NASA TV is Live Covering the Return of Expedition 64

NASA TV is Live Covering the Return of Expedition 64

The Soyuz MS-16 spacecraft is seen as it lands in Kazakhstan with Expedition 63 crew.
The Soyuz MS-16 spacecraft is seen as it lands in Kazakhstan with Expedition 63 crew. Photo Credit: (NASA/GCTC/Denis Derevtsov)

NASA Television and the agency’s website are now broadcasting live coverage of the return to Earth of NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov of the Russian space agency Roscosmos. The Soyuz MS-17 spacecraft carrying the trio will make its deorbit burn to set the spaceship on its re-entry through Earth’s atmosphere for a landing in Kazakhstan at 12:56 a.m. (10:56 a.m. Kazakhstan time) Saturday, April 17.

During the 185-day mission, Rubins spent hundreds of hours working on new space station experiments, building on investigations she conducted during her first mission, including heart research and multiple microbiology studies. She advanced her work in DNA sequencing, which could allow astronauts to diagnose an illness in space or identify microbes growing at the space station. Rubins collected hundreds of microbial samples at different locations within the space station for the 3DMM study to construct a 3D map of bacteria and bacterial products throughout the station. By advancing understanding of the orbiting laboratory’s microbiome, this work helps identify potential risks and supports developing countermeasures to mitigate those risks.

Rubins also worked on the Cardinal Heart experiment, which studies how changes in gravity affect cardiovascular cells at the cellular and tissue levels. Results could provide new understanding of heart problems on Earth, help identify new treatments, and support development of screening measures to predict cardiovascular risk prior to spaceflight.

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

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Mark Garcia

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Expedition 64 Trio Undocks, Ends Station Mission

Expedition 64 Trio Undocks, Ends Station Mission

The Soyuz MS-17 spacecraft moments after undocking from the station on April 16th, 2021. Credit: NASA TV
The Soyuz MS-17 spacecraft moments after undocking from the station on April 16th, 2021. Credit: NASA TV

The Soyuz spacecraft undocked from the International Space Station at 9:34 p.m. EDT, carrying three people back to Earth. NASA Television will air live coverage beginning at 11:30 p.m. for the deorbit burn and the spacecraft’s parachute-assisted landing at 12:56 a.m. (10:56 a.m. Kazakhstan time) Saturday, April 17.

Rubins, Ryzhikov, and Kud-Sverchkov’s mission began Oct. 14, 2020, when their spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Their spacecraft docked to the Earth-facing port of the Rassvet module after a two-orbit, three-hour flight.

Expedition 65 officially began at the time of undocking with NASA astronaut Shannon Walker serving as station commander. Walker will lead the crew until the departure of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Resilience on Wednesday, April 28, when command of the station will be handed over to JAXA astronaut Akihiko Hoshide.

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

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Mark Garcia

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NASA TV Broadcasts Expedition 64 Crew Departing Station

NASA TV Broadcasts Expedition 64 Crew Departing Station

The three-member Expedition 64 crew from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency). From left are, Kate Rubins of NASA,Sergey Ryzhikov of Roscosmos and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov of Roscosmos.
The three-member Expedition 64 crew from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency). From left are, Kate Rubins of NASA,Sergey Ryzhikov of Roscosmos and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov of Roscosmos.

NASA is providing live coverage on NASA TV and its website of the undocking and departure from the International Space Station of the Soyuz spacecraft that will return NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov of the Russian space agency Roscosmos to Earth.

The three crew members are concluding a 185-day mission spanning 2,960 orbits of Earth and 78.4 million miles. Rubins is completing her second flight, with 300 cumulative days in space. Ryzhikov is completing his second spaceflight, with 358 cumulative days. This was Kud-Sverchkov’s first spaceflight.

During their mission, Rubins and her crewmates welcomed NASA’s SpaceX Crew-1 astronauts aboard the first long-duration commercial crew spaceflight. Rubins completed two spacewalks alongside NASA astronaut Victor Glover and Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Soichi Noguchi, bringing her career total to four spacewalks. She returns to Earth with a total of 300 days across her two flights, the fourth most days in space by a U.S. female astronaut.

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

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Mark Garcia

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Crew Says Farewell, Enters Soyuz and Prepares to Undock

Crew Says Farewell, Enters Soyuz and Prepares to Undock

The hatch closing between the Soyuz MS-17 and station in preparation for the undocking of Expedition 64 crew. Credit: NASA TV
The hatch closing between the Soyuz MS-17 and station in preparation for the undocking of Expedition 64 crew. Credit: NASA TV

At 6:24 p.m. EDT, the hatch closed between the Soyuz spacecraft and the International Space Station in preparation for undocking. NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov of Roscosmos are scheduled to undock their Soyuz MS-17 spacecraft at 9:34 p.m.

NASA Television will air live coverage of the undocking beginning at 9:15 p.m., with coverage of the Soyuz deorbit burn and landing beginning at 11:30 p.m. Their landing in Kazakhstan is targeted for approximately 12:56 a.m. (10:56 a.m. Kazakhstan time) Saturday, April 17.

At the time of undocking, Expedition 65 will formally begin aboard the station, with new station commander Shannon Walker of NASA, NASA astronauts Victor GloverMichael Hopkins, and Mark Vande Hei, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Soichi Noguchi, and cosmonauts Oleg Novitskiy and Pyotr Dubrov.

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

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

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Mark Garcia

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NASA TV Begins Live Coverage of Station Crew Departure

NASA TV Begins Live Coverage of Station Crew Departure

Expedition 64 crew members (from left) NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov pose for a crew portrait.
Expedition 64 crew members (from left) NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov pose for a crew portrait.

NASA is providing live coverage on NASA TV and its website as NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov of Roscosmos prepare to conclude their mission aboard the International Space Station and return to Earth.

The trio will and close the hatch to their Soyuz MS-17 spacecraft at 6:10 p.m. EDT to begin the journey back to Earth. They will undock from the space-facing port of the station’s Poisk module at 9:34 p.m., heading for a parachute-assisted landing at 12:56 a.m. (10:56 a.m. Kazakhstan time) Saturday, April 17, on the steppe of Kazakhstan, southeast of the remote town of Dzhezkazgan.

Coverage of the farewells and hatch closure will be followed by undocking coverage at 9:15 p.m., with coverage of the Soyuz deorbit burn and landing beginning at 11:30 p.m.

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

Get The Details…

Mark Garcia

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