Cosmonauts and astronauts will be able to use the docking port as a pressure chamber to prepare for spacewalks. Attached to the Zvezda, Pirs will also be able to handle three Soyuz or Progress spacecraft at a time. The International Space Station's crew, Commander Frank Culbertson , Pilot Vladimir Dezhurov , and Flight Engineer Mikhail Tyurin , are scheduled to make three spacewalks, the first of them next month. The Progress also carries a small crane called the Strela Boom, to be installed outside the space station, a new spacesuit along with other equipment for spacewalks, and French and German scientific equipment.
Crew members use their first couple of hours to read emails, clean up, and have breakfast.
The workday begins as dictated from the previous day and allows for a lunch break at midday. Each crew member will spend one hour of exercise before lunch and another after. By mid-afternoon, the station's crew has completed their workday and has a planning session with the flight controllers for the following day's activities. After dinner the crew has an 8 to 9-hour sleep period. Although a typical routine, the crew has been using personal time to familiarize themselves with the location of items on the International Space Station.