Space Science Work Today as New Crew Waits for Launch

Expedition 53-54 Prime and Backup Crew Members
Expedition 53-54 prime and backup crew members pose in front of the Soyuz MS-06 rocket that will launch Sept. 12 carrying Alexander Misurkin, Mark Vande Hei and Joe Acaba to the space station. Credit: Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center/Irina Peshkova

Today’s science tasks included an inspection on an advanced microscope and readying a magnetic field experiment. The crew also worked on a failed electrical device that was robotically transferred to the Kibo laboratory module in early August.

Commander Randy Bresnik and Flight Engineer Paolo Nespoli removed a failed Main Bus Switching Unit (MBSU) from Kibo’s airlock today. The duo swapped out some electronics gear in the MBSU and tested the device while it was connected to a laptop computer.

Nespoli started his day setting up the Magvector magnetic field experiment for operations set to begin next week. The study investigates how Earth’s magnetic field interacts with an electrical conductor potentially improving electrical experiments in space.

As Bresnik was wrapping up his MBSU maintenance work, Nespoli began inspecting advanced microscope gear. The variety of new Light Microscopy Module gear had been recently launched and was being checked for shattered materials.

Three new Expedition 53 crew members are at the Baikonur Cosmodrome just five days away from their launch to the International Space Station. Two NASA astronauts and a Roscosmos cosmonaut are in final preparations checking their Sokol launch and entry suits and examining their Soyuz MS-06 spacecraft.


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6 thoughts on “Space Science Work Today as New Crew Waits for Launch”

  1. I would like to now how many flights it took to build the space station (iss) and what was the average weight of the pay load and where would I find any photos off the building of the space station

  2. Have you ever asked yourselves why you don’t have Africans on your crew??

    I know eventhough you get such a question in your minds, only one answer replicates itself on your minds. Because Africans are uneducated. Have you ever thought of how smart Africans are?? I think if you create an education supportive program to offer scholarships pertaining astronomy, you’ll not regret. Listen I have many ideas in my minds but no one to share them with nor develop them. So look into that.

    And please I need some pictures of the outer side of Earth. Thanks.

    1. NASA astronaut Jeanette Epps is due to launch to the International Space Station in 2018. You can read more about her and her upcoming mission here… https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/biographies/jeanette-j-epps

      Jeanette Epps education includes…

      Graduated from Thomas J. Corcoran High School, Syracuse, New York in 1988
      Bachelor of Science in Physics, LeMoyne College, 1992
      Master of Science and Doctorate of Philosophy in Aerospace Engineering, University of Maryland, 1994 and 2000

      You can read more about astronauts from all over the world here… https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts

      You can see many pics of Earth from the space station here… https://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/

      or here… https://www.flickr.com/photos/nasa2explore

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