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44 years ago the Green Bay Packers and the
Dallas Cowboys played for the NFL championship

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at Lambeau Field in Winsconsin
in the famous Ice Bowl.

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Today 44 years later in weather
very reminiscent of that day,

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it is 15 degrees below zero Fahrenheit here
at the launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome

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in Kazakhstan as the Soyuz TMA-03M spacecraft
has now reached the pad rand is ready

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to be hoisted by hydraulics
vertically on the pad

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for final preparations for
Wednesday evening's launch.

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Once it goes vertical, the clamshell-like
gantry arms will fold around the vehicle,

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and launchpad technicians working in bitterly
cold conditions will hook up electrical,

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data and fuel lines for the final
hours of pre-launch readiness.

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That's the scene at the Baikonur
Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

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Astronaut Mike Barratt, deputy
chief of the Astronaut Office.

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Mike, sunrise here at the Baikonur
Cosmodrome, the Soyuz vehicle at the pad,

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15 degrees below zero Fahrenheit,
your thoughts as we prepare

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for this final launch of this memorable year.

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Well, I think all of us out here are
reminded just how robust this system is.

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I have been out here when we hit, I
think it was, 114 degrees in July of '93,

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and today minus 14 Fahrenheit, and
everything rolls on exactly as per the plan.

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The rocket's in great shape.

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The crew's in great shape.

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Everything is clicking along, so
I think we're feeling awfully good

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about this transportation system.

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Underneath all that, that's really Bill
Gerstenmaier, the associate administrator

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for human exploration operations.

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Bill, a memorable year, a transitional year,
and here at sunrise in -15 degrees Fahrenheit,

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the Soyuz is ready to be hoisted vertically
for another trip to the space station.

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Your thoughts as the year draws to an end.

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It's been an amazing year.

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I think back and I reflect on what
we really accomplished this year,

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and it's just absolutely phenomenal;
the conclusion of the shuttle program,

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then the Progress failure, recovery from
the Progress failure with the Soyuz,

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and then to be here today, ready to go launch
the Soyuz again is just phenomenal testimony

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to what we're doing.

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And then also I think about all the work
that's been going on onboard the space station.

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You know, even during this
time when we've had three crew,

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we've been getting a lot of research done.

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We're getting a lot of activities
done aboard the space station.

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So it's really been just an amazing
year for us, and I just think back,

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and I just think how blessed we
are to work in this industry.