Woman is first from France into space

Associated Press

BAIKONUR, Kazakstan — Claudie Haignere, the first French woman in space, is preparing to blast off today from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in the former Soviet republic of Kazakhstan for a mission on board the international space station.

Haignere, a rheumatologist and expert in neuroscience, will be joined by Russian cosmonauts Viktor Afanasyev and Konstantin Kozeyev for a 10-day mission that includes eight days on board the space station.

Security was tightened Friday as the Soyuz-TM33 spacecraft was moved to the launch pad, the Interfax news agency reported. No details were given.

The 44-year-old Haignere will serve as crew engineer — the first non-Russian female to do so — and is responsible for mooring the Soyuz vessel that will carry the team to the space station. The docking is expected Tuesday.

One of the crew’s main objectives is to deliver a new Soyuz to the space station. The Soyuz ferries astronauts to the space station and would serve as a lifeboat if they ever are forced to evacuate.

"This replacement takes place every six months in order to guarantee the perfect functioning of the rescue vehicle," the European Space Agency said.

Haignere, Afanasyev and Kozeyev will return from space aboard the old Soyuz. Their return is scheduled for Oct. 31.

The French-Russian mission "demonstrates that scientific research occupies a growing place in the activities on board the ISS," Haignere said in a statement released by the European Space Agency.

Haignere was the first Frenchwoman in space when she spent two weeks on Russia’s Mir space station in 1996, studying the effects of weightlessness on the human body.

On the Net: www.space.com

Copyright ©2001 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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