NASA astronauts Joe Acaba, Scott Tingle and Mark Vande Hei have wrapped up cargo operations inside the SpaceX Dragon disconnecting power cables and depressurizing the vehicle. Robotics controllers will detach Dragon resupply ship from the International Space Station’s Harmony module tonight. Dragon will then be remotely released from the grip of the Canadarm2 into Earth orbit at 5 a.m. EST Saturday for a Pacific Ocean splashdown at 10:36 a.m.
Acaba and Tingle will monitor Dragon’s departure Saturday morning from inside the cupola as controllers on Earth release a cargo craft remotely from the space station for the first time. NASA TV will broadcast live the resupply ship’s departure starting Saturday at 4:30 a.m. Splashdown will not be televised.
Japanese astronaut Norishige Kanai worked a variety of life science experiments today exploring what happens to humans living in space. He started the morning drawing his blood samples and storing them in a science freezer for later analysis. He also stowed frozen science samples inside Dragon for return to Earth. At the end of the day, Kanai removed petri plates from a specialized microscope containing plant samples being observed for molecular and genetic changes caused by microgravity.
Commander Alexander Misurkin and Flight Engineer Anton Shkaplerov took body mass measurements this morning on a device that applies a known force on the subject with the resulting acceleration being used to calculate mass. The duo also partnered up for a pair of biomedical experiments including the Biocard cardiovascular study and the DAN blood pressure study.