The Progress 88 cargo craft approaches the space station carrying about three tons of cargo. Credit: NASA TV
The unpiloted Progress 88 spacecraft arrived at the space-facing port of the orbiting laboratory’s Poisk module at 7:43 a.m. EDT on June 1. The spacecraft launched at 5:43 a.m. EDT (2:43 p.m. Baikonur time) May 30, on a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
The spacecraft delivers about three tons of food, fuel, and supplies for the Expedition 71 crew aboard the International Space Station and will remain docked for almost six months before departing in late November for a re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere to dispose of trash loaded by the crew.
The Roscosmos Progress 88 spacecraft carrying about three tons of cargo lifts off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Thursday, May 30. Credit: NASA TV
NASA is now providing coverage of rendezvous and docking on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website.
The unpiloted Progress 88 spacecraft launched at 5:43 a.m. EDT (2:43 p.m. Baikonur time) May 30, on a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. After a two-day in-orbit journey to the station, the spacecraft will automatically dock to the space-facing port of orbiting laboratory’s Poisk module at 7:46 a.m. Saturday, June 1.
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket with Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft aboard is seen illuminated by spotlights at sunset on the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 41 ahead of the NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test. Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky
Space biology research and spacesuit work filled the Expedition 71 crew’s schedule at the end of the week. In the meantime, the International Space Station is gearing up for two spacecraft scheduled to arrive with new cargo and a new crew this weekend.
Eye scans were on the crew’s medical list on Friday as researchers on the ground monitored to learn how living long-term in weightlessness affects vision. Flight Engineers Matthew Dominick and Tracy C. Dyson led the checks just before lunch time, scanning each other’s eyes and the eyes of fellow astronauts Jeanette Epps and Mike Barratt using the Ultrasound 2 device. At the end of the day, Dominick peered into a medical imaging device operated by Epps to gain views of his retina, cornea, and optic nerve.
Dominick started his morning wearing a vest and a headband packed with sensors recording his health data. He then pedaled on an exercise cycle as the wearable bio-monitors measured his cardiovascular and respiratory activity. Doctors will use the results to learn how the beating heart and breathing affects a crew member’s blood pressure in microgravity and protect crew health on long-term space missions.
Before the vision exams began, Dyson and Barratt partnered together in the Quest airlock and swapped spacesuit components. All four astronauts also took turns throughout the day studying spacewalk procedures and Canadarm2 robotic arm maneuvers on a computer. The crew is getting ready for a trio of spacewalks scheduled to take place in June for maintenance and science on the orbital outpost. NASA will announce the spacewalk details soon in a media advisory and a televised news conference.
Cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub also took part in Friday’s vision exams with Kononenko operating the Ultrasound 2 and scanning Chub’s eyes. The duo also called down to Roscosmos mission controllers and discussed preparations for the arrival of three tons of cargo aboard the Progress 88 resupply ship. The Progress 88 is in its second day in space and is due to automatically dock to the Poisk module at 7:47 a.m. EDT on Saturday.
Cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin wore a sensor-packed cap and explored future spacecraft and robotic piloting techniques on a computer. Insights from the Pilot-T investigation may inform crew training techniques for planetary missions.
Just a few hours after the Progress 88 docks to Poisk, Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft is planned to lift off atop the Atlas V rocket from United Launch Alliance. Mission managers have given the “go” for NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams on Boeing’s Crew Flight Test to launch aboard Starliner at 12:25 p.m. EDT on Saturday from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Starliner will take a daylong trip around Earth before docking to the Harmony module’s forward port at 1:50 p.m. on Sunday.
The Progress 88 cargo craft launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 5:43am ET. Credit: NASA TV
The unpiloted Progress 88 spacecraft is safely in orbit headed for the International Space Station following a launch at 5:43 a.m. EDT (2:43 p.m. Baikonur time) May 30, on a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
After a two-day in-orbit journey to the station, the spacecraft will automatically dock to the space-facing port of orbiting laboratory’s Poisk module at 7:47 a.m. Saturday, June 1. NASA coverage of rendezvous and docking will begin at 7 a.m. on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website.
The spacecraft will deliver about three tons of food, fuel, and supplies to the space station.
The Progress 86 resupply ship is pictured approaching the space station for a docking on Dec. 3, 2023.
NASA’s live launch coverage is underway on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA TV through a variety of platforms including social media.
The unpiloted Progress 88 spacecraft is scheduled to launch at 5:43 a.m. EDT (2:43 p.m. Baikonur time) May 30, on a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The Roscosmos spacecraft will liftoff carrying about three tons of food, fuel, and supplies for the Expedition 71 crew aboard the International Space Station.
After a two-day in-orbit journey to the station, the spacecraft will automatically dock to the space-facing port of orbiting laboratory’s Poisk module at 7:47 a.m. Saturday, June 1. NASA coverage of rendezvous and docking will begin at 7 a.m. on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website.
The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft approaches the space station for a docking to the Harmony module’s space-facing port on March 23, 2024.
The 10 crew members aboard the International Space Station, including five NASA astronauts, four Roscosmos cosmonauts, and one Belarus spaceflight participant, turned their attention on Tuesday toward cargo transfers and spacesuit work. There was still time for science on the orbital outpost as the Expedition 70 crew continued more human research.
The NASA astronauts worked throughout the day swapping cargo in and out of the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft docked to the Harmony module’s space-facing port. Flight Engineer Loral O’Hara kicked off Tuesday’s cargo work releasing launch restraints that had secured payloads during Dragon’s ascent to space. Next, Matthew Dominick and Jeanette Epps took over unstrapping more cargo to move into the station.
O’Hara then unpacked a new U.S. spacesuit helmet from Dragon and swapped it with an older helmet for return to Earth aboard the spacecraft. Dominick packed the upper torso of a U.S. spacesuit in a box then labeled and prepared it for stowing on Dragon for analysis and servicing back on Earth. NASA Flight Engineer Tracy C. Dyson assisted the duo during the spacesuit cargo work then finalized battery charging duties in preparation for an upcoming Roscosmos spacewalk.
NASA Flight Engineer Mike Barratt released and transferred science hardware from inside Dragon for installation on a space station EXPRESS rack. The EXPRESS racks are multipurpose research facilities enabling astronaut-operated or ground-controlled experiments. Barratt also installed and set up new research gear in the Harmony module expanding protein crystallization research.
The Roscosmos segment’s four cosmonauts fit in an array of space science while also working on their contingent of cargo activities. Flight Engineer Alexander Grebenkin operated gear monitoring Flight Engineer Oleg Novitskiy while has was attached to sensors recording his blood circulation. Novitskiy also partnered with spaceflight participant Marina Vasilevskaya photographing Earth landmarks and filming educational activities. Flight Engineer Nikolai Chub continued collecting his blood and saliva samples for a space immunity study.
Novitskiy also packed cargo inside the Soyuz MS-24 crew ship that he, Vasilevskaya, and O’Hara will return to Earth in on April 6. Chub stowed more cargo inside the Progress 86 resupply ship and updated the space station’s inventory management system. Expedition 70 Commander Oleg Kononenko spent his day on electronics maintenance checking video gear and computer hardware.
The four SpaceX Crew-8 members are pictured shortly after arriving at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Feb. 25, 2024. Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
Human research, space physics, and airlock operations started the week for the Expedition 70 crew aboard the International Space Station. Back on Earth, four Commercial Crew members are counting down to their launch aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft to the orbital outpost.
Exercising daily in space is critical to maintain crew health due to the effects of living long-term in weightlessness. Astronauts work out on specialized exercise gear designed specifically for the microgravity environment including a treadmill, an exercise cycle, and the advanced resistive exercise device. Doctors frequently monitor these exercise sessions while crew members are attached to sensors, electrodes, and breathing gear.
Flight Engineer Jasmin Moghbeli of NASA and Satoshi Furukawa of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) took turns pedaling on the exercise cycle Monday morning for a workout study. The duo exercised inside the Destiny laboratory module for the regularly scheduled aerobics and fitness test that measures heart and breathing rate.
Moghbeli then moved on and joined NASA Flight Engineer Loral O’Hara to work on the NanoRacks Bishop airlock inside the Tranquility module. Both astronauts spent Monday afternoon reconfiguring Bishop after it was reattached to Tranquility following a week of experimental GITAI-S2 robotics tests. The autonomous robotic arm demonstration explores using automated robots to build habitats and spacecraft on future lunar and planetary missions. Furukawa also assisted with the airlock work after he inspected hatches in the U.S. segment of the space station.
Physics was also on the research schedule as O’Hara and Commander Andreas Mogensen from ESA (European Space Agency) serviced samples and hardware for a pair of different experiments. O’Hara swapped optic fiber samples inside the Microgravity Science Glovebox for an investigation exploring how to manufacture fiber optic cables superior to those produced on Earth. Mogensen replaced components inside the Combustion Integrated Rack for a space fire safety experiment.
Roscosmos Flight Engineer Nikolai Chub had a fitness evaluation on Monday as he jogged on a treadmill with electrodes attached to his chest measuring his heart rate. Cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Konstantin Borisov tried on a suit being tested for its ability to help crew members adjust to Earth’s gravity after living for months or years in space.
Meanwhile, the space station is orbiting higher after the docked Progress 87 resupply ship fired its engines for over 17 minutes on Friday. The orbital reboost positions the station for next month’s launch of the Soyuz MS-25 crew ship and the departure of the Soyuz MS-24 crew ship.
Back on Earth, four Commercial Crew members representing the SpaceX Crew-8 mission are at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida preparing for their launch aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft. Commander Matt Dominick, Pilot Mike Barratt, and Mission Specialists Jeanette Epps and Alexander Grebenkin will lift off aboard Dragon at 12:04 a.m. EST on Friday. They will dock to the Harmony module’s forward port at 6 a.m. on Saturday beginning a six-month space research mission on the orbital lab.
NASA astronauts (from left) Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O’Hara pose together for a portrait inside the International Space Station’s Unity module.
A host of biomedical studies were underway aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday to help doctors understand the effects of microgravity on the human body. The Expedition 70 crew also continued its ongoing cargo transfers and lab maintenance activities.
Blood vessel scans took place throughout the day on the orbital lab providing researchers data revealing how astronaut’s adapt to long-term missions in microgravity. NASA Flight Engineer Jasmin Moghbeli started first attaching electrodes to herself and scanning her right leg’s femoral artery with an ultrasound device. Doctors on the ground monitored the scans as they were being downlinked in real time. Results may provide insights into space-caused accelerated aging-like symptoms seen in astronauts’ arteries.
During the afternoon, ESA (European Space Agency) Commander Andreas Mogensen scanned the neck, shoulder, and leg veins of NASA Flight Engineer Loral O’Hara. Scientists monitored the data as it was downlinked using the Ultrasound 2 device. Observations may lead to countermeasures lowering the increased risk of cardiovascular disease in space.
Astronaut Satoshi Furukawa from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) spent his day contributing to the CIPHER experiment, a suite of 14 human research investigations. He began his day collecting a blood sample, spinning it in a centrifuge, then stowing it in a science freezer. Next, he took a cognition test and a robotics test measuring his brain function in space. At the end of his shift, Furukawa collected a urine sample and stowed it in a science freezer for later analysis. CIPHER seeks to provide a better understanding of the physiological and psychological changes crews may experience while living and working in space.
Two cosmonauts, Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub, spent Tuesday unpacking the newly arrived Progress 87 cargo craft. The Roscosmos resupply ship docked to the Zvezda service module’s rear port on Saturday morning delivering almost three tons of food, fuel and supplies to the station crew. Flight Engineer Konstantin Borisov spent his day checking ventilation equipment in the Zarya module then measured the vibrations Zvezda experiences while orbiting Earth.
The Progress 70 cargo craft approaches the Zvezda service module’s rear port for a docking to the International Space Station. Credit: NASA TV
An uncrewed Roscosmos Progress 87 spacecraft arrived at the International Space Station’s aft port of the Zvezda service module at 1:06 a.m. EST, as the orbiting laboratory was 260 miles over the south Pacific Ocean. The spacecraft launched on a Soyuz rocket at 10:25 p.m. EST Wednesday, Feb. 14 (8:25 a.m. Baikonur time) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
Progress is delivering almost three tons of food, fuel and supplies to the International Space Station for the Expedition 70 crew.
The Progress 86 resupply ship is pictured approaching the space station for a docking on Dec. 3, 2023.
NASA+, NASA Television, the agency’s website and the NASA app now are providing live coverage of the docking of a Roscosmos cargo spacecraft to the International Space Station.
The uncrewed Progress 87 launched on a Soyuz rocket at 10:25 p.m. EST Wednesday, Feb. 14 (8:25 a.m. Baikonur time Thursday, Feb. 15) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
