Archivo de la etiqueta: spacestation

Cargo Mission Nears Launch During Human Research on Station

The next cargo mission to resupply the Expedition 68 crew is ready to launch to the International Space Station on Tuesday evening. In the meantime, the seven orbital lab residents worked on a host of human research studies and serviced a pair of spacesuits to start the work week.

The ISS Progress 82 cargo craft stands atop its rocket at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan counting down to its liftoff at 8:20 p.m. EDT on Tuesday. The Roscosmos resupply ship will orbit Earth for two days before docking to the Poisk module at 10:49 p.m. on Thursday. NASA TV, on the agency’s app and website, begins its live launch broadcast at 8 p.m. on Tuesday and the docking activities beginning at 10:15 p.m. on Thursday.

Commander Sergey Prokopyev and Flight Engineer Dmitri Petelin joined each other on Monday and practiced remotely controlling the Progress 82 cargo craft on a computer. The two cosmonauts were inside the Zvezda service module training on the telerobotically operated rendezvous unit, or TORU, in the event the Progress 82 would be unable to automatically dock to the space station on its own.

Biomedical studies were at the top of Monday’s schedule for the four astronauts living and working aboard the space station. NASA Flight Engineers Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada started the morning collecting and processing their blood samples before storing them in a science freezer for future analysis. The pair then joined Frank Rubio of NASA and Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) for a vision test using a standard eye chart. Rubio then assisted Mann as she pedaled on an exercise cycle for a study exploring how weightlessness affects the cardiovascular and respiratory systems. Mann attached Bio-Monitor sensors to herself for the exercise session and recorded physiological data that will be downloaded to doctors on Earth for analysis.

Rubio and Cassada would end the day installing helmet lights and resizing a pair of spacesuits ahead of planned future spacewalks. Mann gathered trash for packing inside the next Northrop Grumman Cygnus cargo vehicle targeted to launch in November. Wakata cleaned the inside the of Microgravity Science Glovebox following research into using artificial intelligence to manufacture fiber optic cables in space.

Cosmonaut Anna Kikina, who launched to the station on the SpaceX Crew-5 mission, spent a portion of her day servicing video and computer hardware before loading data to enable operations with the European robotic arm. She wrapped up her work shift observing Earth’s nighttime atmospheric glow in the near-ultraviolet wavelength.

Get The Details…

Mark Garcia

Powered by WPeMatico

Russian Cargo Craft Departs Station, Ends Mission

The uncrewed Roscosmos Progress 80 spacecraft undocked from the International Space Station’s Poisk module at 6:46 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022.

The spacecraft backed away from the space station, and a few hours later, Progress’ engines fired in a deorbit maneuver to send the cargo craft into a destructive re-entry in the Earth’s atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean.

The uncrewed Russian Progress 80 launched on a Soyuz rocket at 11:25 p.m. EST (9:25 a.m. on Feb. 15 Baikonur time) on Monday, Feb. 14, 2022, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The unpiloted cargo craft delivered almost three tons of food, fuel and supplies to the International Space Station.

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: http://jscfeatures.jsc.nasa.gov/videoupdate/

Get the latest from NASA delivered every week. Subscribe here: www.nasa.gov/subscribe

Get The Details…

Mark Garcia

Powered by WPeMatico

Household Chores, Space Research Wrap Up Station Workweek

Chores and science wrapped up the week for the Expedition 68 crew aboard the International Space Station.  The orbital residents will also see a resupply ship leave the orbital lab on Sunday.

NASA Flight Engineer Frank Rubio spent Friday afternoon rearranging cargo inside the Zarya module to maximize stowage space in the 24-year-old module. Hardware and other station cargo are constantly being moved around the station modules to support science experiments and maintenance activities. With cargo missions going back and forth at the station, it is necessary for the astronauts to keep track of where everything is and keep the gear neatly arranged for easy access.

NASA astronaut Nicole Mann spent her day on orbital plumbing tasks, analyzing water samples for microbes, and inspecting ammonia cartridges. Mann also spent some time on human research activities collecting her blood samples, participating in hearing and cognition tests, and configuring wrist-worn devices that monitor a crew member’s sleep-wake cycle, or circadian rhythm.

NASA Flight Engineer Josh Cassada worked throughout Friday on life support maintenance inside the Harmony and Tranquility modules. Cassada checked thermal control system components in both modules and collected fluid samples from the life support devices for analysis back on Earth. The first-time space flyer also participated in a standard hearing test.

Working in the Columbus laboratory module, Flight Engineer Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) recirculated fluids and nourished vegetables growing for the XROOTS space botany study. The agricultural investigation explores hydroponic and aeroponic methods, soilless techniques, to grow crops in space to sustain crews farther away from Earth.

Two cosmonauts, Flight Engineers Anna Kikina and Dmitri Petelin, kicked off Friday morning with heart research. The duo attached electrodes to themselves to monitor their cardiac bioelectric activity and understand how microgravity affects their heart function. Kikina then spent the rest of the day on lab maintenance work. Petelin joined Commander Sergey Prokopyev and closed the hatch to the ISS Progress 80 cargo craft before its departure on Sunday ending an eight-month mission docked to the Poisk module.

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: http://jscfeatures.jsc.nasa.gov/videoupdate/

Get the latest from NASA delivered every week. Subscribe here: www.nasa.gov/subscribe

Get The Details…

Mark Garcia

Powered by WPeMatico

Household Tasks, Human Research on Station Before Cargo Missions Ends

Household maintenance tasks were the main objective aboard the International Space Station on Thursday as the Expedition 68 crew members configured crew quarters and serviced the orbiting lab’s toilet. The station residents also had time during the day for human research activities, robotics training, and upcoming cargo mission preparations.

NASA Flight Engineers Frank Rubio and Nicole Mann partnered together on Thursday afternoon testing power supply assemblies inside a pair crew quarters located in the Harmony module. The electrical devices were swapped between the two crew quarters to troubleshoot and recreate a fan failure signature.

Mann also gathered hardware and prepared the station’s new toilet so NASA Flight Engineer Josh Cassada could replace components inside the bathroom located in the Tranquility module. Rubio started his day charging spacesuit batteries and checking the power supply inside the Quest airlock.

Astronaut Koichi Wakata from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) strapped sensors to himself that measured his aerobic capacity during a workout session on an exercise cycle in the morning. Wakata also collected his urine samples and placed them in a science freezer for future analysis. The four-time station visitor later stowed research hardware completing a pair of similar experiments studying how the central nervous system adapts to weightlessness. The biology studies are helping doctors understand how the human body adapts to living and working in space on long-term missions.

Cosmonaut Anna Kikina of Roscosmos spent Thursday continuing to train on the European robotic arm. She practiced operating and controlling the robotic manipulator from inside the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module. Heart research was also on the agenda as Commander Sergey Prokopyev and Flight Engineer Dmitri Petelin attached electrodes to themselves and measured their cardiac bioelectric activity while resting.

The ISS Progress 80 resupply ship is due to end its cargo mission this weekend when it undocks from the Poisk module on Sunday at 6:46 p.m. EDT. Prokopyev packed trash and obsolete gear inside the Progress 80 for disposal on Thursday afternoon. The cargo craft will reenter Earth’s atmosphere above the Pacific Ocean for a fiery, but safe destruction about three-and-a-half hours later.

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: http://jscfeatures.jsc.nasa.gov/videoupdate/

Get the latest from NASA delivered every week. Subscribe here: www.nasa.gov/subscribe

Get The Details…

Mark Garcia

Powered by WPeMatico

Brain Studies on Station Help Astronauts Adjust to Space and Earth

A pair of brain studies were on the research schedule aboard the International Space Station today to learn how the central nervous system adapts to weightlessness. The Expedition 68 crew also worked on variety of household tasks throughout Wednesday including orbital plumbing and electronics system repairs.

NASA Flight Engineers Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada worked on two different experiments investigating separate facets of the human brain and how it adjusts to microgravity. During the morning, Mann attached sensors to herself and measured her arterial blood pressure and blood flow velocity. Results may provide insights into how the brain regulates its blood supply and possibly counteract blood pressure drops astronauts may experience after returning to Earth. Cassada wore a virtual reality headset for the GRASP study exploring how the central nervous system reacts to different stimuli without the traditional up-and-down reference humans are familiar with on Earth.

Mann later joined NASA astronaut Frank Rubio during the afternoon configuring and inspecting a new toilet system in the Tranquility module. Japanese Flight Engineer Koichi Wakata worked in the U.S. Quest airlock swapping electronics components and checking cable connections inside an avionics rack. Wakata and Rubio earlier started their day together collecting their blood samples, spinning them in a centrifuge, and stowing them in a science freezer for later analysis.

The orbiting lab’s three cosmonauts also focused on their complement of advanced space research and station maintenance during the day. First-time Flight Engineers Anna Kikina and Dmitri Petelin took turns exploring how to use ultrasound sensors to assist with targeting and photographing landmarks on Earth. Kikina also cleaned the ventilation system inside the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module while Petelin worked pressurization and water transfer tasks inside the ISS Progress 80 cargo craft. Commander Sergey Prokopyev inspected windows in the Zvezda service module before checking hatch and docking components on the Progress 80 resupply vehicle.

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: http://jscfeatures.jsc.nasa.gov/videoupdate/

Get the latest from NASA delivered every week. Subscribe here: www.nasa.gov/subscribe

Get The Details…

Mark Garcia

Powered by WPeMatico