A Supply Ship Approaches the Space Station

Explanation: Looking out a window of the International Space Station brings breathtaking views. Visible vistas include a vast and colorful Earth, a deep dark sky, and an occasional spaceship sent to visit the station. Visible on September 20 of last year was a Soyuz TMA-9 spacecraft carrying not only supplies but also three new astronauts. A few days before this picture was taken, the U.S. Space Shuttle Atlantis had just departed. The three new approaching astronauts were American Michael E. Lopez-Alegria , Russian Mikhail Tyurin , and Iranian-American Anousheh Ansari . Ms. Ansari visited the International Space Station (ISS) briefly as a paying spaceflight participant for the Federal Space Agency of Russia, and wrote a popular blog about her experiences. Lopez-Alegria would lead the ISS crew dubbed Expedition 14 , which included the flight engineer and Soyuz pilot Tyurin, flight engineer American Sunita Williams , and flight engineer German Thomas Reiter . Tyurin returned to the Earth with Lopez-Alegria this past week.