Archivo de la etiqueta: spacestation

Plants and Worms Informing Future Missions; Crew Preps for Computer Upgrades

Advanced botany and biology research to sustain crews on future missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond wrapped up the week aboard the International Space Station. The Expedition 74 crew also continued unpacking a U.S. cargo craft while keeping up the maintenance of the orbital outpost.

NASA flight engineer Chris Williams kicked off his shift gathering hardware and samples for the Veg-06 space botany study investigating how plants and microbes interact in microgravity. Next, Williams mixed nutrients for the alfalfa and microbe samples being housed inside the Columbus laboratory module’s Veggie facility. Results may advance the development of ways to grow plants for food on future space missions.

ESA (European Space Agency) flight engineer Sophie Adenot worked inside the Harmony module setting up research and video gear to begin exploring how microgravity affects an astronaut’s gut health. She recorded roundworms observing how their bodies and their gut microbes change in microgravity. Results may lead to the development of probiotics, or “living medicines,” to protect health in spaceflight and treat diseases and disorders on Earth.

Afterward, Adenot and Williams joined NASA flight engineer Jessica Meir and continued unpacking new scientific gear, crew supplies, and more from inside Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft. Meir started her shift in the Kibo laboratory module filming content for JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) to promote space awareness and commercialization of low Earth orbit.

NASA flight engineer Jack Hathaway focused primarily on lab maintenance throughout Friday. Hathaway first replaced filters on the urine processing assembly located in the Tranquility module’s waste and hygiene compartment, or bathroom. Following that, he inspected berthing hardware that the Cygnus XL and JAXA’s HTV-X1 spacecraft are attached to during their missions at the orbital outpost. Finally, he installed protective rings around ventilation valves in the Unity and Tranquility modules then photographed his work for analysis.

Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev were once again inside the Zvezda service module conducting maintenance and inspections throughout Friday. Flight engineer Andrey Fedyaev inspected the ventilation system connecting the Roscosmos segment of the station with the U.S. segment then measured the airflow between the two segments.

At the end of the day all seven Expedition 74 crewmates joined each other and reviewed upcoming computer upgrades planned for the weekend. The orbital residents will first replace network servers then activate their new, more powerful laptop computers. Support teams on the ground will assist the crew with the software updates, network configurations, and other technical transitions.

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

Station Orbits Higher as Crew Runs New Science Experiments

The International Space Station is orbiting higher today after the Progress 93 resupply ship, docked to the Zvezda service module, fired its engines for just over five minutes Wednesday night. The orbital reboost places the space station at the correct altitude for the upcoming Progress 95 cargo mission scheduled to resupply the Expedition 74 crew at the end of April.

Meanwhile, brand new science experiments are underway and advanced lab hardware is being installed on the orbital outpost following the arrival of the Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft on Monday. The crew has been unpacking several tons of scientific gear, research samples, crew supplies, and more since the hatches were opened on Cygnus on Tuesday.

NASA flight engineers Jack Hathaway, Jessica Meir, and Chris Williams took turns on Thursday learning how to manage cardiovascular health and infectious diseases in space. Hathaway started first setting up a portable glovebag in the Harmony module and configuring the Multi-use Variable-g Platform (MVP) that can generate artificial gravity for a wide range of biology and physics investigations. Meir and Williams then installed sample hardware housing bacteria and heart tissue samples inside the MVP. Researchers will observe how bacteria affects heart tissue in the microgravity environment to learn how to treat heart and infectious diseases.

Later in his shift, Hathway installed light hardware inside the Columbus laboratory module’s Veggie facility and collected light measurements for the upcoming Veg-06 study to learn how to grow plants for food on future space missions. Meir swapped blood stem cell samples inside the Destiny laboratory module’s fluorescent microscope providing researchers with insights into cancerous diseases and blood disorders. Finally, Williams installed the new European Enhanced Exploration Exercise Device, or E4D, inside Columbus. The E4D is being evaluated for its ability to support crew workouts on missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.

At the beginning of her shift on Thursday, flight engineer Sophie Adenot from ESA (European Space Agency) assisted her crewmates with the scientific work and the E4D installations. She later finalized the installation of a new quantum physics module inside the Destiny laboratory module’s EXPRESS rack. The new module expands the Cold Atom Lab’s (CAL) quantum science capabilities for improved insights into general relativity and aid the search for dark matter.

Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev began their day conducting maintenance and inspections inside the Zvezda service module. The duo later split up as Kud-Sverchkov studied ways to use artificial intelligence tools to improve crew operations while Mikaev continued inspections inside Zvezda. Cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev spent his shift on lab maintenance disinfecting water tanks, checking the battery levels of tablet computers, and replacing orbital plumbing gear.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_stationon X, as well as the ISS Facebookand ISS Instagram accounts.

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Mark A. Garcia

Crew Begins New Space Research and Installs New Science Gear

New science experiments are getting underway and new research hardware is being activated aboard the International Space Station after being delivered by a Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft on Monday. The Expedition 74 crew spent Wednesday unpacking Cygnus XL and stowing the new gear and supplies throughout the orbital outpost.

A new microgravity workout machine from ESA (European Space Agency), known as the European Enhanced Exploration Exercise Device, or E4D, is being configured for activation and installation inside the Columbus laboratory module. NASA flight engineer Chris Williams began his day unpacking computer hardware that supports the E4D then installing it and powering it on inside Columbus. Next, he joined NASA flight engineer Jessica Meir and replaced components on the E4D to ensure its accurate motion, alignment, and system longevity. The E4D is being evaluated for its ability to support crew workouts on missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.

NASA flight engineer Jack Hathaway kicked off the new Space Surface Spirulina experiment to demonstrate more efficient protein food production and carbon dioxide processing aboard spacecraft. He worked inside the Kibo laboratory module setting up the research hardware and retrieving microalgae samples for placement inside the Cell Biology Experiment Facility’s incubator unit. Scientists will observe how the spirulina microalgae grow in weightlessness to support the design of advanced, highly efficient life support systems for future space missions.

Afterward, Hathaway installed a new quantum physics module inside the Destiny laboratory module’s EXPRESS rack. The new module expands the Cold Atom Lab’s (CAL) quantum science capabilities for improved insights into general relativity and aid the search for dark matter. The CAL produces and chills clouds of atoms to about one ten billionth of a degree above absolute zero enabling the observation of atomic wave functions, a fundamental part of quantum physics. 

ESA flight engineer Sophie Adenot photographed Hathaway as he set up the new Cold Atom Lab hardware inside Destiny and performed other scientific duties. She also spent most of her day in and out of Cygnus XL unpacking lab hardware, crew supplies, and food replenishing the space station crew.

Station commander Sergey Kud-Sverchkov of Roscosmos worked throughout Wednesday conducting a photographic inspection inside the Zvezda service module. Flight engineer Sergei Mikaev assisted with the inspections then worked on life support maintenance servicing the Elektron oxygen generator and replacing carbon dioxide filters. Flight engineer Andrey Fedyaev spent his shift transferring water between the station’s U.S. and Roscosmos segments, as well as ensuring the operability of the Nauka science module’s ventilation system.

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

Expedition 74 Opens Cygnus XL and Unpacks Advanced Science Gear

The hatches are open between Northrop Grumman’s second Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft and the International Space Station following its robotic capture and installation on Monday. The Expedition 74 crew is now beginning to unload some of the new science and crew supplies delivered on Monday.

NASA flight engineers Chris Williams and Jack Hathaway were the first crew members to enter Cygnus XL on Tuesday after a series of pressure and leak checks inside the spacecraft. They were joined soon after by flight engineers Jessica Meir of NASA and Sophie Adenot of ESA (European Space Agency) transferring time critical research samples stowed in Cygnus’ portable science freezers for preservation in the station’s MELFI science freezers and the MERLIN incubators.

Among the several tons of cargo Cygnus XL delivered Monday are over 2,300 pounds of new research hardware and science experiments. The crew will soon begin exploring blood stem cells to treat cancers and blood disorders, study ways to protect astronaut gut health, observe proteins suspended in water to advance pharmaceutical production, and install a quantum physics module to expand the abilities of the Cold Atom Lab. Other gear delivered aboard Cygnus XL include an advanced exercise system from ESA, new eye-imaging hardware, oxygen and nitrogen tanks to recharge spacesuits, and more.

Meanwhile, the Roscosmos Progress 93 resupply ship is nearing the end of its stay after seven months docked to the Zvezda service module’s aft port. Cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev, station commander and flight engineer, spent the day packing trash and obsolete equipment inside Progress before its departure later this month. The duo also configured the spacecraft’s docking hardware for the upcoming undocking activities.

Roscosmos flight engineer Andrey Fedyaev kicked off his shift collecting air samples inside Cygnus XL shortly after Williams and Hathaway opened the spacecraft’s hatch to protect the station’s environment. Fedyaev then spent the rest of his shift maintaining the Roscosmos segment’s orbital plumbing and ventilation systems.

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

Canadarm2 Installs Cygnus XL Cargo Craft to Unity Module

Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus XL spacecraft has been installed to the Unity module’s Earth-facing port of the International Space Station. The mission is known as NASA’s Northrop Grumman Commercial Resupply Services 24, or Northrop Grumman CRS-24.

Filled with more than 11,000 pounds of research and supplies, the Northrop Grumman Cygnus XL spacecraft, carried on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, launched at 7:41 a.m. EDT on April 11, from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. This mission is the second flight of the Cygnus XL, the larger, more cargo-capable version of the company’s solar-powered spacecraft.

Cygnus will remain at the space station until October when it departs the orbiting laboratory at which point it will dispose of several thousand pounds of debris through its re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere where it will harmlessly burn up.

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