Space life

NASA astronauts (from left) Jessica Watkins, Bob Hines, and Frank Rubio pose for a portrait together inside the cupola, the International Space Station’s “window to the world.” The Expedition 68 mission is officially underway with seven astronauts and cosmonauts living and working together aboard the International Space Station . The crew swaps aren’t over yet as four SpaceX Crew-5 members count down to their upcoming launch to the orbiting lab. Commander Samantha Cristoforetti of ESA (European Space Agency) will lead station operations until she and fellow crewmates Kjell Lindgren , Bob Hines , and Jessica Watkins return to Earth aboard the SpaceX Dragon Freedom crew ship in about two weeks. The quartet, who have been aboard the space station since April 27 , spent Friday checking their Dragon pressure suits, packing personal items, and reviewing departure and landing procedures. The homebound commercial crew is waiting for their replacements who are targeting a launch to the ...

The Soyuz MS-21 crew ship with three cosmonauts aboard is seen parachuting to a landing in Kazakhstan less than three-and-a-half hours after undocking from the space station. Credit: NASA TV Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveev, and Sergey Korsakov landed on Earth at 6:57 a.m. EDT Thursday, Sept. 29 in Kazakhstan (4:57 p.m. Kazakhstan time), southeast of the remote town of Dzhezkazgan. The trio departed the  International Space Station  in their Soyuz MS-21 spacecraft at 3:34 a.m. The trio returns to Earth after 195 days in space that spanned 3,120 orbits of Earth and over 78 million miles. During the mission, Artemyev completed five spacewalks totaling 33 hours, 12 minutes. He has now logged 561 days in space on his three flights. Matveev completed four spacewalks totaling 26 hours, 7 minutes during the mission. He logged 195 days in space on his first flight. Korsakov also logged 195 days in space on his first flight. The trio will return by Russian heli...

The Soyuz MS-21 spacecraft is pictured moments after undocking from the station at 3:34 a.m. EDT today carrying three cosmonauts back to Earth. NASA Television, the agency’s  website , and the  NASA app  are now broadcasting live coverage of the return to Earth of a trio of spacefarers. The Soyuz MS-21 spacecraft carrying Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveev, and Sergey Korsakov will make its deorbit burn at 6:03 a.m. EDT to set the spaceship on its re-entry through Earth’s atmosphere for a landing in Kazakhstan at 6:57 a.m. (4:57 p.m. Kazakhstan time). Learn more about station activities by following the  space station blog ,  @space_station  and  @ISS_Research  on Twitter, as well as the  ISS Facebook  and  ISS Instagram  accounts. Get weekly video highlights at:  http://jscfeatures.jsc.nasa.gov/videoupdate/ Get the latest from NASA delivered every week. Subscribe here:  www.nasa.gov/subscribe ...

The Soyuz MS-21 spacecraft with three cosmonauts aboard departs the space station on time to return the crewmates to Earth. Credit: NASA TV The Soyuz spacecraft undocked from the International Space Station at 3:34 a.m. EDT, carrying three people back to Earth. Live coverage on NASA TV, the agency’s website , and the NASA app will resume at 5:45 a.m. for the deorbit burn and landing of the spacecraft carrying Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveev, and Sergey Korsakov. Their landing in Kazakhstan is targeted for approximately 6:57 a.m. (4:57 p.m. Kazakhstan time). Expedition 68 officially began aboard the station at the time of undocking. Samantha Cristoforetti of ESA (European Space Agency) is the station commander for the crew consisting of NASA astronauts Bob Hines, Kjell Lindgren, Frank Rubio, and Jessica Watkins, and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin. The trio arrived at the station March 18 aboard the Soyuz MS-21 spacecraft. Artemyev retur...

The Soyuz MS-21 crew ship is pictured docked to the Prichal docking module as the space station soared 259 miles above the Earth. NASA is providing live coverage on NASA TV, the agency’s website , and the NASA app of the undocking and departure from the  International Space Station  of the Soyuz spacecraft that will return Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveev, and Sergey Korsakov to Earth. The trio arrived at the station March 18 aboard the Soyuz MS-21 spacecraft. Artemyev returns to Earth after 185 days in space on his third mission. At the time of landing, Artemyev will have logged 551 days in space on his three flights. This was the first flight for both Matveev and Korsakov. At the time of landing, the two cosmonauts will have each logged 185 days in space. Learn more about station activities by following the  space station blog ,  @space_station  and  @ISS_Research  on Twitter, as well as the  ISS Facebook  and...

ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti assumed command of the space station on Wednesday from Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev. The International Space Station has a new commander as three Expedition 67 crewmates are less than a day away from returning to Earth. Most of the crew is sleep-shifting today to prepare for Thursday morning’s crew departure as the rest of the station’s astronauts focused on lab maintenance during Wednesday. Three cosmonauts are set to board their Soyuz MS-21 crew ship and undock from the Prichal module at 3:34 a.m. EDT Thursday. Soyuz Commander Oleg Artemyev , flanked by Flight Engineers Denis Matveev and Sergey Korsakov , will then soar through Earth’s atmosphere and parachute inside the Soyuz vehicle to a landing in Kazakhstan at 6:57 a.m. (4:57 p.m. Kazakh time) ending a six-month mission that began on March 18. Live undocking coverage begins at 3:15 a.m. on NASA TV , the agency’s app and its website. The homebound trio wil...

New station Flight Engineer Frank Rubio (center) of NASA is greeted by fellow NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Bob Hines shortly after arriving at the orbital lab on Sept. 21, 2022. The Expedition 67 crew is in the midst of a crew swap as three new flight engineers adapt to life in space and another crew prepares to go home this week. Meanwhile, with 10 people living aboard the International Space Station today there were plenty of opportunities to keep up ongoing microgravity research and lab maintenance. New Flight Engineer Frank Rubio from NASA was back on space physics today installing hardware for the Intelligent Glass Optics study inside the Microgravity Science Glovebox . The investigation explores using artificial intelligence to adapt materials manufacturing, such as fiber optics, to the vacuum of space. His two cosmonaut partners, flight engineers Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin of Roscosmos, spent time unloading their Soyuz MS-22 crew ship and working on a ...

The Soyuz MS-21 crew ship that will return three Expedition 67 crew members to Earth this week is pictured docked to the Prichal module. The orbiting lab’s three newest residents are beginning their science and maintenance tasks after several days of International Space Station orientation and familiarization activities. In the meantime, three Expedition 67 crew members are less than a week away from ending their mission and returning to Earth after living and working in space for six months. NASA Flight Engineer Frank Rubio kicked off his first full week on the station with a physics study that uses artificial intelligence to adapt materials manufacturing to the vacuum of space. He began Monday morning setting up the Microgravity Science Glovebox and servicing components inside the research device. Rubio then spent the afternoon preparing complex glass samples inside the glovebox for future experiment runs. The Intelligent Glass Optics investigation may help advance Earth and...

The Soyuz MS-22 crew ship was photographed from the space station ascending into orbit with three crew members during a sunset 263 miles above Asia. Three International Space Station crew members are getting used to life on orbit as another set of crewmates gets ready to return to Earth after a six-month mission in space. In the meantime, orbital maintenance to ensure the station remains in tip-top shape and microgravity research to improve life for humans on and off the Earth are continuously ongoing. The newest crew members aboard the orbiting lab, NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin , are starting their station orientation and familiarization activities. The trio will be reviewing a host of station systems, lab hardware, and safety procedures over the next few days to adjust to living and working in weightlessness over 250 miles above the Earth. They are replacing current Expedition 67 crew members Oleg Artemyev , Denis Ma...

The station’s newest crew members, (from left) Frank Rubio of NASA and Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin, both from Roscosmos, pose for a portrait during a training session in Kazakhstan. Ten people are now living aboard the International Space Station with the arrival of three new crewmates inside a Soyuz crew ship on Wednesday. The new crew members from NASA and Roscosmos will spend the next several days getting up to speed with living and working in space. New flight engineers Frank Rubio from NASA and Dmitri Petelin from Roscosmos are beginning their first space mission with veteran cosmonaut Sergey Prokopyev , who is on his second space station mission. The trio blasted off at 9:54 a.m. EDT on Wednesday to the orbiting lab inside the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft from Kazakhstan. The threesome docked to the Rassvet module less than three-and-a-half hours later. They waited a couple of more hours after leak and pressure checks before opening the spacecraft hatch and entering ...

Sept. 21, 2022: International Space Station Configuration. Five spaceships are docked at the space station including the SpaceX Crew Dragon Freedom and Russia’s Soyuz MS-21 and MS-22 crew ships and the Progress 80 and 81 resupply ships. The hatches between the  International Space Station  and the newly arrived Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft officially opened at 3:34 p.m. EDT. The arrival of three new crew members to the existing seven people already aboard for Expedition 67 temporarily increases the station’s population to 10. NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin joined Expedition 67 Commander Oleg Artemyev, cosmonauts Denis Matveev and Sergey Korsakov of Roscosmos, as well as NASA astronauts Bob Hines, Kjell Lindgren, and Jessica Watkins, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti. Rubio, Prokopyev, and Petelin will spend six months aboard the orbital laboratory. Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev, De...

The Soyuz MS-22 crew ship approaches the space station above the Mediterraneran Sea with three new crew members for a docking to the Rassvet module. NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin on the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft docked to the International Space Station at 1:06 p.m. EDT. Coverage of hatch opening will air at 3:30 p.m. on NASA Television, the  NASA app , and the agency’s  website . Once on station, the trio will join Expedition 67 Commander Oleg Artemyev, cosmonauts Denis Matveev and Sergey Korsakov of Roscosmos, as well as NASA astronauts Bob Hines, Kjell Lindgren, and Jessica Watkins, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti. Rubio, Prokopyev, and Petelin will spend six months aboard the orbital laboratory. On Sept. 29, a Soyuz spacecraft will return as scheduled carrying Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveev, and Sergey Korsakov back to Earth. Learn more about station activ...

NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin are safely in orbit on the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft after launching at 9:54 a.m. EDT from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan (6:54 p.m. Baikonur time). Credits: NASA TV. NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin are safely in orbit on the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft after launching at 9:54 a.m. EDT from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan (6:54 p.m. Baikonur time).   The Soyuz will dock to the space station’s Rassvet module at 1:11 p.m. About two hours after docking, hatches between the Soyuz and the station will open.   NASA TV coverage of docking will begin at 12:15 p.m. on NASA Television’s Public Channel, the  NASA app , and the agency’s website .   Learn more about station activities by following the  space station blog ,  @space_station  and  @ISS_Research  on Twitter, as well as the  ISS Face...

The Soyuz rocket is raised vertical after having rolled out by train to the launch pad, Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022, at site 31 of the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Expedition 68 astronaut Frank Rubio of NASA, and cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin of Roscosmos are scheduled to launch aboard their Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft on Sept. 21. Credits: NASA/Bill Ingalls. NASA TV coverage now is underway for the launch of a crewed Soyuz spacecraft to the International Space Station with NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin .   The Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft will launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 9:54 a.m. EDT (6:54 p.m. Baikonur time). Launch and docking activities will air live on NASA Television’s Public Channel, the  NASA app , and the agency’s  website . After a two-orbit, three-hour journey, the Soyuz will dock to the space station’s Rassvet module at 1:11 p.m. About two hours after docking, hatche...

The Soyuz rocket that will launch three new crew members to the station on Wednesday stands at the launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls The International Space Station is gearing up for the arrival of three new crew members due to begin their mission on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Expedition 67 astronauts continue researching a wide array of microgravity phenomena to benefit humans on and off the Earth. The Soyuz MS-22 rocket that will launch NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin to the space station stands at its launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The trio will liftoff inside the Soyuz crew ship at 9:54 a.m. EDT on Wednesday and dock to the Rassvet module less than three-and-a-half hours later beginning a six-month research mission in Earth orbit. NASA will broadcast the launch live on NASA TV , the app, and its website, beginning at 9 a.m. Just over a week later, th...

The Soyuz rocket that will launch three new crew members to the space station stands at its Baikonur Cosmodrome launch pad in Kazakhstan. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls The rocket to launch the next crew to the International Space Station has rolled out to its launch pad and is counting down to its lift off in the middle of the week. Meanwhile aboard the orbiting lab on Monday, the Expedition 67 crew studied tele-robotics and fluid physics while preparing for the upcoming crew arrival and next week’s crew departure. NASA astronaut Frank Rubio is preparing for his first spaceflight set to begin at 9:54 a.m. EDT on Wednesday when he launches to the station aboard the Soyuz MS-22 crew ship. He will be riding along with Soyuz Commander Sergey Prokopyev and Flight Engineer Dmitri Petelin , both from Roscosmos. The trio will dock to the Rassvet module less than three-and-a-half hours after blasting off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan beginning a six-month space station resear...

Astronaut Bob Hines explores how a crew member’s cognition and perception are affected in microgravity for the GRIP expleriment. Farming, foam, and fire research kept the astronauts busy at the end of the week aboard the International Space Station . The pace of microgravity research is picking up with the Expedition 67 crew spending more time studying a wide array of space phenomena to promote the well-being of humans on and off the Earth. NASA Flight Engineer Kjell Lindgren harvested vegetables on Friday after a 30-day growing period inside the Veggie botany facility for the XROOTS space agriculture study. Researchers are investigating using soilless methods, specifically hydroponic and aeroponic techniques, to produce crops in microgravity and feed crews on missions beyond low-Earth orbit. NASA astronaut Bob Hines looked at foams , or dispersions of bubbles in a liquid, inside the KERMIT microscope today using the microgravity environment to reveal microstructures not pos...

NASA astronauts Bob Hines and Jessica Watkins look out from a window on the cupola, the International Space Station’s “window to the world.” Foams, fires, and liquids in space were the main research topics aboard the International Space Station on Thursday to improve the quality of life for humans living on and off the Earth. The Expedition 67 crew also checked out a new U.S. toilet while gearing up for crew departure activities at the end of the month. A host of space physics research took place in microgravity on Thursday as the crew explored how weightlessness affects a variety of phenomena that humans are familiar with on Earth. The lack of gravity impacts the characteristics and behavior of Earth-bound phenomena revealing new properties and insights helping scientists and engineers develop advanced products and applications benefitting both astronauts and Earthlings. NASA Flight Engineer Jessica Watkins turned her attention on Thursday to the Foams and Emulsions experimen...

Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti collects microbe samples from around the space station’s Veggie space botany facility for analysis. The Expedition 67 crew members kept up their studies today exploring how the human body adapts to weightlessness and ways that space physics can benefit humans on Earth. Europe’s robotic arm is also being tested for its performance on the International Space Station ’s Russian segment. NASA astronauts Bob Hines and Jessica Watkins partnered together again on Wednesday morning continuing to study how the central nervous system adapts to weightlessness. The duo took turns inside the Columbus laboratory module wearing virtual reality goggles while in a free-flying position for the GRASP experiment sponsored by ESA (European Space Agency). The investigation explores how sight and sound affects the eye-hand/reach-to-grasp coordination without the traditional up and down reference humans are familiar with in Earth’s gravity. Fluids physics research on...

Hurricane Danielle is pictured from the space station as it orbited above the northern Atlantic Ocean. The Expedition 67 crew was on duty Tuesday focusing its science activities on space physics and human research. Robotics was also a big part of the day as the European robotic arm continued its verification process on the International Space Station . Fluid physics is an important part of the research program on the station as scientists and engineers learn how to develop advanced products and applications for Earth and space. NASA Flight Engineer Kjell Lindgren set up hardware on Tuesday inside the Microgravity Science Glovebox to observe how liquids are held together by surface tension. The experiment is studying the formation of destructive protein clusters that may be responsible for neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti of ESA (European Space Agency) peered at foams and emulsions using the KERMIT microscope to understand why th...