Blogs

NASA's Lucy mission team has decided to suspend further solar array deployment activities. The team determined that operating the mission with the solar array in the current unlatched state carries an acceptable level of risk and further deployment activities are unlikely to be beneficial at this time. The spacecraft continues to make progress along its …

The first spacewalk of 2023 will begin on Friday to continue upgrading the International Space Station’s power generation system. The Expedition 68 crew members finalized preparations today for the excursion while continuing advanced space research and orbital lab maintenance. Astronauts Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and Nicole Mann of NASA are …

A pair of news conferences on Wednesday, Jan. 25, at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston will highlight the agency’s SpaceX Crew-6 mission to the International Space Station in February. The mission is NASA’s sixth crew rotation flight involving a U.S. commercial spacecraft carrying crew for a science expedition aboard the microgravity laboratory. First up, …

Payloads: Device for the study of Critical Liquids and Crystallization (DECLIC): The crew removed the Directional Solidification Insert (DSI) from the DECLIC facility and installed the Analyse des Liquides Critiques dans l’Espace (ALICE)-Like Insert (ALI). ALI studies sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) near its critical point. The DECLIC facility experienced thermal control issues late last year which …

On Jan. 17, NASA Flight Engineer Josh Cassada, with assistance from NASA Flight Engineer Nicole Mann, worked inside the SpaceX Dragon Endurance crew ship collecting tools and readying the spacecraft for a seat liner move. The seat liner move, completed today, Jan. 18, ensures NASA Flight Engineer Frank Rubio will be able to return to Earth in the …

Spacewalk preparations are continuing aboard the International Space Station as the Expedition 68 crew ensures the operations of research hardware in microgravity. Flight Engineers Nicole Mann of NASA and Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) are scheduled for their first spacewalk together at the end of the week. The astronauts spent a …

Payloads: Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR): Preparations were made to support a Fuel Oxidizer Management Assembly (FOMA) calibration. The FOMA calibration is performed periodically and helps to verify accurate readings from the various measurement systems in the CIR. The CIR facility includes an optics bench, combustion chamber, fuel, and oxidizer control, and five different cameras for …

Payloads: Human Research Facility (HRF) Veggie: Profile of Mood States (POMS) questionnaires were completed by the crew. The Pick-and-Eat Salad-Crop Productivity, Nutritional Value, and Acceptability to Supplement the ISS Food System (Veggie) investigation is a phased research project that includes Veg-04A, Veg-04B, Veg-05, and HRF Veg including HRF Veggie POMS questionnaires. This work addresses the …

Payloads: Actiwatch Plus (AWP): The crew connected the AWP devices to a Human Research Facility (HRF) Rack 1 Universal Serial Bus (USB) hub to charge them and transfer data for subsequent downlink. The Actiwatch is a waterproof, non-intrusive, sleep-wake activity monitor worn on the wrist of a crewmember. It contains a miniature uniaxial accelerometer that …

Spacewalk preparations continue onboard the International Space Station as the Expedition 68 crew begins it weekend. The orbital residents also worked on space botany and robotics while maintaining orbital lab operations on Friday. Astronauts Nicole Mann of NASA and Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) worked throughout Friday familiarizing themselves with an …