Archivo de la etiqueta: spacestation

Crew Preps for Private Astronaut Arrival as Ax-3 Mission Nears Launch

Four private astronauts are readying for launch to the International Space Station this week while the Expedition 70 crew ramps up microgravity research and maintenance tasks after yesterday’s off-duty day.

The third private astronaut mission to the station, Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3), is scheduled to liftoff from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 5:11 p.m. EST Wednesday, Jan. 17. Ax-3 crew members, Commander Michael López-Alegría, Pilot Walter Villadei of Italy, Mission Specialist Alper Gezeravcı of Turkey, and ESA (European Space Agency) project astronaut Marcus Wandt of Sweden, will make the trek to the orbital lab aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, docking at 5:15 a.m. Friday, Jan. 19. The quartet will spend about two weeks conducting science and research in microgravity before heading home.

Ahead of Ax-3 arrival, NASA Flight Engineer Loral O’Hara spent most of the day prepping station for new visitors. O’Hara inspected the airflow in crew quarters, prepped sleep accommodations for crew occupancy, and cleaned the liners and vents where the four private astronauts will sleep while aboard the orbital outpost.

ESA (European Space Agency) Commander Andreas Mogensen also prepped for Ax-3, completing training for Dragon rendezvous and docking. Afterward, he set up ECHO, which is equipped with motorized probs, for ground teams to perform remote maintenance activities.

While O’Hara and Mogensen prepped for Ax-3 crew arrival, other crew members took to space botany and biology tasks. NASA Flight Engineer Jasmin Moghbeli spent the day working with Plant Habitat-06, thinning wild-type tomato seedlings. Afterward, she set up and installed the Plant Water Management 5 hardware to the Maintenance Work Area.

JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Flight Engineer Satoshi Furukawa removed culture units from the microscope used for the Space Organogenesis investigation, which demonstrates growth of organ buds from 3D printed human stem cells. Additionally, Furukawa collected water samples from the station’s potable water dispenser for in-flight analysis.

The Roscosmos trio—Flight Engineers Oleg Kononenko, Nikolai Chub, and Konstantin Borisov—performed an array of maintenance activities on Tuesday. Kononenko replaced hardware in the Zvezda service module, while Chub replaced the thermal control system pump panel in the Zarya module. Afterward, Chub conducted an experiment studying liquid phases in microgravity, while Borisov distilled samples from the Roscosmos segment water management system and conducted maintenance on the station’s vacuum cleaner.

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 Preps for Ax-3 Mission and Keeps Up Research Schedule

The Expedition 70 crew is turning its attention to the third private astronaut mission from Axiom Space as it counts down to launch next week. Meanwhile, the seven International Space Station residents are also continuing their focus on human research, space botany, and life support maintenance tasks.

The next spacecraft to launch to the orbital outpost rolled out to its launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center on Thursday. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Freedom crew spacecraft atop, is scheduled to launch four private astronauts at 5:11 p.m. EST on Jan. 17 on a day-and-a-half-long ride to the space station.

NASA astronauts Loral O’Hara and Jasmin Moghbeli will be monitoring the arrival of Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3) as the Dragon approaches the Harmony module’s forward port for an automated docking at 5:15 a.m. on Jan. 19. About an hour-and-a-half later, the hatches will open and Ax-3 Commander and veteran astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria will enter the station. He will be followed by first time space visitors Pilot Walter Villadei and Mission Specialists Alper Gezeravci and Marcus Wandt. The Ax-3 quartet will live and work aboard the station for two weeks of research, education, and commercial activities.

O’Hara and Moghbeli on Friday reviewed the Dragon’s approach and rendezvous procedures that will see the duo monitoring data from the vehicle as it nears Harmony for a docking. The pair also joined astronauts Andreas Mogensen from ESA (European Space Agency) and Satoshi Furukawa from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) earlier in the day familiarizing themselves with the Ax-3 mission profile including crew coordination expectations, the research program, and other activities. The quartet then called down to mission controllers discussing their readiness for the Ax-3 mission.

The four station astronauts also kept up their science work to improve life for humans on Earth and in space. O’Hara began her day collecting and stowing blood samples for analysis followed by a cognition test for the CIPHER suite of 14 human research experiments. Furukawa checked wire connections on combustion experiment gear then tended to tomato plants growing for a plant immunity investigation. Mogensen worked on a science laptop computer and a lab freezer before exploring how virtual reality may improve morale on long-term space missions. Moghbeli explored anti-microbial coatings that may prevent the spread of microbes caused by the human touch on spacecraft.

The three cosmonauts from Roscosmos kept up their maintenance duties ensuring the upkeep of the orbital lab. Oleg Kononenko once again spent the day inspecting the Zvezda service module’s internal structures. Flight Engineer Nikolai Chub checked out electronic components on a carbon dioxide removal device. Flight Engineer Konstantin Borisov worked throughout the day on fluid physics and communications gear.

The space station is orbiting slightly higher after the 85P fired its engines for 17 minutes and 30 seconds Friday morning. The orbital reboost sets up the correct phasing for the ISS Progress 87 resupply mission next month.

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 video highlights at: https://roundupreads.jsc.nasa.gov/videoupdate/

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Mark Garcia

Research Underway for Earth and Space Health as Crew Preps for Ax-3 Mission

Advanced drug treatments, virtual reality care, and microbial analysis filled the science schedule for the Expedition 70 crew on Thursday. The orbital residents are also getting ready for the next private astronaut mission to the International Space Station.

NASA Flight Engineer Loral O’Hara worked in the Harmony module servicing samples for a study seeking to improve treatments for respiratory conditions. The Gaucho Lung investigation seeks to optimize the delivery of drugs into the human airways and may also benefit the health care and food industries. Fellow NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli set up the experiment gear, simulating the mucosal lining in the human lung, for O’Hara in Harmony’s maintenance work area.

Moghbeli began her day sequencing DNA samples for the BioMole study demonstrating hardware that can analyze microbes to protect crew health and spacecraft life support systems. Afterward, she moved on and inspected spacewalk safety tethers, recorded an educational video for students on Earth, then installed decontamination hardware inside the Life Science Glovebox.

Commander Andreas Mogensen of ESA (European Space Agency) also videotaped himself performing simple space experiments to promote STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) activities for students. Mogensen removed a freezer from the Life Science Glovebox and cleaned spacesuit helmets. Finally, the ESA astronaut watched a 360-degree movie wearing virtual really goggles as part of an experiment to help astronauts cope with isolation and confinement on long-term space missions.

Flight Engineer Satoshi Furukawa of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) spent Thursday working on a variety of biology research gear and preparing for the next private astronaut mission. He relocated the Protein Crystal Research Facility located in the Kibo laboratory module ahead of planned maintenance. Next, he stowed hardware used to study reproductive health and bone loss in microgravity. Finally, Furukawa installed science gear in EXPRESS racks in preparation for upcoming research planned for Axiom Space’s third private astronaut mission planned to launch next week.

Four private astronauts representing the United States, Italy, Turkey, and Sweden are scheduled to launch to the station aboard the SpaceX Dragon Freedom spacecraft at 5:11 p.m. EST on Jan. 17. The Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3) quartet, commanded by Michael Lopez-Alegria from the U.S. and piloted by Walter Villadei from Italy, will dock to the Harmony module’s forward port at 5:15 a.m. on Jan. 19. The duo will be joined by Ax-3 Mission Specialists Alper Gezeravci from Turkey and Marcus Wandt from Sweden for two weeks of research and education activities aboard the orbital outpost.

Back on the space station, veteran cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko continued his weeklong inspections inside the Zvezda service module. In the afternoon, he checked Zvezda’s communication systems then worked on sound silencing components in the Nauka science module.

Roscosmos Flight Engineer Nikolai Chub also worked throughout Thursday on Zvezda maintenance and stowage activities. Flight Engineer Konstantin Borisov installed and operated Earth observation hardware before replacing life support gear inside Nauka at the end of the day.

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

Robotics and Space Biology Fill Research Schedule on Station

The Expedition 70 crew focused its research on robotics, artificial organs, and eye checks aboard the International Space Station today. The orbital septet also worked on a variety of life support and science maintenance tasks throughout Wednesday.

NASA Flight Engineer Loral O’Hara began Tuesday configuring an experiment that will explore how CubeSats fitted with a robotic arm might be used to repair larger satellites. She set up hardware inside the Destiny laboratory module’s Microgravity Science Glovebox for the experiment that seeks to demonstrate the on-orbit survey and repair of satellites.

Afterward, O’Hara moved to the Kibo laboratory module and treated and stowed samples that will be analyzed to understand reproductive health and bone loss in microgravity. NASA Flight Engineer Jasmin Moghbeli cleaned up Kibo’s Life Science Glovebox and stowed the research hardware following O’Hara’s sample work.

Earlier in the day, Moghbeli assisted Commander Andreas Mogensen from ESA (European Space Agency) as he swapped out components that analyze elements in the space station’s air. At the end of the day, Moghbeli scanned the eyes and retinas of Mogensen and O’Hara using standard medical imaging gear, analogous to ultrasound imaging, found in a doctor’s office on Earth.

Flight Engineer Satoshi Furukawa from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) spent his day working with a pair of microscopes. During the morning, Furukawa activated the Confocal microscope to image organoid culture samples for an investigation exploring regenerative medicine, or the creation of artificial organs in microgravity. In the afternoon, the two-time station resident from JAXA set up the Kermit microscope for a ground-commanded check out of its imaging ability during a vibration test.

Veteran cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko continued his inspections inside the Zvezda service module then videotaped and photographed his crewmates at work aboard the orbital lab. Roscosmos Flight Engineer Nikolai Chub tested a laptop computer in the Nauka science module, transferred fluids into the Progress 86 cargo craft, and photographed panels inside the Poisk module at the end of the day. Cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov spent his day cleaning ventilation systems and electronics gear in the Nauka and Zvezda modules.

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 video highlights at: https://roundupreads.jsc.nasa.gov/videoupdate/

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Mark Garcia

Crew Keeps Up Pace With Space Biology, Life Support Duties

Space biology and life support maintenance were the main focus for the Expedition 70 crew on Tuesday. The orbital residents aboard the International Space Station also studied future piloting techniques and fluid physics rounding out the research schedule.

NASA astronauts Loral O’Hara and Jasmin Moghbeli joined Commander Andreas Mogensen from ESA (European Space Agency) for biology research inside the Kibo laboratory module. The trio worked during the morning in Kibo’s Life Science Glovebox to learn how microgravity affects reproductive health and bone loss.

In the afternoon, O’Hara removed the Bio-Monitor vest and headband she was wearing that are demonstrating the ability to comfortably monitor and record an astronaut’s health data. Moghbeli inspected orbital plumbing gear in the orbital outpost’s Roscosmos segment. Mogensen ended his shift reviewing procedures for photographing the Moon illuminated by light reflected from Earth.

Flight Engineer Satoshi Furukawa from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) spent his day primarily servicing life support hardware and science gear. Furukawa’s main task took place inside the Columbus laboratory module as he connected and disconnected internal thermal control components. Afterward, he removed a carbon dioxide incubator controller from inside the Space Automated Bioproduct Laboratory, a life science and physics research facility.

Cosmonaut Nikolai Chub worked throughout Tuesday on a pair of different experiments for Roscosmos. He first wore a cap filled with sensors that monitored his reactions as he practiced futuristic spacecraft and robotic piloting techniques on a computer. Next, he studied how liquids behave in microgravity conditions including temperature changes and electrical and magnetic fields.

Veteran cosmonaut and five-time station resident Oleg Kononenko spent Tuesday inspecting and photographing sections inside the Zvezda service module. Flight Engineer Konstantin Borisov continued working on drill batteries then inspected and photographed structural elements inside the Nauka and Zarya modules.

The Cygnus space freighter completed its stay in space when it reentered Earth’s atmosphere at 1:22 p.m. EDT today for a fiery, but safe destruction over the Pacific Ocean. Cygnus departed the orbital lab on Dec. 22, after four-and-a-half months berthed to the station’s Unity module. The private resupply ship from Northrop Grumman launched over 8,200 pounds of science and cargo to the Expedition 70 crew on Aug. 1 from Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.

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 video highlights at: https://roundupreads.jsc.nasa.gov/videoupdate/

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Mark Garcia