Coloradan to command space station

HOUSTON - After years of training and preparation, a Colorado native is now just days away from a flight to the International Space Station.

The journey will take Coloradan Steve Swanson into the heavens for a third visit to Earth's only permanent, orbiting outpost -- but he will face unique new challenges on this trip.

Swanson and two Russian cosmonauts are scheduled to launch aboard Soyuz TMA-12M on March 25. He will be the most experienced astronaut on board, but it will be his first flight aboard the cramped Russian spacecraft. The astronaut's two previous flights were aboard NASA Space Shuttles, before that program was retired.

"Each time I was up there with my shuttle flights, it was only two weeks long and I just wanted to stay," he said.

To prepare for the upcoming six-month expedition, Swanson has spent years in training. Although he and his fellow cosmonauts will spend just a few days aboard the Soyuz, Swanson spent months traveling between the United States and Russia to train for the trip.

"It's like starting a roller coaster ride," said Swanson describing the launch he has trained for.

After the Soyuz carries the crew to the ISS, hundreds of miles above the Earth, Swanson will assume the role of flight engineer for Expedition 39. Every crew visiting the station overlaps and when Expedition 39's members depart a few weeks later, Swanson will become the commander of Expedition 40.

- This trip begins long before takeoff -

"I just always loved to explore," the graduate of Steamboat Springs High School said.

"I'd just go hike around, you know, the areas where we were camping, and I used to love doing that, I think that's kind of the same idea, I love to explore," he added.

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Coloradan to command space station