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After spending 199 days aboard the International Space Station, Terry Virts, Samantha Cristoforetti and Anton Shkaplerov undocked from the station at 6:20 a.m. EDT to begin their voyage home. Shkaplerov, the Soyuz commander, is at the controls of the Soyuz TMA-15M spacecraft. They will perform a separation burn to increase the distance from the station …

At 3:04 a.m. EDT, the Soyuz hatch closed between the International Space Station and the TMA-15M spacecraft. Expedition 43 crew members Terry Virts of NASA, Samantha Cristoforetti of ESA (European Space Agency) and Anton Shkaplerov of Roscosmos are preparing to undock at 6:20 a.m. NASA Television will air live coverage of undocking beginning at 6 …

Three Expedition 43 crew members are busy preparing for their homecoming during their last full day in space. Commander Terry Virts ceremoniously handed over control of the International Space Station this morning to veteran cosmonaut Gennady Padalka. Virts and Flight Engineers Anton Shkaplerov and Samantha Cristoforetti will end their stay tomorrow at 6:20 a.m. EDT …

Change of Command Ceremony: In preparation for 41S crew departure tomorrow, Virts handed over command of the ISS to Padalka this morning. During the event, all crew members discussed with Houston and Russian Flight Control Teams their roles and responsibilities for the timeframe between this event and the departure of Soyuz. Human Research Program (HRP) …

ISS Attitude Control Disturbance:  ISS experienced unexplained torque around 15:27 GMT in the roll axis.  The attitude control system experienced a large number of desats with a continued increase in attitude error.  SARJs were safed and attitude control was handed over to RS thrusters. Preliminary indications seem to point to an approximate 38-second inadvertent 41S …

Today at 10:27 a.m. Central time during the routine testing of communications systems between the Soyuz TMA-15M spacecraft and the International Space Station (ISS), Soyuz thrusters activated inadvertently which led to a slight change in the orientation of the ISS. Actions were immediately taken to reorient the ISS. There was no threat to the crew …

Station managers from Roscosmos have announced new Soyuz and Progress spacecraft launch dates through the end of the year. Meanwhile, the six member Expedition 43 crew on orbit has a packed schedule of homecoming preparations, science and maintenance. Three Soyuz crew missions to the International Space Station have been given new launch dates. The next …

Predetermined Debris Avoidance Maneuver (PDAM): The ISS performed a PDAM, using 58 Progress (58P) thrusters, due to a repeating conjunction. The PDAM executed nominally and the close approach with the object is no longer a concern.  Rodent Research-2 Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (RR-2 CASIS): Kelly performed a fixative flush and swap …

Playing it conservatively, International Space Station flight controllers conducted a pre-determined avoidance maneuver (PDAM) today to steer the station well clear of a fragment of a spent Minotaur rocket body launched in 2013. Having tracked the object throughout the weekend and today, U.S. and Russian flight controllers executed a 5 minute, 22 second firing of …

A fragment from a spent Minotaur rocket body is being monitored today as flight controllers decide whether or not there will be a conjunction with the International Space Station. A docked ISS Progress 58 cargo craft would fire its engines should the space station need to get out of the way of the space debris. …