Soyuz-2.1a - Soyuz MS-27 - 8 April 2025 (05:47 UTC)

[SnowyOwl]

computer running the solar array simulator

AFAICT SAES == Stand-Alone Engine Simulator, indeed made by Rocketdyne

[ddspaceman]

Jonny Kim
@JonnyKimUSA
T+73 (11.8.23): All the emergency procedures astronauts are expected to execute at a moment's notice? For me, that is thanks to these two, Lydia and Emily, awesome instructors and NASA public servants. Lydia and Emily ensured I knew all of the emergency procedures by heart, and that includes everything from donning masks correctly to executing procedures. Lydia later moved on to become my chief training officer and I owe her and the rest of the team so much. They also made great visual theatrics (e.g., fake smoke) for our fire cases!

T+80 (11.15.23): Imagine having to pack for a 6 month camping/field trip. That's kind of what it's like for a long-duration mission. A lot of NASA folks work hard to support the logistics required for a long space flight that you probably wouldn't think about. The smallest details have to be thought out months in advance in order for it to be ready for astronauts when they arrive. Stuff like what astronauts will wear, their toiletries, notebooks, even highlighters. Astronauts make their selections over a year in advance to ensure this stuff is ready on a space delivery vehicle.

https://twitter.com/JonnyKimUSA/status/1898677458750058834

[ddspaceman]

Jonny Kim
@JonnyKimUSA
T+74 (11.9.23): This was the 1st of 9 evaluated NBL runs required to qualify an astronaut as EVA ready before a spaceflight. The syllabus is structured to build on the basics and expose astronauts to enough variability to adapt to any number of unknown spacewalks that may be required, leading to a final evaluation on #5. Runs 6-9 are generally more tailored to prep astronauts for the specific spacewalks that are expected to occur during the expedition.

This run is memorable for me not just for being the 1st run of the assignment, but for getting to work with my E73 crew mate, Anne McClain (@AstroAnnimal), CDR of crew-10. She's been a great mentor and friend, and has set an excellent example on professionalism and competence. I'll be lucky if we get to work together for a spacewalk during our expedition.

T+81 (11.16.23): One of the cooler things we can do on orbit is pilot the Canada arm to capture free-flying vehicles. Will go into more technical details of this in a later post. This particular location is modeled after the cupola section of the ISS since that is where most robotic captures are piloted from.

https://twitter.com/JonnyKimUSA/status/1898687735700873360

[ddspaceman]

Jonny Kim
@JonnyKimUSA
T+82 (11.17.23): Astronauts come in all shapes and sizes. The EMU is comprised of multiple components: gloves, arms, upper and lower torsos, legs, helmets, ring spacers, etc. Each component has different sizes available. Here, Regan is teaching me how to resize the EMU to ensure a good fit for the astronaut going on a spacewalk, and how to inspect each component for safety.

T+134 (1.8.24): After a month in Star City training with my Soyuz MS-27 crew mates, I'm back in Houston.

We stack the chips for success as much as possible and that means rehearsing NBL runs before getting in the water, we call these "1G's." This time, I get to learn from experienced spacewalker, Stan Love.

Afterwards, Regan familiarizes me with the Simplified Aid for EVA rescue (SAFER) and how to operate it. SAFER is basically what people would picture as a "jetpack" that is on the back of astronauts during a spacewalk. In the unlikely event an astronaut is separated from the space station during a spacewalk, SAFER allows an astronaut to pilot themselves back to station using compressed nitrogen as thrust in 6 potential degrees of freedom. More on this later. The hand controller to operate SAFER is tucked away in a compartment that is accessible by manipulating a handle.

https://twitter.com/JonnyKimUSA/status/1898736081601777891

[ddspaceman]

https://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=7042
GT:
Cosmonauts "eliminated" ammonia leak: how did the typical flight day go for the ISS-73 prime crew?
|
March 10, 2025

Pre-flight training of the ISS-73 main and backup crews at the Cosmonaut Training Center has entered the home stretch. On March 7, 2025, Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritsky, and Johnny Kim spent a typical flight day (TFD) on the simulators of the Russian segment of the International Space Station (ISS RS).

TPS is an eight-hour training session that corresponds to a working day on the ISS RS. Everyday life on the station is scheduled in a cyclogram that the cosmonauts receive from Earth, where all actions are specified minute by minute. The crew's work is structured in a similar way during a typical flight day: performing everyday tasks and space experiment programs.

Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky started the "morning" at the "station" by inspecting it and rebooting the onboard computer system. They then participated in a planning conference with the Mission Control Center, in this case, the CPC instructor team.

During the training, the cosmonauts performed various tasks related to servicing the ISS RS systems. For example, they turned on the Electron oxygen supply system and updated the software on one of the station's laptops.

The crew's schedule, as during the actual flight to the ISS, included space experiments (SE). For example, Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky successfully worked out operations on microbiological control of the ISS RS habitat, collecting air samples using a special pump. The cosmonauts also completed a task on remote sensing of the Earth as part of the Scenario and Dubrava space experiments.

The TPS cyclogram includes time for lunch. The station "cooks" it itself, so during such training all crew members must demonstrate to the commission the skills necessary for a "space chef".

After the lunch break, Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritsky and Johnny Kim continued their joint work, recording a TV report on assignment from "Earth".

The cosmonauts interrupted their routine work at the "station" more than once to eliminate emergency situations that were set by their instructors. They mainly concerned violations or failures in the life support systems, and the crew successfully eliminated them.

During a typical flight day, all cosmonauts are given an emergency situation to check the correctness of their actions. This time, at the end of the training, there was a release of ammonia - the most toxic substance on the station, which negatively affects the respiratory system, mucous membranes and human skin.

In liquid form, ammonia is present in the external thermal control circuits of the American segment of the ISS. But in the event of an emergency release of the substance, the atmosphere of the entire station is at risk, and the crew must know the procedure for countering such an emergency.

Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritskiy and Johnny Kim successfully identified and eliminated the introduced abnormal situations, demonstrating an excellent level of interaction and earning a high rating. Comprehensive examination training awaits the main and backup crews of ISS-73. They will take place at the Cosmonaut Training Center on March 12 and 13, 2025.

See video link here: https://rutube.ru/video/77adf466171d0c1243759d4f6d3f5964/?r=plemwd
Cosmonauts "eliminated" ammonia leak: typical flight day for the ISS-73 prime crew

[ddspaceman]

Jonny Kim
@JonnyKimUSA
T+136 (1.10.24): Did you know that the ISS orbits the Earth about every 90 minutes? This has the consequence of experiencing ~16 sunrises and sunsets per day, even during a spacewalk. Half a spacewalk is spent in daylight, the other half in darkness. For those who have worked in the field in low vis conditions, you know that night is a different animal.

A pretty cool training tool the NBL uses to expose this environment is to turn off all the lights in the building. This is no small feat, as there are a lot of people, including divers, that are working in the building to keep operations safe. Here's a short video of the transition between "night" and "day." Shoutout to our amazing NASA team working to bring fidelity to our training.

T+137 (1.11.24): This is Drew and he is part of my awesome EVA task training team (including Miranda and Jenna) familiarizing me with various large EVA tools. There are a lot of tools, some are multifunctional and some have single, specific jobs. Some are also very intense looking.  It's hard to appreciate, but the task board has pressurized lines to mimic the rigidity that an astronaut might encounter on orbit. These rigid, pressurized lines are very difficult to manipulate on the ground, so I can only imagine how hard they are on orbit. Technique >> brute strength for successful mating of these lines.

https://twitter.com/JonnyKimUSA/status/1899474654252708150

[ddspaceman]

cross post

NASA Space Operations
@NASASpaceOps
.@NASA will provide interview opportunities with astronaut Jonny Kim beginning at 9 a.m. EDT, Tuesday, March 18, to highlight his upcoming mission to the @Space_Station in April. The virtual interviews from Star City, Russia, will stream live on NASA+.

Learn more: https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-astronaut-jonny-kim-to-discuss-upcoming-launch-mission/

https://twitter.com/NASASpaceOps/status/1899569548720013460

[ddspaceman]

https://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=7049
GT:
Space session has started: ISS-73 crews have begun comprehensive examination training
|
March 12, 2025

The cosmonauts' comprehensive examination training (ECT) can be compared to state examinations in higher education institutions. This is the most important stage of training at the Cosmonaut Training Center, where the results of all the work are summed up. ECT takes place over two days, on the Soyuz transport manned spacecraft (TPK) simulator and on the simulators of the Russian segment of the International Space Station. The main and backup crews take exams there in turns.

On March 12, 2025, at 8:20 a.m., Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergei Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikayev, as well as NASA astronaut Christopher Williams, the backup crew of ISS-73, began working on the Soyuz spacecraft simulator. Commander Sergei Kud-Sverchkov reported to the members of the examination committee that he was ready to begin training and pulled out a ticket that listed emergency situations that could occur during a "flight" on the ship. But, unlike the students, the crew does not know what tests they will have to face; the instructor team introduces emergency situations during training.

Sergey Kud-Sverchkov has experience of space flight as a flight engineer. This time he has been assigned the role of the ship commander:

"For me, this is a new role and a great responsibility, both for the entire crew, first of all, and for the flight program. In terms of life on the station, I shared all the experience that I gained during the first flight with my crew members. It seems to me that it is the responsibility and duty of every cosmonaut to pass on their experience."

At the same time, only on the ISS RS simulators, the members of the ISS-73 prime crew began the ECT: Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergei Ryzhikov, Alexei Zubritsky and NASA astronaut Johnny Kim. The procedure for passing the exam is similar: the crew chooses a ticket without knowing its content and begins to perform tasks, encountering introduced abnormal situations and parrying them during the training.

Traditionally, before the start of work, the cosmonauts and astronauts answered questions from the media. In the main crew of ISS-73, Alexey Zubritsky and Johnny Kim are to make their first space flight, so the journalists were interested in how commander Sergey Ryzhikov assessed their level of training:

"Everyone has gone through this stage at some point, and I am no exception. And, of course, the first training is more exciting, so you approach it more responsibly in terms of personal readiness. The guys are at their best, and so I have no doubts not only about the successful completion of the training, but also the flight itself."

In turn, Alexey Zubritsky and Johnny Kim talked about what gives them confidence before the exam.

"I think it's intensive training, first as part of the backup crew, then as part of the main crew. That's why we go to the exams with confidence and are ready to show everything that the instructors and teachers taught us," said Alexey Zubritsky.

“Each of us is a professional and we are accustomed to working in such conditions, but the answer to this question is actually that we are all great friends,” shared Johnny Kim.

The media representatives were interested in the question of how identical the Center's training base is to the spacecraft and the Russian segment of the ISS. A comprehensive answer was given by the cosmonaut, who has experience of 5 space flights and the commander of the detachment Oleg Kononenko.

“When you board a real ship, which is installed on a real rocket, the boarding committee closes the hatch behind you, you feel a little nervous: you can hear the valves knocking, the rocket rocking, but after about five minutes you get the feeling that you are in a simulator, because our simulators have a very high degree of similarity. The same with the ISS RS: when you arrive, you have an image of the station in your head. And when the hatch opens, you fly in, you understand where is up, where is down, what is on the left, what is on the right. Of course, it takes time to adapt, but there is no confusion, of course,” said Oleg Kononenko.

The examination complex training for the main and backup crews will last the entire working day.

Video link here: https://rutube.ru/video/0321ce1b34df83ebf69427f9d981e420/?r=plemwd
Cosmonaut detachment commander Oleg Kononenko answered journalists' questions

[ddspaceman]

https://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=7050
GT:
Two excellent marks: results of the first day of examination complex training of the ISS-73 prime crew and their backups
|
March 12, 2025

At the start of the examination complex training (ECT), the members of the main crew, cosmonauts Sergei Ryzhikov and Alexei Zubritsky, inspected the "station" where they were to spend the working day and held a conference with Earth. In real space flight conditions, this is how every morning on the ISS begins.

Then the cosmonauts began to perform other tasks prescribed in the cyclogram. Every day on board they will have to perform scientific experiments, if necessary, do repairs, install equipment, take photos and videos.

During the training, Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky performed various tasks related to servicing the ISS RS systems. For example, they turned on the Electron oxygen supply system and updated the software on one of the station's laptops.

Among the tasks on the EKT, the cosmonauts had to work on monitoring the microsphere of the habitat. Sergey Ryzhikov also carried out the space experiment (SE) "Scenario" to observe and photograph the earth's surface. Alexey Zubritsky carried out the SE "Dubrava" - monitoring forest areas from the ISS using visual and instrumental observations. In addition, the cosmonaut demonstrated his skills in working with a “photobioreactor” – equipment that studies the impact of microgravity conditions on the cultivation of spirulina algae.

During the ECT, Johnny Kim demonstrated to the examination committee the everyday skills of living on the Russian segment of the station: turning on the lights, preparing and heating up lunch, using the toilet, working with the formats of the Russian control laptop and with the hatches of the ISS RS.

After lunch, the cosmonauts and astronaut recorded a joint TV report and transmitted it to Earth.

In addition to the regular work, the crew dealt with various emergency situations throughout the working day. First, the connection between the Russian and American segments of the ISS was lost, but the cosmonauts recognized the problem in time. Then the Electron oxygen supply system was switched off. The onboard computer network also failed, and the toilet broke down.

And in the final exam on the Russian segment of the ISS, the instructors assigned an emergency situation - an ammonia release on the American segment of the ISS. In a liquid state, this gaseous substance is present in the external thermal control circuits of the ISS AS. But in the event of an emergency release, the atmosphere of the entire station is at risk, and the crew must know the procedure for countering such an emergency.

Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritskiy and Johnny Kim successfully identified and eliminated the introduced abnormal situations, demonstrating an excellent level of interaction and earning a high rating of 5:0.

In parallel, the backup crew of ISS-73, consisting of Sergei Kud-Sverchkov, Sergei Mikayev and Christopher Williams, performed ECT on the Soyuz manned transport spacecraft simulator. The crew drew a ticket, according to which they performed a two-orbit scheme of the TPK approach to the International Space Station, with a transition to a two-day scheme upon instructions from Earth.

The ticket also prescribed manual docking to the station in the RODK - manual orientation occurs in a discrete circuit, and then it was necessary to perform undocking, the ISS standby orientation and the standard descent.

During the ship's "flight" to the ISS and on the "return trip," the crew dealt with emergency situations. For example, the cosmonauts discovered a leak in the oxygen line in the descent vehicle (DV) with a leak inside the DV along the ascent contact. During the start of the communication session on the second orbit, the main acoustics unit, which is responsible for communication with the Mission Control Center in the main communication unit, failed.

Then they encountered a dynamic uncontrollability - an accident during the stage of the ship's approach to the station, in which, on instructions from Earth, the crew switches to manual mode for docking.

During the "descent", the computer system failed, and the cosmonauts issued commands to control the ship manually. Also, during the "descent" stage, the SKD engine thrust was reduced by 60%. The SKD is the main engine, so in the event of insufficient thrust, it is necessary to switch to the backup option for processing the impulse on the docking and orientation engines. Further actions during the descent are performed by the crew manually.

Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, Sergey Mikaev and Christopher Williams successfully dealt with all emergency situations, demonstrated real teamwork to the examination committee and received an excellent grade.

Tomorrow, the ECT of the main and backup crews of ISS-73 will continue. Cosmonauts and astronauts will "swap places": Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritsky and Johnny Kim will take the exam on the simulator of the Soyuz transport manned spacecraft, and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, Sergey Mikayev and Christopher Williams will demonstrate their skills and abilities on the simulators of the Russian segment of the ISS.

Video link here: https://rutube.ru/video/af70d93e1f6933ac10fbd4b45d23d98c/?r=plemwd
Space session has started: ISS-73 crews have begun comprehensive examination training

[ddspaceman]

https://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=7048
GT:
The second day of the session has begun: the main and backup crews of ISS-73 are again undergoing comprehensive examination training
|
March 13, 2025

Today, March 13, 2025, Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritsky and Johnny Kim (ISS-73 prime crew) demonstrate their ability to control a manned transport spacecraft on the Soyuz spacecraft simulator, and their backups Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, Sergey Mikayev and Christopher Williams will work all day on the simulators of the Russian segment of the International Space Station.

During the examination complex training (ECT), the results of the pre-flight training of the crews at the Cosmonaut Training Center are summarized, their readiness for a long-term space expedition and the level of interaction in solving the assigned tasks are assessed.

The procedure for conducting the EKT is similar to what the crews went through the day before: a report from the examination committee, drawing a ticket, and a press approach before starting work. The media representatives were interested in how the first day of training went and the grades received (let us recall that both crews passed the EKT yesterday with flying colors).

Journalists asked whether the cosmonauts exchanged impressions, and whether there was a possibility of "pulling out" a similar examination ticket. The commander of the backup crew, Sergei Kud-Sverchkov, answered this question:

"The point of the ECT is to check the crew's actions in all possible cases, so it is unlikely that there will be any similar abnormal situations. Our task today is to live a working day at the "station", performing standard work, station maintenance work, scientific experiments. But during training, various system failures occur that the crew must cope with. Anything can fail, we must be prepared for everything, including emergency situations that can be life-threatening."

Journalists asked the commander of the main crew, Sergei Ryzhikov, to tell about the meaning behind the crew's emblem.

"The round emblem symbolizes the Earth and the Universe, the perfection of all that has been created. We see the trees that surround us. The dominant feature is the light source. And since we started the preparation last year – it was the Year of Family and Fidelity, a daisy appeared, which symbolizes this,” said Sergey Ryzhikov.

After talking to the media, the crews began EKT: standard work, as well as the elimination of emergency situations.

[ddspaceman]

A few more photos from the above source:

[ddspaceman]

https://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=7051
GT:
Straight A students: ISS-73 main and backup crews successfully completed comprehensive examination training
|
March 13, 2025

The second day of the space session of the ISS-73 prime crew was held on the Soyuz manned transport spacecraft simulator. Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritsky and Johnny Kim drew an examination ticket, which outlined the task: to perform a two-orbit approach of the spacecraft to the International Space Station.

After the TPK was launched into orbit, an abnormal situation occurred - the main VHF transmitter failed, i.e. there were problems with communication. Then, at the docking stage, the orientation docking engine sensors failed. For this reason, the cosmonauts docked the ship to the "station" manually.

After lunch, the crew began the "return" to Earth. During the undocking of the TPK from the station, the descent vehicle became depressurized. For this reason, the crew was forced to begin an emergency descent. Then, the orientation sensors failed, and the crew performed it manually.

Then, a minute before the SKD (main) engine was turned on, the angular velocity measurement unit used during descent failed to operate, and the cosmonauts also turned it on manually. And during the impulse processing, this engine failed, which led to the transition to impulse processing on the docking and orientation engines.

Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritsky and Johnny Kim successfully dealt with all emergency situations, “returned” the ship to Earth and received an excellent grade from the examination committee.

"All tasks in the examination training have been completed," crew commander Sergei Ryzhikov reported to the examination committee. "The crew's interaction was excellent. We will work in the same way during the flight on the ship and at the station," added Alexei Zubritsky. "Thank you for the preparation!" Johnny Kim thanked.

While the main crew of ISS-73 demonstrated to the examination committee their skills in operating a manned transport spacecraft, the backups spent the working day at the “station” – the simulators of the Russian segment of the ISS.

The morning for Sergei Kud-Sverchkov, Sergei Mikayev and Christopher Williams began as usual. The cosmonauts inspected the station and rebooted all laptops, tested the alarm consoles – all these operations the crew performs daily during a real flight on board.

Then, during the ECT, a daily planning conference was held, after which the crew began standard operations at the "station" and experiments. For example, Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergey Mikayev completed a task on remote sensing of the Earth, and conducted control of the microsphere of the habitat.

Christopher Williams demonstrated to the examination committee his level of knowledge of the ISS RS, where and what life support systems are located and how to use them: he turned on the lighting, took out and heated up food, opened and closed hatches, etc. And after lunch, the astronaut, together with his Russian colleagues, recorded a television report on assignment from the Mission Control Center (this role was performed by instructors).

The backup crew had some emergency situations during their work, which were indicated in the examination ticket. First, the connection between the Russian and American segments of the ISS was lost, but the crew was able to restore it. Second, there were problems with the Electron oxygen supply system – the cosmonauts had to disconnect the power from the system and reset the emergency indicators. Thirdly, the laptop lost connection with the BRI, i.e. there was a failure in the internal computer network on the Russian segment. There were also problems with the toilet at the station due to the urine tank filling up.

The examination ticket also included a written emergency situation: an ammonia release was recorded on the American segment of the ISS.

"It's quite a rare case - the backup crew pulled out the same emergency situation in the ticket as the main one. For the examination committee, this was an additional opportunity to check and compare the actions of both crews in the same emergency situation," said the head of the department Andrey Malikov.

Having received a signal from Earth, the crew put on emergency masks. In such a situation, it is important to determine the concentration of this gas and, depending on this, either clear the atmosphere on the station or, putting on gas masks, go into the ship.

The backup crew, consisting of Sergei Kud-Sverchkov, Sergei Mikaev and Christopher Williams, successfully recognized and countered the introduced abnormal situations, demonstrated an excellent level of interaction to the examination committee and earned a high rating.

[ddspaceman]

A few more photos from the above source:

[ddspaceman]

Jonny Kim
@JonnyKimUSA
T+138 (1.12.24): As mentioned before, the SAFER can be used to pilot an astronaut in an emergency back to the ISS in the highly unlikely event they become untethered from station (would require independent mechanical and procedural errors so really unlikely). I find the handling controls to achieve this fascinating. The hand controller module (HCM) has two modes, with each mode controlling 4 of the 6 degrees of freedom (DOF). What are the 6 DOFs? It's a representation of movement through 3d space by either moving linearly (X, Y, Z) or rotating axially (Pitch, Yaw, Roll). If you play a first person video game, you are controlling 5 of the 6 DOFs without probably even thinking about it (WASD keys do the X,Y,Z translations while the mouse controls pitch/yaw).

One HCM mode is for translational control, moving in the X, Y and Z planes plus pitch (in other words, straight forward, backward, right, left, up and down). The other mode is for rotational control, allowing motion for pitch, yaw, roll plus X. There's also a button, auto attitude hold (AAH) that is super important. What it does is nullify all rotational motion. Remember Newton's 1st law (an object at rest remains at rest and an object in motion remains in motion at a constant velocity unless acted on by an external force)? Say I'm accidentally removed from station, and I am spinning with an initial rotational velocity in all 3 axes (pitch/yaw/roll), then I need to introduce an acceleration in the opposite directions to stop spinning. The AAH button allows the SAFER to understand its rotational velocity and introduce the thrust in the opposite direction to stop that motion. In our VR piloting exercises, we setup an artificial situation where we get forcefully removed from station, at which point we have to enable the HCM and pilot back to the ISS. Our flight paths are captured to show how efficient and accurate we were. There is only enough compressed gas for one shot - if you miss, it's not good.

Attached pictures show the flight path of a "good" flight path and a "mediocre" one where I completed the objective, but took a bit of a sportier path. The technique to save yourself is all based in vector math, which I'll explain in a later post.

correction, most 1st person games only control 4 DOFs, since WASD doesn't usually control the Z axis.

T+141-173 (1.15-2.16.24): Second major trip in Star City, learning to work in the Soyuz as a flight engineer. One of the highlights of the trip was getting to work closely with my NASA backup and building relationships with our Russian colleagues. We particularly enjoyed our winter survival training, learning from our instructors how to survive off the land in a harsh environment until help arrives should the need arise.

https://twitter.com/JonnyKimUSA/status/1901550052415242303

[ddspaceman]

Jonny Kim
@JonnyKimUSA
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention one of the highlights of the training was discovering my love for Tvorog, which is a component of the Russian food survival kit, basically a Russian version of the MRE. Never had it before, hard to describe, but so delicious.

T+183 (2.26.24): No "i" in team. So much of what we do is support each other. Which is why we train so much in helping each other suit up before an EVA. When we say we put our lives in each other's hands, we mean it. That means being meticulous with each connection, following checklists, and backing each other up.

https://twitter.com/JonnyKimUSA/status/1901556291408920678

[ddspaceman]

Jonny Kim
@JonnyKimUSA
T+192 (3.6.24): Strength training is required for astronauts to fight bone loss and muscle atrophy in space. Leading up to a spaceflight, we have a dedicated astronaut strength, conditioning & rehabilitation coach (ASCR) to teach us how to use our on-orbit resistive device, ARED, and ensure we're following an optimized strength routine. Most of the exercises are compound movements, though we also do isolation exercises too. The squat is probably the most common and famous compound exercise on Earth, as it is on orbit.

Did you know that ARED uses two vacuum cylinders with pistons as the source of constant resistance? This constant resistive load can be changed from 50-600 pounds by adjusting the length of the lever arm. If you're having trouble imagining the source of resistance, pretend you have a small syringe, then push the plunger and cover the opening tip with your finger. If you pull back on the plunger, you will feel resistance because of the vacuum you created. Now attach that plunger to a complex series of lever arms and you have ARED. This is a major simplification of clever engineering but it captures the main concept.

T+194 (3.8.24): From one classroom to another. For run #3, I had the pleasure of working with and learning from Mike Fincke. Mike is one of the few US astronauts that has real EVA experience in both the US and Russian spacesuits.

https://twitter.com/JonnyKimUSA/status/1901579325373030881

[ddspaceman]

Jonny Kim
@JonnyKimUSA
T+194 (3.8.24): But the highlight of the day was getting suited up by none other than my classmate and friend, Zena, who I hope to see up on the ISS soon. Also a shoutout to my two EVA systems instructors, Regan and Christian!

T+197 (3.11.24): This contraption is called POGO (partial gravity simulator) and helps us appreciate the importance of body position and countering forces during a spacewalk. In a previous post, I talked about the importance of Newton's 3rd law and this is our practical way of understanding how that affects us. As you can see, takes a village of instructors and engineers to train astronauts for flight.

https://twitter.com/JonnyKimUSA/status/1901587076467900789

[ddspaceman]

https://www.gctc.ru/main.php?id=7059
GT:
From the use of artificial intelligence in spacesuits to food on the ISS: ISS-73 crews answered questions from journalists and subscribers
| Crews
March 18, 2025

Today, March 18, 2025, a pre-flight press conference of the ISS-73 main and backup crews was held at the Cosmonaut Training Center. Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritsky, Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergey Mikayev, as well as Jonathan Kim and Christopher Williams answered questions from professional journalists, readers and subscribers of our social media channels.

The press conference of cosmonauts and astronauts coincided with a significant date in the history of cosmonautics – the 60th anniversary of the first manned spacewalk. This feat was accomplished by cosmonaut Alexei Leonov. Therefore, on such a day, the first question from journalists concerned the extravehicular activity program that awaits the main crew of ISS-73.

"Our expedition has two spacewalks planned. And they are both connected with the long-awaited scientific program in terms of installing equipment for space experiments on the outer surface of the Russian segment of the ISS," said Sergei Ryzhikov.

Alexey Zubritsky continued the topic of scientific work at the station. He explained that more than 40 experiments are planned for the duration of their expedition: "These are various experiments within the framework of biotechnological and astrophysical research, research of the Earth from space. We were well prepared at the Cosmonaut Training Center, and we are ready to work productively. We hope that the scientists will get a decent result, the necessary amount of information, which they will then be able to process and use for further space exploration."

In addition to scientific activities, the cosmonauts on board are engaged in educational work: they talk about everyday work, daily life on the station, and share with earthlings photographs of our planet from a cosmic height. For several years now, there has been a tradition - one of the crew members is hired as a correspondent for the TASS news agency. Alexey Zubritsky will be the space blogger in the ISS-73 expedition. He was presented with a certificate by Hero of Russia, Russian pilot-cosmonaut, and commander of the cosmonaut corps Oleg Kononenko:

“I want to say that the TASS news agency was the first of the world’s media outlets to open its permanent office at the International Space Station. A large number of people were given the opportunity to receive information about work in space, about scientific research, about the specifics of space flight directly from the participants – Roscosmos cosmonauts. "And I myself was such during my space flight. Alexey, you have been given the great honor of informing the readers of the state information agency about the work of your crew in space, and I want to wish you truthful, objective and very interesting reports," said Oleg Kononenko.

It so happened that on the day of the press conference, Alexey Zubritsky became the owner of another important document. The international cosmonaut certificate of the Russian Cosmonaut Federation, number 160, was handed over by FAI sports commissioner Nikolay Bodin. The last pages of the document, in five languages, set out a request to provide assistance to the cosmonaut in various situations.

"Alexei Vitalyevich will take this cosmonaut certificate with him on his first space flight, and he will take it on his subsequent space flights. In accordance with the established tradition, he will put the appropriate onboard stamps in it on board the ISS. And in conclusion, I would like to say a parting word, which we always say to you: 450 kilometers under the side of your ship!” Nikolai Bodin wished the cosmonauts.

The Center's press secretary Irina Rogova asked the crews several questions from our readers and subscribers on social networks. The backup crew commander Sergei Kud-Sverchkov answered Marina Ostapenko's question about whether it is possible to implement the Internet of Things technology to create a smart spacesuit:

“Modern technologies, including artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things, are increasingly entering our lives, and everything is moving towards making human life easier. But from the point of view of the space industry, we rely, first of all, on reliability and safety, so I think that over time, when all the technologies that are just entering our lives prove their effectiveness in terms of reliability and safety for humans, then I think they will be applied - it's a matter of time."

Sergey Mikayev answered a question from twelve-year-old Makar Leonov from Orenburg. The boy wants to become an astronaut in the future and is interested in what steps can be taken in childhood?

"Being interested in cosmonautics at such an age is already a big step for our profession. Now, of course, a young person needs to study, be interested in space and not give up on their hopes of becoming an astronaut. First of all, focus on education, sports and take care of their health," Sergey shared his opinion.

In the year of the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War, this topic could not fail to be heard at the press conference of the crew, who will celebrate this significant holiday in orbit.

“It was thanks to the victory in the Great Patriotic War, the feat that our grandfathers accomplished, that there was an opportunity to realize centuries-old human aspirations for the stars, for the sky, for space flights. For me, this is such an internal, powerful spiritual connection, which is not only gratitude, a deep bow, an awareness of the greatness of that feat, those people, that era that guides us on our life’s path,” said crew commander Sergei Ryzhikov.

"We have personal polo shirts that will be delivered to the station, and several of these shirts are made in the style of the 80th anniversary of the Victory, dedicated to this memorable date. I hope that we will celebrate this solemn day of May 9 in these shirts," Alexey Zubritsky supported the commander.

After the press conference, the main and backup crews of ISS-73 visited memorial sites associated with the history of Russian cosmonautics.

[ddspaceman]

A few more photos from above source.

[ddspaceman]

A few more photos from above source.