A Soyuz spacecraft delivered two Russian cosmonauts and one American astronaut to the International Space Station Nov. 27 for an eight-month stay.

A Soyuz-2-1a rocket carrying the NASA astronaut and two cosmonauts will launch the Soyuz MS-28 mission from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, about 1,300 miles (2,100 km) southeast of Moscow on Thursday.

After nearly a decade of development, Russia’s newest launch vehicle is close to its debut flight. The medium-lift Soyuz 5 rocket is expected to launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome before the end of the year.

NASA's Jonny Kim along with Russia's Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky, launched to the International Space Station atop a Soyuz 2.1a rocket from Russia's Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Credit: Space.

HOUSTON—Northrop Grumman’s initial Cygnus XL resupply capsule for the International Space Station (ISS) has been temporarily unberthed from the orbital lab’s U.S. segment to provide clearance for the scheduled Nov. 27 automated rendezvous and docking of Russia’s crewed Soyuz MS-28 capsule. Ground...