The workweek wrapped up with the Expedition 68 crew engaged on botany and physics {hardware} aboard the Worldwide Area Station. Spacesuit upkeep remains to be continuing because the astronauts and cosmonauts proceed getting ready for extra spacewalks earlier than the tip of the 12 months.
Rising recent meals off the Earth is a key mission goal as NASA and its worldwide companions plan longer human missions to the Moon, Mars, and past. NASA Flight Engineer Josh Cassada spent all day on Friday configuring {hardware} and putting in elements on the Veggie house botany facility positioned within the Columbus laboratory module. Quickly the plant development unit will host a small crop of dwarf tomatoes rising for the Veg-05 examine investigating methods to keep up a steady fresh-food manufacturing system in house.
NASA Flight Engineer Frank Rubio was working within the Microgravity Science Glovebox on the finish of the day exchanging samples for a fluid physics examine. The investigation explores the coarsening and coalescence of foams in weightlessness with potential purposes for the firefighting, petroleum, and drugs industries amongst others.
Flight Engineer Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Company (JAXA) took turns with Rubio on Friday amassing blood and urine samples, processing them, then stowing them in science freezers for later examination. Wakata additionally cleaned and serviced elements contained in the Electrostatic Levitation Furnace, an experimental facility that allows protected analysis of excessive temperature physics above 2,000 levels Celsius.
A number of extra spacewalks are scheduled earlier than the tip of the 12 months. The primary is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 14, and a second for Dec. 19. Each spacewalks might be broadcast stay on NASA TV, on the company’s app and web site.
NASA Flight Engineer Nicole Mann was again on spacesuit responsibility on Friday eradicating and changing life help elements contained in the Extravehicular Mobility Items, or EMUs. She later eliminated a small satellite tv for pc deployer from contained in the Kibo laboratory module’s airlock.
Commander Sergey Prokopyev and Flight Engineer Dmitri Petelin partnered as soon as once more checking their Orlan spacesuits for leaks and reviewing procedures for the Dec. 14 spacewalk. The duo additionally took turns understanding on the station’s train bike whereas connected to sensors for a health analysis. Flight Engineer Anna Kikina wrapped up her week transferring water and repressurizing nitrogen from the docked ISS Progress 82 resupply ship to tanks aboard the house station.
Be taught extra about station actions by following the house station weblog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on Twitter, in addition to the ISS Fb and ISS Instagram accounts.
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