Japan’s first H-II Transfer Vehicle is seen in 2009 attached to the end of the International Space Station’s robotic arm, Canadarm2.
NASA astronauts Scott Kelly and Kjell Lindgren are wrapping up U.S. spacesuit maintenance today. Cosmonauts Gennady Padalka and Mikhail Kornienko are also moving along with their preparations for an Aug. 10 spacewalk.
All three cosmonauts, including Flight Engineer Oleg Kononenko, also worked on Russian biomedical experiments. The trio explored such things as stress caused by living in space as well as the causes and countermeasures of bone loss in microgravity.
Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui worked on setting up and running a session with the Capillary Flow Experiment-2 fluid physics study. He also assisted Kelly and Lindgren with spacesuit maintenance.
Meanwhile, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is getting ready for its fifth resupply mission to the International Space Station. JAXA will launch the H-II Transfer Vehicle-5 (HTV-5) no earlier than Aug. 16 delivering new science gear to the space station.
Astronauts Scott Kelly and Kjell Lindgren work inside the Quest airlock replacing a fan pump separator in a U.S. spacesuit. Credit: NASA TV
A pair of cosmonauts are preparing for Russian spacewalk while a pair of NASA astronauts are working on a U.S. spacesuit. Meanwhile, another cosmonaut and a Japanese astronaut are working a variety of microgravity research and orbital maintenance.
Commander Gennady Padalka and One-Year crew member Mikhail Kornienko are getting their tools and gear ready for a six-hour spacewalk planned for Aug. 10. They will exit the Pirs docking compartment in their Russian Orlan spacesuits for a photographic inspection of the station’s Russian segment, retrieval of an experiment, window cleaning and surface sampling. The duo also spent time Wednesday logging their food and liquid intake for the Korrektsiya biomedical experiment.
One-Year crew member Scott Kelly and Flight Engineer Kjell Lindgren were back at work again in the Quest airlock installing a fan pump separator in a spacesuit. New Flight Engineer Kimiya Yui analyzed microbes then moved on to a fluid physics experiment. Cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko worked on Russian maintenance tasks before exploring how microgravity disturbs the motion of crew members for the Motocard study.
Astronauts Scott Kelly (left) and Kjell Lindgren are in the Quest airlock servicing a U.S. spacesuit. Credit: NASA TV
Two cosmonauts are getting ready for the first spacewalk from the International Space Station since March. Two NASA astronauts are also working to bring a U.S. spacesuit back to service.
The three newest Expedition 44 crew members joined Commander Gennady Padalka during their afternoon for a familiarization session with emergency equipment inside the orbital lab. Having arrived just last week, new flight engineers Oleg Kononenko, Kjell Lindgren and Kimiya Yui are still getting used to their new home in space.
Padalka and One-Year crew member Mikhail Kornienko checked out Russian spacesuit gear ahead of an Aug. 10 spacewalk. The duo will replace external experiments and photograph the exterior condition of the space station’s Russian segment.
Lindgren and One-Year crew member Scott Kelly worked on a U.S. spacesuit replacing internal parts to return the unit to service. Kelly also continued more research for the Twins study comparing him to his Earth-bound twin brother and ex-astronaut Mark Kelly.
The new Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft is pictured docked to the Rassvet module.
The International Space Station moved out of the way of a piece of satellite debris late Saturday night. There were no impacts to crew safety or operations. The maneuver may replace one of three reboosts planned for the orbital laboratory ahead of the Sept. 2 launch of the Expedition 45/Visiting Taxi Crew.
Commander Gennady Padalka and One-Year crew member Mikhail Kornienko are getting ready for an Aug. 10 spacewalk. They will work outside for six hours replacing experiments and equipment and photographing the condition of the station’s Russian segment.
The six-member Expedition 44 crew also moved full speed ahead with more science and maintenance work. One-Year crew member Scott Kelly worked on the Twins experiment that compares his adaptation in space with his Earth-bound brother and ex-astronaut Mark Kelly. NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren tended to lettuce plants being grown for the Veggie study then moved on to U.S. spacesuit maintenance.
Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui looked at how microorganisms can affect a crew member’s immune system in space for the Microbiome study. Cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko worked on unpacking gear from the new Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft, stowing discarded gear in the ISS Progress 58 space freighter and updating the station’s inventory management system.
NASA astronaut and new Expedition 44 crew member Kjell Lindgren works inside the Destiny laboratory module. Credit: NASA TV
The International Space Station is at full strength now with six crew members from Japan, Russia and the United States. The newly-expanded orbital team got together today to review their roles and responsibilities in the event of an emergency in space.
New station residents Oleg Kononenko, Kjell Lindgren and Kimiya Yui will be familiarizing themselves with their new home in space over the next few days. While they adapt to their new workplace the trio will also be getting up to speed with daily science research and orbital maintenance tasks.
Lindgren spent some time with the Veggie botany experiment before working on a spacesuit battery. Yui explored protein crystal growth with the potential to help scientists create advanced drugs on Earth then moved on to cargo transfers from the brand new Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft. Kononenko looked at the effect of space radiation on viruses, researched protein crystals and checked out Russian space hardware.
All six Expedition 44 crew members gathered inside the Zvezda service module for a crew greeting ceremony with new crewmates (front row from left) Kimiya Yui, Oleg Kononenko and Kjell Lindgren. In the back from left are Mikhail Kornienko, Gennady Padalka and Scott Kelly. Credit: NASA TV
NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren, Oleg Kononenko of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and Kimiya Yui of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) joined their Expedition 44 crewmates when the hatches between the Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft and the International Space Station officially opened at 12:56 a.m. EDT. Expedition 44 Commander Gennady Padalka of Roscosmos, as well as Flight Engineers Scott Kelly of NASA and Mikhail Kornienko of Roscosmos welcomed the new crew members aboard their orbital home.
The crew will support several hundred experiments in biology, biotechnology, physical science and Earth science — research that impacts life on Earth.
Kjell Lindgren and Kimiya Yiu are now the 217th and 218th people to board the International Space Station. This is the first visit for both Lindgren and Yiu, and the third for Kononenko.
Lindgren, Kononenko and Yui will remain aboard the station until late December. Kelly and Kornienko, who have been aboard since March 27, will return to Earth in March 2016 at the end of their one-year mission. Padalka, who also has been aboard since March 27, will return to Earth in September, leaving Kelly in command of Expedition 45. Kelly and Kornienko will return to Earth in March 2016 with Expedition 46 after 342 days in space.
To join the online conversation about the International Space Station on Twitter, follow the hashtag #ISS. To learn more about all the ways to connect and collaborate with NASA, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/connect.
The International Space Station configuration with the new Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft docked to the Rassvet module. Credit: NASA
The Soyuz TMA-17M vehicle docked to the International Space Station at 10:45 p.m. EDT, over the ocean near Ecuador.
Aboard the space station, Expedition 44 Commander Gennady Padalka of Roscosmos, as well as Flight Engineers Scott Kelly of NASA and Mikhail Kornienko of Roscosmos will welcome Soyuz crew members Kjell Lindgren of NASA, Oleg Kononenko of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and Kimiya Yui of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) when the hatches between the two spacecraft are opened.
Watch the hatch opening and welcome ceremony live on NASA TV beginning at 11:45 p.m.: https://www.nasa.gov/nasatv.
The Soyuz spacecraft port solar array did not deploy after reaching space. Docking is still set for 10:46 p.m. EDT. Credit: NASA TV
Aboard their Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft, Kjell Lindgren, Kimiya Yui and Soyuz Commander Oleg Kononenko are scheduled to dock at 10:46 p.m. EDT to the International Space Station’s Rassvet module. NASA Television coverage of the docking will begin at 10 p.m. and can also be seen online at: https://www.nasa.gov/nasatv.
NASA TV will then resume at 11:45 p.m. to cover hatch opening between the two spacecraft as well as the welcome ceremony.
The Soyuz crew will join Expedition 44 Commander Gennady Padalka of Roscosmos, as well as Flight Engineers Scott Kelly of NASA and Mikhail Kornienko of Roscosmos. Padalka, Kelly and Kornienko have lived aboard the space station since March.
To join the online conversation about the International Space Station on Twitter, follow the hashtag #ISS.
The Soyuz spacecraft is composed of three modules. Credit: NASA
During the launch of the Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft at 5:02 p.m. EDT (3:02 a.m. on July 23 Baikonur time) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, the port solar array on the vehicle did not deploy as planned. The starboard solar array did deploy along with all navigational antennas, is functioning normally, and is fully providing power to the spacecraft. The flight of the Expedition 44 crew to the International Space Station is proceeding nominally and the crew is in excellent condition. The Soyuz vehicle will dock to the station as planned after a 4-orbit rendezvous at 10:46 p.m. EDT (02:46 GMT).
The Soyuz spacecraft is composed of three modules: the Orbital Module, the Descent Module and the Instrumentation and Service Module. Credit: NASA TV
The Soyuz 43S vehicle has achieved a stable orbit after a nominal ascent, and all antennas have deployed. The Soyuz will now close the distance to the ISS in preparation for docking, scheduled for 10:46 p.m. EDT. NASA Television coverage of the docking will begin at 10 p.m. and can also be seen online at: https://www.nasa.gov/nasatv.
