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Two astronauts are getting ready for a six-hour, 30-minute spacewalk Wednesday morning. They and the rest of the Expedition 45 crew also worked on international science and laboratory maintenance. Commander Scott Kelly and Flight Engineer Kjell Lindgren are preparing for two spacewalks on Oct. 28 and Nov. 6 to upgrade and service the International Space …

Microbiome:  Lindgren and Yui completed survey questionnaires as part of their Flight Day 90 session of the Microbiome investigation. Microbiome investigates the impact of space travel on both the human immune system and an individual’s microbiome (the collection of microbes that live in and on the human body at any given time).   Sleep Log: …

Today's post is written by one of the early career members of the New Horizons Science Team. Alissa Earle is a graduate student in Planetary Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Her work focuses on the long-term seasonal variations that may be affecting what we see on Pluto's surface. Pluto's diverse surface, typified by …

A bright Orionid is captured on the peak night of the shower by a NASA all sky meteor camera in western North Carolina. An Orionid cuts across Orion’s shoulders in this video recorded by a NASA wide field meteor camera at Marshall Space Flight Center. The 3 stars of Orion’s belt are clearly visible in …

NanoRack Cubesat Deployer 6 (NRCSD#6) Door Secure:  Kelly and Lindgren secured the doors of NRCSD #6 Deployer #6 inside the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Airlock with loading latches and tape to prevent an inadvertent deploy of the two cubesats in that deployer that could not be launched.   Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) Video Troubleshooting:  …

The crew started their day checking out Cubesat gear and researching a wide variety of science to benefit humanity on and off Earth. Later, two astronauts tried on their spacesuits to ensure a good fit before next week’s spacewalk. Commander Scott Kelly and Flight Engineer Kjell Lindgren were in the Kibo lab module Thursday morning …

NanoRack Cubesat Deployer 6 (NRCSD#6) Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Airlock Operations:  Kelly pressurized the JEM Airlock and performed a leak check today in preparation for the activity planned for tomorrow to safe the door on Deployer #6, which contains two cubesats that were not able to be launched.   Tropical Cyclone:  Yui set up a …

The International Space Station crew is gearing up for a couple of spacewalks to service and upgrade the orbital laboratory. Meanwhile, the crew is also working long-term life science to improve life on Earth and in future space crews. The U.S. Quest airlock is getting busy as NASA astronauts Scott Kelly and Kjell Lindgren get …

The deployment of two Cubesats is on hold after they failed to eject a couple of weeks ago. Also, more spacesuit servicing and biomedical investigations took place today. The deployer mechanism that ejected 14 of 16 Cubesats is back inside the Kibo laboratory module’s airlock. Two of the Cubesats did not deploy due to a …

Observation Analysis of Smectic Islands in Space (OASIS) Sample Exchange:  Kononenko performed an OASIS sample exchange today, installing the third 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 …