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    Biotech and Human Research Fill Station Crew’s Schedule

    Biotechnology research topped the science schedule aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday to advance in-space manufacturing of health therapies. The Expedition 72 crew members also took a physical fitness test, studied futuristic piloting techniques, and maintained a variety of research and electronics hardware throughout the day. NASA Flight Engineers Don Pettit and Nick Hague …

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    Dragon Spacecraft Boosts Station for First Time

    NASA and SpaceX monitored operations as the company’s Dragon spacecraft performed its first demonstration of reboost capabilities for the International Space Station at 12:50 p.m. EST on Friday. The spacecraft’s Draco thrusters adjusted the station’s orbit through a reboost of altitude by 7/100 of a mile at apogee and 7/10 of a mile at perigee, …

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    Science Activation and Training Top Friday’s Orbital Schedule

    A host of activities topped Friday’s schedule aboard the orbital outpost as the Expedition 72 crew penned in time for experiment activation, spacesuit work, training, and more. International Space Station Commander Suni Williams spent the first half of her day on spacesuit duty, removing the impact shields and inspecting the gear for any leaks. In …

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    Monitoring Webb’s Mirrors for Optimal Optics

    This image is composed of three square panels in a row, taken by one of the James Webb Space Telescope’s onboard instruments known as the Near Infrared Camera. Each of the three panels contains their own different image that are set on a black background. The panel on the left has a small very blurry, and pixelated white and gray hexagon at the center. From each of the flat surfaces of the hexagon, a small gray and pixelated triangle with its tip facing away, totaling six gray pixelated triangles pointing away from the central hexagon. This picture is ‘selfie’ using a specialized ‘pupil imaging’ lens, designed to take images of the mirror segments and not of the sky. The central panel shows the 18 hexagons of Webb’s primary mirror, akin to the hexagons of a beehive in bright white and gray, but are intentionally defocused and very blurry and pixelated. From the edges of the outer hexagons, light white and gray streak extend nearly all the way to the edge of the picture. The panel on the right is very similar to the image in the center panel, but the hexagon at the very center has black dots at each of the sixe points of the hexagon. At the outer edges it also has streaking blurry gray and white lines that emanate away from the center towards the edge of the picture

    NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope is the largest and most powerful telescope ever launched to space. Its mirror is composed of 18 individual segments that have been aligned so accurately, that they effectively work as a single giant (21.6-foot, or 6.5-meter) reflector. The process of adjusting each of these separately functioning hexagonal mirror segments requires …

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    New Science Experiments Being Activated Aboard Station

    The Expedition 72 crew began activating new experiments on Thursday following a day of unpacking the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft, installing new science gear, and stowing fresh research samples aboard the International Space Station. Veteran Flight Engineer Don Pettit spent his shift on DNA research first collecting station water samples to examine for microbes. Next, …

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    Crew Unpacks New Station Science Delivered Aboard Dragon

    New science experiments and research samples delivered aboard the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft on Tuesday are being installed today aboard the International Space Station. Meanwhile, more science and lab maintenance continued ensuring the upkeep of the orbital outpost. The four NASA astronauts representing the Expedition 72 crew, Flight Engineers Don Pettit, Nick Hague, and Butch …

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    Strong Solar Flare Erupts From Sun

    A portion of the Sun, shown in red. Toward the middle of the image are bright white and yellow areas. A spurt of solar material erupts from the area.

    The Sun emitted a strong solar flare, peaking at 8:40 a.m. ET on Nov. 6, 2024. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, which watches the Sun constantly, captured an image of the event. Solar flares are powerful bursts of energy. Flares and solar eruptions can impact radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to …

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    SpaceX Dragon Cargo Spacecraft Docks to Harmony Module

    At 9:52 a.m. EST, the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft docked to the forward port of the International Space Station’s Harmony module. The spacecraft carried over 6,000 pounds of scientific investigations and cargo to the orbiting laboratory on SpaceX’s 31st commercial resupply services mission for NASA. The mission launched at 9:29 a.m. Nov. 4 on a SpaceX …

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