PHOTOS: Soyuz rolls to French Guiana launch pad

Russian engineers rolled a Soyuz 2-1b rocket to the launch pad at the Guiana space Center on Oct. 8 and hoisted the booster vertical on its launch mount. On Oct. 9, workers transported the Soyuz payload fairing housing two Galileo in-orbit validation satellites and a Fregat-MT upper stage to the launch pad.

The fairing was lifted atop the Soyuz rocket inside the pad's mobile service tower.

Liftoff is scheduled for Oct. 12 at 1815 GMT (2:15 p.m. EDT).