Thrusters on the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft fire adjusting the vehicle’s approach toward the space station for a docking on Nov. 11, 2023.
NASA and SpaceX are postponing the Thursday, Dec. 14, undocking of a SpaceX Dragon cargo resupply spacecraft from the International Space Station due to unfavorable weather conditions as a result of a cold front passing through the splashdown zones off the coast of Florida.
Joint teams continue to evaluate weather conditions to determine the best opportunity for Dragon to autonomously undock from the space station with the next available opportunity no earlier than 5:05 p.m. EST Friday, Dec. 15.
Weather permitting for the Friday undocking, coverage of Dragon’s departure will would begin at 4:45 p.m. on the NASA+ streaming service via the web or the NASA app. Coverage also will air live on NASA Television, YouTube, and on the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA TV through a variety of platforms including social media.
After re-entering Earth’s atmosphere, the spacecraft will splash down off the coast of Florida, which will not be broadcast on NASA TV. Follow updates on return plans on the agency’s space station blog.
Station Crew Packing Dragon and Continuing Space Research
An aurora dances in the horizon of Earth’s atmosphere as city lights shine through clouds cast over Mongolia while the space station orbited 263 miles above.
The Expedition 70 crew members are picking up the pace as they load a U.S. cargo craft for its upcoming departure. The seven International Space Station residents are also staying focused on an array of microgravity science to improve human health and commercialize low Earth orbit.
The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft is nearing the end of its stay docked to the Harmony module’s forward port. Four astronauts will be packing over 3,500 pounds of science and hardware inside Dragon over next few days for retrieval and analysis back on Earth. NASA Flight Engineer Jasmin Moghbeli and Commander Andreas Mogensen from ESA (European Space Agency) removed science cargo freezers containing research samples from station EXPRESS racks and stowed them inside Dragon for the ride back to Earth. Astronauts Loral O’Hara and Satoshi Furukawa transferred cargo bags packed with hardware and trash and strapped them inside Dragon securing them for the descent into Earth’s gravity.
The crew continued to pack hardware and science aboard the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft today for a scheduled undocking on Thursday afternoon as managers and operations teams evaluate weather conditions at the various splashdown sites available for the vehicle’s return to Earth.
Despite the busy cargo activities, microgravity research remained on track as the crew continued exploring how weightlessness affects biology and physics. O’Hara from NASA processed cell samples for incubation that researchers will analyze to explore aging-like properties of immune cells and the regenerative capacity of liver cells. The Space AGE health study may provide deeper insights into the biology of aging and its effects on disease mechanisms.
Furukawa from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) swapped components inside the Microgravity Science Glovebox supporting a physics experiment to produce optical fibers superior to those manufactured on Earth. The Fiber Optic Production-2 experiment may advance optical transmission capabilities benefiting Earth and space industries.
Mogensen earlier worked in the Harmony module shaking mixture tubes containing different organisms for a variety of biology and botany studies promoting health. The tubes are part of a program sponsored by NanoRacks enabling educational and private organizations to conduct research on the space station.
Cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub took turns today wearing a sensor-packed cap and operating a computer for an ongoing Roscosmos study exploring futuristic spacecraft and robotic piloting techniques. Researchers will use the data to train future crew members and plan potential crewed planetary missions. Cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov spent most of his day on life support maintenance then synchronized cameras to station clocks which are set to GMT, or Greenwich Mean Time.
Crew Keeps Up Space Research and Packs Dragon for Earth Return
Astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli processes liver stem cell samples for the Space AGE investigation that is exploring the age-related loss of regenerative capacity.
Space physics, aging research, and science hardware filled the schedule at the beginning of the week for the Expedition 70 crew. The International Space Station residents are also packing a U.S. cargo craft for its departure and return to Earth at the end of the week.
Space manufacturing is the next big step toward commercializing low-Earth orbit. Researchers are taking advantage of the weightless environment to create advanced fiber optic cables that are superior to those manufactured on Earth. NASA Flight Engineer Loral O’Hara worked in the Destiny laboratory module swapping optical fiber samples being produced and drawn inside Destiny’s Microgravity Science Glovebox. The samples are made from zirconium, barium, lanthanum, and aluminum sodium fluoride and provide unique optical transmission capabilities. Results may benefit a range of industries and applications such as atmospheric monitoring from space and laser surgery on Earth.
NASA Flight Engineer Jasmin Moghbeli spent the afternoon in the Kibo laboratory module researching space-caused aging symptoms like those seen in the elderly on Earth. She removed liver stem cell samples from an incubator then processed them inside Kibo’s Life Science Glovebox. The Space AGE investigation is observing how aged immune cells affect liver regeneration providing deeper insights into the biology of aging and its effects on disease mechanisms.
ESA (European Space Agency) Commander Andreas Mogensen spent the majority of his day on biomedical duties collecting, processing, and stowing his blood and urine samples for future analysis. The two-time station visitor also serviced gear supporting a study investigating how 360-degree virtual reality experiences may benefit crew psychology on long-term space missions.
Starting his morning in the Kibo lab, astronaut Satoshi Furukawa loaded a small satellite orbital deployer into Kibo’s airlock. The Japanese robotic arm will grapple the deployer and remove it from the airlock after it is depressurized and opened. The deployer will then be positioned outside and pointed away from the station for the release of a series of CubeSats into Earth orbit for educational, private, and governmental research.
Furukawa later joined Moghbeli transferring frozen research samples from station science freezers into the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft. Dragon will return to Earth at the end of the week carrying the preserved samples inside science cargo freezers for retrieval and analysis. O’Hara also packed Dragon with return cargo securing it inside the spacecraft for the descent into Earth’s atmosphere and splashdown off the coast of Florida.
Veteran cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko kicked off his day transferring water from the Progress 86 resupply ship into the space station. Cosmonaut Nikolai Chub worked throughout Monday studying how electrical and magnetic fields affect fluid systems in microgravity. Flight Engineer Konstantin Borisov checked out electrical components and control panels, watered plants for a space botany study, then replaced Roscosmos computer software.
The seven-member Expedition 70 crew poses for a portrait inside the International Space Station’s Kibo laboratory module. In the front row (from left) are, Commander Andreas Mogensen from ESA (European Space Agency) and NASA Flight Engineers Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O’Hara. In the back are, Roscosmos Flight Engineers Nikolai Chub, Konstantin Borisov, and Oleg Kononenko; and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Flight Engineer Satoshi Furukawa.
The Expedition 70 crew wrapped up the work week with microbiology, bioprinting, and ultrasound scans aboard the International Space Station. Cardiac research and fluid physics also rounded out the microgravity science schedule for the orbital septet.
Uncontrolled microbial growth is a potential threat to spacecraft possibly contaminating and corroding systems and affecting the health of space crews. Researchers are exploring how to identify and disinfect microbes to protect spacecraft and crews traveling longer and farther away from Earth.
NASA Flight Engineers Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O’Hara partnered together and researched ways to control microbial growth inside the Kibo laboratory module. The duo took turns treating bacteria samples in Kibo’s Life Science Glovebox helping scientists learn how to promote successful long-term spaceflights and protect extreme environments on Earth.
Moghbeli also assisted Commander Andreas Mogensen of ESA (European Space Agency) as he removed tissue cassettes containing cardiac cells from the BioFabrication Facility. The 3D bioprinter is demonstrating the potential to manufacture human organs in space from existing patient cells. The samples are then stowed in an advanced sample processor for incubation allowing the tissues to cohesively form on a cellular level. Mogensen earlier studied water recovery and purification techniques under microgravity conditions.
O’Hara began her day conducting ultrasound scans and collecting blood pressure measurements with Flight Engineer Satoshi Furukawa from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency). The biomedical work was done in conjunction with doctors on the ground and is part of the CIPHER suite of 14 human research experiments. Afterward, Furukawa swapped cargo in and out of the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft as it counts down to undocking from the station later this month and returning to important research samples to Earth.
Working in the Roscosmos segment of the orbiting lab, three cosmonauts began their morning conducting cardiac research. The trio of flight engineers, Oleg Kononenko, Nikolai Chub, and Konstantin Borisov, participated in the study that measures the bioelectrical activity of the heart as it rests in weightlessness. Afterward, the cosmonauts each participated in a computerized test solving problems for a study exploring how crews and mission controllers can communicate better.
Kononenko later examined eggs in an incubator for a space biology study then checked ventilation systems in the Nauka science module. Chub moved on and investigated how magnetic and electrical fields affect fluid systems in microgravity. Finally, Borisov worked on a variety of science tasks throughout the day including watering and photographing plants and configuring an array of research hardware.
Advanced Botany, Biology Promoting Health on Earth and in Space
NASA astronauts (from left) Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O’Hara pose for a portrait while working inside the Destiny laboratory module.
Space botany, human research, and bioprinting were the dominant science topics aboard the International Space Station on Thursday. The Expedition 70 septet also focused on lab hardware and cargo operations throughout the day.
Growing plants in space is critical as astronauts prepare for longer missions farther away from Earth. Space agriculture may help feed crews and provide a cleaner breathing environment aboard spacecraft and space habitats. Crews will have to be self-sustainable relying less on cargo missions packed with food, fuel, and supplies from Earth.
NASA astronauts Loral O’Hara and Andreas Mogensen from ESA (European Space Agency) took turns servicing the Advanced Plant Habitat replacing environmental control components on the research device. NASA Flight Engineer Jasmin Moghbeli assisted the duo reconfiguring the botany facility that has grown a variety of vegetables in the Kibo laboratory module.
O’Hara and Moghbeli then joined Flight Engineer Satoshi Furukawa from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) for eye checks that are part of the CIPHER suite of 14 human research experiments. O’Hara first measured the electrical response of Furukawa’s retinas to light using specialized sensors. Next, O’Hara used standard medical imaging hardware to view the optic nerves and retinas inside Moghbeli’s eyes. Investigators are exploring how weightlessness affects vision and the condition of the eye.
Mogensen wrapped up his day in the Columbus laboratory module printing cardiac tissue samples using the BioFabrication Facility (BFF). Moghbeli helped the ESA station commander inserting tissue cassettes inside the 3D bioprinter and photographing the research activities. The BFF is demonstrating the potential of manufacturing human organs in space from existing patient cells.
Cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Konstantin Borisov joined each other Thursday morning checking and photographing eggs being incubated for a Roscosmos biology investigation. Kononenko then studied ways to improve communication between international crews and mission controllers from around the world. Borisov wore a cap packed with sensors and researched futuristic spacecraft and robotic piloting techniques. Flight Engineer Nikolai Chub continued unpacking the Progress 86 cargo craft then tested power supply components inside the Zarya module.
