Ongoing ISS Operations: Training, Research, Outreach, and Station Maintenance
Thursday operations aboard the International Space Station saw the Expedition 73 crew focused on a range of mission-critical tasks, from training and cargo handling to microgravity research, educational outreach on the HAM Radio, and maintenance of orbital systems.
Each day, the crew works to compensate for the physiological effects of the microgravity environment on the human body, such as the loss of muscle and bone mass. They do so by training for approximately two hours a day on long-duration missions. NASA Flight Engineers Jonny Kim, Nichole Ayers, Anne McClain, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut and station commander Takuya Onishi spent their two hours utilizing different exercise equipment like the Advanced Resistive Exercise Device (ARED), a resistive exercise used as a countermeasure to musculoskeletal deconditioning in microgravity. The crew also performed an immersive exercise activity called the Cycle Ergometer with Vibration Isolation and Stabilization (CEVIS). This activity utilizes virtual reality goggles to help to increase crew motivation for their daily exercise.
Kim and Ayers continued work with cargo stowage inside SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft. The spacecraft is a part of the 32nd cargo resupply mission and scheduled for undocking no earlier than Thursday, May 22 after being docked to the zenith, or space-facing port, of the International Space Station's Harmony module for about a month.
In the U.S. Columbus Module, Kim configured the HAM radio, which is part of Amateur Radio on the International Space Station to talk with students about life in space, to engage on Earth observations, space station orbits, and radio science. He also performed more visual station inspections, reinforced additional cables, and worked to relieve pressure to protect the dose pump in the Waste and Hygiene Compartment.
Ayers worked with the Material Science Laboratory (MSL) which is a multi-user facility for high temperature research in materials science. She removed a Low Gradient Furnace sample cartridge, installed the next sample cartridge and prepared the facility for the next sample run. Later, she returned to the MSL to remove the cartridge and prepare the facility for another experiment run.
McClain worked with the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) to install a Life Sciences Glovebox (LSG) flash drive into the LSG Laptop computer then later loaded more software. The facility is well suited for handling hazardous materials when crew are present. It is also capable of accommodating both physical science and biological research payloads. McClain also collected air samples for post-flight analysis taken from the center of the U.S. Laboratory and Columbus modules and then returned to her work recording the progress of tomato plant growth as part of a space agricultural study.
Onishi worked in the Japanese Experiment Module with the Electrostatic Levitation Furnace (ELF) to remove lost samples from the experiment volume sample cartridge and exchanged the sample holder 2. The Electrostatic Levitation Furnace uses the electrostatic levitation method to levitate, melt, and solidify materials without crucibles.
In the Russian segment, the three cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritskiy, and Kirill Peskov worked on more space station maintenance. Ryzhikov worked to audit the Russian segment storage areas and prepared and assembled a circuit for reflashing with the Napor-miniRSA. Zubritskiy worked with the regeneration of Micropurification System through the termination of a cartridge. Peskov worked to reconfigure the ventilation system that connects the Russian and U.S. segments.
Kelcie Nicole Howren
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