Space station crew to double

BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan: Three astronauts set to make history by doubling the permanent population of the International Space Station received the go-ahead yesterday for this week's launch from Russia's remote space complex in Kazakhstan.

Severe winds at the launch site and an unconfirmed report of a journalist being diagnosed with H1N1 flu had raised last-minute concerns that the flight might be canceled.

But Russian space officials gave final clearance for the launch of the Soyuz spacecraft that will ferry Canadian astronaut Bob Thirsk, Russian cosmonaut Roman Romanenko, and Belgium's Frank De Winne to the orbiting laboratory.