Not sure if there's a ISS traditional way of doing this but the general answer is that it depends because there are various ways of doing this... putting the active vehicle into a lower orbit and approaching the passive vehicle from below/behind is one popular option but putting the active vehicle in a higher orbit than the target and then when appropriate descending from that to approaching the target from above is another

The permutations are almost endless.

i should add that what we're seeing here in the way of maneuvering is a bit atypical- Normal resupply missions/re-crewing missions to the ISS don't usually hang around in orbit for 8 days prior to docking...I haven't followed this in great detail but it looks like Nauka was put in an orbit that allows the Russians to road test it, so to speak, for few days before committing to going anywhere near ISS.

Due over UK about 2245z tonight. Bit cloudy though so slim chance.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....f4fc7976ca.png

Cloudy here too, I'm going to turn in...

Well I got a good sighting of the ISS but nothing before or after.

FWIW according to several sources, including the space flight forum mentioned upthread, the two vehicles are now almost literally half the globe apart.

Fingers crossed we get clearer skies where I am tonight, in Europe, and in anticipation I just checked the “heavens-above” predictions.

It is calculating that there’s more than 20 minutes between the transit times of the two objects. Given that both Nuaka and the ISS are in orbits with periods of or slightly greater than 90 minutes that would tend to confirm the magnitude of the separation.

https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/in...627#msg2267627

Looking at the TLE's and Jonathan's image, I think we have a few days of coasting:…..

Nauka should be gaining 15.661-15.488 = ~0.173 of a revolution a day; if I'm reading the image correctly, it's is a little more than half an orbit behind, so at this rate it will catch up in somewhere around 3 days. Somewhat consistent with the next maneuver being on July 27th…..

That analysis from that forum makes sense to me, hopefully the major systems checks are done, it’s now a long game of catch up..

Hurrah…a good old fashioned non virtual real “spot” at last…..:ok:

Nauka just went past shortly before 2300 local, on the schedule and on the predicted track that the heavens-above website had calculated, about 35 minutes after the ISS….(yep, pretty much half a world behind the ISS…)

Pretty cruddy skies (southern France) with cirrus around and some light pollution to the north so it wasn’t the easiest spot, even with binoculars.

As you’d expect because of relative size it’s nowhere near as bright as the ISS, from where I was it tracked through the constellation of Cassiopeia and was about the same brightness as the top left star of the “W”, epsilon Cassiopeia, which gave it a apparent magnitude on this transit of about +3….middlingly bright, nowhere as obvious as the ISS usually is.

This evening Nauka will only 7 minutes or in trail of the ISS (cloudy again here so won’t see it), so catching up fast.

Docking planned for tomorrow afternoon, around 1324 UTC.

To follow on with the thread..

After much tweaking and adjustments, the module has successfully docked to the ISS, using automated control (the English commentator mistakenly saying the final few moments were manually controlled).

I suspect the sigh of relief and exhales of air was global, many instruments and experiments relying on the success of this mission, a very long time in the making.

Twas better viewed on the Internetz than with binoculars.

Next I think it is off to the moon with Luna-25. Subject of another thread on humanity reaching past the skies, to go boldly where they have not gone before.

Darned yoof of today..”everything’s better on TV” :rolleyes::E

I think I might have struggled to see today’s event through bins though and I do agree the TV footage was indeed mighty spectacular….

Bloody hell! That sounds dodgy.

I refer you to post #16, reference leaky seals.

Root cause or something different*? If so, it would seem someone took a chance. I imagine questions will be being asked….

https://www.pprune.org/space-flight-...l#post11084439

* https://arstechnica.com/science/2021...space-station/

Story of what went on last night, seems to be, as I understand it, open to correction etc.

Immediately on docking Nauka’s attitude control system was meant to have been in effect disabled TFN. Initially that seemed to have happened.

Well after docking, for some reason (software fault onboard/on ground?) Nauka’s attitude control system became active again and there then began an attitude tug of war as Nauka decided it wanted to point in a certain direction and the ISS, not wanting to budge, fought back using the attitude control system on one of the other docked vehicles.

Battle finally ended when Nauka’s system was shut down /? ran out of fuel.

In public statements Russians are being somewhat blasé about what happened…don’t see need for enquiry.

NASA not saying much in public….being diplomatic…in public…

Is it just me or did Nauka's skin look like already being damaged on ISS arrival? Like having had some overheat event or similar?

Like here, look at the lower left hand side please:
https://www.businessinsider.com/russ...station-2021-7

Just found a diagram - the area I think you are referring to is according to some diagrams occupied by some of the attitude control thrusters ..it’s mostly recessed, irregular in profile, and covered in a thermal blanket of some sort so it’s not a rigid panel, and there are a few nozzles sticking out through the blanket…, there certainly appears to be some discoloration, perhaps due to thermal effects or chemical effects but no idea if it was expected - wouldn’t be completely surprised if it was normal.

There still some debate going on about the attitude excursions that went on post docking……………