jsc2013e033641

Expedition 36/37 backup crewmembers Rick Mastracchio of NASA (left), Mikhail Tyurin (center) and Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (right) pose for pictures in front of a statue of Russian space Great Designer Sergei Korolev during a tour of the city of Baikonur, Kazakhstan May 19. The trio is serving as backups for prime crewmembers Karen Nyberg of NASA, Soyuz Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin and Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency, who are preparing for launch May 29, Kazakh time, in their Soyuz TMA-09M spacecraft to begin a 5 ½ month mission on the International Space Station. NASA/Victor Zelentsov