A trio of US, Canadian and Russian spacefarers has blasted off for the International Space Station from the Russian-operated Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
It is the first manned mission since a failed launch from the facility in October.
New astronauts Anne McClain of the United States and David Saint-Jacques of Canada, together with veteran cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko of Russia, are set to arrive at the space station about six hours later.
Aboard the space station, German astronaut Alexander Gerst posted photos of the three current crew members tidying up "for the arrival of our friends," according to a post on Twitter.
"Looking forward to having a full crew of six up here again, at least for a few weeks. Godspeed," Gerst said.
