Archivo de la etiqueta: spacestation

Robotic Arm Releases Cygnus Space Freighter from Station

At 7:22 a.m. EDT, Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft was released from the Canadarm2 robotic arm which earlier detached Cygnus from the Earth-facing port of the International Space Station’s Unity module. At the time of release, the station was flying southwest of Ireland.

The Cygnus spacecraft successfully departed the space station more than five months after arriving at the microgravity laboratory to deliver about 8,200 pounds of supplies, scientific investigations, commercial products, hardware, and other cargo for NASA.

Following a deorbit engine firing later Friday evening, Cygnus will begin a planned destructive re-entry, in which the spacecraft – filled with trash packed by the station crew – will safely burn up in Earth’s atmosphere.

Cygnus arrived at the space station Nov. 10, following a launch on Northrop Grumman’s Antares rocket from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Virginia. It was the company’s 18th commercial resupply services mission to the space station for NASA. Northrop Grumman named the spacecraft “S.S. Sally Ride” after late NASA astronaut, physicist, and first American woman to fly in space, Sally Ride, launched on an Antares rocket from the Virginia Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport’s Pad 0A at Wallops.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on Twitter, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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Mark Garcia

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Robotic Arm Releasing Cygnus Cargo Craft Live on NASA TV

Live coverage of the departure of Northrop Grumman’s uncrewed Cygnus cargo spacecraft from the International Space Station is underway on NASA Television, the agency’s website, and the NASA app, with its release from the robotic arm scheduled for 7:20 a.m. EDT. Coverage will conclude following departure from station.

Flight controllers on the ground sent commands earlier Friday morning for the space station’s Canadarm2 robotic arm to detach Cygnus from the Unity module’s Earth-facing port, and then maneuver the spacecraft into position for its release. UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut Sultan Alneyadi will monitor Cygnus’ systems during its departure from the space station.

Following a deorbit engine firing later Friday evening, Cygnus will begin a planned destructive re-entry, in which the spacecraft – filled with trash packed by the station crew – will safely burn up in Earth’s atmosphere.

Cygnus arrived at the space station Nov. 10, following a launch on Northrop Grumman’s Antares rocket from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Virginia. It was the company’s 18th commercial resupply services mission to the space station for NASA. Northrop Grumman named the spacecraft “S.S. Sally Ride” after late NASA astronaut, physicist, and first American woman to fly in space, Sally Ride, launched on an Antares rocket from the Virginia Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport’s Pad 0A at Wallops.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on Twitter, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

Get weekly video highlights at: https://roundupreads.jsc.nasa.gov/videupdate/

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Mark Garcia

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Crew Works New Fluid Physics Study, Preps Cargo Ship for Departure

Fluid physics research and cargo craft departure activities kept the Expedition 69 astronauts busy aboard the International Space Station on Thursday. The cosmonauts were also back to work following an extended sleep period after they completed a spacewalk to move and install hardware on the orbital outpost.

All four astronauts worked throughout the day on a new technology study demonstrating the potential of using a liquid-based carbon dioxide removal system in space. UAE (United Arab Emirates) Flight Engineer Sultan Alneyadi kicked off the experiment Thursday morning setting up hardware and performing a test run to verify liquid flows. Next, NASA Flight Engineers Stephen Bowen and Woody Hoburg performed a variety of experiment runs observing different ways to control liquids in weightlessness. Finally, NASA Flight Engineer Frank Rubio took over the experiment and performed the last flow observation of the day before powering off the research hardware.

During the mid-afternoon after completing their fluid research activities, Alneyadi and Hoburg partnered together configuring the Northrop Grumman Cygnus space freighter for its departure. Bowen started the closeout work on Thursday morning depressurizing the vestibule between Cygnus and the station’s Unity module. Ground controllers will command the Canadarm2 robotic arm to detach Cygnus from Unity and release it at 7:20 a.m. EDT on Friday after five-and-a-half months at the station. Alneyadi will be on duty monitoring the U.S. cargo craft’s departure. Cygnus will then reenter Earth’s atmosphere above the Pacific Ocean for a fiery, but safe demise.

The next spacewalk is set for Tuesday, April 25, at 5:40 p.m. when Roscosmos Commander Sergey Prokopyev and Flight Engineer Dmitri Petelin will once again exit the Poisk airlock in their Orlan spacesuits. The duo will spend about six hours moving an experiment airlock from the Rassvet module then installing it on the Nauka science module. Flight Engineer Andrey Fedyaev will also be back on duty during the spacewalk operating the European robotic arm from inside the station and maneuvering the experiment airlock.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on Twitter, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

Get weekly video highlights at: https://roundupreads.jsc.nasa.gov/videupdate/

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Mark Garcia

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Eye and Brain Study, Fluid Physics Research After Cosmonaut Spacewalk

Human research and fluid physics were the main science experiments taking place aboard the International Space Station on Wednesday for four Expedition 69 astronauts. The three cosmonauts aboard the orbital outpost slept in following an overnight spacewalk to move and install hardware.

The latest space biology experiment taking place on the station explores how living long-term in weightlessness affects an astronaut’s eyes and brain. The lack of gravity causes blood and cerebrospinal fluid to shift toward the head creating ocular and cranial pressure. NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Woody Hoburg studied that phenomena Wednesday morning and ways to offset the space-caused symptoms by collecting their blood pressure measurements and scanning their chests with the Ultrasound 2 device for the ISAFE investigation.

Afterward, Bowen peered at biological samples inside the Confocal Microscope testing its operations using fluorescence imaging techniques. Hoburg joined UAE (United Arab Emirates) Flight Engineer Sultan Alneyadi setting up hardware to kick off the CapiSorb Visible Systems fluid physics study. That experiment investigates the potential of using a liquid-based carbon dioxide removal system to promote more efficient space-based solutions and advanced Earth-bound applications.

The three astronauts, together with NASA Flight Engineer Frank Rubio, also spent a portion of Wednesday afternoon reviewing procedures and practicing robotic maneuvers for a spacewalk planned for April 28. Bowen and Alneyadi are scheduled to spend about six-and-a-half hours in the vacuum of space upgrading the orbital outpost’s power generation system. Space station managers will discuss the upcoming spacewalk live on NASA TV’s app and the agency’s website at 2 p.m. EDT on Monday.

The third spacewalk of the year was completed overnight after Commander Sergey Prokopyev and Flight Engineer Dmitri Petelin installed a radiator on the Nauka science module. The duo wrapped up the seven-hour and 55-minute logistics spacewalk at 5:35 a.m. on Wednesday, with assistance from Roscosmos Flight Engineer Andrey Fedyaev who operated the European robotic arm (ERA) with the radiator in its grip.

The trio from Roscosmos will have a long sleep period before returning to a normal shift on Thursday. Prokopyev and Petelin will then spend the day cleaning their Orlan spacesuits and stowing their spacewalking tools in the Poisk module. Fedyaev will return the ERA to its stowage position on Nauka then power it down.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on Twitter, 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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Heidi Lavelle

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Cosmonauts Move Roscosmos Radiator and Complete Spacewalk

Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin concluded their spacewalk on Tuesday, April 19, at 5:35 a.m. EDT after seven hours and 55 minutes.

Prokopyev and Petelin completed their major objectives, which included relocating a radiator from the Rassvet module to the Nauka science module with assistance from European robotic arm operator cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev.

This was the fourth spacewalk in Prokopyev’s career, and the second for Petelin. It is the third spacewalk at the station in 2023 and the 260th spacewalk for space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades.

The two Roscosmos cosmonauts will also conduct a spacewalk on Tuesday, April 25, to relocate an experiment airlock from Rassvet to Nauka.

An additional spacewalk is planned on Thursday, May 4, to deploy the radiator on Nauka and connect mechanical, electrical, and hydraulic lines.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on Twitter, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

Get weekly video highlights at: https://roundupreads.jsc.nasa.gov/videupdate/

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Mark Garcia

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