander's seat of the Soyuz spacecraft. A television view from inside the Soyuz showed the robot clutching a small Russian flag in its right hand as a toy cosmonaut bobbed around the cabin as a zero-gravity indicator.

"He made it to orbit and is en route to the International Space Station," Navias said of the robot.

According to Navias, this Soyuz launch is a critical shakedown flight to test the performance of the upgraded Soyuz capsule and the Soyuz 2.1a booster before the first crewed flight on the rocket in March 2020.

"The Soyuz 2.1a booster, equipped with a new digital flight control system and upgraded engines, is replacing the Soyuz FG booster that has been used for decades to launch crews into space," NASA officials . "The Soyuz spacecraft will have an upgraded motion control and navigation system, as well as a revamped descent control system," they added.

The mission will also help Roscosmos develop a cargo version of the Soyuz capsule capable uncrewed reentry to return experiments and other gear to Earth, Navias said. Russia's Progress cargo ships can currently only deliver supplies, and are filled with trash and discarded at the end of their missions.

If all goes well, Soyuz MS-14 will arrive at the International Space Station early Saturday (Aug. 24).

While Fyodor sat in the commander's seat during the launch, it is not piloting the spacecraft to its destination later this week. Rather, the Soyuz's own navigation system (called Kurs) will automatically direct the spacecraft to rendezvous and dock with the space station.

If Kurs fails, the Russian cosmonauts on the space station can send a command to Soyuz to disable Kurs and trigger an abort, sending the spacecraft to a safe distance away, NASA officials told Space.com.

How the Fyodor Skybot fares on this mission will help inform on how comfortable astronauts feel on the Soyuz 2.1a rocket as they rattle through launch, streak through Earth's atmosphere and make an approach to their orbiting home in space. The robot is such as the forces it encounters during flight, including the point at which it begins to feel microgravity.

Fyodor is one of the , a five-year-old line of humanoids that are so versatile they have been used in driving cars or conducting rescue work. As the first of its kind in space, the Fyodor Skybot F-850 includes unique features such as vibration-resistant materials, and algorithms to reduce its movement so that it does not accidentally damage the International Space Station.

But FEDOR's advanced robot hands will be included on Skybot; in past tests on Earth, these have been used for dexterous tasks such as working fire extinguishers or welding gas torches – impressive feats, although both unlikely activities for Skybot in the confined environment of the space station.

Once the Fyodor robot reaches the International Space Stations, cosmonauts will move it into the Russian Poisk module for five days of experiments and tests to see how it performs in microgravity. The robot will then be packed back aboard the Soyuz for a return trip to Earth on Sept. 6.

Fyodor is the latest in a lineup of space robots for station activities.

NASA's (which has a head and arms, but no legs) performed simple test tasks between 2011 and 2014. Following some difficulties, it was returned to Earth in 2018 , and should make another flight to the space station in 2020.

Other space station robots have included a European "social robot" that recognizes faces (also known as ), the Japanese Kirobo robot , and a couple of generations of NASA free-flying robots ( and the more advanced ).

Editor's Note: Visit Space.com Saturday for live docking coverage of the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft carrying the Fyodor Skybot F-850 robot. NASA's live webcast will begin at 12:45 a.m. EDT (0445 GMT), with docking scheduled for 1:30 a.m. EDT (0530 GMT).
• None The International Space Station: Inside and Out (Infographic)
• None Cosmic Quiz: Do You Know the International Space Station?

Follow Elizabeth Howell on Twitter @howellspace. Follow us on Twitter and on . </s> Call it one giant leap for a robot. Russia has launched a humanoid robot named "Fyodor" to the International Space Station on the first uncrewed Soyuz spacecraft ever to visit the orbiting laboratory.

The Soyuz capsule — which typically carries a crew of three into space — lifted off with food, supplies and the Skybot F-850 robot from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan late Wednesday (Aug. 21) at 11:38 p.m. EDT (0338 Aug. 22 GMT) It was 8:38 a.m. Thursday local time at the launch site.

The Soyuz capsule launched into orbit atop a Soyuz 2.1a rocket, a variant of Russia's workhorse booster that has only flown uncrewed Progress vehicles until now. Its Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft is carrying 1,450 lbs. (660 kilograms) of supplies for the station's six-person crew.

"A flawless climb to orbit for Soyuz MS-14 in its test flight, the first launch of a Soyuz vehicle on a 2.1a booster," NASA spokesperson Rob Navias said during live launch commentary.

Image 1 of 2 A Russian Soyuz 2.1a rocket launches an uncrewed Soyuz capsule carrying the humanoid robot Skybot F-850, nicknamed "Fyodor," on a test flight from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. (Image credit: Roscosmos) Image 2 of 2 Liftoff occurred at 8:38 a.m. local time on Aug. 22, 2019. (Image credit: NASA TV)

Navias said Russia's Skybot F-850, affectionately nicknamed "Fyodor," appeared to be doing well as it sat in the commander's seat of the Soyuz spacecraft. A television view from inside the Soyuz showed the robot clutching a small Russian flag in its right hand as a toy cosmonaut bobbed around the cabin as a zero-gravity indicator.

"He made it to orbit and is en route to the International Space Station," Navias said of the robot.

"Fyodor," a Russian robot officially designated Skybot F-850, sits in the commander's seat of the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft after successfully reaching orbit on Aug. 22, 2019. A Russian flag is clutched in its right hand. (Image credit: NASA TV)

A Soyuz test flight

According to Navias, this Soyuz launch is a critical shakedown flight to test the performance of the upgraded Soyuz capsule and the Soyuz 2.1a booster before the first crewed flight on the rocket in March 2020.

"The Soyuz 2.1a booster, equipped with a new digital flight control system and upgraded engines, is replacing the Soyuz FG booster that has been used for decades to launch crews into space," NASA officials wrote in a statement . "The Soyuz spacecraft will have an upgraded motion control and navigation system, as well as a revamped descent control system," they added.

The mission will also help Roscosmos develop a cargo version of the Soyuz capsule capable uncrewed reentry to return experiments and other gear to Earth, Navias said. Russia's Progress cargo ships can currently only deliver supplies, and are filled with trash and discarded at the end of their missions.

If all goes well, Soyuz MS-14 will arrive at the International Space Station early Saturday (Aug. 24).

While Fyodor sat in the commander's seat during the launch, it is not piloting the spacecraft to its destination later this week. Rather, the Soyuz's own navigation system (called Kurs) will automatically direct the spacecraft to rendezvous and dock with the space station.

If Kurs fails, the Russian cosmonauts on the space station can send a command to Soyuz to disable Kurs and trigger an abort, sending the spacecraft to a safe distance away, NASA officials told Space.com.

Robot on a mission

Image 1 of 3 Russia's Skybot F-850 seen during testing on Earth. It's nickname is "Fyodor." (Image credit: Roscosmos) Image 2 of 3 Russia's space agency Roscosmos says the Skybot F-850 will serve as a "social companion" for human crew on the International Space Station. (Image credit: Androidnaya Technika) Image 3 of 3 Russia's humanoid Skybot F-850 can act autonomously, or mimic the actions of a human controller. (Image credit: Androidnaya Technika)

How the Fyodor Skybot fares on this mission will help inform on how comfortable astronauts feel on the Soyuz 2.1a rocket as they rattle through launch, streak through Earth's atmosphere and make an approach to their orbiting home in space. The robot is expected to report on conditions such as the forces it encounters during flight, including the point at which it begins to feel microgravity.

Fyodor is one of the latest versions of Russia's FEDOR robots , a five-year-old line of humanoids that are so versatile they have been used in driving cars or conducting rescue work. As the first of its kind in space, the Fyodor Skybot F-850 includes unique features such as vibration-resistant materials, and algorithms to reduce its movement so that it does not accidentally damage the International Space Station.

But FEDOR's advanced robot hands will be included on Skybot; in past tests on Earth, these have been used for dexterous tasks such as working fire extinguishers or welding gas torches – impressive feats, although both unlikely activities for Skybot in the confined environment of the space station.

Once the Fyodor robot reaches the International Space Stations, cosmonauts will move it into the Russian Poisk module for five days of experiments and tests to see how it performs in microgravity. The robot will then be packed back aboard the Soyuz for a return trip to Earth on Sept. 6.

Fyodor is the latest in a lineup of space robots for station activities.

NASA's Robonaut2 (which has a head and arms, but no legs) performed simple test tasks between 2011 and 2014. Following some difficulties, it was returned to Earth in 2018 , and should make another flight to the space station in 2020.

Other space station robots have included a European "social robot" that recognizes faces (also known as Crew Interactive Mobile Companion ), the Japanese Kirobo robot who chatted with astronaut Koichi Wakata , and a couple of generations of NASA free-flying robots ( SPHERES and the more advanced Astrobee ).

Editor's Note: Visit Space.com Saturday for live docking coverage of the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft carrying the Fyodor Skybot F-850 robot. NASA's live webcast will begin at 12:45 a.m. EDT (0445 GMT), with docking scheduled for 1:30 a.m. EDT (0530 GMT). </s> MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd August, 2019) Russia's humanoid robot Fedor was successfully launched into space inside the Soyuz MS-14 vehicle atop the Soyuz-2.1a carrier rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on Thursday, the webcast on the Roscosmos website showed.

The rocket lifted off at 06:38 a.m. Moscow time (03:38 GMT) as planned.

During the launch, Fedor said the legendary "Let's Go!" phrase, which Yuri Gagarin, the first human to travel to space, said during his historic launch on April 12, 1961, the webcast has shown.

Approximately eight minutes after the launch, Soyuz MS-14 was placed into the orbit, according to the webcast.

The spacecraft is now to fly to the International Space Station under the two-day scheme. It is expected to dock to the station at 08:30 Moscow time on Saturday.

Notably, during the launch, Roscosmos tested an emergency rescue system of Soyuz MS-14. The spacecraft was launched for an unmanned mission for testing interoperation between it and the new Soyuz-2.1a carrier for the first time ahead of future manned mission launches. </s> For the first time in history, a Russian Soyuz spacecraft linked up with the International Space Station without a human in the driver's seat.

Called Soyuz MS-14, the unpiloted spacecraft docked at the space station late Tuesday (Aug. 26), parking itself at a port on the aft end of the outpost's Russian Zvezda service module. It was the second attempt by Soyuz MS-14 to dock at the station after a Saturday try ended with a surprise abort.

"The second time was the charm," NASA spokesperson Rob Navias during live commentary just after the Soyuz docked. "A flawless approach." The space station was sailing 260 miles (418 kilometers) over eastern Mongolia when the Soyuz docked at at 11:08 p.m. EDT (0308 GMT).

Soyuz MS-14 is the first Soyuz capsule to visit the space station without a human crew. Russian space officials launched the spacecraft on a test flight on Aug. 22 using an upgraded Soyuz 2.1a rocket, a booster typically used to fly robotic Progress cargo ships. Roscosmos wanted to test an uncrewed Soyuz capsule with the upgraded rocket before actual crewed launches begin in March 2020.

Video: Watch the Soyuz Docking Abort as It Happened

Robot on board

While there was no human crew onboard Soyuz MS-14, the spacecraft was by no means empty.

Russia's space agency Roscosmos packed the spacecraft with 1,450 lbs. (658 kilograms) of food and other vital supplies to help keep the station crew stocked with the supplies. The centerpiece, however, is the humanoid Skybot F-850.

Russia's space agency Roscosmos shows off the humanoid robt Skybot F-850 during tests on July 28, 2019 ahead of its launch on a Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft. (Image credit: Roscosmos)

The 6-foot-tall (1.8 meters) robot sat in the commander's seat on Soyuz MS-14 during launch and recorded all manner of conditions, such as forces and vibrations, to give engineers an idea of what humans would experience on Soyuz 2.1a launches. Cosmonauts on the space station will also test the robot in space to see how it could make the crew's life easier.

Eventually, Roscosmos envisions the robot could one day help explore the surface of another world.

In Photos: Russia's Humanoid Skybot Robot for Space

An abort redeemed

Image 1 of 3 The Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft approaches the International Space Station during docking operations on Aug. 26, 2019. (Image credit: NASA TV) Image 2 of 3 The Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft approaches the International Space Station during docking operations on Aug. 26, 2019. (Image credit: NASA TV) Image 3 of 3 The Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft approaches the International Space Station during docking operations on Aug. 26, 2019. (Image credit: NASA TV)

Sunday's Soyuz docking comes after busy weekend of spacecraft shuffling aboard the International Space Station to make way for the MS-14 spacecraft. The spacecraft was originally scheduled to dock at the station's top-mounted Poisk module on Saturday, but a problem with the automated rendezvous system on the module forced Soyuz to abort.

In order to clear the Zvezda module docking port for Soyuz MS-14, Russian cosmonaut Alexander Skvortsov and two crewmates (Andrew Morgan of NASA and Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency) moved their own Soyuz spacecraft — called Soyuz MS-13 — to the Poisk port. Skvortsov flew the Soyuz manually, avoiding the rendezvous system problems seen by Soyuz MS-14, which does not have a human crew to take manual control.

Video: Soyuz Can't Lock On to Space Station Docking Port

Sunday's Soyuz move set the stage for Monday's second docking attempt by Soyuz MS-14, which went off without a hitch. The spacecraft approached planned, locked on to the station and docked itself smoothly to the Zvezda module. Cameras on the space station caught dazzling views of Soyuz MS-14 as it flew around the station.

"Congratulations are in order," Russian flight controllers radioed station commander Alexey Ovchinin and his six-person Expedition 60 crew after the docking. "You did a good job," another said.

Ovchini appeared to think it was just part of a job well done.

"We all did a good job," he said.

The comings and goings aren't finished yet at the space station. On Tuesday, a SpaceX Dragon cargo ship is scheduled to depart the space station and return to Earth. SpaceX launched the Dragon to the station on July 25 to deliver more than 5,000 lbs. (2,268 kilograms) of supplies for the Expedition 60 crew.

The Dragon resupply ship, which is on its third trip to the station, will be released from the outpost's robotic art at 10:42 a.m. EDT (1442 GMT) and return 2,700 pounds (1,225 kilograms) of science results and other gear to Earth. If all goes well, Dragon will splash down in the Pacific Ocean about 300 miles west of Long Beach, California to be retrieved later.

You can watch the Dragon ship's space station departure on Space.com Tuesday, Aug. 27. The webcast will begin at 10:15 a.m. EDT (1415 GMT).

Email Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com or follow him @tariqjmalik. Follow us @Spacedotcom and Facebook. </s> A Russian Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft successfully docked to the International Space Station (ISS) on Monday night, after it failed to go to its “parking spot” on August 24.

The uncrewed Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft, which had a humanoid robot on board, successfully attached to the space station’s Zvezda module at 11:08 p.m. EDT on August 26, NASA said in a press release. The Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft, which delivered 1,450 pounds of cargo, including the Skybot F-850 humanoid robot, to the Expedition 60 crew, will stay at the orbiting laboratory for 14 days.

“The second time was the charm,” NASA spokesperson Rob Navias said during live commentary after the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft docked at the space station. “A flawless approach.”

Unlike other Soyuz capsules, the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft is the first to visit the space station without human crew members, Space.com reported.

Over the weekend, the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft aborted its first docking attempt due to a potential issue with an amplifier of a navigation system on the space station.

On August 22, the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft was sent on a test flight with an upgraded Soyuz 2.1 rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The test flight to the space station aims to monitor the spacecraft’s compatibility with the revamped Soyuz booster rocket. According to NASA, the Soyuz 2.1 booster features a new digital flight control system and upgraded engines. Starting next spring, the booster will be used to transport crews to the space station. </s> If you would like to see more articles like this please support our coverage of the space program by becoming a Spaceflight Now Member . If everyone who enjoys our website helps fund it, we can expand and improve our coverage further.

A Soyuz rocket poised to send two new crew members to the International Space Station rolled to its launch pad Tuesday at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

The Soyuz-FG rocket emerged from an assembly building at the Central Asia spaceport at sunrise Tuesday. Lying on its side, the three-stage launcher rode a specially-designed rail bar to Launch Pad. No. 1 at Baikonur, a historic launch site used in 1961 on the flight of Yuri Gagarin, who became the first person to travel in space.

Russian cosmonaut Alexey Ovchinin will occupy the center seat when the Soyuz MS-10 spacecraft lifts off at 0840 GMT (4:40 a.m. EDT) Thursday from Baikonur. He will be joined by NASA astronaut Nick Hague in the left seat of the Soyuz spacecraft.

After a nearly nine-minute climb into orbit, the Soyuz MS-10 spacecraft will commence its chase of the International Space Station, with docking planned at 1444 GMT (10:44 a.m. EDT). The arrival of Ovchinin and Hague will raise the station’s crew complement to five.

The duo plans to stay on the space station until mid-April.

See our Mission Status Center for details and live coverage of the launch.
The uncrewed Soyuz MS-14 mission to resupply the International Space Station commences. Its launch is a successful test of a Soyuz spacecraft atop a Soyuz-2 launch vehicle, which will replace the Soyuz-FG as the carrier rocket for Soyuz spacecraft starting next year.