We now have a six person crew on the International Space Station!

[backscatter712]

http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/090529-iss-full-crew-arrival.html

Welcome to the International Space Station, Population: 6. The space station finally reached its full crew size early Friday when three new spaceflyers arrived to double the number of people aboard after more than 10 years of construction in orbit.

The new crewmembers docked their Russian-built Soyuz TMA-15 spacecraft at the station at about 8:34 a.m. EDT (1234 GMT) as they flew 220 miles (354 km) above the south coast of China. The orbital arrival brought the station to its full, six-person crew size for the first time in history and includes a spaceflyer from each of the $100 billion station's major partner agencies.

"We have the contact," said Russian cosmonaut Roman Romanenko, a second-generation cosmonaut who commanded the Soyuz.

Riding aboard the Soyuz TMA-15 with Romanenko and Belgian astronaut Frank De Winne of the European Space Agency, and Canadian spaceflyer Robert Thirsk. They were welcomed at the station by its commander, Russian cosmonaut Gennady Padalka, and flight engineers Michael Barratt, of NASA, and Koichi Wakata, of Japan.

The increase in the ISS crew from three to six was made possible by the addition of a second kitchen, second bathroom and that urine recycling machine that everyone was joking about. It works now, and because astronauts & cosmonauts can drink their own (processed) piss, there are enough resources aboard the station and aboard the Progress resupply ships to support six crewmembers. A three-man crew was just enough to keep the ISS running and do a small amount of science when the crew was working overtime. Now with the six-person crew, we'll start seeing real science from the ISS.

[Canuckistanian]

1. Our Canadian astronaut Thirsk just flew up on the Soyuz

I think that's the first time we've gone up with the Russians.

[Historic NY]

2. "Its going to become a high rent district soon".