MOSCOW The unmanned Russian space transport vehicle Progress M-39 was launched early Friday from the space center in Kazakhstan on a voyage to the Mir space station. The launch was carried out on schedule without any problems, space officials at the control center in Moscow said. The transporter is scheduled to link up with the Mir station early Sunday. It will bring the three crew members of Mir about 1.5 tons of foodstuffs, technical equipment and packages from family members.

The Mir crew members are the craft's commander, Talgat Mussabayev, and its engineer Nikolai Budarin as well as the U.S. astronaut Andrew Thomas. (DPA)