Archivo de la etiqueta: spacestation

Crew Kicks off Busy Research Week Before Thursday’s Spacewalk

Biotechnology, human health, and space botany kicked off the research week aboard the International Space Station on Monday. The Expedition 73 crew is also preparing for a spacewalk on Thursday to ready the orbital outpost for a new rollout solar array and relocate a communications antenna.

Numerous experiments exploring how blood pressure, eyes, and cells are affected by microgravity packed the schedule aboard the International Space Station on Monday. Scientists will take the unique data and pursue advanced therapies promoting healthy humans on and off the Earth.

Blood pressure checks awaited NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers on Monday for the CIPHER suite of 14 human research investigations. Ayers began her shift scanning McClain’s chest with the Ultrasound 2 device while electrodes measured her blood pressure. Doctors are observing the arterial structure and function of astronauts to assess the cardiovascular risk of living and working in space.

McClain later installed research hardware inside the Veggie space botany facility for the Advanced Plant Experiment-12 space botany study that will observe how space radiation affects plant genetics. Ayers then peered into medical imaging gear with assistance from NASA astronaut Jonny Kim so researchers could get a glimpse of her optic nerve to identify potential space-caused eye health issues.

Kim also set up physics research hardware inside the Destiny laboratory module’s Microgravity Science Glovebox for the Colloidal Solids experiment that may benefit the pharmaceutical, food, and personal care industries on Earth. The upcoming  investigation will observe how soft solids, such as gels, respond to weightlessness and may lead to the design of new materials.

McClain and Ayers are also preparing to exit the space station on Thursday for a six-hour and 35-minute spacewalk. The pair spent an hour on Monday reviewing the steps necessary in the vacuum of space to install a rollout solar array modification kit on the station’s port side truss structure and relocate an antenna that communicates with visiting vehicles. This will be McClain’s third spacewalk, Ayers first, and the 275^th in space station program history.

Station Commander Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) split his day between exploring how cells sense gravity and installing hardware containing biological fluid samples. He first relocated cell samples from an incubator into a microscope to observe the mechanism that enables cells to sense the effects of gravity. Results from the Cell Gravisensing investigation may lead to therapies treating space-caused and Earthbound muscle and bone conditions. Onishi then installed cassettes containing fluid samples in the Advanced Space Experiment Processor-4, a research facility that can be shipped back and forth from Earth to space, for the biotechnology study. That investigation may further research and commercialization opportunities in space.

Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov set up Earth observation gear and activated a camera to photograph landmarks in Canada and western Africa. Cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky took a hearing test on Monday inside the Quest airlock using specialized audiometric hardware that eliminates the need to isolate oneself in a soundproof booth. The pair would spend the rest of the day on a variety of electronics and life support maintenance.

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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Mark A. Garcia

Crew Studies Space Biology Advancing Health in Space and on Earth

Synthetic DNA, how cells respond to weightlessness, and cognitive performance in space wrapped up the week aboard the International Space Station. The Expedition 73 crew is also gearing up for a spacewalk to ready the orbital outpost for a new rollout solar array.

Space biology is helping doctors understand how humans adapt to living in space and providing countermeasures to keep crews healthy on long duration missions farther away from Earth. Results may also provide advanced treatments for ailments on Earth.

A new experiment recently delivered aboard the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft is exploring the ability to manufacture DNA-like nanomaterials that could be used to deliver therapeutics, vaccines, and regenerative medicine. NASA Flight Engineers Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers kicked off that experiment on Friday mixing solutions to create the nanomaterial products inside the Kibo laboratory module’s Life Science Glovebox. Ayers then pointed an electromagnetic light tool at the newly created materials, measured the wavelengths emitted, and evaluated their space-manufactured quality. The samples will be returned to Earth for further analysis.

McClain and Ayers are also getting ready for a spacewalk scheduled for May 1. The duo will exit the Quest airlock into the vacuum of space and spend six-and-a-half hours preparing the station’s port side truss structure for a new rollout solar array and relocating an antenna that communicates with visiting vehicles. McClain spent an hour-and-a-half on Friday studying the paths she and Ayers will take to their worksites outside the space station.

A second investigation unloaded from Dragon and activated by station Commander Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) is observing how cells sense gravity. Onishi spent Friday processing cell samples inside Kibo’s Cell Biology Experiment Facility before placing the samples inside a confocal microscope for observation. How those cells samples adapt to microgravity may help scientists provide advanced treatments for space-caused as well as Earth-based conditions such muscle atrophy, osteoporosis, and aging-like symptoms.

NASA Flight Engineer Jonny Kim focused his research activities on learning how living in space is affecting his cognition, or the ability to think and perform actions in microgravity. CIPHER is a suite of 14 human research studies looking at the physical and mental changes an astronaut experiences during spaceflight. Kim first collected his blood samples for processing and analysis. Next, he took a series of tests that included simulating Canadarm2 robotic arm maneuvers on a computer. The Spatial Cognition portion of the CIPHER study will help doctors learn about and prevent any adverse effects of space on a crew member’s brain structure and function.

Roscosmos Flight Engineer Kirill Peskov wrapped up an Earth observation experiment that imaged the planet’s nighttime atmospheric glow in near-ultraviolet wavelengths. Cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky spent their day on life support maintenance throughout the orbiting lab’s Roscosmos segment.

Robotics controllers completed the extraction late Thursday of the Atomic Clock Ensemble in Space (ACES) experiment from Dragon’s unpressurized trunk. ACES will be installed outside the Columbus laboratory module for a variety of tests including testing Einstein’s theory of general relativity as well as researching fundamental physics using high accuracy atomic clocks in space.

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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Mark A. Garcia

Crew Studies Advanced Biotech, Preps for Spacewalk as Station Orbits Higher

Biotechnology research exploring DNA-like nanomaterials, microbes, and eye health topped the science schedule aboard the International Space Station on Wednesday. The Expedition 73 crew is also continuing its spacewalk preparations and unpacking the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft.

Scientists are using the orbital outpost’s microgravity environment to advance the manufacturing of DNA-inspired nanomaterials and improve therapies to treat a variety of ailments in space and on Earth. NASA Flight Engineers Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers on Thursday set up hardware in the Kibo laboratory module’s Life Science Glovebox and mixed solutions that will be used to create the synthetic nanomaterials that mimic biochemical processes during research operations planned for Friday. Results may offer the possibility of expanding the commercialization of space and benefit the quality of life for humans living on and off the Earth.

Ayers also scanned the eyes of Commander Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) using standard medical imaging gear to understand the risk of spaceflight on an astronaut’s vision. Researchers are studying why some astronauts are more likely to experience space-caused eye conditions than others and whether it is genetics or a vitamin issue. Onishi also collected hardware and retrieved microbe samples from a science freezer to begin exploring how weightlessness affects microorganisms that decompose organic matter potentially benefitting space agriculture.

Onishi then joined NASA Flight Engineer Jonny Kim and reviewed the procedures they will use to assist McClain and Ayers who are scheduled to exit the orbital outpost for a spacewalk on May 1. Onishi and Kim will help the spacewalkers suit up, guide them in and out of the Quest airlock, and monitor their tasks during the six-and-a-half-hour spacewalk. McClain and Ayers will install a modification kit on the station’s port side truss structure preparing it for a new rollout solar array then relocate an antenna that communicates with visiting vehicles. Kim also continued unpacking some of the 6,700 pounds of science and supplies packed aboard the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft that arrived on Tuesday.

The three cosmonauts aboard the space station took a test on a computer tablet measuring how they are socially adapting to living in space. Veteran cosmonaut Sergey Ryzhikov partnered with first-time space flyers Alexey Zubritsky and Kirill Peskov for the study exploring how international crews communicate with each other and mission controllers from around the world. Results may inform crew selection methods, improve mission training techniques, and benefit inflight support.

The International Space Station is orbiting higher after the Progress 91 resupply ship fired its engines for over ten minutes on Wednesday while docked to the Zvezda service module’s aft port. The reboost places the orbiting laboratory at the correct altitude for the arrival of the Progress 92 cargo craft planned for July.

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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Mark A. Garcia

Crew Unloads Dragon and Kicks Off New Space Experiments

The Expedition 73 crew is beginning its first full week together unpacking the SpaceX Dragon cargo craft and activating new science experiments. The International Space Station residents are also gearing up for next week’s spacewalk while ensuring the ongoing operations of the orbiting laboratory.

The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft delivered 6,700 pounds of science and supplies to the orbital residents after docking to the Harmony module’s space-facing port at 8:40 a.m. EDT on Tuesday. NASA astronaut Jonny Kim opened Dragon’s hatch shortly afterward and entered to begin unloading critical science experiments for installation and activation.

Commander Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) kicked off the new Cell Gravisensing 3 experiment on Wednesday after removing the research gear from Dragon. He set up the hardware inside the Kibo laboratory module and began treating cell samples in Kibo’s Cell Biology Experiment Facility. The investigation will observe the cells’ molecular mechanisms and measure how the cells respond to microgravity. Results may lead to treatments for space-caused muscle and bone issues as well as similar conditions on Earth.

Kim began his day with NASA Flight Engineer Nichole Ayers removing research samples from inside Dragon’s science freezers and loading them inside space station science freezers. Kim then installed the Biofilms experiment containers in a pair of Kubik incubators in the Columbus laboratory module to begin studying antimicrobial surfaces that may keep spacecraft safe. Next, Kim photographed genetically modified tomato plants for a new space agriculture experiment studying if crops can grow without photosynthesis in space.

Ayers later joined NASA astronaut Anne McClain and configured the cables they will use when they go on a spacewalk planned for May 1. The cables will be used to install a modification kit on the station’s port side truss structure preparing it for a new rollout solar array that will be installed on a future date.

Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky partnered together on Wednesday wearing virtual reality glasses displaying imagery while electrodes measured how their vision, balance, and spatial orientation is adjusting to microgravity. Flight Engineer Kirill Peskov wrapped up a 24-hour session wearing biomedical hardware that measured his heart rate and blood pressure wile he worked and exercised aboard the orbital outpost.

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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Mark A. Garcia

Dragon Docks to Station Delivering Science, Supplies to Crew

At 8:40 a.m. EDT, the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft docked to the zenith, space-facing port of the International Space Station’s Harmony module. 

The spacecraft carried about 6,700 pounds of scientific investigations and cargo to the orbiting laboratory on SpaceX’s 32nd commercial resupply services mission for NASA. The mission launched at 4:15 a.m. April 21 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

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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Mark A. Garcia