At the Kremlin in Moscow, the prime and backup crews for the next launch of crewmembers to the International Space Station pose for pictures Dec. 1, 2011 in front of the Tsar Cannon following ceremonial activities at Red Square. From left to right are the prime Expedition 30 crew --- NASA Flight Engineer Don Pettit, Soyuz Commander Oleg Kononenko and Flight Engineer Andre Kuipers of the European Space Agency, and the backup crew – Soyuz Commander Yuri Malenchenko, NASA Flight Engineer Suni Williams and Flight Engineer Aki Hoshide of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. Pettit, Kononenko and Kuipers will launch Dec. 21 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on the Soyuz TMA-03M spacecraft.
Credit: NASA