Jumping headfirst into the Artemis program has been one of the highlights in my transition as the associate administrator for human spaceflight. With an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, there was little time for a transition period as mission essential work needed to continue as safely as possible. Already within my short time on the job, NASA …
Payloads Combustion Integrated Rack/Advanced Combustion via Microgravity Experiments (CIR/ACME): The crew replaced the Gas Chromatograph (GC) helium bottle, GC check gas bottle, and manifold bottles 2 and 4. During these bottle exchanges they also performed quick-disconnect (QD) lubrication to prevent the potential for any future leaks at the QD interfaces. The bottle exchanges are in …
Your challenge is to use the comments section to tell us what we are looking at, where it is, and why it is interesting.
The first piece of the Orion spacecraft’s pressure vessel for Artemis III – the mission that will land the first woman and next man on the Moon in 2024 – has arrived at NASA. The cone panel that will house the windows astronauts will use to view the Moon was designed by Orion’s lead contractor, Lockheed Martin, and manufactured …
Payloads Spacecraft Atmosphere Monitor (SCRAM): The crew removed the MCA (Major Constituent Analyzer) plug from the SCRAM and powered it up. The MCA plug is used to protect the SCRAM’s sensor when the unit is powered off. SCRAM demonstrates the capabilities of a small, reliable, portable gas chromatograph mass spectrometer instrument aboard the ISS to …
The Expedition 63 crew ended its stay isolated in the Russian segment of the International Space Station this morning after an extended leak test. Mission Control also deployed remote teams to maintain 24/7 support for the station and its crew as Hurricane Laura approaches the Texas Gulf Coast. Commander Chris Cassidy started the day reopening the hatches to the U.S. segment …
The three Expedition 63 crew members will spend another day inside the Russian segment of the International Space Station. Mission controllers are continuing their leak detection work today to collect more data. All of the orbiting lab’s hatches will remain closed until Tuesday morning to give ground specialists additional time to collect data and monitor pressure readings in each module. The rate is still well …
Payloads ISS HAM: The crew participated in an ISS HAM contact with Information and Technologies Branch, Department of Education-Queensland Government, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Some of the questions asked included if the crew ever has any arguments, what it’s like to go on a spacewalk for the first time, and what brought Chris Cassidy from being …
Payloads RADI-N2 (Radiation Dosimetry Inside ISS-Neutrons): The crew retrieved the 8 neutron bubble detectors and pouches and handed them over to the Russian crew for processing. The objective of this Canadian Space Agency investigation is to better characterize the ISS neutron environment, define the risk posed to the crew members’ health, and provide the data …
Payloads Astrobee: The crew powered off the Astrobee free flyers and placed temp stowed items back in their original positions in the JEM module. Astrobee is made up of three free-flying, cube-shaped robots which are designed to help scientists and engineers develop and test technologies for use in microgravity to assist astronauts with routine chores, …
