Launch of the TMA-03M Soyuz on 21 December 2011

Launch of the Soyuz TMA-03M with ESA astronaut André Kuipers and crewmates Oleg Kononenko and Don Pettit. After their liftoff from Baikonur Cosmodrome on 21 December 2011 at 14:16 CET they are circling Earth every 90 minutes aboard their spacecraft as they make their way to the International Space Station. During the next two days, the spacecraft will circle the globe 35 times, performing three major engine burns as its orbit is adjusted for docking with the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday, 23 December at 13:43 GMT (14:43 CET).