![\"Expedition](\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/54935292319-c4838a451b-o.jpg\")
<\/a><\/figure>Stem cells and CubeSat installations were the main research focus aboard the International Space Station<\/a> on Thursday. The Expedition 73<\/a> crew also collected microbe samples for analysis, configured Earth observation gear, and replaced hoses on a treadmill.<\/p>\n Also, NASA and SpaceX have been working to be ready as early as Feb. 15 for the next commercial crew rotation launch to the International Space Station. This change maximizes launch opportunities for NASA\u2019s SpaceX Crew-12, while also accommodating the Artemis II launch windows. As both missions advance toward launch and rely on resources and facilities at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center, this change helps deconflict operations.<\/p>\n NASA also set the agency\u2019s coverage<\/a> of NASA astronaut Chris Williams\u2019 will launch aboard the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-28 spacecraft to the International Space Station on Thursday, Nov. 27<\/p>\n Back on station, researchers are studying how to turn stem cells into brain and cardiac cells in microgravity. NASA Flight Engineer Zena Cardman<\/a> serviced the stem cell samples for viewing inside a fluorescence microscope<\/a> for the Stellar Stem Cells Mission 2<\/a> experiment. Doctors on the ground will observe how weightlessness affects the reprogrammed stem cells possibly leading to advances in regenerative medicine, drug testing, and space-based biomanufacturing.<\/p>\n Cardman also assisted NASA Flight Engineers Mike Fincke<\/a> and Jonny Kim<\/a> and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Flight Engineer Kimiya Yui who swapped thermal control system hoses on the COLBERT treadmill<\/a> located inside the Tranquility module<\/a>. The quartet worked throughout Thursday temporarily uninstalling the station\u2019s bathroom, or waste and hygiene compartment, to access the life support hoses.<\/p>\n Earlier, Yui installed the NanoRacks CubeSat Deployer<\/a> on the multi-purpose experiment platform inside the Kibo laboratory module<\/a>\u2019s airlock. It will soon be placed outside the orbital outpost in the external microgravity environment. The Japanese robotic arm will grapple the CubeSat deployer then position it away from the orbiting lab to deploy a set of CubeSats into Earth orbit for private and public research.<\/p>\n Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky, station Commander and Flight Engineer respectively, partnered together on Thursday and swabbed surfaces inside the Zarya module<\/a> then placed the samples inside test tubes. The samples will be analyzed later to understand the microbial environment aboard the space station and protect crew health.<\/p>\n Roscosmos Flight Engineer Oleg Platonov began his day with orbital plumbing in the Nauka science module<\/a> then set up a camera to capture time-lapse photography of the Earth. Platonov spent the end of his shift inside the Zvezda service module<\/a> servicing the Elektron oxygen generator.<\/p>\n Learn more about station activities by following the <\/em>space station blog<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>@space_station<\/em><\/a> on X, as well as the <\/em>ISS Facebook<\/em><\/a> and <\/em>ISS Instagram<\/em><\/a> accounts.<\/em><\/p>\n Get the latest from NASA delivered every week. <\/em>Subscribe here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Powered by WPeMatico<\/a><\/small><\/p>\n Get The Details…<\/a><\/p>\n Mark A. Garcia <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Stem cells and CubeSat installations were the main research focus aboard the International Space Station on Thursday. The Expedition 73 crew also collected microbe samples for analysis, configured Earth observation gear, and replaced hoses on a treadmill. Continue reading