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Biotech, Fire Safety Research and Station Maintenance topped Tuesday’s Schedule for the Expedition 73 Crew

Biotechnology research exploring DNA-inspired nanomaterials and researching how fire behaves in microgravity to expand on station fire safety topped the science schedule for the Expedition 73 crew aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday. The crew also scheduled in time for more station maintenance.

A Bio-Monitor garment and headband were donned by NASA astronaut Anne McClain as part of an experiment that monitors astronauts’ psychological responses before, during, and after a mission to the International Space Station to assess the effect of space travel on heart health. 

McClain and NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers experimented with the Life Sciences Glovebox and the DNA Nano Therapeutics Mission 2 which produces a special type of molecule formed by DNA-inspired nanomaterials. Together these flight engineers were mixing mRNA and/or protein solutions as part of the nanomaterials mixing operations. This investigation could help identify the best formulations and methods for cost-effective in-space production. These nanomaterials also could be used to create new ways of targeting therapy delivery that improve patient outcomes with fewer side effects.

Ayers continued her work with the Life Sciences Glove Box and worked to plug-in the spectrophotometer to perform light wave measurements as part of the DNA Nano Therapeutics Mission 2 Spectrophotometer setup. Throughout her day she also checked and charged the batteries in the Astrobees, which are cube-shaped robots designed to help scientists and engineers develop and test technologies for use in microgravity and to assist astronauts with routine chores, and give ground controllers additional eyes and ears on the space station. 

NASA astronaut Jonny Kim worked on installing the Solid Fuel Ignition and Extinction (SoFIE) experiment mist hardware used to extinguish flames. He also worked with the Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR) which enables investigators to perform combustion research to understand the fundamentals of the combustion process, understand fire safety, and methods for suppression of fires in space. 

Station commander Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) performed work in the Japanese Experiment Module with fire safety as well as some station maintenance. Onishi worked with the Solid Combustion Experiment Module (SCEM) exchanging gas bottles in the Multi-Purpose Small Payload Rack to perform leak checks as well as exchanged samples. Onishi also worked on orbital plumbing installing recycle tanks and configuring drain valves.

Maintenance was at the forefront of the station’s three cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritskiy, and Kirill Peskov’s day while working in the Russian segment. Zubritskiy removed Russian cargo, completed replacing and repairing thermal sensors as well and verifying a flow sensor installation position. Peskov completed an ethernet cables audit as well as worked on the intermodular ventilation system that connects the Russian module to the U.S. module.

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Kelcie Nicole Howren

Crew Kicks off the Week with Cargo Stowage, Health Research, and Maintenance and Agricultural Work

This week begins with a focus on cargo stowage inside SpaceX’s Dragon cargo spacecraft and health research aboard the International Space Station. The Expedition 73 crew members also scheduled in time for maintenance and agricultural work.

The morning consisted of NASA Flight Engineer (or astronaut) Anne McClain setting up the CIPHER Falcon Goggles hardware for Vestibular Exams that she and fellow NASA Flight Engineer (or astronaut) Jonny Kim later performed. They were aided by an operator and remote guide on the ground. The CIPHER investigation, or the Complement of Integrated Protocols for Human Exploration Research, is one of many ongoing health-focused studies in microgravity that looks at how various systems in the body—the heart, muscles, bones, and eyes—adapt to longer missions.

Work later began with the Life Sciences Glovebox by Kim as he worked to support the DNA Nano Therapeutics Mission 2 which produces a special type of molecule formed by DNA-inspired, customizable building blocks known as Janus base nanomaterials. It also evaluates how well the materials reduce joint inflammation and whether they can help regenerate cartilage lost due to arthritis. He moved on to work on ADSEP-4, which is Advanced Space Experiment Processor where he replaced and removed the Crystallizer in the Advanced Space Experiment Processor Industrial Crystallization Cassette.

NASA Flight Engineer (or astronaut) Nichole Ayers, McClain, and station commander Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) then spent a portion of their day transferring cargo from the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft onto the International Space Station. Ayers and Onishi also continued some spacewalk clean-up as they stowed tools used from preparing the space station for the ISS Roll Out Solar Array (IROSA).

Photography consumed parts of McClain’s day on station as she recorded the progress of tomato plants as part of a space agricultural study. She later closed out her tasks documenting Kim’s work on the ADSEP-4 as he was holding the Advanced Space Experiment Processor Industrial Crystallization Cassette.

Onishi carried out several station maintenance tasks starting with the setting up, analyzing, and recording data from water samples taken from the Water Processor Assembly using the TOCA (Total Organic Carbon Analyzer) Water Sample Hose. TOCA helps ensure reclaimed water is safe to drink by providing capabilities to measure total organic carbon, total inorganic carbon, total carbon, pH and conductivity in water.  He later moved on to maintenance for the 4-Bed CO2 Scrubber, which is an integral part of crew life support through the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere on the International Space Station.

In the Roscosmos segment, the station’s three cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritskiy, and Kirill Peskov spent much of their day working on space station maintenance. Peskov worked with potable water with the Water Process Assembly, while Ryzhikov was ensuring the maintenance of coolant. Both he and Zubritskiy also oversaw finding an adaptor cable.

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: https://www.nasa.gov/subscribe.

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Kelcie Nicole Howren

Crew Works Tech Demos and Maintenance on Friday

Friday’s schedule aboard the International Space Station included maintenance and tech demonstration set up for the Expedition 73 crew.

In the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM), NASA Flight Engineers Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers teamed up in the morning to remove MISSE hardware and sample carriers before bagging them for return to Earth. The facility provides a unique platform for the testing of materials, coatings, and components in the space environment.

Afterward, the duo split up for a majority of the afternoon to focus on other tasks. McClain photographed tomato plants for a space agricultural study, while Ayers set up ELVIS—a microscope for 3D imaging of objects such as bacteria—in the Life Sciences Glovebox. She then inserted Colwellia bacteria samples into GLACIER, one of the station’s ultra-cold freezers, before conducting a sample run to analyze the active behavior and genetic changes in the bacteria. Ayers and McClain were then joined by NASA Flight Engineer Jonny Kim and current station commander Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) for a conference with ground support.

Kim spent most of the day on maintenance and IT activities. He first set up hardware on the orbital lab’s bicycle, CEVIS, then scanned the disk drive of the Microgravity Science Glovebox for any system errors. Later on, he conducted some computer hard drive tests, then took inventory of supplies in the Human Research Facility.

Onishi had a light-duty morning before work picked up in the afternoon. In the Harmony Module, he installed a crystallizer in the ADvanced Space Experiment Processor, or ADSEP, a biotech facility that contains three thermal zones to accommodate a variety of experiments, including crystal growth. He then replaced the controller card in the Potable Water Dispenser before setting up a tech demo in JEM that will more efficiently transfer space-to-ground data.

The station’s three Roscosmos cosmonauts, Alexey Zubritsky, Sergey Ryzhikov, and Kirill Peskov, all enjoyed a day off, relaxing and completing their routine two hours of daily exercise.

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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Abby Graf

Biotech and Health Research Top Thursday’s Workday, Crew Completes Training

Biotechnology work and health research was the main focus on Thursday aboard the International Space Station. Five Expedition 73 crew members also scheduled some time for training and additional experiment cleanup duties.

Understanding how the human body reacts to spaceflight is crucial as humans prepare for missions to the Moon and beyond. The CIPHER investigation, or the Complement of Integrated Protocols for Human Exploration Research, is one of many ongoing health-focused studies in microgravity that looks at how various systems in the body—the heart, muscles, bones, and eyes—adapt to longer missions. NASA Flight Engineer Anne McClain dedicated a large portion of her week to CIPHER activities and continued through today as she collected biological samples for processing and analysis. Later on, she completed a cognition test, then teamed up with NASA Flight Engineer Jonny Kim, as he guided her through a vestibular exam before a scan that measures the pressure in her eyes.

Kim also spent a portion of his day working with the Life Sciences Glovebox. He and NASA Flight Engineer Nichole Ayers conducted biotechnology work that aims to understand in-space manufacturing of nanomaterials that mimic DNA in space. Throughout experiment operations, three different products will be manufactured and returned to Earth for analysis. In the afternoon, current station commander Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) continued this work while Kim and Ayers moved onto other tasks.

After donning the Bio-Monitor for 48 hours to investigate the effects of microgravity on the cardiovascular system, Ayers doffed the headband and garment to collect data. She was then joined by McClain, Kim, Onishi and Roscosmos Flight Engineer Kirill Peskov to complete a round of training in the event an emergency were to occur aboard station. Afterward, the five residents held a conference with ground teams to go over the materials.

Before winding down for the evening, Ayers cleaned out the Veggie facility after APEX-12 experiment operations wrapped. As part of the investigation, earlier this week, she and McClain harvested thale cress plants to observe how space radiation affects plant genetics.

Peskov, along with Flight Engineer Sergey Ryzhikov of Roscosmos, completed some orbital plumbing duties today. Additionally, Ryzhikov and Flight Engineer Alexey Zubritsky both completed a virtual reality test that tracks their eye and brain movement.

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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Abby Graf

Crew Expands on Health Research, Botany and Pharmaceutical Work

A full day of experiment preparations and health research topped Wednesday’s Expedition 73 schedule aboard the International Space Station. The crew expanded on agricultural and pharmaceutical work that began earlier in the week and continued to study how spaceflight affects the human body.

In the morning, NASA Flight Engineers Nichole Ayers and Anne McClain, along with current station commander Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), completed some spacesuit work, installing straps for stowage and later on, an electronics data recorder box and impact shield. Ayers then moved onto work that’s looking at capabilities for producing pharmaceutical ingredients in space that could be used to synthesize medications during future deep-space missions. She removed cassette carriers for the ADSEP-4 investigation, replacing them with a new set for future analysis.

Meanwhile, McClain spent a majority of the day expanding on CIPHER work that began yesterday. CIPHER, or the Complement of Integrated Protocols for Human Exploration Research, takes a full-body approach through a suite of 14 studies to investigate how the human body reacts to spaceflight, insights that could prepare astronauts on future lunar missions. Today, McClain collected a host of biological samples then stored them inside MELFI—the station’s freezer used to preserve science samples at ultra-cold temps—for ground teams to analyze.   

Onishi swabbed surfaces throughout various U.S. modules and the Japanese Experiment Module for microbial analysis. He then took to photographing tomato plants currently growing in microgravity for a space agricultural study. These photos will later be analyzed by researchers on the ground to better understand crop growth in space and if crops can be cultivated without photosynthesis. Onishi ended his day unpacking additional cargo from a SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft.

NASA Flight Engineer Jonny Kim got straight to experiment prep work in the morning. He deployed the Life Sciences Glovebox—a work area crew members often use for life science and technology investigations—before preparing for a study that builds upon past work to develop nanomaterials that mimic DNA in space. After experiment prep work, Kim moved on to some orbital plumbing and Dragon cargo operations before meeting Ayers at the end of the day, where she then guided a cardiovascular ultrasound scan to measure his blood flow.  

Flight Engineer Sergey Ryzhikov of Roscosmos spent the morning throughout the Rassvet, Poisk, and Zarya modules to take inventory of equipment connected to electrical sockets. He then monitored CO2 levels in the Roscosmos segment before updating a collection of computer software. His colleagues, Flight Engineers Alexey Zubritsky and Kirill Peskov took inventory of personal hygiene items before auditing cargo that will be loaded in the Progress 90 spacecraft for its eventual departure from the station. 

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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Abby Graf