Expedition 21 crews solemnly seen away to Baikonur cosmodrome

About 1,000 people, including tourists, the media representatives, friends and relatives of the crew members, gathered at the Cosmonaut Hotel to see the VE-21 cosmonauts away to the Baikonur cosmodrome

Belarusian Marina Vasilevskaya, crew commander Oleg Novitsky and NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson, as well as their understudies, came out under the accompaniment of the Zemlyane band: the Grass at Home song was playing, as is traditional before departure to space. The prime and the backup crews then went to the cosmodrome by different buses, also following a ritual. Further, the prime crew will head to the cosmodrome to put spacesuits on, and after that they will prepare for the launch scheduled for 4:21pm Moscow time.

The journalists coming to the Cosmonaut Hotel could see the wall, which cosmonauts draw all over before a flight. It now features a signature of the first Belarusian female cosmonaut as well.