Blogs

Cygnus Unberth: On Saturday, the crew completed the Node1 vestibule depressurization and started the associated vestibule leak checks. On Sunday, once the crew completed leak check activities, robotics ground controllers used the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) to uninstall the Cygnus vehicle from the ISS at 5:04am CDT. At 7:36am CDT, the crew released …

Expedition 56 Flight Engineers Alexander Gerst of ESA (European Space Agency) and Serena Auñón-Chancellor of NASA commanded the International Space Station’s Canadarm2 robotic arm to release the Cygnus cargo spacecraft at 8:37 a.m. EDT. At the time of release, the station was flying 253 miles above the Southeastern border of Colombia. Earlier, ground controllers used …

Expedite the Processing of Experiments to Space Station (EXPRESS) Racks (ER) Health & Status: Yesterday, the Health & Status telemetry from ER 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 was reported to be toggling and extended telemetry from ER 7 and 8 was lost.  Overnight, the Lab Joint Station LAN (JSL) firewalls were power cycled …

Teams require additional time for processing NASA’s Parker Solar Probe spacecraft after discovering a minor tubing leak in the ground support equipment during final processing. The tubing is being repaired, and the spacecraft is healthy. As always, operations take precedence during launch and we needed to cancel media day activities on July 13, 2018. NASA will make every effort to provide updated imagery of the spacecraft prior to encapsulation.

Expedite the Processing of Experiments to Space Station (EXPRESS) Racks Health & Status Issues: This morning the Health & Status (H&S) telemetry from EXPRESS Racks (ER) 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 was reported to be toggling and extended telemetry from ERs 7 and 8 were lost.  While a warm reset of the improved Payload …

The Expedition 56 crew members explored a variety of microgravity science today potentially improving the lives of people on Earth and astronauts in space. The orbital residents are also unpacking a new resupply ship and getting ready for the departure of another. Cancer research is taking place aboard the International Space Station possibly leading to …

Space Algae: The crew agitated and then installed an additional six Space Algae culture bags in the Veggie facility today.  The Space Algae investigation explores the genetic basis for productivity of algae cultivated in space and whether this requires genetic adaptations or not. Algae may perceive microgravity as an abiotic stress, which can trigger production …

Expedition 56 crew members are transferring cargo in and out of U.S. and Russian cargo ships today. Two astronauts are also planning to release a U.S. resupply ship on Sunday ending its mission at the International Space Station. Astronauts Serena Auñón-Chancellor and Alexander Gerst were back inside the SpaceX Dragon today unloading science gear and …

Russia’s Progress 70 (70P) cargo craft delivered nearly 5,700 pounds of crew supplies and station cargo to the International Space Station on Monday less than four hours after launch. Meanwhile, the U.S. Cygnus resupply ship from Northrop Grumman tested its ability to boost the orbital laboratory’s altitude today. Monday’s arrival of the Russian resupply craft …

70P Docking: Last night, 70P docked to the DC1 nadir port at 191/01:30:47 GMT and Progress hooks were closed at approximately 01:35:35 GMT. Following the successful docking, the Russian crew completed leak checks, opened the hatches, deactivated the 70P vehicle, and transferred time sensitive cargo.   Cygnus OA-9 Reboost Developmental Test Objective (DTO): Today ground controllers …