Richard Binzel is a professor of planetary science and joint professor of aerospace engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, as well as a member of the original “Pluto Underground” that struggled for more than two decades to bring a Pluto mission from dream to reality. Through all the years of planning and conducting the …
A pair of spaceships is getting ready to depart the International Space Station next week. The Orbital ATK Cygnus cargo craft will be released from the Unity module June 14. Three Expedition 47 crew members will depart June 18 returning to Earth after 186 days in space. Astronauts Tim Kopra and Tim Peake will be …
Marrow Breath and Ambient Air Sample Collection: Upon waking this morning, the crew took breath and ambient air samples for the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) Marrow experiment which investigates the effect of microgravity on human bone marrow. It is believed that microgravity, like long-duration bed rest on Earth, has a negative effect on bone marrow …
Expedition 47 is preparing the Orbital ATK Cygnus space freighter for its June 14 departure from the International Space Station. The Canadarm2 robotic arm will maneuver towards Cygnus and grapple the cargo craft before unberthing it from the Unity module and releasing it next Tuesday. The crew is reviewing gear that will be installed in …
Cognition Test Battery Operations: The crew completed pre-test questions and a battery of cognitive tests with performance feedback. Individualized Real-Time Neurocognitive Assessment Toolkit for Space Flight Fatigue (Cognition) is a battery of tests that measure how spaceflight-related physical changes, such as microgravity and lack of sleep, can affect cognitive performance. Cognition includes ten brief computerized …
A heavy load transport truck from Tillett Heavy Hauling in Titusville, Florida, arrives at the north entrance gate at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, carrying the first half of the D-level work platforms, D south, for the agency’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. The platform will be delivered to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) …
BEAM’s hatches have been closed completing crew operations for the month. Meanwhile, a pair of spaceships is also being packed for departure this month. After three days of operations inside BEAM, the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module has been outfitted with sensors and other hardware. The next crew entry into the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module is …
Autonomous Mission Operations (AMO) Run 2: Following the successful completion of the first AMO experiment run last week, today the crew executed the second of three crew initiated experiment runs by using onboard AMO software to complete the autonomous deactivation and activation of an EXPRESS Rack (ER) 7 at Lab P2. The AMO investigation tests …
While the Compton Spectrometer and Imager (COSI) gazes into space, another experiment is listening for whispers from the Earth itself. Housed in two humble white boxes tucked behind COSI’s solar panel, a triad of microphones are recording infrasound – sound too deep for humans to hear. Infrasound sources include volcanoes, earthquakes, ocean waves, the aurora, …
The hatch to BEAM was opened up again today for the second day of outfitting the expandable module to determine its habitability and durability. BEAM, or the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module, is set to demonstrate the overall performance and capability of expandable habitats for the next two years. The crew is predicted to enter BEAM …
