Blogs

Burning and Suppression of Solids – Milliken (BASS-M):  Prior to performing the first BASS-M operations today, there was an anomaly with the display overlay, which provides real time data with the downlinked images.  Kopra successfully completed a procedure that resolved the same issue that occurred during BASS-M setup earlier this week.  He then completed the …

Today's post is from Marcus Piquette, a third-year graduate student in the Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences Department at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Marcus is a part of the Particle and Plasmas Theme Team working on the Student Dust Counter aboard New Horizons. Hello, I'm a Ph.D. student at the University of Colorado in Boulder; …

Story Time from Space:  Peake read “Science on the Space Station” from the book Max Goes to the Space Station,” discussed the subject on camera and demonstrated the scientific principles involved.  Kelly obtained pictures of Peake while he was reading the book with the Cupola in the background.  The video recording will be downlinked to …

Today, NASA remembers the sacrifice of the crews of Apollo 1 and space shuttles Columbia and Challenger. Mission Control Center in Houston and the crew aboard the International Space Station observed a moment of silence and Commander Scott Kelly sent down a few words memorializing the lost astronauts. The six residents aboard the space station …

Burning and Suppression of Solids – Milliken (BASS-M):  Yesterday Kopra completed reconfiguration of the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) Facility and started setup of hardware for BASS-M.  Today he completed the BASS-M setup.  During the setup, there was an issue with the data from the power/video unit.  He was able perform troubleshooting and recover the data, …

The six Expedition 46 crew members today prepared for the deployment of a pair of nanosatellites, loaded trash in the Cygnus cargo craft and reviewed timelines and procedures for a Feb. 3 spacewalk. The International Space Station will also raise its orbit ahead of March’s crew swap and cargo delivery activities. Commander Scott Kelly and …

Burning and Suppression of Solids – Milliken (BASS-M) Preparation:  In preparation for BASS-M operations this week, Kopra reconfigured the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) Facility and installed Smoke Point In Co-flow Experiment (SPICE) hardware into the MSG work volume.  He will perform the BASS-M ignitor test tomorrow, prior to BASS-M sample testing.  The BASS-M investigation tests …

The International Space Station will raise its orbit Wednesday afternoon before a pair of crews swap places and a cargo ship arrives in March. One-year crew members Scott Kelly of NASA and Mikhail Kornienko of Roscosmos are set to return home March 1 along with Russian cosmonaut Sergey Volkov. Then, Expedition 47 will begin and …

Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites (SPHERES) Zero Robotics Competition:  Kelly and Kornienko set up the SPHERES hardware and executed the SPHERES Zero Robotics tests with participation from students on the ground. The SPHERES Zero Robotics investigation establishes an opportunity for high school students to design research for the ISS. As part of a …

The Expedition 46 crew brought out a pair of tiny satellites today so students can compete for the best algorithm in an ongoing competition. The crew also checked spacesuits, transferred cargo and worked on lab maintenance. One-Year Crew members Scott Kelly and Mikhail Kornienko set up a pair of bowling ball-sized satellites in Japan’s Kibo …