NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will discuss predictions for the upcoming solar cycle during a media teleconference at 1 p.m. EDT Tuesday, Sept. 15. Tracking the solar cycle is a key part of better understanding the Sun and mitigating its impacts on human technology and infrastructure.
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As a free-flying, cube-shaped robot dubbed Astrobee zipped through the International Space Station today, the Expedition 63 trio aboard was occupied with upkeep and experiment maintenance tasks.
Astrobee is autonomous, and therefore no additional burden to the busy schedule of Commander Chris Cassidy of NASA and Russian cosmonauts Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner. Masterminded to assist the spare-faring crew with routine chores and give controllers on the ground an easy way to survey the station’s interior, the robot is currently flying about to capture additional video and imagery for later study.
Cassidy spent significant time in the Columbus laboratory module installing Fluidics hardware and setting it up for test runs. The experiment itself consists of three small transparent spheres with a centrifuge to move the liquids within. Data compiled from the investigation will one day improve applications in space, optimizing fuel systems, as well as on Earth, providing insight into how oceans work and the phenomenon of “rogue waves.” In addition, Cassidy replaced components in the Waste and Hygiene Compartment and performed life-support maintenance.
Vagner, meanwhile, helped with the life-support maintenance and serviced the Russian oxygen generator. With Ivanishin accompanying, they tackled cleaning air vents and dust filters to ensure the smooth running of the orbiting outpost. Smoke detectors within the Zarya module were also changed out during the housekeeping work.
The Russian crewmates contributed to the space station’s legacy as a microgravity testbed by furthering research objectives, with Ivanishin monitoring and identifying catastrophic events through the aid of Earth photography. Vagner added to the heart health study his counterpart had completed earlier in the week by setting up his own wearable monitor for a 24-hour electrocardiogram evaluation.
At 4:32 p.m. EDT, a planned reboost will put the orbiting laboratory in the proper positioning for the anticipated Soyuz launch of Expedition 64 on Oct. 14, followed by the landing of the current crew on Oct. 21.
Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on Twitter, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.
Catherine Williams
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Not every flight director is a legend, but some are. Take Eugene Kranz, for example.
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The three Expedition 63 crewmates continued working on tasks aboard the International Space Station that will not only extend the outpost beyond its current 20-year tenure maximizing science in space, but also facilitate human travel deeper into the solar system.
Commander Chris Cassidy was again in the JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Kibo laboratory module to continue setup with the Confocal Space Microscopy. The apparatus provides many advantages over conventional optical microscopy, some of which include the ability to control depth of field and collect sequential optical sections from thick biological specimens. Next up, Cassidy disconnected and stowed the Biomolecule Sequencer, which he had just used the day before with the Genes in Space 6 investigation.
The station commander also served as the test subject for additional ultrasound eye scans, performed by cosmonaut Ivan Vagner, who serves as the crew medical officer approximately 240 miles above Earth. It has now long been understood that crew members’ bodies change in a variety of ways during spaceflight, and some can even experience impaired vision. Gathering data on how ocular health changes during the course of a months-long mission will help inform scientists and mission planners for future expeditions requiring greater time in space and exploration at different destinations, like the Moon and Mars.
Vagner, along with fellow cosmonaut Anatoly Ivanishin, spent time transferring waste to the two cargo vehicles docked at station, Progress 75 and Progress 76. In addition, Ivanishin wiped down surfaces in the Russian segment and disconnected his electrocardiogram monitor after a full 24-hour test that surveyed the health of his heart.
NASA commercial provider Northrop Grumman announced that it will name the NG-14 Cygnus spacecraft, the cargo ship slated to launch Sept. 29 to replenish station with supplies and new science, after astronaut Kalpana Chawla. It is the company’s tradition to name each Cygnus after an individual who has played a pivotal role in human spaceflight, and Chawla was selected in honor of her prominent place in history as the first woman of Indian descent to go to space.
Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on Twitter as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.
Catherine Williams
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This NOAA/NASA Suomi NPP satellite image from Sept. 7, 2020, shows the night band image of the Creek Fire at night as well as the smoke from the fire causing lights at night to diffuse or «bloom.»
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