Crew Reduced Duty Day: Today was a reduced duty day for the US crew in advance of tomorrow’s EVA. Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Preparations: The US crew members conducted final preparations to the Equipment Lock, Extravehicular Mobility Units (EMUs), and ancillary hardware. They also reviewed related procedures and briefing packages then conducted a conference with …
Spacewalkers Ready to Wrap Up Cooling System Repair Job
Two astronauts are ready to finish a cooling system repair job that was started three years ago on the outside of the International Space Station. NASA astronauts Scott Kelly and Kjell Lindgren will exit the U.S. Quest airlock Friday at 7:10 a.m. EST for about six hours and 30 minutes of spacewalking tasks. Kelly and …
ISS Daily Summary Report – 11/4/15
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Preparations: Kelly and Lindgren prepared for Friday’s EVA by reviewing Fluid Quick Disconnect (QD) training material, auditing and configuring EVA tools, and making changes to the ISS EVA Systems Checklist book and Cuff Checklist procedures. Additionally, they installed Rechargeable EVA Battery Assemblies (REBA) on Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) suits 3003 and 3010. …
Spacewalkers Get Tools Ready While Conducting Research
Two NASA astronauts are getting ready for their second spacewalk Friday morning while also conducting science. The rest of the global crew worked on orbital lab maintenance and continued international space research. Expedition 45 Commander Scott Kelly and Flight Engineer Kjell Lindgren organized their spacewalk tools today and attached checklists to their spacesuit cuffs. Japanese …
Astronauts Getting Ready for Friday Spacewalk
NASA astronauts Scott Kelly and Kjell Lindgren are looking ahead to Friday morning’s spacewalk to return the port truss cooling system back to its original configuration after repair work completed in 2012. Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui will assist the spacewalkers before they get out the door and coordinate their activities from inside the International Space …
ISS Daily Summary Report – 11/3/15
Observation Analysis of Smectic Islands in Space (OASIS) Sample Exchange: Kononenko performed an OASIS sample exchange today, installing the fourth of four sample cartridges into the experiment hardware housed in the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG). OASIS studies the unique behavior of liquid crystals in microgravity, including their overall motion and the merging of crystal layers …
Studying Microscopic Bugs Require, Well…More Than a Microscope!
Plankton are microscopic yet they play a big role in the cycle of elements fundamental to life on earth. The NAAMES project is a testimony to their importance in our ability to predict how the oceans may mediate the Earth’s future climate. I’ll be joining the cruise to measure rates of phytoplankton growth and mortality, the latter […]
ISS Daily Summary Report – 11/2/15
Neuromapping: On Saturday Kelly completed a NeuroMapping Neurocognitive test on a Human Research Facility laptop. The Neuromapping experiment studies whether long-duration spaceflight causes any changes to the brain, including brain structure and function, motor control, and multi-tasking; as well as measuring how long it takes for the brain and body to recover from those possible …
Satellites as Superheroes
Usually, comic book heroes wear tight pants and have superhuman strength. In the new educational manga Raindrop Tales from NASA, one of the heroes (Mizu-chan) evaporates water with her hair. The other (GPM) rides on a 3,900-kilogram satellite that observes rain and snow. Look carefully at the art in the screenshots above, and you will find some […]