Suggested Searches

International Space Station

Categories

Station Trio Nears Departure During Busy Day of Blood Research

The seven-member Expedition 73 crew gathers together for a portrait inside the International Space Station's Kibo laboratory module celebrating NASA astronaut Mike Fincke's (center) 500 cumulative days in space over four missions since 2004. In the front from left are, Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Ryzhikov, NASA astronaut Zena Cardman, Mike Fincke, and NASA astronaut Jonny Kim. In the back are, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui and Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Platonov and Alexey Zubritsky.
The seven-member Expedition 73 crew gathers together for a portrait on Nov. 27, 2025, celebrating NASA astronaut Mike Fincke’s (center) 500 cumulative days in space over four missions since 2004. In the front from left are, Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Ryzhikov, NASA astronaut Zena Cardman, Mike Fincke, and NASA astronaut Jonny Kim. In the back are, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui and Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Platonov and Alexey Zubritsky.
NASA

Three Expedition 73 crewmates will end their stay aboard the International Space Station when they undock Dec. 8 and return to Earth a few hours later. In the meantime, blood research took precedence on Thursday ensuring astronauts stay healthy while living long-term in weightlessness.

NASA astronaut Jonny Kim and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky are poised to complete a 245-day space research mission when they undock at 8:41 p.m. EDT on Monday, Dec. 8, from the Prichal module inside the Soyuz MS-27 crew spacecraft. The trio will parachute back to Earth inside the Soyuz descent module for a landing in Kazakhstan at 12:04 a.m. on Tuesday, less than three-and-a-half hours later. NASA’s live coverage of the crew’s return  will be broadcast on NASA+, Amazon Prime, and the agency’s YouTube channel.

The homebound threesome reviewed and practiced the operations they will perform inside the Soyuz once they begin to feel the pull of Earth’s gravity as they reenter the atmosphere. Ryzhikov and Zubritsky also tested a unique suit that reverses space-caused fluid shifts toward the upper body by pulling blood toward the feet. Results may prevent head and eye pressure in space and ease the adjustment to gravity after a multi-month-long spaceflight.

NASA Flight Engineers Zena Cardman and Chris Williams scanned their veins with the Ultrasound 2 device and measured each other’s blood pressure providing doctors insight into an astronaut’s cardiovascular system. The duo conducted the cardiac portion of the long-running CIPHER human research investigation inside the Columbus laboratory module that is tracking astronaut health before, during, and after a mission.

Flight Engineers Mike Fincke of NASA and Kimiya Yui of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) took turns bringing Williams up-to-speed with life on orbit. The veteran astronauts familiarized Williams with station hardware, operations, and systems. Williams has been on the orbital outpost since Nov. 27 when he and Roscosmos Flight Engineers Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev arrived on the Soyuz MS-28 crew spacecraft.

Kud-Sverchkov and Mikaev examined how microgravity affects blood flow in a cosmonaut’s fingers and toes. A variety of advanced medical gear observed the behavior of their microcirculatory system as they wore a set of electrodes and cuffs on their head, hands, and feet.

Roscosmos Flight Engineer Oleg Platonov spent the first part of his shift documenting the location and amount of clothing and towels available in the Roscosmos segment of the station. After lunchtime, Platonov spent the rest his shift on life support maintenance duties.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

Get the latest from NASA delivered every week. Subscribe here.