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Russia’s Prichal ISS module sent to Baikonur space launch center

Prichal will be delivered to Baikonur by rail

MOSCOW, July 31. /TASS/. Russia’s Prichal node module, to be launched to the International Space Station (ISS) in November, was sent to the Baikonur launch center on Saturday, Russia’s state-run space corporation Roscosmos said in a statement.

"Today, on July 31, 2021, the module was sent to the technical section of the Baikonur space center to continue assembly and pre-flight preparations in line with the development schedule of the International Space Station’s Russian segment," the statement says.

Earlier, the Rocket and Space Corporation Energia completed Prichal’s technological trials as part of the modified Progress M-UM space freighter. Prichal will be delivered to Baikonur by rail.

Roscosmos head Dmitry Rogozin said on Friday the launch was scheduled for November 24. In his words, Prichal will help to expand opportunities for docking of Russian spacecraft with the station, including the new Orel lunar module.

The node module will attach itself to the Nauka multi-functional laboratory module which docked with the ISS on Thursday. Earlier, Rogozin told reporters at the Mission Control Center that the space agency would analyze the problems that emerged during the Nauka launch and would take them into account during the launch of the node module this fall.

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