Astronauts Mark Vande Hei and Akihiko Hoshide check their U.S. spacesuits to get ready for a spacewalk prepare the station for its third Roll-Out Solar Array.
The Expedition 65 crew is going into the weekend preparing for a spacewalk on Tuesday while juggling a variety of microgravity research.
Astronauts Mark Vande Hei of NASA and Akihiko Hoshide of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) are less than a week away from exiting the U.S. Quest airlock to prepare the International Space Station for its third Roll-Out Solar Array. The two spacewalkers have been gearing up all week checking their spacesuits, configuring their tools, and reviewing their procedures for the planned six-hour and 50-minute excursion.
They will set their U.S. spacesuits to battery power on Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. EDT signifying the start of their spacewalk with NASA TV, NASA app, and agency website coverage beginning at 7 a.m. NASA TV will also broadcast a briefing on Monday at 2 p.m. discussing Tuesday’s spacewalk activities.
The spacewalkers will be assisted by Flight Engineers Megan McArthur of NASA and Thomas Pesquet of ESA (European Space Agency). The pair joined Vande Hei and Hoshide today for more spacewalk reviews and a conference with experts on the ground.
Vande Hei, despite preparations for his fifth career spacewalk, also had time today for biology research taking microscopic photographs of engineered tissue samples for the Cardinal Muscle investigation. Observations may help doctors learn how to treat space-caused muscle loss and Earth-bound muscle conditions.
NASA Flight Engineer Shane Kimbrough spent his day on human research, physics and botany duties aboard the orbiting lab. First, he collected his urine samples and stowed them in a science freezer for later analysis as part of the Repository human research study. Following that, Kimbrough opened up the Combustion Integrated Rack and swapped fuel bottles to support research into flames and fuels in microgravity. Finally, the three-time space visitor cleaned up debris around the Plant Habitat Facility that is growing Hatch chiles for the Plant Habitat-04 experiment.
Astronaut Megan McArthur works on a muscle study in the Kibo laboratory module as station Commander Akihiko Hoshide poses behind her.
The Astrobee robotic free-flyers were powered up aboard the International Space Station and cell samples were set up for human muscle research today. The Expedition 65 crew is also headlong into U.S. and Russian spacewalk preparations while working on a variety of other science experiments.
NASA Flight Engineer Megan McArthur started Thursday morning turning on the cube-shaped Astrobee robotic helpers located inside the Kibo laboratory module. The toaster-sized free-flyers were demonstrating autonomous and coordinated operations during the afternoon. The ReSWARM robotics study may inform future space assembly and satellite repair techniques.
Commander Akihiko Hoshide of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) was also working in Kibo servicing cell samples for the Anti-Atrophy muscle investigation. The samples are being incubated and observed in the Cell Biology Experiment Facility to learn how to prevent and treat space-caused muscle atrophy and Earth-bound muscle conditions.
Hoshide then joined NASA Flight Engineer Mark Vande Hei and checked their U.S. spacesuit components and emergency jet packs during the afternoon. They will exit the U.S. Quest airlock on Aug. 24 to install a modification kit on the Port-4 (P4) truss structure to get ready for upcoming Roll-Out Solar Array installation work.
Two Russian spacewalks are also on the docket for cosmonauts Oleg Novitskiy and Pyotr Dubrov in early September. The duo will exit the Poisk module‘s airlock for both excursions to get the Nauka Multipurpose Laboratory Module ready for science operations. Today, they studied the paths toward their external worksites on a computer then checked their Orlan spacesuits and spacewalk tools in Poisk.
Several other space investigations were also underway today to support space biology research. ESA (European Space Agency) Flight Engineer Thomas Pesquet worked in the Columbus laboratory module measuring sound levels and setting up hardware for the Eklosion botany study. NASA Flight Engineer Shane Kimbrough took a robotics test for the Behavioral Core Measurements human research experiment then checked samples for the Ring Sheared Drop fluid physics study.
Spacewalker Thomas Pesquet is attached to the tip of the Canadarm2 robotic arm to install the station’s second new solar array on June 25, 2021.
All seven Expedition 65 crew members are gearing up three spacewalks the first of which is set to start next week. Two astronauts will go on the first spacewalk then two cosmonauts will conduct the second and third spacewalks. The other three crewmates will provide support to the spacewalkers.
The first spacewalk on Aug. 24 will see Commander Akihiko Hoshide and Flight Engineer Mark Vande Hei spend about six hours and 50 minutes setting up the Port-4 (P4) truss structure for future Roll-Out Solar Array installation work. They will install a modification kit on P4 that prepares the site for the third of six new solar arrays planned for the station.
Flight Engineers Megan McArthur and Thomas Pesquet reviewed their spacewalk support roles today including controlling the Canadarm2 robotic arm and helping the duo in and out of their U.S. spacesuits. Flight Engineer Shane Kimbrough also spent several hours Wednesday morning assembling the solar array modification kit that Hoshide and Vande Hei will install next week.
On the other side of the station in the Russian segment, cosmonauts Oleg Novitskiy and Pyotr Dubrov are preparing for two of their own spacewalks planned for early September. They are continuing to organize their spacewalk tools and equipment in the Poisk module‘s airlock. The duo will exit Poisk for both excursions and ready the Nauka Multipurpose Laboratory Module for science operations.
Astronaut Thomas Pesquet waves to the camera during a spacewalk to install Roll-Out Solar Arrays on June 25, 2021.
The Expedition 65 crew spent Tuesday on a variety of biology experiments exploring how living in microgravity affects the human muscle system. The residents aboard the International Space Station are also intensifying their preparations for three spacewalks over the coming weeks.
Astronauts Megan McArthur of NASA and Thomas Pesquet of ESA (European Space Agency) split the day working on the Cardinal Muscle study in Japan’s Kibo laboratory module. McArthur started the morning setting up engineered muscle cell samples in the Life Sciences Glovebox for observation. Pesquet took over in the afternoon continuing the sample work to learn how to treat space-caused muscle loss and Earth-bound muscle conditions.
Pesquet and Commandeer Akihiko Hoshide from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) started their morning research duties on another pair of muscle investigations. For the Anti-Atrophy investigation, Pesquet installed cell samples into Kibo’s Cell Biology Experiment Facility to test biomaterials that may prevent muscle loss in space as well as on Earth. Hoshide, also working inside Kibo, inserted cell samples into a specialized microscope to observe how they adapt to weightlessness for the Cell Gravisensing muscle atrophy study.
Hoshide then spent the rest of Tuesday with NASA Flight Engineer Mark Vande Hei getting ready for their first spacewalk together set for next week. They started configuring the U.S. Quest airlock and checking components on their U.S. spacesuits. McArthur joined them afterward and helped the duo suit up for a fit verification. Hoshide and Vande Hei will exit Quest on Aug. 24 to prepare the Port-4 truss structure for future Roll-Out Solar Array installation work.
Flight Engineers Oleg Novitskiy and Pyotr Dubrov are getting ready for two of their own spacewalks targeted for early September. They began collecting their spacewalk tools located in the station’s Russian segment and photographed them for inspection today. The cosmonaut duo from Roscosmos will exit the Poisk module for both excursions and outfit the Nauka Multipurpose Laboratory Module for science operations.
Russia’s Soyuz MS-18 crew ship (foreground) and Nauka Multipurpose Laboratory Module are pictured docked to the station as it orbited above Africa’s Indian Ocean coast.
Two astronauts and two cosmonauts are gearing up for three spacewalks set to begin next week at the International Space Station. The Expedition 65 crew is also continuing to unpack a U.S. cargo craft in the middle of ongoing science and maintenance activities.
The first spacewalk is planned to take place on Aug. 24. Commander Akihiko Hoshide and Flight Engineer Mark Vande Hei will exit the Quest airlock in their U.S. spacesuits around 8 a.m. EDT and translate over to the Port-4 truss structure. Once there, the duo will prepare the worksite for the next set of Roll-Out Solar Arrays due to arrive on an upcoming SpaceX Cargo Dragon mission. The pair went over their spacewalk maneuvers on a computer Monday afternoon.
Cosmonauts Oleg Novitskiy and Pyotr Dubrov will perform the other two spacewalks in early September to prepare cables and other external equipment for the recently arrived Nauka Multipurpose Laboratory Module. Today, the flight engineers from Roscosmos reviewed the steps and procedures planned for the second spacewalk.
NASA Flight Engineers Megan McArthur and Shane Kimbrough joined ESA (European Space Agency) Flight Engineer Thomas Pesquet and took turns offloading cargo packed inside the Cygnus space freighter today. Cygnus delivered over four tons of cargo including over 2,300 pounds of new science experiments last week. The resupply ship from Northrop Grumman will stay attached to the Unity module for about three months.
The Cygnus space freighter attached to the station robotic arm following a day-and-a-half trip after its launch from Virginia. Credit: NASA TV
The Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft’s hatch was opened this afternoon after successful rendezvous and berthing operations. At 6:07 a.m. EDT, NASA astronaut Megan McArthur used the International Space Station’s robotic Canadarm2 to grapple the Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft as ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Thomas Pesquet monitored Cygnus systems during its approach. Cygnus was then bolted into place on the International Space Station’s Earth-facing port of the Unity module at 9:42 a.m. EDT. Cygnus will remain at the space station for about three months until the spacecraft departs in November.
These are just a sample of the hundreds of investigations currently being conducted aboard the orbiting laboratory in the areas of biology and biotechnology, physical sciences, and Earth and space science. Advances in these areas will help keep astronauts healthy during long-duration space travel and demonstrate technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions as part of NASA’s Moon and Mars exploration approach, including lunar missions through NASA’s Artemis program.
NASA has continued to assess any integrated impacts to the space station from the inadvertent firing of thrusters on the newly arrived Russian Nauka module. Routine operations have continued uninterrupted since the event, with the space station prepared for the arrival of multiple spacecraft. Consistent with NASA policies, an investigation team is being formed to review the activity. NASA’s team will begin with identifying team members and defining the scope of the investigation. The team will focus on analyzing available data, cooperating with our Russian colleagues for any information they require for their assessment, and coordinating with the other international partners.
Aug. 12, 2021: International Space Station Configuration. Four spaceships are parked at the space station including Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus space freighter, the SpaceX Crew Dragon and Russia’s Soyuz MS-18 crew ship and ISS Progress 78 resupply ship.
The Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft was bolted into place on the International Space Station’s Earth-facing port of the Unity module at 9:42 a.m. EDT. Cygnus will remain at the space station for about three months until the spacecraft departs in November.
The spacecraft’s arrival brings more than 8,200 pounds of research and supplies to space station. Highlights of cargo aboard Cygnus include:
From dust to dorm Using resources available on the Moon and Mars to build structures and habitats could reduce how much material future explorers need to bring from Earth, significantly reducing launch mass and cost. The Redwire Regolith Print (RRP) study demonstrates 3D printing on the space station using a material simulating regolith, or loose rock and soil found on the surfaces of planetary bodies such as the Moon. Results could help determine the feasibility of using regolith as the raw material and 3D printing as a technique for on-demand construction of habitats and other structures on future space exploration missions.
Maintaining muscles As people age and become more sedentary on Earth, they gradually lose muscle mass, a condition called sarcopenia. Identifying drugs to treat this condition is difficult because it develops over decades. Cardinal Muscle tests whether microgravity can be used as a research tool for understanding and preventing sarcopenia. The study seeks to determine whether an engineered tissue platform in microgravity forms the characteristic muscle tubes found in muscle tissue. Such a platform could provide a way to rapidly assess potential drugs prior to clinical trials.
Taking the heat out of space travel Longer space missions will need to generate more power, producing more heat that must be dissipated. Transitioning from current single-phase heat transfer systems to two-phase thermal management systems reduces size and weight of the system and provides more efficient heat removal. Because greater heat energy is exchanged through vaporization and condensation, a two-phase system can remove more heat for the same amount of weight than current single-phase systems. The Flow Boiling and Condensation Experiment (FBCE) aims to develop a facility for collecting data about two-phase flow and heat transfer in microgravity. Comparisons of data from microgravity and Earth’s gravity are needed to validate numerical simulation tools for designing thermal management systems.
Cooler re-entries The Kentucky Re-Entry Probe Experiment (KREPE) demonstrates an affordable thermal protection system (TPS) to protect spacecraft and their contents during re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere. Making these systems efficient remains one of space exploration’s biggest challenges, but the unique environment of atmospheric entry makes it difficult to accurately replicate conditions in ground simulations. TPS designers rely on numerical models that often lack flight validation. This investigation serves as an inexpensive way to compare these models to actual flight data and validate possible designs. Before flying the technology on the space station, researchers conducted a high-altitude balloon test to validate performance of the electronics and communications.
Getting the CO2 out Four Bed CO2 Scrubber demonstrates a technology to remove carbon dioxide from a spacecraft. Based on the current system and lessons learned from its nearly 20 years of operation, the Four Bed CO2 Scrubber includes mechanical upgrades and an improved, longer-lasting absorbent material that reduces erosion and dust formation. Absorption beds remove water vapor and carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, returning water vapor to the cabin and venting carbon dioxide overboard or diverting it to a system that uses it to produce water. This technology could improve the reliability and performance of carbon dioxide removal systems in future spacecraft, helping to maintain the health of crews and ensure mission success. It has potential applications on Earth in closed environments that require carbon dioxide removal to protect workers and equipment.
Mold in microgravity An ESA investigation, Blob, allows students aged 10 to 18 to study a naturally-occurring slime mold, Physarum polycephalum, that is capable of basic forms of learning and adaptation. Although it is just one cell and lacks a brain, Blob can move, feed, organize itself, and even transmit knowledge to other slime molds. Students replicate experiments conducted by ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet to see how the Blob’s behavior is affected by microgravity. Using time-lapse video from space, students can compare the speed, shape, and growth of the slime molds in space and on the ground. The National Center for Space Studies (CNES) and the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) in France coordinate Blob.
These are just a sample of the hundreds of investigations currently being conducted aboard the orbiting laboratory in the areas of biology and biotechnology, physical sciences, and Earth and space science. Advances in these areas will help keep astronauts healthy during long-duration space travel and demonstrate technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions as part of NASA’s Moon and Mars exploration approach, including lunar missions through NASA’s Artemis program.
Cygnus also will deliver a new mounting bracket that astronauts will attach to the port side of the station’s backbone truss during a spacewalk planned for late August. The mounting bracket will enable the installation of one of the next pair of new solar arrays at a later date.
The Cygnus space freighter approaches the space station following a day-and-a-half trip that began with a launch from Virginia. Credit: NASA TV
At 6:07 a.m. EDT, NASA astronaut Megan McArthur used the International Space Station’s robotic Canadarm2 to grapple the Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft as ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Thomas Pesquet monitored Cygnus systems during its approach. The spacecraft were flying about 260 miles above the Atlantic Ocean southwest of Lisbon, Portugal, at the time of capture.
Next, ground controllers will command the station’s arm to rotate and install Cygnus, dubbed the S.S. Ellison Onizuka, on the bottom of the station’s Unity module.
NASA Television coverage of installation will begin at 8 a.m., and installation of the Cygnus spacecraft to the space station is expected to be completed later this morning. Cygnus will remain at the orbiting laboratory for a three-month stay.
The Cygnus space freighter is pictured moments before its capture with the Canadarm2 robotic arm on Feb. 22, 2021.
A Northrop Grumman cargo ship carrying more than 8,200 pounds of science and research investigations, supplies, and hardware is set to arrive at the International Space Station early this morning. The uncrewed Cygnus spacecraft launched at 6:01 p.m. EDT Tuesday, Aug. 10 on an Antares rocket from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.
When Cygnus arrives, NASA astronaut Megan McArthur will use the space station’s robotic Canadarm2 to capture it while ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Thomas Pesquet monitors telemetry during rendezvous, capture, and installation on the Earth-facing port of the Unity module.
Northrop Grumman named the Cygnus spacecraft for this resupply mission in honor of former NASA astronaut Ellison Onizuka, who was the first Asian American astronaut. Onizuka was hired in 1978 in the first class of diverse astronauts, and his first spaceflight was aboard space shuttle Discovery in January 1985 for STS-51-C. He lost his life aboard the space shuttle Challenger in 1986.
The Cygnus space freighter from Northrop Grumman is pictured in the grips of the Canadarm2 robotic arm outside the cupola before its release on June 29, 2021.
The Expedition 65 crew is getting ready for the arrival of Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus cargo craft when it arrives Thursday morning. The International Space Station residents also continued microgravity research while preparing for an upcoming spacewalk today.
NASA TV will begin its broadcast of the Cygnus space freighter’s approach and rendezvous on Thursday at 4:45 a.m. EDT. NASA Flight Engineer Megan McArthur will be on duty in the cupola, the orbiting lab’s “window to the world,” and command the Canadarm2 robotic arm to grapple Cygnus at about 6:10 a.m. ESA (European Space Agency) Flight Engineer Shane Kimbrough will be on hand monitoring spacecraft activities and assisting her in the cupola.
After McArthur and Pesquet complete the capture activities, robotics controllers in Mission Control will remotely guide Cygnus in the grips of the Canadarm2 and install it to the Unity module’s Earth-facing port. Additionally, cosmonauts Oleg Novitskiy and Pyotr Dubrov are gathering excess Russian hardware today for disposal in Cygnus after its arrival.
McArthur and Pesquet had time for research work during the morning before spending the afternoon training for Cygnus’ arrival. McArthur injected algae into sample cassettes to nourish tardigrades, or “water bears,” being observed for their ability to survive extreme conditions. Pesquet focused on an experiment challenging European students to write computer code targeting conditions aboard spacecraft.
Commander Akihiko Hoshide and Flight Engineer Mark Vande Hei continued servicing U.S. spacesuits ahead of a spacewalk to prepare the Port-4 truss structure for more roll out solar array installation work. NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough cleaned and inspected vent fans in the Unity module and U.S. Quest airlock.
