A Russian rocket blasted off Friday from a space center in southern Kazakhstan, transporting a NASA astronaut and two Russian cosmonauts to the International Space Station, AP reported.
The Soyuz craft carrying California native Tracy Caldwell Dyson and Russians Alexander Skvortsov and Mikhail Kornienko rose into brilliant blue skies from the Baikonur cosmodrome on schedule. The craft, which entered orbit about 10 minutes into the flight, docks Sunday with the space station, orbiting about 200 miles (320 kilometers) above the Earth.
Live pictures broadcast from the craft showed head Skvortsov smiling as a toy duck nicknamed "Quack" dangled overhead.
"Everything's fine on board," Skvortsov was heard as saying before static disrupted communications with mission control.
Caldwell Dyson, Skvortsov and Kornienko, as Expedition 24, will join the Russian, American and Japanese crew on board.
Their missions ends in September, just before the last-ever shuttle flight - from the Kennedy Space Center.
The Discovery Shuttle is set to blast off for the station Monday for a 13-day mission.