Archivo de la etiqueta: iss

NASA Provides Latest Axiom Mission 4 Launch, Station Operations Update

NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX continue reviewing launch opportunities for Axiom Mission 4 to the International Space Station. NASA has made the decision to stand down from a launch on Sunday, June 22, and will target a new launch date in the coming days.

The space agency needs additional time to continue evaluating International Space Station operations after recent repair work in the aft (back) most segment of the orbital laboratory’s Zvezda service module. Because of the space station’s interconnected and interdependent systems, NASA wants to ensure the station is ready for additional crew members, and the agency is taking the time necessary to review data. 

NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX appreciate the historic nature of this mission for the nations of India, Poland, and Hungary, as well as the world. The crew remains in quarantine in Florida, and the astronauts stand ready to launch when the station is ready to receive them.

Peggy Whitson, former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space, will command the commercial mission, while ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla will serve as pilot. The two mission specialists are ESA (European Space Agency) project astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft remain healthy on the launch pad at Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

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 A. Garcia

NASA Shares New Space Station Ops, Axiom Mission 4 Launch Update

NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX now are targeting no earlier than Sunday, June 22, for launch of the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station, Axiom Mission 4. 

The change in a targeted launch date provides NASA time to continue evaluating space station operations after recent repair work in the aft (back) most segment of the International Space Station’s Zvezda service module. 

Peggy Whitson, former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space, will command the commercial mission, while ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla will serve as pilot. The two mission specialists are ESA (European Space Agency) project astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary. 

The crew will lift off aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft on Falcon 9 from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. 

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 A. Garcia

Crew Works Exercise and Earth Studies, Spacesuit Checks, and Lab Inspections

Exercise research and spacesuit checks were the top duties aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday. The Expedition 73 crew also continued inspecting the orbital outpost’s windows and photographing Earth landmarks.

An astronaut spends less energy moving around in space than they do walking in Earth’s gravity environment. As a result, muscles and bones begin to atrophy since crew members do not use a lot of effort when living and working in weightlessness. Daily two-hour exercise sessions on the space station are critical and help offset the effects of weightlessness. Researchers monitor the crew exercise sessions to protect crew health and prepare astronauts for the return to Earth’s gravity.

NASA Flight Engineer Jonny Kim strapped on a sensor-packed vest and headband measuring his health data during a two-hour workout session on Tuesday. He first pedaled on an exercise cycle then simulated lifting weights on the advanced resistive exercise device. The Bio-Monitor wearable hardware comfortably collected Kim’s physiological parameters as he exercised that will help scientists refine space exercise programs and learn how to keep crews healthy on long term missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.

NASA Flight Engineer Nichole Ayers was back in the Destiny laboratory module exploring surface tension to contain liquids and study proteins without contacting solid walls. Containerless liquid systems remove the effects of gravity providing more accurate computer models of fluid behavior in weightlessness. The fluid physics study takes place inside Destiny’s Microgravity Science Glovebox may benefit pharmaceutical manufacturing and 3D printing techniques on and off the Earth.

NASA Flight Engineer Anne McClain spent her day inside the cupola, the orbiting lab’s “window to the world,” inspecting its seven windows. The cupola is attached to the Tranquility module’s Earth-facing port and is very important for observing spacecraft operations, monitoring spacewalkers, and imaging the Earth. McClain was photographing the condition of the windows to document smudges, particles, and scratches caused by crew activities, spacecraft plumes, or micrometeoroids.

Station Commander Takuya Onishi from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) was also inspection duty examining hatches throughout the orbiting lab’s U.S. segment. Onishi examined and cleaned hatch seals and surfaces, interlocking components, and crank handles removing dust and stains. He also photographed the condition of the hatches and downlinked the images for analysis by ground engineers.

Working in the station’s Roscosmos segment, cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritskiy partnered together inside the Poisk module and worked on a pair of spacesuits. The duo activated the suits then checked and cleaned life support components. Flight Engineer Kirill Peskov watched as Ryzhikov and Zubritskiy serviced the spacesuits to familiarize himself with spacesuit operations. Peskov later continued his Earth observations pointing a hyperspectral camera out a station window and photographing North American mountains and lakes in different wavelengths.

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 A. Garcia

Science Maintenance and Window Inspections Kick Off Week

Science maintenance supporting physics research gear and window inspections kicked off the beginning of the week for the seven-member Expedition 73 crew living and working aboard the International Space Station. Meanwhile, NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX are reviewing launch opportunities no earlier than Thursday, June 19, for the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station, Axiom Mission 4.

A fluid physics study on the orbital outpost is testing computer models that may predict the behavior of high-concentration protein fluids in microgravity. NASA Flight Engineer Nichole Ayers swapped syringes containing protein samples and installed test cells inside the Microgravity Science Glovebox. The hydrodynamics investigation explores using surface tension to contain liquids and study proteins without contacting solid walls. Results may benefit pharmaceutical manufacturing and 3D printing techniques on and off the Earth.

NASA Flight Engineer Jonny Kim began his shift opening up the Materials Science Laboratory (MSL) and removing a sample cartridge from the physics research rack. The MSL located, in the Destiny laboratory module, uses two different furnaces operating one at a time to discover new applications for existing materials, such as metals, alloys, polymers, and new or improved materials. Kim later installed tags throughout the station testing their use for a radio frequency identification system that may improve inventory management in space.

NASA Flight Engineer Anne McClain started her day with a cognition test to understand how her brain function and structure is adapting to weightlessness. Next, she jogged on a treadmill as a heart rate monitor measured her cardiac activity. At the end of her shift, McClain inspected and photographed the condition of windows inside Destiny.

Station Commander Takuya Onishi from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) also inspected and cleaned windows spending his day inside the Kibo laboratory module. He first opened up Kibo’s multipurpose small payload rack where the Electrostatic Levitation Furnace is located and cleaned glass windows on the research device’s sample cartridges. The ELF uses containerless processing techniques to observe the thermophysical properties of material samples exposed to high temperatures in microgravity. Next, he inspected and photographed the condition of Kibo’s internal and external windowpanes during nighttime orbital passes for clearer imagery.

Roscosmos Flight Engineers Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritskiy joined each other at the beginning of their shift attaching acoustic sensors to their necks measuring the sound as they exhaled rapidly for a respiratory study. The duo then split up and inventoried hardware and searched for extra stowage space inside the Zvezda service module. Flight Engineer Kirill Peskov spent his day servicing a variety of computer hardware and life support gear before pointing his camera toward Earth and photographing the mountainous area of North America near the Pacific coast.

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 A. Garcia

NASA, Partners Review Axiom Mission 4 Launch Opportunities

NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX are reviewing launch opportunities no earlier than Thursday, June 19, for the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station, Axiom Mission 4.

On June 12, NASA and Axiom Space delayed the mission as the agency continued to work with Roscosmos to understand the most recent repair efforts to seal small leaks. The leaks, located in the aft (back) most segment of the International Space Station’s Zvezda service module, have been monitored by flight controllers for the past few years.

Following the most-recent repair, pressure in the transfer tunnel has been stable. Previously, pressure in this area would have dropped. This could indicate the small leaks have been sealed. Teams are also considering the stable pressure could be the result of a small amount of air flowing into the transfer tunnel across the hatch seal from the main part of space station. By changing pressure in the transfer tunnel and monitoring over time, teams are evaluating the condition of the transfer tunnel and the hatch seal between the space station and the back of Zvezda.

It is not uncommon for the agency and its international partners to adjust launches around changes in operations aboard the space station. Teams are making progress evaluating the transfer tunnel configuration, resulting in an updated launch opportunity for the private astronaut mission.

In addition, SpaceX teams have repaired a liquid oxygen leak identified during post-static fire Falcon 9 rocket inspections. Following the repairs, the company completed a wet dress rehearsal of the Falcon 9.

Peggy Whitson, former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space, will command the commercial mission, while ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla will serve as pilot. The two mission specialists are ESA (European Space Agency) project astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary.

The crew will lift off aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft on Falcon 9 from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

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 the latest from NASA delivered every week. Subscribe here.

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Mark A. Garcia