Tag: SpaceX

The Expedition 71 crew kicked off a busy schedule on Monday exploring ways to treat neurological diseases while gearing up for a spacewalk planned for Thursday. Cargo operations are also picking up as a U.S. cargo craft gets ready for its departure from the International Space Station.

Researchers use the orbital outpost’s weightless environment to gain insights impossible to achieve on Earth’s surface. Results extrapolated from the space investigations can be applied not only to promoting living in space for crews but also improving health and industry on Earth for humans.

On Monday, NASA Flight Engineers Tracy C. Dyson and Mike Barratt took turns processing brain organoid samples for a neurodegenerative disorder study. Dyson first serviced the specimens and injected a drug treatment into the sample cultures for a microscopic analysis of the therapy’s ability to counteract the effects of microgravity. Barratt processed the samples at the end of the day preparing them for stowage and later analysis. Doctors will use the results to learn how protect a crew member’s central nervous system and provide treatments for neurodegenerative conditions on Earth.

The duo then joined fellow NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick and Jeanette Epps and helped pack the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft with cargo ahead of its targeted undocking on Friday, April 26. Soon the crewmates will begin concentrating on stowing completed science experiments, including the brain organoid study, and their critical research samples inside Dragon for the ride back to Earth and analysis in laboratories.

Station Commander Oleg Kononenko and Flight Engineer Nikolai Chub are getting ready for the year’s first spacewalk at the orbital lab set to begin at 10:55 a.m. EDT on Thursday. The duo tried on their Orlan spacesuits today checking for pressure leaks and testing their communications and medical systems. The cosmonauts will spend about seven hours in the vacuum of space configuring hardware and installing experiments on the Roscosmos segment of the space station.

Cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin assisted his cosmonaut crewmates helping the duo in and out of their Orlan spacesuits and checking the suits’ components and batteries. Grebenkin then spent the rest of Monday servicing Roscosmos life support hardware and ventilation systems.

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Biomedical duties to understand how space affects the human body and develop ways to treat microgravity-induced conditions were the prime research objectives for the Expedition 71 crew on Friday. The orbital residents also continued loading a U.S. cargo craft for its upcoming departure and preparing for a spacewalk at the International Space Station.

Living long-term in the weightlessness environment creates fluid shifts and blood pressure issues that doctors seek to address and promote crew health. The astronauts use a variety of biomedical tools collect their health data and monitoring how their body adapts to microgravity.

One of the most visible symptoms of living in space is a condition called “puffy face.” This is a result of body fluids moving toward a crew member’s head due to microgravity. Astronauts have reported this condition may also cause internal head and eye pressure affecting vision. A new thigh cuff, similar to a blood pressure cuff, is being tested for its ability to prevent space-caused fluid shifts toward an astronaut’s head. NASA Flight Engineers Matthew Dominick and Jeanette Epps partnered together for that investigation performing chest scans with the Ultrasound 2 device, measuring blood pressure, and conducting eye exams. Doctors are exploring if the thigh cuff can be worn in space to counteract the headward fluid shifts for healthier crews.

NASA Flight Engineer Tracy C. Dyson attached electrodes to herself, wore a sensor-packed cap, and operated a portable ultrasound device on Friday. She was measuring her brain blood flow and blood pressure simultaneously. Scientists are studying how the brain regulates blood flow in weightlessness potentially revealing new therapies for spaceflight-induced and Earthbound blood pressure conditions.

NASA astronaut Mike Barratt spent all day Friday tending to mice living in rodent habitats located in the Destiny laboratory module. He refilled food and water and cleaned the habitats where the mice are being treated with a gene therapy that may improve eye health in space.

All four NASA astronauts will go into the weekend readying the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft for its undocking scheduled for April 26. The quartet has been taking turns all week transferring cargo in and out of Dragon. Next week, the NASA foursome will be making room inside the spacecraft and packing finalized experiments that will be returned to Earth for analysis.

Spacewalk preparations were underway once again in the Roscosmos segment of the orbital laboratory. Cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub checked their Orlan spacesuits for leaks, tested their suits’ communications and medical components, and reviewed procedures to ready the Poisk airlock for their April 25 spacewalk. The duo will exit the station for seven hours of hardware installation work on the Poisk module.

Flight Engineer Alexander Grebenkin joined his Roscosmos crewmates on Friday afternoon for the Poisk airlock procedure reviews. He started his day pedaling on a treadmill for a periodic fitness evaluation. Grebenkin completed his shift after practicing futuristic spacecraft and robotic piloting techniques that may be used on planetary missions.

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The Expedition 71 crew had its hands full on Thursday with a multitude of research activities filling the schedule. The orbital septet also continued gearing up for next week’s spacewalk amidst ongoing cargo operations aboard the International Space Station.

Advanced space science is continually taking place aboard the orbital outpost with the experiments being run by astronauts, remotely controlled by researchers on the ground, or autonomously operated. The equipment housing and powering the research also requires constant monitoring and maintenance ensuring high quality results that provide valuable insights into microgravity phenomena.

NASA astronauts Jeanette Epps and Tracy C. Dyson split their schedule on Thursday servicing hardware supporting a pair of different investigations. Epps began her day in the Kibo laboratory module cleaning components and swapping samples inside the Electrostatic Levitation Furnace. The high temperature research device explores the thermophysical properties of materials difficult to observe in Earth’s gravity environment. Next, Dyson set up biomedical hardware she will use on Friday to measure how the brain regulates blood flow in the absence of gravity. Results may lead to new therapies and countermeasures for spaceflight-induced and Earthbound blood pressure conditions.

NASA Flight Engineers Mike Barratt and Matthew Dominick spent their morning supporting two space biology investigations looking at separate but critical phenomena. Barratt attached electrodes to his chest and used an ultrasound device to scan his vascular system with remote guidance from doctors on Earth. The medical data is being used to assess the cardiovascular risk of living in space and is one part of the CIPHER human research study. Dominick swabbed surfaces throughout the station’s U.S. segment collecting microbe samples for analysis. The specimens will be treated on the orbital lab and examined on Earth to determine microbial resistance to antibiotics and the risk to crew health.

Dominick then partnered up with Barratt mid-afternoon testing portable breathing gear. At the end of the day, Dominick joined Dyson and swapped cargo in and out of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft. Dragon is due to complete its cargo mission and depart the station on April 26. Dyson earlier collected microbe samples for incubation and analysis. Epps wrapped up her shift installing a computer with a camera pointed out a window in the Destiny laboratory module for Earth observations.

Spacewalk preparations have been well underway this week as cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub get ready for a seven-hour excursion to swap hardware outside the space station on April 25. The Roscosmos duo began the day pedaling on an exercise cycle for a pre-spacewalk fitness evaluation. Afterward, the crewmates checked their Orlan spacesuit systems and components inside the Poisk airlock.

Roscosmos Flight Engineer Alexander Grebenkin remained focused on life support maintenance and orbital plumbing tasks in the cosmonaut’s portion of orbital outpost. Later in the afternoon, he participated in the spacewalk preparations staging standard medical equipment and tools in Poisk.

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Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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Cargo operations and spacewalks preparations topped the schedule aboard the International Space Station on Wednesday. The Expedition 71 crew members also worked on biomedical research and reviewed procedures for a simulated emergency.

NASA astronauts Tracy C. Dyson and Mike Barratt kicked off their day swapping cargo in and out of the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft that arrived at the orbital outpost on March 23. Afterward, NASA Flight Engineers Matthew Dominick and Jeanette Epps took over the cargo transfers and wrapped up the work before lunchtime. Dragon is due to undock from the Harmony module’s space-facing port and return to Earth at the end of the month.

The quartet regrouped in the afternoon and participated in a pair of space biology activities to help doctors understand how the human body adapts to weightlessness. First, Barratt operated the Ultrasound 2 device and scanned Dyson’s neck, shoulder, and leg veins as part of regularly scheduled medical checkups. Barratt then joined Dominick and Epps to try on and test a garment that may help crews adjust quicker to the return to Earth’s gravity after a long-term space mission. The threesome then measured the circumference of the waist and right leg during the garment fit check.

Cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub continue preparing for this year’s first spacewalk. The duo from Roscosmos were once again collecting tools, configuring spacesuits, and readying the Poisk airlock for their planned seven-hour spacewalk scheduled for April 25. The pair also took turns during the morning wearing a cap packed with sensors while practicing on a computer futuristic spacecraft and robotic piloting techniques that may be used on planetary missions. Flight Engineer Alexander Grebenkin worked throughout the day servicing a variety of life support hardware and video gear in the space station’s Roscosmos segment.

At the end of the day, all seven orbital residents gathered together and watched a video describing the operation of emergency simulation software. Next, the crewmates familiarized themselves with emergency hardware, such as breathing masks, and procedures, including closing hatches and evacuation paths.

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Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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The Expedition 71 crew members continued ongoing biology and physics research, as well as spacewalk preparations on Tuesday. The seven International Space Station residents also kept up more CubeSat work, cargo operations, and lab maintenance throughout their shifts.

Eye checks were on the schedule Tuesday as NASA Flight Engineers Tracy C. Dyson and Mike Barratt contributed to the CIPHER human research study. The duo participated in a pair of eye exams looking at the retina and optic nerve for one portion of the investigation that examines ocular structure and function in microgravity. Results may inform countermeasures that protect an astronaut’s vision on long-term space missions farther away from Earth.

Dyson earlier replaced cardiac cell samples inside the Advanced Space Experiment Processor, a research incubator, that were printed using the BioFabrication Facility. Barratt installed a small satellite orbital deployer into the Kibo laboratory module’s airlock. The Japanese robotic arm will grapple the deployer and point it away from the station where it will release a series of CubeSats into Earth orbit for scientific and technology research.

NASA Flight Engineers Jeanette Epps and Matthew Dominick joined each other during the afternoon finalizing hardware swaps inside the Cold Atom Lab. During the installation work the duo also cleaned filters and checked power readings on the research device that observes the quantum behavior of atoms chilled to near absolute zero.

Dominick began his day processing blood samples with Dyson spinning them in a centrifuge for later analysis. The duo later took turns transferring cargo in and out of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.

Cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub continue preparing for an April 25 spacewalk that will see the Roscosmos duo work outside in the vacuum of space for about seven hours. The two crewmates spent the afternoon gathering spacewalking tools and preparing their Orlan spacesuit components for upcoming operations. During the morning, the pair took turns studying spacecraft and robotic piloting techniques that may be used on future planetary missions.

Roscosmos Flight Engineer Alexander Grebenkin spent the majority of his day servicing life support components inside the Zvezda service module. At the end of the day, Grebenkin moved to the Tranquility module and worked out on the advanced resistive exercise device for an exercise evaluation.

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Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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Advanced space biology and CubeSat work topped the research schedule aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday. The Expedition 71 crew also continued its cargo work and lab maintenance to keep the orbital outpost in tip-top shape.

Scientists are taking advantage of the weightless environment to learn how to print 3D cardiac tissue samples. NASA Flight Engineers Tracy C. Dyson and Matthew Dominick took turns operating the BioFabrication Facility, swapping cassettes containing the bio-printed samples inside the device, then processing the samples for incubation. The tissue-engineering study that takes place inside the Columbus laboratory module may offer the ability to print food and medicines for future space crews. Results may also enable the bioprinting of replacement organs and tissues potentially alleviating the shortage of donor organs on Earth.

NASA Flight Engineer Jeanette Epps was on her second day of installing a small satellite orbital deployer inside the Kibo laboratory module’s airlock. Three CubeSats are packed into the device and will soon be deployed into Earth orbit for a variety of communications and technology studies. Afterward, Epps partnered with Dyson and NASA astronaut Mike Barratt transferring cargo in and out of the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft.

Barratt began his day transferring spacewalking tools to the station’s Roscosmos segment before working on orbital plumbing duties. During the afternoon, the three-time station resident refilled the water supply inside the rodent research habitat located in the Destiny laboratory module. The mice living inside the biology device are being observed for a study testing a gene therapy to improve eye health in space.

Cosmonaut Nikolai Chub collected and stowed the spacewalking tools from Barratt. Those tools are being readied for a Roscosmos spacewalk planned for April 25. Afterward, he worked on life support tasks inside the Progress 86 resupply ship and the Zarya and Zvezda modules.

Fellow cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin inspected video gear and an oxygen generator then scanned surfaces inside Zvezda with an ultrasound device. Station Commander Oleg Kononenko continued inspection activities inside Zvezda and the Progress 87 resupply ship. He also attached sensors and electrodes to himself and jogged on a treadmill for a periodic fitness test.

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Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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