Russian freighter heads to space station loaded with 2.5 tons of supplies and equipment

A Russian Progress freighter took off from Kazakhstan on top of a Soyuz thruster on Sunday evening, carrying 2.5 tonnes of supplies and equipment bound for the International Space Station. Under a dark and overcast sky, the launch from Site 31 of the Baikonur Cosmodrome took place at 11:45 p.m. EST (10:45 a.m. EST (10:45 a.m. local time) when the main stage and strap-on boosters of the Soyuz 2.1a booster were are ignited with a burst of flaming exhaust.

Eight minutes and 45 seconds after takeoff, the third stage of the rocket stopped and fell, and seconds later, the freighter’s solar panels and antennas unfolded and locked in place as intended.

If all goes well, the Progress MS-16 / 77P freighter will perform an automated 33-orbital rendezvous with the space station, catching up and approaching for a docking at the Pirs module facing Russia’s Earth at around 1:20 am Wednesday.

On board: 5,424 pounds of equipment and supplies, including 3,086 pounds of dry cargo, 1,322 pounds of propellant, 926 pounds of water and 89 pounds of compressed gas.

Later this year, Progress will be used to remove the Pirs module from the station, paving the way for the attachment of a new Russian lab module.