International Space Station Configuration. Six spaceships are parked at the space station including the SpaceX Dragon Freedom, the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft, the Northrop Grumman Cygnus resupply ship, the Soyuz MS-26 crew ship, and the Progress 89 and 90 resupply ships.
Mission managers waved off the planned return of a Dragon resupply spacecraft on Sunday, Dec. 15, due to forecasted unfavorable weather conditions at the splashdown sites off the coast of Florida. NASA and SpaceX now are targeting no earlier than Monday, Dec. 16, for the next undocking opportunity of NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services spacecraft.
An orbital sunrise crowns Earth’s horizon in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited 261 miles above Brazil.
A space exposure experiment, a micro-algae study, and eye exams topped the research schedule for the Expedition 72 crew members at the end of the week. The orbital residents also continue to gear up for a spacewalk planned for next week at the International Space Station.
NASA astronaut and station Commander Suni Williams spent most of her day inside the Tranquility module working on the Nanoracks Bishop airlock. She was joined at the beginning of her shift by NASA Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore who helped her prepare the Euro Materials Aging (EMA) experiment for installation inside Bishop. Afterward, she inspected one portion of the EMA study that will observe organic molecules and how they adapt to the external space environment.
NASA Flight Engineer Don Pettit looked at another segment of the EMA hardware that will expose a variety of materials to outer space to monitor how they age over time. Finally, NASA Flight Engineer Nick Hague inspected the Bishop airlock with the EMA experiment inside, closed its hatch, and prepared the airlock for its upcoming depressurization.
On Monday, the Canadarm2 robotic arm will detach Bishop with the EMA inside from Tranquility and maneuver it toward the Columbus laboratory module. Next, the EMA will be robotically installed on the Bartolomeo research platform attached to the outside of Columbus. The external investigation will operate outside Columbus for about a year.
Hague at the beginning of his shift on Friday, swapped samples of micro-algae inside the BioLab incubator located in Columbus. Researchers are exploring the potential of micro-algae as a way to remove carbon dioxide, produce oxygen, and grow food on spacecraft. At the end of the day, Williams partnered with Pettit and Wilmore for eye exams using standard medical imaging hardware found in a doctor’s office on Earth. The trio were joined by ground doctors monitoring in real-time who want to understand how living in weightlessness affects vision and the human eye.
Two cosmonauts continue their preparations for a spacewalk on Thursday, Dec. 19, to remove external science experiments and relocate European robotic arm hardware. Roscosmos Flight Engineers Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner began Friday installing components on their Orlan spacesuits. Next, the duo pedaled on an exercise bicycle for a pre-spacewalk fitness assessment. Finally, the cosmonauts wrapped up the day’s suit work installing lights, batteries, and video cameras they will wear on their spacesuits during the planned six-hour and 40-minute spacewalk next week.
Roscosmos Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov trained to use the European robotic arm reviewing the laptop computers that support the robotic arm attached to the Nauka science module. Following that work, the first-time space flyer swapped out life support hardware then installed Earth observation gear to view the effects of natural and human-caused catastrophes in different wavelengths.
Mission managers waved off the planned return of a Dragon resupply spacecraft on Saturday, Dec. 14, due to forecasted unfavorable weather conditions at the splashdown sites off the coast of Florida. NASA and SpaceX now are targeting no earlier than Sunday, Dec. 15, for the next undocking opportunity of NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services spacecraft.
A vivid aurora streams over the Earth as the space station orbited 273 miles above the southern Indian Ocean in between Australia and Antarctica.
The Expedition 72 crew prepared a science experiment for placement outside the International Space Station and studied space-caused cellular stress and tissue damage on Thursday. Spacewalk preparations are also ongoing to remove and relocate hardware on the orbital outpost next week.
EMA will expose a variety of materials to the space environment to learn how to improve the development of space hardware and applications for missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. The external investigation will operate outside Columbus for about a year.
NASA Flight Engineer Nick Hague continued his cellular immunity research processing blood samples in the Harmony module. He removed the samples from the Kubik research incubator after overnight stowage and spun them inside the Human Research Facility’s centrifuge. Afterward, Hague stowed the blood specimens inside a science freezer then powered down and uninstalled Kubik. Doctors on the ground will analyze the samples to understand the effects of living in space on the human immune system.
All four NASA astronauts relaxed and took a half-a-day off at the end of their shifts on Thursday. The quartet will have a busy day on Friday as they prepare the Bishop airlock and the Euro Materials Aging experiment for their robotic move next week.
Roscosmos Flight Engineers Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner continued their preparations for a spacewalk planned to begin at 10:10 a.m. EST on Thursday, Dec. 19, for science and robotics hardware transfers. The cosmonauts wore their pressurized Orlan spacesuits and practiced maneuvering to the Poisk airlock where they will exit into the vacuum of space. Fellow cosmonaut and flight engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov joined the duo afterward and reviewed procedures to depressurize and repressurize the airlock when the spacewalkers exit and enter the station.
Ovchinin and Vagner also had time for a cardiac study wearing electrodes and arm cuffs measuring their heart activity and blood pressure. Gorbunov focused on orbital plumbing tasks before the spacewalk reviews. At the end of his shift, he joined his cosmonaut crewmates for a test to learn how international crews and mission controllers from around the world can communicate better.
The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft is pictured from an external space station camera approaching the orbital outpost above Argentina. Credit: NASA+
Disease detection, cellular immunity, and free-flying robotics were the top advanced research topics aboard the International Space Station on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Expedition 72 crew members wait to send off a U.S. cargo spacecraft while preparing for the year’s final spacewalk.
Scientists on the ground are using the orbital outpost’s microgravity environment to learn how to detect genetic mutations and viruses that can cause illnesses, such as cancer and other diseases, on Earth and in space. NASA Flight Engineer Don Pettit processed samples of RNA, a nucleic acid, in the Harmony module’s maintenance work area for visualization in a handheld fluorescence viewer. Results may enable the quick identification of genetic sequences that can affect human health to better protect astronauts on missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
Working in the Kibo laboratory module, NASA Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore outfitted the toaster-sized Astrobee robotic free-flyer with a small docking mechanism for the Clingers technology demonstration. Engineers on the ground monitored the Astrobee as it tested autonomous navigation, docking, and undocking techniques using the Clingers device. Insights may boost space industry standardization of in-space refueling, repair, and manufacturing operations.
Station Commander Suni Williams from NASA opened up the Materials Science Laboratory (MSL) inside the Columbus laboratory module troubleshooting its components. The MSL enables safe, high-temperature observations of materials such as metals, polymers, semiconductors, and more in weightlessness to discover new applications and create new materials.
Mission managers waved off the planned return of a Dragon resupply spacecraft on Thursday, Dec. 12, due to forecasted unfavorable weather conditions at the splashdown site off the coast of Florida. NASA and SpaceX now are targeting Saturday, Dec. 14, for the next undocking opportunity of NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services spacecraft.
NASA’s live coverage of Dragon’s undocking and departure begins at 10:50 a.m. EST on NASA+ as the spacecraft autonomously undocks from the Harmony module’s forward port around 11:05 a.m. on Saturday. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.
Roscosmos Flight Engineers Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner continued their spacewalk preparations on Wednesday. The duo checked their suits for leaks, tested communications and medical hardware, and installed spacewalking gear inside the Poisk module. The cosmonauts will exit Poisk into the vacuum of space at 10:10 a.m. EST on Thursday, Dec. 19, and spend about six hours and 40 minutes removing science experiments and relocating robotic hardware.
Cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov began his day working on video and computer hardware throughout the station’s Roscosmos segment. Afterward, he entered the Nauka science module activating the European robotic arm (ERA) and verifying mission data uploaded to the ERA.
Astronaut Suni Williams displays science hardware housing bacteria and yeast samples for a biomanufacturing experiment that may enable the production of food and medicine in space.
Spacesuits and space biology were the main focus on Tuesday as the Expedition 72 crew aboard the International Space Station gets ready for a spacewalk and keeps up critical research.
Flight Engineers Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner from Roscosmos worked throughout the day inside the Poisk module where they are getting ready for the year’s final spacewalk. Vagner first conducted leak checks on Poisk’s airlock hatch where the cosmonauts will exit into the vacuum of space at 10:10 a.m. EST on Thursday, Dec. 19. Next, the duo paired up activating and inspecting their individual Orlan spacesuits, installing batteries, and removing excess gasses and liquids from the suits they will wear during the spacewalk. The cosmonauts are expected to spend about six hours and 40 minutes removing external science experiments and relocating European robotic arm hardware.
Station Commander Suni Williams was back inside the Quest airlock on Tuesday checking out and replacing components on a U.S. spacesuit. Afterward, she joined NASA Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore for eye exams with the Ultrasound 2 device. The duo took turns scanning each other’s eyes as doctors on the ground monitored in real-time the condition of each astronaut’s cornea, lens, and optic nerve. Wilmore also transferred cargo between the Kibo and Columbus laboratory modules then installed air quality sensors inside Quest.
NASA Flight Engineer Don Pettit started his day reconfiguring and cleaning a pair of research incubators, one of which can generate artificial gravity, inside the Kibo lab module. He later joined Wilmore who scanned Pettit’s eyes with the Ultrasound 2 then assisted him with the cargo transfers between Kibo and Columbus. Pettit also reviewed procedures for an upcoming cancer and disease detection study.
Flight Engineer Nick Hague of NASA explored the potential of micro-algae as a way to remove carbon dioxide, produce oxygen, and grow food on spacecraft. Hague processed sample containers for installation inside the BioLab research facility to understand the effects of radiation and microgravity on the micro-algae and learn how to sustain crews on missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
Hague, who is also the commander of the SpaceX Crew-9 mission, joined his crewmates Williams, Wilmore, and cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov inside the Dragon crew spacecraft for a departure training session at the end of the day. Hague and Gorbunov launched together on Dragon to the orbital outpost on Sept. 28. They will return to Earth in the spring with Williams and Wilmore.
The International Space Station is pictured from the SpaceX Dragon crew spacecraft by a SpaceX Crew-8 member shortly after undocking on Oct. 23, 2024.
Spacesuits topped the schedule for the Expedition 72 crew on Monday as a pair of cosmonauts get ready for a spacewalk planned for next week. The International Space Station residents also kicked off the workweek focusing their research activities on physics and biology.
Flight Engineers Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner of Roscosmos are gearing up for a spacewalk expected to begin at approximately 10:10 a.m. EST on Dec. 19. The duo will open the Poisk module’s hatch and spend about six hours and 40 minutes removing external science experiments and relocating European robotic arm hardware.
Ovchinin and Vagner took turns at the beginning of their shift on Monday assessing their hand grip strength due to the dexterity required to complete their spacewalk tasks inside the pressurized Orlan spacesuits. Afterward, the cosmonauts installed a variety of life support components and other gear on their individual Orlan suits.
Current space station Commander Suni Williams and Flight Engineer Don Pettit, both from NASA, also worked on spacesuit maintenance but on the other side of the space station inside the Quest airlock. The duo scrubbed suit and airlock cooling loops, inspected life support gear, and checked out radio communications hardware ahead of more spacewalks planned for early next year.
Williams and Pettit had more tasks planned Monday including a vision test using a standard eye chart with NASA Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore. Williams also inserted samples of colloids, or particles mixed inside a substance to create a gel, inside a fluorescence microscope for imaging. Pettit with assistance from Wilmore reorganized a variety of orbital plumbing tools relocating them from the Permanent Multipurpose Module and stowing them in the Zarya module. Wilmore earlier photographed a set of CubeSats deployed into Earth orbit outside the Kibo laboratory module for education research.
Roscosmos Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov checked out gas supply valves for the Plasma Kristall-4 space physics experiment that may improve fundamental research methods and spacecraft designs. Gorbunov later explored futuristic spacecraft and robotic piloting techniques future crew members may use on planetary missions.
Expedition 72 Commander Suni Williams of NASA smiles for a portrait inside the International Space Station’s Zvezda service module during dinner time.
Robotic tentacles, antibiotic resistant microbes, and space agriculture topped the research schedule aboard the International Space Station at the end of the week. The Expedition 72 crew members are also preparing for a spacewalk and continuing maintenance on the orbital outpost.
NASA astronaut and station Commander Suni Williams had a busy day on Friday researching how robots could capture orbital debris and growing safe and nutritious food in space. Williams activated an Astrobee robotic free-flyer outfitted with tentacle-like arms containing gecko-like adhesive pads. Then, she and ground controllers monitored the Astrobee as it demonstrated docking maneuvers that could be used to remove orbital debris and capture satellites for servicing. She also trimmed red romaine lettuce leaves being grown in the Advanced Plant Habitat to test different moisture levels that may support growing crops in space.
NASA Flight Engineer Don Pettit worked in the Columbus laboratory module sequencing microbial DNA to identify the characteristics of antibiotic resistant organisms in microgravity. Results may reveal why some pathogens are more potent in space and address the risks to astronaut health.
NASA Flight Engineer Nick Hague started his day processing bacteria and yeast samples to learn how to produce food and medicine in space. Afterward, Hague, with assistance from NASA Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore, wrapped up a six-month inspection and cleaning of the COLBERT treadmill’s hardware and components inside the Tranquility module. Wilmore would spend the rest of Friday off-duty after a busy week of microbial research and cargo packing inside the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft.
Cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner continued preparing for a Dec. 19 spacewalk to remove external science experiments and relocate European robotic arm hardware. The duo first checked the hatch for leaks inside the Poisk module where they will exit the station to begin a planned six-hour and 40-minute spacewalk. Afterward, the pair from Roscosmos collected and organized the spacewalking tools they will use for the first excursion of Expedition 72.
Roscosmos Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov began his day measuring his body mass using a version of Newton’s first law of motion, force equals mass times acceleration. Next, he started his shift on orbital plumbing duties before ending his day inspecting a gas-liquid heat exchanger in the Zvezda service module.
Astronauts Suni Williams and Tracy C. Dyson look out the cupola, the International Space Station’s “window to the world,” while orbiting above the Atlantic Ocean on Sept. 1, 2024.
The science-packed SpaceX Dragon spacecraft will wait another week before departing the International Space Station as mission managers monitor weather conditions at the splashdown sites. Meanwhile, the Expedition 72 crew geared up for a spacewalk planned later in December and serviced an array of science hardware and exercise equipment.
Mission managers waved off the planned return of the Dragon resupply spacecraft on Friday, Dec. 6, due to forecasted unfavorable weather conditions at the splashdown site off the coast of Florida. NASA and SpaceX now are targeting Thursday, Dec. 12, for the next return opportunity due to an extended period of high sun exposure at the space station over the next week. NASA’s live coverage of Dragon’s undocking and departure begins at 10:50 a.m. EST on NASA+ as the spacecraft autonomously undocks from the Harmony module’s forward port around 11:05 a.m. on Thursday. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.
NASA astronauts completed installing science freezers packed with research samples and powered lockers with completed experiments inside Dragon. The crewmates also loaded a host of station hardware inside the spacecraft and secured it for the return to Earth. NASA and SpaceX support personnel will retrieve Dragon after its return to Earth and send the preserved scientific specimens and orbital gear to labs for analysis and maintenance.
Meanwhile, research continued on the space station as NASA astronauts and flight engineers Don Pettit and Butch Wilmore split their day working on a pair of space physics experiments. Wilmore first opened up the Microgravity Science Glovebox and removed research components for a study that explored ways to separate viruses from biological fluids and improve disease detection methods. Pettit followed and then installed new hardware in the glovebox that will support an investigation that may enable bulk crystal growth and large-scale semiconductor manufacturing in space.
NASA astronaut and station commander Suni Williams spent a second day in the Quest airlock for more spacesuit work ahead of a series of spacewalk planned for early next year. Williams, a three-time space station resident, first swapped a data recorder box from one suit to another. Afterward, she inspected and serviced the spacesuit’s life support gear following the previous day’s suit resizing and configuration work.
NASA astronaut and flight engineer Nick Hague began his shift in the Tranquility module performing a six-month inspection on the COLBERT treadmill’s hardware and components. Hague then wrapped up his day inspecting tethers and gathering tools for a pair of cosmonauts who preparing for a spacewalk planned before Christmas.
Roscosmos cosmonauts and flight engineers Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner spent most of Thursday studying for the year’s last spacewalk planned for Thursday, Dec. 19. The duo collected tools from Hague and reviewed procedures that would see the spacewalkers spend about six-and-a-half hours in space removing external science experiments and relocating European robotic arm hardware on the station’s Roscosmos segment.
Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov completed an Earth observation session imaging in different wavelengths the effects of natural and human-caused impacts on the landscape below. The first-time space flyer moved on and inspected power supply units in the Zarya module and filled an oxygen generator in the Zvezda service module.
The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft, carrying over 6,000 pounds of science, supplies, and hardware, approaches the station on Nov. 5 above the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Uruguay.
Packing research samples and station hardware for return to Earth were the top tasks aboard the International Space Station on Wednesday. The seven-member Expedition 72 crew also serviced a variety of science hardware and electronics gear throughout the orbital lab.
NASA astronauts are finishing up the loading of completed science experiments and lab hardware inside the Dragon spacecraft for retrieval and analysis on Earth. NASA and SpaceX now are targeting Friday, Dec. 6, for the return of the resupply spacecraft. Mission managers waved off the planned return on Thursday, Dec. 5, due to forecasted high winds at the splashdown site off the coast of Florida. NASA’s live coverage of Dragon’s undocking and departure begins at 10:50 a.m. EST on NASA+ as the spacecraft autonomously undocks from the Harmony module’s forward port around 11:05 a.m. on Friday. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.
NASA astronaut and station commander Suni Williams kicked off her day installing the sample-packed Space Automated Lab Incubator inside Dragon. NASA astronauts Nick Hague and Butch Wilmore continued her work loading and securing portable science freezers filled with research samples and powered lockers containing finalized experiments inside the Earthbound spacecraft.
Williams and Hague also had time to join each other in the Quest airlock replacing components and resizing a spacesuit ahead of a series spacewalks planned for early next year. Wilmore spent all day Wednesday loading cargo from the station into Dragon.
Roscosmos Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov also worked on cargo duties but on the other side of the orbital outpost. Gorbunov unpacked some of the nearly three tons of cargo launched aboard the Progress 90 cargo craft on Nov. 21 and docking to the Poisk module on Nov. 23. The first-time space flyer completed his day inspecting and photographing air conditioning hardware in the Zvezda service module.
Cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner partnered together throughout the day Wednesday servicing a host of communications and electronics hardware in the orbital outpost’s Roscosmos segment. Ovchinin then moved on and checked ventilation equipment inside the Zarya module. Vagner conducted a photo-inspection of windows inside Zvezda then collected his hair samples for biological analysis.
Expedition 72 crewmates Suni Williams of NASA and Aleksandr Gorbunov of Roscosmos wear personal protective equipment shortly after the hatches opened to the newly arrived SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft on Nov. 5, 2024.
Station Commander Suni Williams and Flight Engineer Don Pettit, both from NASA, kicked off their day transferring research samples from station science freezers into portable POLAR freezers that will soon be installed inside the departing Dragon. Williams then joined NASA Flight Engineer Nick Hague loading and strapping down more cargo inside Dragon for retrieval and analysis on Earth.
Dragon is scheduled to undock from the Harmony module’s forward port at 11:05 a.m. EST on Thursday for a splashdown off the coast of Florida the following day. NASA’s live coverage of undocking and departure begins at 10:50 a.m. EST on NASA+. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.
Pettit later spent the rest of his shift with NASA Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore processing bacteria samples in the Kibo and Harmony modules to understand why some pathogens are more potent in the microgravity environment. The duo was using genetic analysis techniques to identify the antibiotic resistant organisms and help researchers protect crew health on long-term space missions. Those samples will also be collected and packed inside Dragon this week for return and analysis back on Earth.
Williams set up research components inside the Advanced Plant Habitat to support an upcoming experiment to understand how different water levels affect plant growth in space and the microbes that live on plants. Results may lead to improved methods for growing food on Earth and in space. Hague began installing a small satellite deployer on Kibo’s multipurpose experiment platform that will soon be placed into the vacuum of space to release a series of CubeSats.
Working in the Roscosmos segment of the space station, Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov used different wavelengths to image natural and human-caused conditions on Earth then jogged on a treadmill for a fitness evaluation. His fellow cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner spent their day monitoring carbon dioxide levels and servicing the atmospheric purification system in the orbital lab’s Roscosmos segment among other life support tasks.
