The Expedition 34/35 prime and backup crewmembers raised the flags of Russia the U.S. Canada and Kazakhstan in Baikonur Kazakhstan.

As Russian and Kazakh officials look on, the Expedition 34/35 prime and backup crewmembers raised the flags of Russia, the U.S., Canada and Kazakhstan during traditional ceremonies Dec. 9, 2012 outside their Cosmonaut Hotel crew quarters in Baikonur, Kazakhstan. At the flagpoles from left to right are prime Soyuz Commander Roman Romanenko and his backup, Fyodor Yurchikhin, prime Flight Engineer Chris Hadfield of the Canadian Space Agency, backup NASA Flight Engineer Karen Nyberg and prime NASA Flight Engineer Tom Marshburn, and backup Flight Engineer Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency. Marshburn, Romanenko and Hadfield will launch Dec. 19 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in their Soyuz TMA-07M spacecraft for a five-month mission on the International Space Station.
Photo Credit: NASA/Victor Zelentsov