Новости МКС

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Anne McClain‏Подлинная учетная запись @AstroAnnimal 3 ч. назад

#Cygnus waits on the end of SSRMS for release. Congrats to all involved in this successful cargo mission, and thank you for the resupply!

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https://news.northropgrumman.com/news/releases/northrop-grummans-cygnus-spacecraft-departs-international-space-station-6742725

Northrop Grumman's Cygnus Spacecraft Departs International Space Station

S.S. John Young highlights growing commercial partnerships in secondary mission

February 08, 2019

Dulles, Va. – Feb. 8, 2019 – Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) announced that its Cygnus spacecraft has departed from the International Space Station after an 81-day stay during the NG-10 mission. While docked, astronauts unloaded approximately 7,400 pounds of vital supplies and scientific equipment. The Slingshot CubeSat Deployer System, a new commercial customer for Cygnus, was also installed for its inaugural flight on the spacecraft. Slingshot, a flexible platform that can fly hosted payloads and CubeSats, further demonstrates the ability of Cygnus to host multiple secondary payloads as part of a single mission. Cygnus departed from the International Space Station at 11:16 a.m. EST loaded with more than 2,500 kilograms (5,500 pounds) of disposal cargo.
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https://spaceflightnow.com/2019/02/08/cygnus-ng10-departure/

Cygnus supply ship departs space station for extended mission
February 8, 2019 | Stephen Clark

EDITOR'S NOTE: Updated at 12 p.m. EST (1700 GMT) after departure, with updated information on nanosatellite deployments.


The Cygnus spacecraft is released from the space station's robot arm Friday. Credit: NASA TV/Spaceflight Now

A commercial Cygnus supply ship departed the International Space Station on Friday for an extended mission to deploy five nanosatellites and conduct other experiments before re-entering the atmosphere and burning up with more than two tons of trash.

The space station's nearly 58-foot-long (17-meter) robotic arm grappled the Cygnus spacecraft and pulled it away from a berthing port on the orbiting outpost's Unity module early Friday, setting up for release of the supply ship at 11:16 a.m. EST (1616 GMT) under the command of Expedition 58 flight engineer Anne McClain.

The Cygnus spacecraft fired thrusters to depart the vicinity of the station, then was expected to raise its orbit to an altitude of around 300 miles (500 kilometers) for the separation of four tiny nanosatellites. The cargo ship will then lower its orbit below the station's altitude to deploy another CubeSat before conducting a deorbit burn to fall back into the atmosphere for a destructive re-entry over the Pacific Ocean.

The Cygnus is wrapping up the 10th resupply mission, also known as NG-10, to the space station by Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems, formerly known as Orbital ATK, under an 11-launch contract with NASA. The cargo contract with NASA is valued at $2.89 billion, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office.

The cargo craft was christened S.S. John Young in honor of the late Gemini, Apollo and space shuttle astronaut. The ship is made up of a propulsion and service module made by Northrop Grumman in Dulles, Virginia, and a pressurized cargo cabin provided by Thales Alenia Space in Turin, Italy.

The S.S. John Young arrived at the space station Nov. 19, two days after launching aboard an Antares booster from Wallops Island, Virginia, delivering 7,215 pounds (3,273 kilograms) of experiments, hardware, spare parts, food and supplies for the station and its crew.


The Cygnus spacecraft, christened the S.S. John Young, arrived at the International Space Station on Nov. 19. Credit: NASA

The payloads delivered to the station in November aboard Cygnus included a plastic recycler and 3D printer built to advance in-space manufacturing capabilities, and an experiment studying how the human body's ability to perceive motion, orientation and distance changes in microgravity.

Astronauts replaced the fresh experiments and supplies with trash, packing around 5,500 pounds (2,500 kilograms) of garbage into the Cygnus cargo module for disposal during re-entry. The crew also installed a Slingshot nanosatellite deployer and an experimental payload on the forward hatch of the Cygnus spacecraft before Friday's departure.
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Northrop Grumman's next Antares launch with a Cygnus supply ship to the International Space Station is scheduled April 17 from Virginia's Eastern Shore.

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Research in space for health: growing blood vessels

European Space Agency, ESA

Опубликовано: 8 февр. 2019 г.

By cultivating human endothelial cells in space, researchers are gaining knowledge about the way our blood vessels function. This could help prevent and treat diseases such as atherosclerosis, hypertension, diabetes and thrombosis here on Earth, while keeping astronauts healthy in space.

In this video, biochemist and molecular biologist Dr Markus Wehland discusses the Spheroids experiment, which ran on the International Space Station during ESA astronaut Tim Peake's Principia mission in 2016.

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Cells cultivated in microgravity during this experiment assembled into globular and tubular structures. These structures were similar to the inner lining of blood vessels inside our bodies, but had never been achieved before by scientists cultivating cells on Earth.

Knowledge about cell growth and structure gained through this study could aid the development of tissue engineering techniques to replace damaged blood vessels in patients. It could also improve the efficiency and safety of drugs that help regulate vessel development.

It is good news for those affected by cardiovascular disease and a great example of the way in which research in microgravity is enhancing life on Earth.

The step to space research is closer than you might think. Get involved with spaceflight research via www.esa.int/spaceflightAO. Find out about our commercial partnerships and opportunities in human and robotic exploration via www.esa.int/explorationpartners to run your research in microgravity as well.

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NICER Charts the Area Around a New Black Hole

NASA Goddard

Опубликовано: 30 янв. 2019 г.

Scientists have mapped the environment surrounding a black hole that is 10 times the mass of the Sun using NASA's Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) payload aboard the International Space Station. NICER detected X-ray light from a recently discovered black hole, called MAXI J1820+070 (J1820 for short), as it consumed material from a companion star. Waves of X-rays formed "light echoes" that reflected off the swirling gas near the black hole and revealed changes in the environment's size and shape.

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A black hole can siphon gas from a nearby star and into a ring of material called an accretion disk that glows in X-rays. Above this disk is the corona, a region of subatomic particles that glows in higher-energy X-rays.

Astrophysicists want to better understand how the inner edge of the accretion disk and the corona change in size and shape as a black hole accretes material from its companion star. If they can understand how and why these changes occur in stellar-mass black holes over a period of weeks, they could shed light on how supermassive black holes evolve over millions of years and how they affect the galaxies in which they reside.

One method used to chart those changes is called X-ray reverberation mapping, which uses X-ray reflections in much the same way sonar uses sound waves to map undersea terrain.

From 10,000 light-years away, the scientists estimated that the corona contracted vertically from roughly 100 to 10 miles -- that's like seeing something the size of a blueberry shrink to something the size of a poppy seed at the distance of Pluto.

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Конфигурация МКС по состоянию на 16:30 UTC 2019-02-08

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https://ria.ru/20190211/1550668317.html

Ученый рассказал о планах доставить на МКС новый телескоп
08:48

МОСКВА, 11 фев – РИА Новости. Созданный Россией с международным участием телескоп "УФ атмосфера" для исследования кратковременных вспышек в земной атмосфере планируется привезти на МКС в 2019-2020 годах, заявил в интервью РИА Новости директор НИИ ядерной физики МГУ Михаил Панасюк.

"Этот небольшой ультрафиолетовый телескоп создается в рамках проекта EUSO. (...) Оптику и линзы для телескопа изготовили итальянские и японские коллеги, электроника – новая и полностью наша. В НИИЯФ МГУ собирается и сам прибор. (...) Прибор практически готов, и его доставка на станцию кораблем "Прогресс" планируется в этом или следующем году", - сказал он.

По словам Панасюка, телескоп будет изучать "засоряющие" атмосферу Земли транзиентные явления (кратковременные вспышки), которые мешают ученым из космоса регистрировать галактические космические лучи.

Директор НИИЯФ МГУ отметил, что прибор планируется смонтировать внутри российского модуля "Звезда". "РКК "Энергия" предоставила нам возможность установить телескоп на иллюминаторе модуля "Звезда" - единственном на МКС, который пропускает ультрафиолетовое излучение", - пояснил Панасюк.

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https://blogs.nasa.gov/stationreport/2019/02/08/iss-daily-summary-report-2-08-2019/

ISS Daily Summary Meteor – 2/08/2019

Northrop Grumman (NG-10) Cygnus Release:

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Today, Crew and ground teams utilized the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) to unberth the S.S. John Young from Node 1 nadir then released the vehicle at 1616 GMT (10:16 AM CT). This completes eighty-one days of joint ISS/Cygnus operations. Now that Cygnus has departed the ISS, it will be performing several small satellite deployments and operations for other agencies before re-entering the Earth's atmosphere over the South Pacific on February 25.

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Meteor:

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Today a crewmember swapped out the Meteor laptop AMS hard drive. The Meteor payload is a visible spectroscopy instrument used to observe meteors in Earth orbit. Meteor uses image analysis to provide information on the physical and chemical properties of the meteoroid dust, such as size, density, and chemical composition. The study of the meteoroid dust on orbit provides information about the parent comets and asteroids.

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Actiwatch Spectrum:

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Today a crewmember linked the Actiwatch Spectrum hardware to the HRF1 rack to allow ground teams to download stored data. The Actiwatch Spectrum is a waterproof, nonintrusive, sleep-wake monitor worn on the wrist of a crewmember. The device contains an accelerometer for measuring motion and color sensitive photodiodes (a photodetector capable of converting light into voltage) for monitoring ambient lighting. Together, these capabilities enable the Actiwatch Spectrum to be used to analyze circadian rhythms, sleep-wake patterns, and activity.

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Simplified Aid for EVA Rescue (SAFER) Test Module Checkout:

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Crew performed a check out of SAFER 1015 and Test Module seals. The activity measured regulator pressure under flow and no-flow conditions, performed a leak check, and measured the relief valve crack and reseated pressure to satisfy two year on-orbit maintenance requirements.

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https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/2019/02/11/spacesuits-life-science-and-robotic-assistant-work-start-the-week/

Spacesuits, Life Science and Robotic Assistant Work Start the Week

Mark Garcia
Posted Feb 11, 2019 at 3:31 pm


Astronaut David Saint-Jacques of the Canadian Space Agency takes pictures of the Earth below fr om inside the International Space Station's "window to the world," the seven-windowed cupola.

Spacesuit work, robotic assistants as well as exercise and biology studies took up the majority of the Expedition 58 crew's schedule on Monday. The rest of February at the International Space Station will be primarily science work before March ramps up with crew and cargo missions and spacewalks.

Flight Engineer Anne McClain of NASA opened up the Fluids Integrated Rack and set up protein crystal samples inside a specialized microscope for photographing. The research is supporting a series of Biophysics experiments exploring potential pharmaceutical benefits for humans on and off Earth.

After lunch, McClain spent the rest of the afternoon emptying and refilling water in the U.S. spacesuit cooling loops. She also verified the spacesuits' ability to transfer high-speed data during usage. NASA is currently targeting the end of March to begin a trio of maintenance spacewalks.

Canadian Space Agency astronaut David Saint-Jacques strapped himself into an exercise bike today to measure his breathing and aerobic capacity. He attached breathing tubes and sensors to himself to help doctors understand the effects of microgravity on pulmonary function and physical exertion.

In the afternoon, he set up a docking station wh ere tiny free-flying robots can mount themselves in Japan's Kibo laboratory module. Powered by fans and guided by a vision system, the Astrobee autonomous assistants may free up more science time for astronauts and allow mission controllers better monitoring capabilities.

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https://tass.ru/kosmos/6103917

12 ФЕВ, 09:10 Исправлено в 10:22
Экипажи МКС провели более 230 экспериментов на модуле Columbus за 11 лет

Глава представительства ЕКА в Москве Рене Пишель отметил, что в среднем каждый астронавт проводит примерно 50 экспериментов за полгода на станции

МОСКВА, 12 февраля. /ТАСС/. Более 230 экспериментов было проведено экипажами Международной космической станции (МКС) за 11 лет в европейском лабораторном модуле Columbus, сообщил во вторник в интервью ТАСС глава представительства ЕКА в Москве Рене Пишель.

"В среднем каждый астронавт ЕКА проводит примерно 50 экспериментов за шесть месяцев на МКС. Александер Герст, вернувшийся в декабре, работал над 63. Всего за 11 лет в европейском модуле лабораторном модуле Columbus было проведено более 230 экспериментов", - сказал он.

Как рассказал Пишель, одним из новых европейских экспериментов на борту Международной космической станции является эксперимент Artemiss по переработке углекислого газа в кислород с помощью микроводорослей спирулина. Также ЕКА предоставляет коммерческим компаниям возможность проводить свои эксперименты на орбите благодаря оборудованию ICE Cubes, которое предоставляет набор стандартных интерфейсов.

В новость была внесена правка (10:22 мск) - изменен заголовок и лид,

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https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/2019/02/12/exercise-research-and-biology-hardware-checks-aboard-orbital-lab/

Exercise Research and Biology Hardware Checks Aboard Orbital Lab

Mark Garcia
Posted Feb 12, 2019 at 1:21 pm


NASA astronaut Anne McClain is surrounded by exercise gear, including laptop computers and sensors that measure physical exertion and aerobic capacity, during a workout session.

The Expedition 58 crew explored space exercise and checked out biology hardware today aboard the International Space Station. The space residents supplemented their research activities and kept the orbital lab systems in tip-top shape.

Daily exercise in space is important so astronauts can fight muscle and bone loss caused by living in weightlessness. Doctors are seeking to optimize workouts for crews to stay in shape for strenuous activities like spacewalks, returning to Earth and adjusting to gravity.

Anne McClain of NASA contributed to that research today strapping into an exercise bike while attached to breathing tubes and sensors. Scientists measured her breathing and aerobic capacity to understand the effects of microgravity on pulmonary function and physical exertion.

Canadian Space Agency astronaut David Saint-Jacques worked on a pair of incubators throughout Tuesday. He disconnected hardware in the Kubik incubator that houses small biology studies in the Columbus lab module. Afterward, he glided into the Kibo lab module and set up a carbon dioxide meter inside the Space Automated Bioproduct Laboratory supporting a wide variety of life sciences.

The commander, Oleg Kononenko of Roscosmos, worked primarily in the station's Russian segment beginning the day working on life support gear. The highly experienced cosmonaut then moved onto space navigation research before charging the emergency phone inside the Soyuz MS-11 spacecraft.

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T.S. Kelso @TSKelso · 16 ч

We have seen 4 of the QB50 cubesats (AALTO-2, POLYITAN-2-SAU, X-CUBESAT, HOOPOE), which were deployed from the ISS in mid 2017, decay from orbit over the past 2 months, with QBITO expected to decay on Saturday.

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https://ria.ru/20190213/1550790790.html

Высоту орбиты МКС увеличат на 1,6 километра, сообщил источник
13:45

МОСКВА, 13 фев - РИА Новости. Высота орбиты МКС через две недели поднимется почти на 2 километра с помощью двигателей грузового корабля "Прогресс", сообщил РИА Новости в среду источник в ракетно-космической отрасли.

Ранее другой источник сообщил РИА Новости, что МКС сманеврирует 26 февраля, на два дня раньше, из-за переноса запуска американского корабля Dragon-2 с 23 февраля на 2 марта.

"Включение двигателей корабля "Прогресс МС-10", пристыкованного к модулю "Звезда" МКС, намечается на 26 февраля в 05.21 мск. Они проработают 445 секунд, в результате чего средняя высота орбиты станции увеличится на 1,6 километра", - сказал собеседник агентства.

По его словам, целью маневра является подготовка станции к приему пилотируемого корабля "Союз МС-12", старт которого намечен на 14 марта, и грузового корабля "Прогресс МС-11", который отправится к МКС 4 апреля.

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https://blogs.nasa.gov/stationreport/2019/02/11/iss-daily-summary-report-2-11-2019/

ISS Daily Summary Report – 2/11/2019

Astrobee:

Спойлер

The crew participated in a conference with the Astrobee payload developer to discuss details of the docking station installation preparation. Following this, they configured and prepared the JEM Astrobee docking station location. The actual docking station installation is currently planned for Friday of this week. When all the hardware arrives on orbit, Astrobee will consist of three self-contained, free flying robots and a docking station for use inside the ISS. The robots are designed to help scientists and engineers develop and test technologies for use in microgravity to assist astronauts with routine chores, and give ground controllers additional eyes and ears on the space station. The autonomous robots, powered by fans and vision-based navigation, perform crew monitoring, sampling, logistics management, and accommodate up to three investigations.

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Fluids Integrated Rack Light Microscopy Module (FIR/LMM) Biophysics 5-2 plate exchange:

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Following the completion of the planned science for plate s/n 2002, the crew removed it from the PACE (Preliminary Advanced Colloids Experiment) LED Base inside the LMM (Light Microscopy Module) AFC (Auxiliary Fluids Container), installed plate s/n 2006, and dispensed oil on the plate. Initial inspection via ground commanding shows 2 of the 4 capillaries in plate 2006 are cracked and the team is assessing a forward plan. LMM/Biophysics-5-2 looks at the relationship between solution convection – the movement of molecules through the fluid – and dense liquid clusters from which protein crystals can form. The main objective of the investigation is to understand why protein crystallization experiments in microgravity have often generated unexpectedly low or high numbers of crystals. Both of these outcomes may negatively affect experiments designed to obtain a small number of well-separated crystals for x-ray structure studies.

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Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) 3006 Flush:

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In preparation for a Fan Pump Separator (FPS) R&R next Monday, the crew performed a cooling loop flush on the EMU 3006 today. In addition, they obtained a 60 mL sample from the Displays and Control Module (DCM) for chemical analysis. EMU 3006 FPS had failed to activate during a preventative maintenance activity on January 22.

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https://blogs.nasa.gov/stationreport/2019/02/12/iss-daily-summary-report-2-12-2019/

ISS Daily Summary Report – 2/12/2019

Human Research Facility (HRF) Urine Setup:

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The crew set up hardware in preparation for repository activities later this week.  Repository is a storage bank that is used to maintain biological specimens over extended periods of time and under well-controlled conditions. It supports scientific discovery that contributes to our fundamental knowledge in the area of human physiological changes and adaptation to a microgravity environment and provides unique opportunities to study longitudinal changes in human physiology spanning many missions.

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Space Acceleration Measurement System II (SAMS II) Screen Cleaning:

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As part of the routine periodic maintenance, the crew cleaned lint from the filter screens in the SAMS-II RTS/D1 (Remote Triaxial Sensor Drawer 1) and RTS/D2 locations.  SAMS-II is an ongoing study of the small forces (vibrations and accelerations) on the ISS resulting from the operation of hardware, crew activities, dockings, and maneuvering. Results generalize the types of vibrations affecting vibration-sensitive experiments. Investigators seek to better understand the vibration environment on the ISS.

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Nitrogen / Oxygen Recharge System (NORS) Tank Uninstall:

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Today the crew worked with MCC-H to terminate the transfer of Nitrogen from the NORS Recharge Tank to the ISS Airlock Nitrogen Tanks.  As part of the activity, they removed the fill hose, regulator, then uninstalled and stowed the tank for return on a future cargo vehicle.

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Compound Specific Analyzer – Combustion Products (CSA-CP) Sample Pump Failure:

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During a scheduled inspection, the crew found that one CSA-CP Sample Pump was failed. The Sample Pump is needed to obtain CSA-CP samples at fire ports. Currently there is only one functional Sample Pump on ISS.  Ground teams are working to manifest a spare pump onboard an upcoming cargo vehicle.

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Intra-Module Ventilation (IMV) Measurements:

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Yesterday, the crew took periodic measurements of the airflow at IMV ducts in several locations, including Russian Segment to Node 3, Node 3 to Cupola, Airlock to Node 1, Lab to Node 2, Node 2 to Lab, Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA) inlet and Node 3 to BEAM.  Teams are currently reviewing the data and will request cleaning if the airflow measurements are below pre-defined limits.

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https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/2019/02/13/crew-studies-human-body-and-checks-cooling-systems/

Crew Studies Human Body and Checks Cooling Systems

Mark Garcia
Posted Feb 13, 2019 at 12:47 pm


Astronaut David Saint-Jacques (right) of the Canadian Space Agency becomes a barber aboard the International Space Station and trims Expedition 58 Commander Oleg Kononenko's hair with clippers attached to a vacuum hose

Wednesday saw the Expedition 58 crew explore the inner workings of the human body in space and maintain cooling systems aboard the International Space Station.

NASA astronaut Anne McClain spent all day setting up cooling gear inside the U.S.
 Destiny lab module and Japan's Kibo lab module. She drained and refilled water pumps inside the Fluid System Servicer and the Internal Thermal Control System. The life support systems help cool the station's atmosphere and dispel heat generated by electrical systems.

Microgravity's impact on the human physiology was the focus of Flight Engineer David Saint-Jacques' day. The Canadian Space Agency astronaut collected and stowed his breath, blood and urine samples for a variety of human research experiments. The research is supporting the long term-collection of human biological samples and observing bone marrow and blood changes.

Saint-Jacques also conducted ultrasound scans in the Zvezda service module for the Fluid Shifts study with assistance from Commander Oleg Kononenko and doctors on the ground. That research is seeking to reverse increased head and eye pressure that occurs in space.

Kononenko started Wednesday servicing Russian life support systems. The four-time station resident then spent the afternoon on more space research studying motion coordination, radiation exposure and crew psychology.

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https://spaceflightnow.com/2019/02/13/cubesat-deployed-from-space-station-to-test-sample-return-technology/

CubeSat deployed fr om space station to test sample return technology
February 13, 2019 | Stephen Clark


Students work with the TechEdSat 8 CubeSat before its launch to the International Space Station. Credit: NASA

One of five CubeSats deployed fr om the International Space Station last month is testing a steerable drag brake that could find use in future smallsats to return experiment samples to the ground from low Earth orbit, or on low-cost micro-probes to explore other planets.

NASA's TechEdSat 8 nanosatellite was one of five CubeSats released from a NanoRacks deployer outside the space station Jan. 31, joining other missions probing the ionosphere, conducting communications experiments, and providing hands-on experience for engineering students.

Designed and developed by scientists, engineers and students at NASA's Ames Research Center and San Jose State University, TechEdSat 8 is the latest in a series of miniature satellites validating technology and techniques for returning CubeSats and small sample canisters to Earth intact.

An Exo-Brake — a square-shaped sail resembling a parachute that spans nearly a half-meter (20 inches) on a side — popped out of one end of TechEdSat 8 around 60 seconds after ejecting out of the NanoRacks deployer on the station's Japanese robotic arm. The sail generates drag on the satellite as it speeds around Earth, using the rarefied atmosphere to slow down and drop altitude from the space station's orbit more than 250 miles (400 kilometers) above the planet, without needing any propellant.

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Tensioning mechanisms on the TechEdSat 8 spacecraft, which measures around two-and-a-half feet (74 centimeters) long and is composed of six CubeSat "units," will modulate the Exo-Brake, changing its surface area in an attempt to control how much drag the device generates. Engineers will use the modulating Exo-Brake to try to target wh ere the spacecraft will re-enter the atmosphere.

The Exo-Brake is comprised of a lightweight sandwich structure that the TechEdSat team is at Ames is seeking to patent, according to Marcus Murbach, TechEdSat 8's principal investigator.

Murbach told Spaceflight Now the TechEdSat 8 spacecraft is performing well in the early weeks of its mission. Ali Guarneros Luna, an aerospace and systems engineer at Ames, said TechEdSat 8 contacted controllers via the Iridium and Globalstar communications networks as planned shortly after its separation from the space station.

In a response to written questions from Spaceflight Now, Guarneros Luna said the satellite is expected to fall back into the atmosphere in around six weeks, depending on the maneuvers attempted with the Exo-Brake decelerator, and changing solar activity, which can cause the atmosphere to balloon outward, producing more drag for spacecraft in low Earth orbit.

TechEdSat 8's predecessors in the TechEdSat series have experimented with increasingly complex maneuvers, and with larger satellites. The first two TechEdSat missions used single-unit, or 1U, CubeSats about the size of a Rubik's cube to test miniaturized email-based communications technology. Later TechEdSat missions began using larger, shoebox-sized 3U CubeSats in 2013, and introduced the Exo-Brake device.


This photo taken by astronauts on the International Space Station shows the TechEdSat 6 spacecraft with its Exo-Brake structure unfurled soon after deployment in November 2017. Credit: NASA

Murbach said engineers at Ames are still fine-tuning how to maneuver the Exo-Brake and more precisely target wh ere the CubeSats will re-enter the atmosphere.

"We are still target-practicing the re-entry point," Murbach said. "In a couple flights, we'll attempt deeper entry and eventual recovery."

The TechEdSat satellites deployed from the space station could re-enter the atmosphere anywhere between 51.6 degrees north and south latitude, a geographic area bounded by the station's orbital inclination.

"We typically target Wallops (Island in Virginia), which we did last time, with some success, though it over-shot without the final flare maneuver," Murbach said.

Engineers will have to beef up the heat shield on the TechEdSat satellites to achieve a full re-entry and recovery. The team already has developed an ablative nose for the CubeSat, and is working on a higher-temperature material to protect nanosatellites from the heat of re-entry, Murbach said.

The Exo-Brake technology could be used for "on-demand" sample return from the International Space Station and other orbiting laboratories, according to NASA officials. SpaceX's Dragon cargo capsule and the Russian Soyuz crew ferry ship are currently the only spacecraft in service capable of returning any specimens or hardware intact to Earth's surface. The SpaceX Crew Dragon and Boeing CST-100 Starliner spacecraft, both designed for astronauts, will also have limited payload return capability when they begin flying later this year.

But nanosatellites released from the station could return samples more often, at lower cost, and closer to research teams on the ground, reducing the time and effort required to recover the samples.


A CubeSat is released from the NanoRacks deployer outside the International Space Station on Jan. 31. Credit: Oleg Kononenko/Roscosmos

NASA engineers also hope to apply technologies like the Exo-Brake tested on the TechEdSat missions to interplanetary micro-probes, such as tiny spacecraft that could reach the surface of Mars, enabling new research at the Red Planet at reduced cost.

TechEdSat 8 also hosts several other experiments, including a radiation-tolerant circuit board and processor, and a plasma physics investigation.

Several more TechEdSat satellites are in development at Ames, in cooperation with university students. TechEdSat 7, which is smaller than TechEdSat 8, is scheduled to launch on Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne rocket later this year, and NASA has also sel ected the TechEdSat 10 mission for a future launch.

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TechEdSat 8 was one of a batch of CubeSats deployed from the space station Jan. 31.

The UNITE CubeSat, developed by students at the University of Southern Indiana, is part of NASA's educational nanosatellite program. It carries instrumentation to measure plasma in the upper atmosphere.

The CubeSat Assessment and Test mission — using two spacecraft named CAT 1 and CAT 2 — comes from the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, with two commercial off-the-shelf spacecraft for a communications experiment in low Earth orbit. The Delphini 1 CubeSat from Aarhus University in Denmark was also released Jan. 31.

TechEdSat 8, UNITE, CAT 1 and 2, and Delphini 1 were launched inside a SpaceX Dragon resupply ship in December, then mounted inside the NanoRacks deployer and transferred to the Japanese airlock by station astronauts.

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The UNITE CubeSat after release from a deployer outside the International Space Station. Credit: NanoRacks

NanoRacks is a Houston-based company that offers launch and deployment services for small satellites. The company said it has deployed 190 CubeSats from the space station — and 228 small satellites overall — with the five new CubeSats released into orbit Jan. 31.

"Once again we are demonstrating the diverse CubeSat market that exists today" said Henry Martin, external payloads manager at NanoRacks. "NanoRacks satellite deployment platforms enable affordable opportunities for everyone fr om high school, to the university level, to the professional researchers at the Applied Physics Laboratory. The International Space Station is the perfect testbed for those that are new to space and to those that have a long history in orbit, and having such frequent access and opportunity continues to open the door to a growing space marketplace."

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https://blogs.nasa.gov/stationreport/2019/02/13/iss-daily-summary-report-2-13-2019/

ISS Daily Summary Report – 2/13/2019

ISS HAM Pass:

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The crew participated in the contact with College Park School, Lloydminster, Alberta, Canada. The students ranged from grade 1 to 8 and the questions involved astronaut experiences during launch, interactions with families, working on the ISS, etc. ISS Ham Radio provides opportunities to engage and educate students, teachers, parents and other members of the community in science, technology, engineering and math by providing a means to communicate between astronauts and the ground HAM radio units.

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Team Task Switching (TTS) Experiment Survey:

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The crew completed a Team Task Switching Survey using the Data Collection Tool on a Station Support Computer. The objective of the TTS investigation is to gain knowledge about whether or not crewmembers have difficulty in switching tasks, and apply the results to both the reduction of any negative consequences and improvement of individual and team motivation and effectiveness.

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Two-Phase Flow 2 Laptop Setup:

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The crew relocated the Multi-purpose Small Payload Rack (MSPR) laptop to a suitable area around the MSPR. Following this, the appropriate power cable and Local Area Network (LAN) cable connections were made. This is being performed as part of the preparation for the future Two-Phase Flow 2 investigation. The Two-Phase Flow experiment investigates the heat transfer characteristics of flow boiling in the microgravity environment. This experiment provides a fundamental understanding of the behaviors of bubble formation, liquid-vapor flow in a tube, and how heat is transferred in cooling systems.

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Internal Thermal Control System (ITCS) Fluid System Servicer (FSS) Lab and JEM Refill:

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The crew used the FSS to add ITCS coolant to the Lab Low Temperature Loop (LTL) Pump Package Assembly (PPA) accumulator and Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) ITCS Low and Moderate Temperature Loops. Once the refills were completed, they drained and stowed the FSS and associated jumpers.

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Nitrogen (N2) / Oxygen (O2) Recharge System (NORS) Tank Installation:

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Today the crew installed a NORS O2 tank, mated the O2 Fill Hose to the NORS Manifold, and initiated a gas transfer to the High Pressure O2 System.

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https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/2019/02/14/research-into-how-space-impacts-humans-and-physics-continues/

Research into How Space Impacts Humans and Physics Continues

Mark Garcia
Posted Feb 14, 2019 at 11:51 am


NASA astronaut Anne McClain works inside the Kibo laboratory module designed and built by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

The three residents onboard the International Space Station today worked with a diverse array of science hardware. The trio continues to explore what living in space is doing to their bodies and helped scientists promote healthier humans in space and on Earth.

Astronauts have reported increased head and eye pressure during long-duration space missions. The Expedition 58 crew is researching that phenomenon today to help doctors reverse the upward fluid shifts that affect space residents.

One solution being studied is a special suit that draws fluids such as blood and water toward the lower body to prevent swelling in the face and elevated head and eye pressure. Astronaut Anne McClain tried that suit on today and Flight Engineer David Saint-Jacques used an ultrasound device to scan the activity. Commander Oleg Kononenko assisted the duo inside Russia's Zvezda service module.

Afterward, McClain glided to the opposite end of the station in Japan's Kibo lab module to work on the Two-Phase Flow fluid physics experiment. She set up and installed the research hardware inside Kibo's Multi-purpose Small Research Rack. The experiment may enable engineers to design advanced thermal management systems for use on Earth and in space.

Saint-Jacques returned to biomedical studies today collecting and stowing more breath, blood and urine samples for later analysis. The ongoing research is helping scientists understand the long-term space impacts to bone marrow,
 red blood cells and the overall human physiology.

Saint-Jacques finally reviewed instructions to install a docking station on Friday for new cube-shaped, free-flying robots that will arrive at the station later this year. The Astrobee autonomous assistants may free up more science time for astronauts and allow mission controllers better monitoring capabilities.

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NanoRacks @NanoRacks ·
14 февр.

Beautiful shot of our #CubeSat deployer in the #Kibo Airlock!

Intl. Space Station @Space_Station ·
14 февр.

The three residents onboard the station today worked with a diverse array of science hardware to understand what living in space is doing to their bodies. go.nasa.gov/2tjSKUM