The ISS crew is busy with science and maintenance, studying space’s effects on health while awaiting a crucial resupply mission.
The Progress 90 cargo craft is currently orbiting Earth, en route to resupply the International Space Station (ISS) following its launch on Thursday morning. While awaiting the delivery, the Expedition 72 crew has been conducting research on space immunity and tackling various maintenance tasks, including servicing spacesuits.
Progress Launch and Mission Objectives
The spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 7:22 a.m. on Thursday, beginning its two-day journey to the ISS. Carrying nearly three tons of food, fuel, and other essential supplies, Progress 90 is scheduled to dock automatically with the station’s Poisk module at 9:36 a.m. EST on Saturday. Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner will oversee the spacecraft’s automated approach and docking procedures to ensure everything proceeds smoothly.
Space Biology Research
NASA Flight Engineers Don Pettit and Nick Hague were back on space biology on Thursday continuing to explore how living in space affects inflammation, or how the body responds to injury or infection. The duo imaged the biological samples using specialized luminescence hardware to visualize space-caused inflammatory changes. Insights from the biology study may help researchers protect astronaut health on long-term space missions.
Spacesuit Maintenance and Fire Safety Experiments
NASA Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore replaced experiment samples inside the Combustion Integrated Rack for a fire safety experiment that observes how flames spread in the weightless environment. He also continued servicing a spacesuit that was recently delivered aboard the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft. Wilmore first removed hardware that secured the spacesuit inside Dragon then installed camera and data cables on the suit with assistance from Commander Suni Williams from NASA. Afterward, Wilmore performed standard maintenance emptying and filling water tanks on a pair of spacesuits inside the Quest airlock.
Space Station Hygiene and Equipment Upgrades
Williams spent most of her day inside the Tranquility module removing components from inside the waste and hygiene compartment, the space station’s bathroom. Wilmore assisted Williams as she removed the orbital plumbing gear during a break in his science and spacesuit tasks.
Additional Research and Maintenance Activities
Roscosmos Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov installed Earth observation hardware to obtain visible and near-infrared imagery of natural and human-made changes on the Earth’s surface. Ovchinin spent his day disinfecting the Zvezda service module and cleaning its ventilation systems. Vagner jogged on Zvezda’s treadmill for a fitness evaluation and then tested a 3D printer for its ability to manufacture tools and hardware on the orbital lab.
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