![\"Astronaut](\"https:\/\/blogs.nasa.gov\/spacestation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/240\/2024\/06\/blog_iss071e178113.jpg\")
<\/a>The Expedition 71<\/a> crew is in final preparations for a science and maintenance spacewalk set to begin Thursday morning. The two astronauts on NASA\u2019s Boeing Crew Flight Test<\/a> spent their day aboard the International Space Station<\/a> performing genetic sequencing and orbital plumbing.<\/p>\n NASA astronauts Tracy C. Dyson<\/a> and Matthew Dominick<\/a> are in their final day of preparations for a spacewalk planned to start at 8 a.m. EDT on Thursday<\/a>. Once the astronauts set their spacesuits to battery power, the spacewalkers will exit the Quest airlock<\/a> into the vacuum of space for six-and-a-half hours of maintenance and science work. The duo will first remove the radio frequency group hardware from a pallet on the side of the Destiny laboratory module<\/a> with assistance from the Canadarm2 robotic arm<\/a>. Next, the spacewalkers will swab surfaces on the Destiny and Quest modules to determine if microorganisms<\/a> released through station vents can survive the external microgravity environment.<\/p>\n Dyson and Dominick readied Quest, checked their spacesuits, and organized spacewalking tools on Wednesday morning. NASA Flight Engineers Mike Barratt<\/a> and Jeanette Epps<\/a> practiced on a computer the Canadarm2 maneuvers they will use during Thursday\u2019s spacewalk. All four astronauts at the end of the day called down to mission controllers for a final spacewalk preparedness conference.<\/p>\n NASA TV will begin its spacewalk broadcast at 6:30 a.m. on Thursday. Live coverage will air on\u00a0NASA+<\/a>, NASA Television, the\u00a0NASA app<\/a>,\u00a0YouTube<\/a>, and the\u00a0agency\u2019s\u00a0website<\/a>. Learn how to\u00a0stream NASA TV<\/a>\u00a0through a variety of platforms including social media.<\/p>\n NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore<\/a> and Suni Williams<\/a> spent Wednesday focusing on lab maintenance and researching advanced biotechnology. Wilmore started his day checking cargo stowed in the Harmony module<\/a> before replacing components in the station\u2019s bathroom, known as the waste and hygiene compartment located in the Tranquility module<\/a>. Williams extracted DNA from microbes collected from station water samples and sequenced their genes<\/a> for identification. Results may inform ways to keep crews healthy and space habitats cleaner.<\/p>\n The station\u2019s three cosmonauts, Oleg Kononenko, Nikolai Chub, and Alexander Grebenkin, had an off-duty day on Wednesday spending time relaxing, exercising, and on light housekeeping tasks.<\/p>\n Learn more about station activities by following the\u00a0space station blog<\/a>,\u00a0@space_station<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0@ISS_Research<\/a>\u00a0on X, as well as the\u00a0ISS Facebook<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0ISS Instagram<\/a>\u00a0accounts.<\/p>\n Get weekly video highlights at:\u00a0https:\/\/roundupreads.jsc.nasa.gov\/videoupdate\/<\/a><\/p>\n Powered by WPeMatico<\/a><\/small><\/p>\n Get The Details…<\/a><\/p>\n Mark Garcia <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Expedition 71 crew is in final preparations for a science and maintenance spacewalk set to begin Thursday morning. The two astronauts on NASA\u2019s Boeing Crew Flight Test spent their day aboard the International Space Station performing genetic sequencing and orbital plumbing. NASA astronauts Tracy C. Dyson and Matthew Dominick are in their final day \u2026 Continue reading
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