MISSION CONTROL CENTER (Moscow Region), March 20 (RIA Novosti) - A Soyuz carrier rocket guided by a Russian astronaut has successfully docked with the Zvezda module of the International Space Station (ISS), a RIA correspondent reported from mission control Monday.

Valery Tokarev, the captain of the Soyuz, undocked with the Zarya module at 9.46 a.m. Moscow time (6.46 a.m. GMT) and docked with the Zvezda module in manual mode.

The re-docking procedure on the world's sole civilian space station is usually conducted prior to space walks and the arrival of new ships. On this occasion, the procedure was carried out prior to the arrival of the 13th ISS expedition on March 30. The mission comprises Russian astronaut Pavel Vinogradov, American Jeffrey Williams and Brazil's first man in space, Marcos Pontes, who will return to Earth after his short program with the current ISS crew.