The Expedition 56 crew members have unlocked the hatch and entered the International Space Station (ISS), a source in the Russian mission control center told TASS.

The Soyuz MS-08 spacecraft carrying three crew members docked to the ISS earlier.

"The hatch has been opened and the crew members have entered the ISS," the source said.

The Expedition 56 crew comprises Russian cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev and NASA astronauts Richard Arnold and Andrew Feustel. They have joined Expedition 55 Commander, Russian cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov and Flight Engineers Scott Tingle, a NASA astronaut, and Norishige Kanai from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

While on orbit, the Expedition 56 members will welcome Russia’s Progress MS cargo spacecraft, as well as the United States’ Dragon and Cygnus spacecraft. They also plan to perform research and spacewalks.

The Soyuz MS-08 was launched from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan on March 21.