A rocket carrying astronauts from Russia, the United States and Italy has docked with the International Space Station.The Russian Soyuz spacecraft lifted off on a six-month voyage in Kazakhstan last night.

Soyuz Rocket Docks

The three people on board join three others already at the station.

Among the new arrivals is Italy’s first female astronaut.

The arrival of Samantha Cristoforetti from the European Space Agency makes it the second time in the station’s 16-year history that two women have been aboard on long-term missions.