Week Starts with Muscle Stimulation and Cellular Research During Cargo Transfers
The Expedition 73 crew kicked off the week studying electrical muscle stimulation and cellular immunity to protect crew health in microgravity. The orbital residents are also unpacking a new cargo craft and continuing to support the Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) crew aboard the International Space Station.
NASA Flight Engineers Nichole Ayers and Anne McClain joined each other in the Columbus laboratory module on Monday and explored stimulating muscles with small electrical signals to help prevent space-caused muscle atrophy. Ayers wore electrodes as McClain operated biomedical gear sending electrical impulses to her legs simulating load forces on the ground. Researchers are exploring electrical muscle stimulation to supplement daily space workouts and keep astronauts fit in weightlessness.
Ayers then partnered with NASA Flight Engineer Jonny Kim assisting him as he inspected hatches in the Quest airlock and the Harmony module and downlinked photographs for further analysis by engineers on the ground. Kim began his day in the Tranquility module replacing orbital plumbing components then switched over to the Destiny laboratory module and swapped out research hardware.
Station Commander Takuya Onishi from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration) began his shift with a standard cognition test then documented his meals and medication for the day. Afterward, Onishi set up computer hardware that supports the advanced resistive exercise device then collected his saliva samples for stowage in the Kubik incubator and later analysis to study cellular changes in microgravity.
Before she assisted Ayers, McClain serviced spacesuit life support gear then checked cable connections on a computer that supports the MUSES commercial Earth observation hardware. McClain also worked throughout the day supporting the Ax-4 crew members as they conducted their private research.
Veteran astronaut and Ax-4 Commander Peggy Whitson spent Monday assisting her Ax-4 crewmates Shubhanshu Shukla, Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski, and Tibor Kapu during their busy day of space experiments. The quartet explored a wide array of subjects including space agriculture to provide fresh food for crews, how blood circulates in space, a human-computer interface, and more on Monday.
The new Progress 92 cargo craft is being unloaded today after its docking to the Poisk module on Saturday, July 5. Roscosmos Flight Engineers Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritskiy opened Progress’ hatch on Sunday and continued working into Monday transferring some of its three tons of food, fuel, and supplies into the orbital outpost. Ryzhikov later activated a camera pointed at Earth that students will remotely control for a weeklong observation session. Flight Engineer Kirill Peskov assisted his cosmonaut crewmates with the cargo work, worked on computer electronics gear, and photographed the external condition of Poisk with the Progress 92 docked to it.
Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.
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Mark A. Garcia
