Archivo de la etiqueta: spacestation

Dragon Endeavour with Ax-1 Crew Approaches Station

NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s website are providing live coverage for the arrival of the Axiom Mission 1 (Ax-1) to the International Space Station. Ax-1 astronauts Michael Lopez-Alegria, Larry Connor, Eytan Stibbe, and Mark Pathy are scheduled to dock about 7:45 a.m. Saturday, April 9, to the space-facing port of the station’s Harmony module.

The NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX teams are now conducting integrated operations which begins during the spacecraft’s approach to the International Space Station. NASA maintains mission responsibility during integrated operations, which continues during the crew’s more than one week stay aboard the orbiting laboratory conducting science, education, and commercial activities, and concludes once Dragon exits the area of the space station.

When the Axiom Space Mission 1 (Ax-1) arrives to the International Space Station, it will be the first mission with an entirely private crew to arrive at the orbiting laboratory. It represents both a culmination of NASA’s efforts to foster a commercial market in low-Earth orbit and a beginning of a new era of space exploration that enables more people to fly on more kinds of missions.

The welcome ceremony is expected to start shortly after the Dragon Endeavour hatch opens at about 9:30 a.m. Live mission coverage will end with the conclusion of the ceremony.

The first all private astronaut mission lifted off at 11:17 a.m. EDT Friday, April 8, on a Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

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/

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Mark Garcia

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Station Crew Preps for Spacewalks and Ax-1 Mission

The seven-member Expedition 67 crew is gearing up for a pair of spacewalks scheduled for later this month while ensuring the International Space Station orbits Earth in tip-top shape. Meanwhile, the first private astronaut mission is less than one day from launching toward the orbital lab.

NASA astronaut Raja Chari is helping two cosmonauts get ready for two spacewalks planned for April to outfit the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module. Chari shared U.S. spacesuit components including helmet lights and cameras to Roscosmos Flight Engineers Oleg Artemyev and Denis Matveev as they organized their spacewalk tools and configured their Orlan spacesuits. The Russian duo is preparing to exit the space station toward the end of the month to outfit Nauka for the station’s third robotic arm, the European robotic arm.

Artemyev and Matveev started the day with pre-spacewalk muscle examinations before checking their spacesuits located in the Poisk module. The duo then took turns during the afternoon exploring how crew members might pilot spacecraft and robots on future planetary missions.

Station Commander Tom Marshburn and Flight Engineer Kayla Barron, both from NASA, joined ESA (European Space Agency) Flight Engineer Matthias Maurer checking water containers in the Tranquility module and the Permanent multipurpose module. Marshburn also worked on an experiment demonstrating advanced ways to keep U.S. spacesuits cool while Maurer and Barron checked components on the station’s advanced resistive exercise device.

Roscosmos Flight Engineer Sergey Korsakov worked on transferring water from the ISS Progress 80 cargo craft into the station. The first time space-flyer also contributed to a study exploring how international crews and mission controllers interact on Earth and in space.

The first private astronaut mission from Axiom Space is on track to launch aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday at 11:17 a.m. Ax-1 Commander and former NASA astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria, along with Pilot Larry Connor and Mission Specialists Eytan Stibbe and Mark Pathy, would arrive at the space station on Saturday at 9:30 a.m. docking to the Harmony module’s space-facing port to begin their stay aboard the orbital lab.

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Mark Garcia

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Private Astronauts Near Launch as Crew Works Science, Spacewalks on Station

The SpaceX Dragon Endeavour sitting atop the Falcon 9 rocket has rolled out to launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Endeavour is counting down to a launch this weekend of the first private astronaut mission from Axiom Space to the International Space Station.

The Axiom Space-1 (Ax-1) crew is due to launch aboard Endeavour on Friday at 11:17 a.m. EDT. The Expedition 67 crew will welcome the Ax-1 crew when the hatches open from Endeavour to the station on Saturday around 9:30 a.m. Ax-1 Commander and former NASA astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria, along with Pilot Larry Connor and Mission Specialists Eytan Stibbe and Mark Pathy, will live and work aboard the station for nine days performing contracted science experiments and commercial projects. At the end of their mission, they will undock inside Endeavour, reenter Earth’s atmosphere, and parachute to a splashdown off the coast of Florida.

Meanwhile, the station’s seven residents continued researching psychology, combustion, and robotics aboard the orbiting lab on Wednesday. The orbital crew is also gearing up for a pair of spacewalks at the end of the month.

NASA Flight Engineer Raja Chari participated in a robotics test to evaluate his behavioral health and performance. Results may show how an astronaut could perform when landing on Mars and may also inform the design of future spacecraft and space habitats. NASA Flight Engineer Kayla Barron took acoustic measurements of the station’s habitable areas then donned a specialized radiation vest testing it for fit and comfort while working.

Commander Tom Marshburn opened up the Combustion Integrated Rack and configured the Solid Fuel Ignition and Extinction study to investigate material flammability and ways to improve fire safety in space. Flight Engineer Matthias Maurer of ESA (European Space Agency) turned on an Astrobee robotic free-flyer and tested its ability to identify cargo using a radio frequency identification reader, which is similar to bar codes but uses wireless communication without needing a line of sight.

Cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev and Denis Matveev continued getting their Orlan spacesuits and tools ready for a pair of spacewalks later this month to outfit the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module. Roscosmos Flight Engineer Sergey Korsakov explored future spacecraft and robotic piloting techniques then worked on Russian life support and electrical systems.

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Mark Garcia

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Private Astronauts Near Launch as Station Crew Works Science, Spacewalks

The SpaceX Dragon Endurance sitting atop the Falcon 9 rocket has rolled out to launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Endeavour is counting down to a launch this weekend of the first private astronaut mission from Axiom Space to the International Space Station.

The Axiom Space-1 (Ax-1) crew is due to launch aboard Endeavour on Friday at 11:17 a.m. EDT. The Expedition 67 crew will welcome the Ax-1 crew when the hatches open from Endeavour to the station on Saturday around 9:30 a.m. Ax-1 Commander and former NASA astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria, along with Pilot Larry Connor and Mission Specialists Eytan Stibbe and Mark Pathy, will live and work aboard the station for nine days performing contracted science experiments and commercial projects. At the end of their mission, they will undock inside Endeavour, reenter Earth’s atmosphere, and parachute to a splashdown off the coast of Florida.

Meanwhile, the station’s seven residents continued researching psychology, combustion, and robotics aboard the orbiting lab on Wednesday. The orbital crew is also gearing up for a pair of spacewalks at the end of the month.

NASA Flight Engineer Raja Chari participated in a robotics test to evaluate his behavioral health and performance. Results may show how an astronaut could perform when landing on Mars and may also inform the design of future spacecraft and space habitats. NASA Flight Engineer Kayla Barron took acoustic measurements of the station’s habitable areas then donned a specialized radiation vest testing it for fit and comfort while working.

Commander Tom Marshburn opened up the Combustion Integrated Rack and configured the Solid Fuel Ignition and Extinction study to investigate material flammability and ways to improve fire safety in space. Flight Engineer Matthias Maurer of ESA (European Space Agency) turned on an Astrobee robotic free-flyer and tested its ability to identify cargo using a radio frequency identification reader, which is similar to bar codes but uses wireless communication without needing a line of sight.

Cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev and Denis Matveev continued getting their Orlan spacesuits and tools ready for a pair of spacewalks later this month to outfit the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module. Roscosmos Flight Engineer Sergey Korsakov explored future spacecraft and robotic piloting techniques then worked on Russian life support and electrical systems.

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Mark Garcia

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Blood Vessels, Vital Signs and Psychology Studies Amidst Spacewalk Preps

Human research and space physics comprised the majority of the science schedule aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday. The Expedition 67 crew members also worked on U.S. and Russian cargo ships while preparing for two spacewalks.

Vein and artery scans topped the day for Commander Tom Marshburn of NASA as he attached sensors to himself and operated an ultrasound scan to observe how microgravity is affecting his blood vessels and heart. Flight Engineer Matthias Maurer of ESA (European Space Agency) turned on the Bio-Monitor and connected it to a vest he wore that measured and recorded his vital signs while he was going about his daily activities aboard the station.

Maurer also joined NASA Flight Engineer Kayla Barron and took turns swapping out research furnaces inside the Materials Science Laboratory rack located in the U.S. Destiny laboratory module. Barron then took a robotics test as part of a monthly psychological assessment to understand how living in space affects a crew member’s behavior and performance.

NASA Flight Engineer Raja Chari and Roscosmos Flight Engineer Oleg Artemyev worked on cargo transfers in their respective cargo ships. Chari organized cargo inside Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus cargo ship after a morning of replacing components inside an oxygen generator. Artemyev updated the Russian inventory management system and collected items for disposal inside the ISS Progress 79 resupply ship.

Veteran cosmonaut Artemyev is also getting for the fourth spacewalk of his career currently targeted for April 18. He and first-time space-flyer Denis Matveev are collecting their spacewalk tools and configuring the Poisk module where they will exit in their Orlan spacesuits in less than two weeks. The duo is reviewing the procedures necessary to prepare the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module for Europe’s first station robotic arm. Cosmonaut and Flight Engineer Sergey Korsakov spent the day servicing air conditioning gear in the orbiting lab’s Russian segment.

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Mark Garcia

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