Archivo de la etiqueta: International Space Station

Dragon Packed With Science and Now Targets Friday Undocking

Packing research samples and station hardware for return to Earth were the top tasks aboard the International Space Station on Wednesday. The seven-member Expedition 72 crew also serviced a variety of science hardware and electronics gear throughout the orbital lab.

NASA astronauts are finishing up the loading of completed science experiments and lab hardware inside the Dragon spacecraft for retrieval and analysis on Earth. NASA and SpaceX now are targeting Friday, Dec. 6, for the return of the resupply spacecraft. Mission managers waved off the planned return on Thursday, Dec. 5, due to forecasted high winds at the splashdown site off the coast of Florida. NASA’s live coverage of Dragon’s undocking and departure begins at 10:50 a.m. EST on NASA+ as the spacecraft autonomously undocks from the Harmony module’s forward port around 11:05 a.m. on Friday. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

NASA astronaut and station commander Suni Williams kicked off her day installing the sample-packed Space Automated Lab Incubator inside Dragon. NASA astronauts Nick Hague and Butch Wilmore continued her work loading and securing portable science freezers filled with research samples and powered lockers containing finalized experiments inside the Earthbound spacecraft.

Williams and Hague also had time to join each other in the Quest airlock replacing components and resizing a spacesuit ahead of a series spacewalks planned for early next year. Wilmore spent all day Wednesday loading cargo from the station into Dragon.

NASA Flight Engineer Don Pettit started his day in the Kibo laboratory module configuring a small satellite orbital deployer that will soon be placed into the vacuum of space to release a series of CubeSats. Pettit, a four-time space station visitor, wrapped up his shift replacing experiment samples inside the Combustion Integrated Rack readying the research device for a spacecraft fire safety investigation.

Roscosmos Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov also worked on cargo duties but on the other side of the orbital outpost. Gorbunov unpacked some of the nearly three tons of cargo launched aboard the Progress 90 cargo craft on Nov. 21 and docking to the Poisk module on Nov. 23. The first-time space flyer completed his day inspecting and photographing air conditioning hardware in the Zvezda service module.

Cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner partnered together throughout the day Wednesday servicing a host of communications and electronics hardware in the orbital outpost’s Roscosmos segment. Ovchinin then moved on and checked ventilation equipment inside the Zarya module. Vagner conducted a photo-inspection of windows inside Zvezda then collected his hair samples for biological analysis.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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Mark Garcia

Crew Finalizing Science For Return to Earth Aboard Dragon

The Expedition 72 crew is packing up finalized science experiments this week for return to Earth aboard the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft. The International Space Station residents also studied antibiotic resistant bacteria and set up space botany hardware.

Station Commander Suni Williams and Flight Engineer Don Pettit, both from NASA, kicked off their day transferring research samples from station science freezers into portable POLAR freezers that will soon be installed inside the departing Dragon. Williams then joined NASA Flight Engineer Nick Hague loading and strapping down more cargo inside Dragon for retrieval and analysis on Earth.

Dragon is scheduled to undock from the Harmony module’s forward port at 11:05 a.m. EST on Thursday for a splashdown off the coast of Florida the following day. NASA’s live coverage of undocking and departure begins at 10:50 a.m. EST on NASA+. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

Pettit later spent the rest of his shift with NASA Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore processing bacteria samples in the Kibo and Harmony modules to understand why some pathogens are more potent in the microgravity environment. The duo was using genetic analysis techniques to identify the antibiotic resistant organisms and help researchers protect crew health on long-term space missions. Those samples will also be collected and packed inside Dragon this week for return and analysis back on Earth.

Williams set up research components inside the Advanced Plant Habitat to support an upcoming experiment to understand how different water levels affect plant growth in space and the microbes that live on plants. Results may lead to improved methods for growing food on Earth and in space. Hague began installing a small satellite deployer on Kibo’s multipurpose experiment platform that will soon be placed into the vacuum of space to release a series of CubeSats.

Working in the Roscosmos segment of the space station, Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov used different wavelengths to image natural and human-caused conditions on Earth then jogged on a treadmill for a fitness evaluation. His fellow cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner spent their day monitoring carbon dioxide levels and servicing the atmospheric purification system in the orbital lab’s Roscosmos segment among other life support tasks.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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khowren

Crew Packs Dragon for Departure This Week

The Expedition 72 crew is packing a SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft ahead of its departure later this week. The seven astronauts and cosmonauts also kept up a variety of space biology and lab maintenance tasks aboard the International Space Station on Monday.

Cargo packing is at the top of the schedule this week as the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft nears its undocking targeted for 11:05 a.m. EST on Thursday, Dec. 5. NASA’s live coverage of undocking and departure begins at 10:50 a.m. EST on NASA+. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

Commander Suni Williams and Flight Engineer Don Pettit joined forces on Monday morning loading Dragon with return cargo as it prepares to depart the Harmony module’s forward port after being docked for one month. Pettit then worked with Flight Engineer Nick Hague during the afternoon strapping down the hardware inside Dragon. The trio plus Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore will work during the week stowing critical research samples and finalized experiments inside the spacecraft for analysis in labs on Earth.

The four NASA astronauts also continued their regularly scheduled research objectives studying space biology and servicing a host of science equipment. Williams with assistance from Wilmore activated mixing tubes supporting student-designed experiments that observe how microgravity affects proteins and bacteria potentially benefitting human health on and off the Earth. Williams also processed bacteria and yeast samples for a biomanufacturing study possibly enabling the production of food and medicine in space. Pettit spun his blood sample in a centrifuge then stowed it in a science freezer for later analysis. Hague installed the Multi-Purpose Experiment Platform, a device that can deploy scientific payloads in the vacuum of space, into the Kibo laboratory module’s airlock.

Working in the Roscosmos segment of the orbital outpost, cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov unloaded cargo from the Progress 90 resupply ship that docked to the Zvezda service module’s rear port on Nov. 23. He also set up imaging hardware to view natural and human-caused conditions on Earth using different wavelengths. Flight Engineers Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner partnered together throughout Monday servicing communications, computer, and electronics hardware in Zvezda.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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Mark Garcia

Crew Preps Space Botany Experiment, Packs Dragon for Return to Earth

The Expedition 72 crew is back to work following a day off yesterday to observe the Thanksgiving holiday. Space botany experiment prep and cargo operations topped Friday’s schedule aboard the International Space Station as three NASA astronauts prepped the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft for return and another installed science gear that will assess how plants respond to different levels of water.

NASA Flight Engineers Nick Hague, Don Pettit, and Butch Wilmore spent some of the day packing gear for return to Earth inside the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft, which is set to undock from the Harmony module’s forward port on Thursday, Dec. 5. Dragon arrived to the orbiting lab on Nov. 5, delivering over 6,000 pounds of science and cargo to the crew.

Pettit also penciled in some time to answer questions about life in orbit during an amateur radio call with students in Caltanissetta, Italy. Meanwhile, after Wednesday’s processing of radiant-resistant Arthrospira C micro-algae samples, Hague removed the four sample containers and swapped in a new set to the BioLab Incubator. The samples will be exposed to different light intensities to observe how they affect the micro-algae’s cell growth, which could advance spacecraft life support system development and fresh food production on future space missions.

In the Harmony module, station Commander Suni Williams started her day by gathering hardware for future Advanced Plant Habitat operations. She then collected water samples from the device’s distribution reservoir before installing the Plant Habitat-07 science carrier. The science carrier will host “Outredgeous” romaine lettuce plants as they grow in microgravity for crew members to assess how different amounts of water affect the growth of the plants. Results could identify how different moisture environments alter the production and nutritional content of lettuce grown in space and could improve how food crops are grown on Earth.

Near the end of the day, Williams assisted Hague with an ultrasound exam as she scanned veins in his neck, shoulders, and behind the knees.

In the Nauka module, Roscosmos Flight Engineers Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner rerouted cables throughout the day. Vagner then moved into the Zarya module to assess lighting conditions and later continued to unpack the Progress 90 cargo spacecraft, which docked to the station’s Poisk module on Nov. 23. Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov completed some computer work before ending his day by practicing his piloting techniques during a Pilot-T session.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

Get weekly updates from NASA Johnson Space Center at: https://roundupreads.jsc.nasa.gov/

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Abby Graf

Advanced Tech Research Tops Crew Schedule Day Before Thanksgiving

Advanced technology research into DNA-like nanomaterials, bacterial genetic analysis, and 3D printing kept the Expedition 72 crew busy the day before Thanksgiving. The International Space Station residents also sent down a Thanksgiving message, checked out a Roscosmos cargo craft, and continued their standard orbital maintenance duties.

Commander Suni Williams kicked off her day with Flight Engineer Nick Hague, both NASA astronauts, in the Kibo laboratory module mixing samples of messenger RNA, or mRNA, and protein with water to manufacture nanomaterials that mimic DNA. Williams then imaged the samples using light intensity measurements to evaluate the quality of the nanomaterials. Results may benefit space manufacturing and lead to advanced therapies for Earthbound and space-caused health conditions.

NASA Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore spent all day Wednesday collecting microbe samples throughout the station to analyze their genetic characteristics. Wilmore first swabbed areas the crew touches frequently then transferred those samples to genetic research hardware for analysis. The samples will be incubated for a few days before undergoing a DNA extraction process for identification. Doctors want to understand how antibiotic-resistant bacteria evolve in the microgravity environment in an effort reduce the risk of crew infection aboard spacecraft.

NASA Flight Engineer Don Pettit worked in the Columbus laboratory module configuring the Metal 3D Printer that may be able to manufacture spare parts during space missions reducing the need for resupply missions launched from Earth. Williams assisted Pettit removing a printed specimen from the 3D printer and replacing components inside the device.

The four NASA astronauts sent down a Thanksgiving message video highlighting their upcoming meal and expressing their gratitude for their families and living and working in space. The quartet along with the three Roscosmos cosmonauts aboard the space station will take the day off on Thursday enjoying a hearty meal, talking to family members on the ground, and relaxing aboard the orbital outpost.

Roscosmos Flight Engineers Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner worked throughout Wednesday checking ventilation systems and docking hardware inside the Progress 89 cargo craft docked to the Zvezda service module’s rear port. The cosmonaut duo also took turns attaching electrodes to themselves recording their heart activity and measuring their blood pressure. Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov updated laptop computer software and continued unpacking the Progress 90 cargo craft.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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Mark Garcia