Soyuz TMA-4

Infobox Space mission
mission_name = Soyuz TMA-4
sign = "Altair"
spacecraft_name = Soyuz TMA
insignia = Soyuz-tma-4.gif
insignia_size = 180px
stats_ref =
crew_members = 3
launch_pad = Gagarin's Start
launch = April 19, 2004
03:19:00 UTC
landing = October 24, 2004
00:35:00 UTC
90 km north of the town of Arkalyk
duration = 187 days, 13 hours, 22 minutes
orbits = ~2,950
apogee = 252 km
perigee = 200 km
period = 88.7 minutes
altitude =
inclination = 51.7°
distance =
mass =
crew_photo = Soyuz TMA-4 Crew.jpg
crew_caption = From left to right: Michael Fincke, Gennady Padalka and André Kuipers
previous = Soyuz TMA-3
next = Soyuz TMA-5

Soyuz TMA-4 was a Soyuz mission to the International Space Station (ISS) launched by a Soyuz FG launch vehicle. It was launched on April 19, 2004 (UTC) from Baikonur Cosmodrome. Gennady Padalka from Russia, Michael Fincke from the USA and André Kuipers from the Netherlands were flown to the International Space Station. Kuipers returned to Earth 9 days later together with ISS crew 8 with the re-entry module of the Soyuz TMA-3, the other two stayed as ISS crew 9. The craft landed October 24, 2004 with Padalka, Fincke and Yuri Shargin aboard.

Crew

=Launched and landed ISS "Expedition 9" crew:=

*"Gennady Padalka (2)" - RUS
*"Michael Fincke (1)" - USA

Launched:

*André Kuipers (1) - ESA NED

Landed:

*Yuri Shargin (1) - RUS

Mission parameters

*Mass: ? kg
*Perigee: 200 km
*Apogee: 252 km
*Inclination: 51.7°
*Period: 88.7 minutes

Docking with ISS

*Docked to ISS: April 21, 2004, 05:01 UTC (to nadir port of Zarya)
*Undocked from ISS: October 23, 2004, 21:08 UTC (from nadir port of Zarya)

Mission highlights

Soyuz TMA-4 is a Russian passenger spacecraft that was launched by a Soyuz-FG rocket from Baikonur at 03:19 UT on 19 April 2004. It carried three astronauts (a Russian, an American and a Dutch) to the International Space Station (ISS) and docked with the Zarya module of the ISS automatically on 21 April at 05:01 UT. Two of its astronauts remained in the ISS for about six months, while the Dutch astronaut and the two astronauts who had inhabited the ISS for several months left the ISS on 29 April in the TMA-3 that had remained docked with the ISS, soft landing in Kazakhstan at 00:11 on 30 April.

The Expedition 10 crew, Leroy Chiao-Cdr U.S.A. and Salizhan Sharipov-Russia replaced the Expedition 9 crew, Gennady Padalka-Cdr Russia and Edward Fincke-U.S.A. on October 16, 2004.