Bishop Ignaty of Aktobe and Kyzylorda Led a Prayer Service at the Cosmonaut Training and Test Complex of the Yu.A. Gagarin Research and Training Center in Baikonur

On September 11, 2024, in Baikonur, Bishop Ignaty of Aktobe and Kyzylorda led a prayer service, offering prayers "before the beginning of any good work," asking for God's help in the manned spaceflight. 

The service took place at the Cosmonaut Training and Test Complex of the Yu.A. Gagarin Research and Training Center.

Present at the service were Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Wagner, and NASA astronaut Donald Pettit, along with Roscosmos officials and Baikonur Cosmodrome staff. 

Clergy from the diocese and staff of the Aktobe diocesan administration also joined in prayer with the bishop.

The crew of "Burlak" (the callsign of the Soyuz MS-26 spacecraft commander) will spend more than 200 days on the station and is expected to return to Earth in spring 2025. 

The Soyuz-2.1a rocket launched on September 11 at 21:23 Astana time.

The mission, which launched on September 11, aims to deliver cosmonauts to the station for about a year and transport approximately 130 kilograms of cargo, including photo and video equipment, data storage devices, consumables, food supplies, and equipment for experiments. This mission is part of extended expeditions to the ISS, which will also involve spacewalks and scientific and applied research.