Expedition 73 thread

[ddspaceman]

Nichole “Vapor” Ayers
@Astro_Ayers
Testing out what I learned from @astro_Pettit. It’s all about planning and timing to get good photos.

Tried my hand at a few aurora time-lapses, and they aren’t too bad! Working on exposures still but happy with the first attempt.

We have the most amazing view, and I hope to share it with you!

#notDonPettit #Itried

https://twitter.com/Astro_Ayers/status/1914794790928994395

[ddspaceman]

大西卓哉 （JAXA宇宙飛行士）Takuya Onishi
@Astro_Onishi
GT:
Dragon supply ship No. 32 arrived just after noon.
Johnny and I monitored the safety of the spacecraft from about 2km relative distance to docking. Unlike the Crew Dragon, the spacecraft is unmanned, so if it deviates from the designated course, we can move the spacecraft back or abort it.

https://twitter.com/Astro_Onishi/status/1914812206232834205

[ddspaceman]

大西卓哉 （JAXA宇宙飛行士）Takuya Onishi
@Astro_Onishi
GT:
The resupply ship is packed tightly, so the order in which things are unloaded is strictly determined, and there is also a lot of stuff on board the ISS, so the unpacking procedures are also precisely determined.
It's similar to the image of a truckload of additional belongings being delivered to a cluttered house.

https://twitter.com/Astro_Onishi/status/1914858271573463047

[ddspaceman]

大西卓哉 （JAXA宇宙飛行士）Takuya Onishi
@Astro_Onishi
GT:
Today, I have a long schedule of work to start culturing the cells for the Cell Gravisensing experiment (commonly known as Cell Gra), which arrived yesterday, but Anne set up the work area perfectly on my behalf since I was in a tight schedule. Thank you 🥺

https://twitter.com/Astro_Onishi/status/1914938870484943284

[ddspaceman]

Seven-Member Expedition 73 Crew Awaits Dragon and Preps for Spacewalk

Mark A. Garcia
April 21, 2025

A cargo-packed SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is orbiting Earth today heading toward the International Space Station for a docking on Tuesday. The Expedition 73 crew prepared on Monday for Dragon’s arrival and also reviewed procedures for an upcoming spacewalk.

Approximately 6,700 pounds of new science experiments and supplies are on the way to the orbital lab following Dragon’s launch at 4:15 a.m. EDT on Monday from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Astronauts Jonny Kim of NASA and Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) will be on duty monitoring Dragon when it automatically docks to the station’s space-facing port on the Harmony module at around 8:20 a.m. on Tuesday live on NASA+. The duo joined NASA Flight Engineers Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers on Monday and studied plans to retrieve critical research investigations for activation and crew food packs and more for stowage aboard the orbital outpost.

McClain and Ayers are also getting ready for a May 1 spacewalk when they will prepare the station for a new rollout solar array and relocate an antenna that communicates with commercial vehicles. The NASA pair reviewed on Monday standard safety procedures, their tool configurations, and the spacewalking maneuvers and paths they will use to access their worksites. They also joined Kim and Onishi and called down to mission controllers at the end of their shift and discussed spacewalk operations. Mission managers will provide an overview of the upcoming spacewalk during a news conference from NASA’s Johnson Space Center at 2 p.m. on Thursday.

Kim earlier set up two student-controlled computers for a European Space Agency educational event. One computer outfitted with a camera was pointed out a window toward Earth for students with intermediate coding skills to remotely capture imagery and accurately calculate the space station’s speed. The second computer was targeted to younger students with beginner coding skills and tested their ability to create pixel-art images on the computer’s LED screen.

Onishi, the station’s commander, started his day recording a video for Japanese students to inspire them as they decide on space-related careers. Next, he conducted leak checks on combustion science hardware then set up the Internal Ball Camera-2 for remote operations, both located inside the Kibo laboratory module. Finally, the two-time space station resident worked inside the Destiny laboratory module adjusting science hardware in the Combustion Integrated Rack.

The orbiting lab’s three cosmonauts took a well-deserved break on Monday following two weeks of Soyuz crew swap activities. Roscosmos Flight Engineers Sergey Ryzhikov and Ivan Vagner have adjusted to life in space after arriving at the station with Jonny Kim on April 8 inside the Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft. Flight Engineer Kirill Peskov has been aboard the station since March 15 arriving with the SpaceX Crew-10 mission and helped his cosmonaut crewmates get oriented to microgravity. Kirill and his crewmates also said goodbye to three Expedition 72 crew members, NASA astronaut Don Pettit and Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner, when they undocked from the station and returned to Earth on April 19 inside the Soyuz MS-26 spacecraft.

https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/spacestation/2025/04/21/seven-member-expedition-73-crew-awaits-dragon-and-preps-for-spacewalk/

[ddspaceman]

Crew Unloads Dragon and Kicks Off New Space Experiments

Mark A. Garcia
April 23, 2025

The Expedition 73 crew is beginning its first full week together unpacking the SpaceX Dragon cargo craft and activating new science experiments. The International Space Station residents are also gearing up for next week’s spacewalk while ensuring the ongoing operations of the orbiting laboratory.

The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft delivered 6,700 pounds of science and supplies to the orbital residents after docking to the Harmony module’s space-facing port at 8:40 a.m. EDT on Tuesday. NASA astronaut Jonny Kim opened Dragon’s hatch shortly afterward and entered to begin unloading critical science experiments for installation and activation.

Commander Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) kicked off the new Cell Gravisensing 3 experiment on Wednesday after removing the research gear from Dragon. He set up the hardware inside the Kibo laboratory module and began treating cell samples in Kibo’s Cell Biology Experiment Facility. The investigation will observe the cells’ molecular mechanisms and measure how the cells respond to microgravity. Results may lead to treatments for space-caused muscle and bone issues as well as similar conditions on Earth.

Kim began his day with NASA Flight Engineer Nichole Ayers removing research samples from inside Dragon’s science freezers and loading them inside space station science freezers. Kim then installed the Biofilms experiment containers in a pair of Kubik incubators in the Columbus laboratory module to begin studying antimicrobial surfaces that may keep spacecraft safe. Next, Kim photographed genetically modified tomato plants for a new space agriculture experiment studying if crops can grow without photosynthesis in space.

Ayers later joined NASA astronaut Anne McClain and configured the cables they will use when they go on a spacewalk planned for May 1. The cables will be used to install a modification kit on the station’s port side truss structure preparing it for a new rollout solar array that will be installed on a future date.

Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky partnered together on Wednesday wearing virtual reality glasses displaying imagery while electrodes measured how their vision, balance, and spatial orientation is adjusting to microgravity. Flight Engineer Kirill Peskov wrapped up a 24-hour session wearing biomedical hardware that measured his heart rate and blood pressure wile he worked and exercised aboard the orbital outpost.

https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/spacestation/2025/04/23/crew-unloads-dragon-and-kicks-off-new-space-experiments/

The SpaceX Dragon cargo craft, with its nosecone open, approaches the International Space Station for an automated docking to the Harmony module’s space-facing port on April 22, 2025.
NASA

[ddspaceman]

NASA's Johnson Space Center
@NASA_Johnson
One spacewalk comin' right up. 🧑‍🚀

NASA is hosting a news conference from Johnson Space Center in Houston tomorrow, April 24, at 2 pm EDT to discuss @Astro_Ayers and @AstroAnnimal's upcoming spacewalk next week. Got questions? Use #AskNASA. Tune in: http://go.nasa.gov/3RqJ6ed

https://twitter.com/NASA_Johnson/status/1915162999658324314

[ddspaceman]

大西卓哉 （JAXA宇宙飛行士）Takuya Onishi
@Astro_Onishi
GT:
The first day of the Cellgra experiment was completed successfully.
Yesterday, I was in charge of changing the culture medium for the cells that had just arrived at the ISS, and then storing them in the cell culture device.
We used a lot of items, but since this was our third experiment, the procedures were well thought out and the experiment went smoothly.

https://twitter.com/Astro_Onishi/status/1915230600815956176

[jacqmans]

MEDIA ADVISORY M25-051

APRIL 23, 2025


NASA Astronaut to Answer Questions from Students in California

Students from Santa Monica, California, will connect with NASA astronaut Jonny Kim as he answers prerecorded science, technology, engineering, and mathematics-related questions aboard the International Space Station.

Watch the 20-minute space-to-Earth call at 12:10 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, April 29, on the NASA STEM YouTube Channel.

Media interested in covering the event must RSVP by 5 p.m., Friday, April 25, to Esmi Careaga at: [email protected] or 805-651-3204 x71582.

The event is hosted by Santa Monica High School, Kim’s alma mater, and includes students from Roosevelt Elementary School and Lincoln Middle School in Santa Monica. The schools hope to inspire students to follow their dreams and explore their passions through curiosity, service, and interest in learning.

For more than 24 years, astronauts have continuously lived and worked aboard the space station, testing technologies, performing science, and developing skills needed to explore farther from Earth. Astronauts aboard the orbiting laboratory communicate with NASA’s Mission Control Center in Houston 24 hours a day through SCaN’s (Space Communications and Navigation) Near Space Network.

Important research and technology investigations taking place aboard the space station benefit people on Earth and lays the groundwork for other agency missions. As part of NASA’s Artemis campaign, the agency will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future human exploration of Mars, inspiring Artemis Generation explorers and ensuring the United States continues to lead in space exploration and discovery.

See videos highlighting space station research at:

https://www.nasa.gov/stemonstation

[Yellowstone10]

ROBO ops appear to be under way to remove the trunk payloads from CRS-32 - Dextre has moved into position above the trunk, and we also have our first view of the payloads from a camera on Dragon.

[Yellowstone10]

Dextre is now grappling STP-H10.

[Yellowstone10]

Removing STP-H10 from the trunk...

[Yellowstone10]

Dextre finished extracting STP-H10 and is now preparing to install it on the Columbus EPF, site SOX.

[Yellowstone10]

Oddly, it looks like they had it sort of lined up - then moved in and it got misaligned (note the position of the spike relative to the socket) - then they had to back off and try again.

[ddspaceman]

Katya Pavlushchenko
@katlinegrey
A planned #ISS orbit correction was performed today at 00:08 UTC. The engines of #ProgressMS30 fired for 639.7 seconds with an impulse of 1.22 m/s. The station’s average orbit altitude was increased by 2.1 km and became 419 km above the Earth.

https://twitter.com/katlinegrey/status/1915267343065788835

[Yellowstone10]

STP-H10 install is complete.

[ddspaceman]

NASA Astronaut to Answer Questions from Students in California

Gerelle Q. Dodson
Apr 23, 2025

Students from Santa Monica, California, will connect with NASA astronaut Jonny Kim as he answers prerecorded science, technology, engineering, and mathematics-related questions aboard the International Space Station.

Watch the 20-minute space-to-Earth call at 12:10 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, April 29, on the NASA STEM YouTube Channel.

Media interested in covering the event must RSVP by 5 p.m., Friday, April 25, to Esmi Careaga at: [email protected] or 805-651-3204 x71582.

The event is hosted by Santa Monica High School, Kim’s alma mater, and includes students from Roosevelt Elementary School and Lincoln Middle School in Santa Monica. The schools hope to inspire students to follow their dreams and explore their passions through curiosity, service, and interest in learning.

For more than 24 years, astronauts have continuously lived and worked aboard the space station, testing technologies, performing science, and developing skills needed to explore farther from Earth. Astronauts aboard the orbiting laboratory communicate with NASA’s Mission Control Center in Houston 24 hours a day through SCaN’s (Space Communications and Navigation) Near Space Network.

Important research and technology investigations taking place aboard the space station benefit people on Earth and lays the groundwork for other agency missions. As part of NASA’s Artemis campaign, the agency will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future human exploration of Mars, inspiring Artemis Generation explorers and ensuring the United States continues to lead in space exploration and discovery.

See videos highlighting space station research at:

https://www.nasa.gov/stemonstation

https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-astronaut-to-answer-questions-from-students-in-california/


NASA astronaut and Expedition 73 Flight Engineer Jonny Kim.
Credit: Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center

[ddspaceman]

Between a Rocket & A Hard Space: Episode 2 with NASA Astronaut Jonny Kim

[ddspaceman]

Crew Studies Advanced Biotech, Preps for Spacewalk as Station Orbits Higher

Mark A. Garcia
April 24, 2025

Biotechnology research exploring DNA-like nanomaterials, microbes, and eye health topped the science schedule aboard the International Space Station on Wednesday. The Expedition 73 crew is also continuing its spacewalk preparations and unpacking the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft.

Scientists are using the orbital outpost’s microgravity environment to advance the manufacturing of DNA-inspired nanomaterials and improve therapies to treat a variety of ailments in space and on Earth. NASA Flight Engineers Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers on Thursday set up hardware in the Kibo laboratory module’s Life Science Glovebox and mixed solutions that will be used to create the synthetic nanomaterials that mimic biochemical processes during research operations planned for Friday. Results may offer the possibility of expanding the commercialization of space and benefit the quality of life for humans living on and off the Earth.

Ayers also scanned the eyes of Commander Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) using standard medical imaging gear to understand the risk of spaceflight on an astronaut’s vision. Researchers are studying why some astronauts are more likely to experience space-caused eye conditions than others and whether it is genetics or a vitamin issue. Onishi also collected hardware and retrieved microbe samples from a science freezer to begin exploring how weightlessness affects microorganisms that decompose organic matter potentially benefitting space agriculture.

Onishi then joined NASA Flight Engineer Jonny Kim and reviewed the procedures they will use to assist McClain and Ayers who are scheduled to exit the orbital outpost for a spacewalk on May 1. Onishi and Kim will help the spacewalkers suit up, guide them in and out of the Quest airlock, and monitor their tasks during the six-and-a-half-hour spacewalk. McClain and Ayers will install a modification kit on the station’s port side truss structure preparing it for a new rollout solar array then relocate an antenna that communicates with visiting vehicles. Kim also continued unpacking some of the 6,700 pounds of science and supplies packed aboard the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft that arrived on Tuesday.

The three cosmonauts aboard the space station took a test on a computer tablet measuring how they are socially adapting to living in space. Veteran cosmonaut Sergey Ryzhikov partnered with first-time space flyers Alexey Zubritsky and Kirill Peskov for the study exploring how international crews communicate with each other and mission controllers from around the world. Results may inform crew selection methods, improve mission training techniques, and benefit inflight support.

The International Space Station is orbiting higher after the Progress 91 resupply ship fired its engines for over ten minutes on Wednesday while docked to the Zvezda service module’s aft port. The reboost places the orbiting laboratory at the correct altitude for the arrival of the Progress 92 cargo craft planned for July.

https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/spacestation/2025/04/24/crew-studies-advanced-biotech-preps-for-spacewalk-as-station-orbits-higher/

Astronaut Nichole Ayers prepares mixture tubes containing research samples for the Nanoracks Module-9 series of student-designed space experiments.
NASA

[ddspaceman]

COL Anne McClain
@AstroAnnimal
Conducting an EVA is a complex operation that requires months of planning, choreographed technical checkouts, individual and group preparation, and distinct checkpoints. In the NASA world, we call this the “road to EVA,” or around here, simply “road to.” One of the events on the “road to” is the on-orbit fitcheck. Did you know we can grow up to 2 inches in space? While that is a pretty cool space fact, it's also a pretty big pain if you are the one responsible for ensuring the suits fit. So, after we have had some time on orbit to grow, we get in our suits and make any needed adjustments. We also take the time to translate around, check out the airlock, and handle tools and tethers – in this video, you will see us crawling around inside. While it is as fun as it looks, it's an important check to ensure we will not encounter issues when we crawl around outside.

This is also a big day for our IVs, the two astronauts who will get us suited up. Their job is intense, as they run multiple procedures, all of which must be done perfectly and on time. @Astro_Onishi is our suit IV for the upcoming EVA – he is like our quarterback in the airlock. He tells us when to arrive, and what to do next. Unlike other activities on Space Station, @Astro_Ayers and I will not be looking at procedures inside the airlock or even when we are outside. We rely on Tak to get us out the door, where we will transition to talking to @astro_berrios in Mission Control during the EVA.

Things to look for in the video: Tak and @JonnyKimUSA double checking one another, Nichole and I seeing if we can reach to fist bump, and @astro_Pettit making an appearance for some group photos.

https://twitter.com/AstroAnnimal/status/1915514678265983036