Soyuz MS-28 launches from Baikonur with NASA's Chris Williams and two Russian cosmonauts for eight-month ISS mission

A Soyuz MS-28 lifted off from Baikonur on Thanksgiving Day carrying NASA astronaut Chris Williams — an astronomer-turned medical physicist and Harvard board-certified specialist — alongside Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov (commander) and Sergei Mikayev, beginning a planned eight-month stay aboard the International Space Station.

Discovered 2025-11-26T06:46:36.255343-08:00 | 2025-11-26T06:46:36.255343-08:00

Briefing

What Hype is tracking

  • The launch restores a three-person long-duration crew rotation to the ISS: Soyuz MS-28 departed Baikonur on Thanksgiving Day and begins a planned eight-month expedition, sustaining station operations and science manifests (crew size and mission length are mission-critical metrics).
  • The flight reaffirms Roscosmos’ continued role in crewed LEO access and Russia’s broader launch-market positioning; this sits alongside recent analysis of Moscow’s efforts to promote domestic launch capacity and new vehicles (see Russia’s push to revive Soyuz‑5).
  • The mission underscores persistent international cooperation — a NASA astronaut flying with Russian cosmonauts — even as Russian launches have become more politically prominent, a dynamic flagged by recent state-linked branding decisions for Soyuz missions.

Reported By

defence.m5dergi.com dailygalaxy.com ESA intellinews.com orlandosentinel.com spacecoastdaily.com
Sources Tracked
40
First Seen
2025-11-26T06:46:36.255343-08:00
Latest Update
2025-11-28T17:10:18.816610-08:00
Coverage
Space

Sources

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