Today, the orbit of the International Space Station was adjusted to support the launch of the Soyuz MS-26 manned spacecraft and the landing of the Soyuz MS-25, scheduled for September 2024.The engines of the Progress MS-28 cargo spacecraft, docked to the Zvezda service module of the Russian segment of the ISS, started at 04:46 Moscow time and, according to preliminary data from the Mission Control Center of the Central Research Institute of Mechanical Engineering (part of the Roscosmos State Corporation), worked for 1075.42 seconds, producing an impulse of 1.95 m/s.As a result, the average altitude of the station's orbit increased by 3.4 km and reached 419.41 km.During the entire flight of the ISS, 364 corrections to the altitude of its orbit were made, 206 of which were made using the engines of the Progress spacecraft.The launch of the Soyuz MS-26 manned spacecraft from the 31st site of the Baikonur Cosmodrome by the Soyuz-2.1a launch vehicle is scheduled for September 11. The main crew of the 72nd long-term expedition to the ISS includes Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexei Ovchinin and Ivan Wagner, and NASA astronaut Donald Pettit. The return to Earth of the Soyuz MS-25 spacecraft with the crew of the 71st long-term expedition — Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub, and NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson — is scheduled for September 23.
11.09.2024 19:23:19 Запуск пилотируемого космического корабля «Союз МС-26» Байконур Союз-2.1а
29 August 09:20-09:55 UTCJ-SSOD#31 1st Deployment from "Kibo": CosmoGirl-Sat, SaganSat0, SAKURA, Wisseed Sat
29 August 11:00-11:30 UTCSmall Satellites 2nd Deployment J-SSOD#31 from "Kibo" (Binar-2, Binar-3, Binar-4)「きぼう」から超小型衛星の放出
Jonathan McDowell @planet4589Seven 1U cubesats deployed from the ISS Kibo airlock using the J-SSOD No. 31 deployer overnight: Sakura, Wisseed, Emma and SaganSat0 at, I estimate, 0945 UTC and Binar-2,3 and 4 at about 1120 UTC. [Does anyone have official times?]
NASA and Boeing concluded a detailed Delta-Flight Test Readiness Review on Thursday, polling “go” to proceed with undocking of the uncrewed Starliner spacecraft no earlier than 6:04 p.m. EDT on Friday, Sept. 6, from the International Space Station, pending weather and operational readiness.After undocking, Starliner will take about six hours to reach the landing zone at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico. The spacecraft will touch down about 12:03 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 7, descending under parachutes and with inflated airbags to cushion the impact. Recovery teams at the landing zone will safe and prepare the spacecraft for a return to Boeing’s Starliner factory at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Over the past week, robotics controllers on Earth remotely commanded the Canadarm2 robotic arm to remove the science packed NanoRacks Bishop airlock from Tranquility. Bishop was then maneuvered toward the Mobile Transporter where it was temporarily installed for experiment transfers. Canadarm2 then retrieved the ArgUS multi-payload carrier from Bishop and installed it on the Columbus laboratory module’s Bartolomeo external science platform. The newly installed radio frequency research hardware will demonstrate advanced satellite communications to improve aerospace systems on Earth and space. Bishop has been returned to Tranquility where it will be repressurized and opened for crew entry on Friday.
In the absence of the live video stream, I've been watching the ISS-Mimic data to follow along with the deployment of the ArgUS payload adapter out to the Bartolomeo platform. What I think they've done so far: - SSRMS removed the Bishop airlock from the port end berthing port on Node 3. - The airlock was handed off to the MBS Payload ORU Accommodations (POA) LEE. - SSRMS picked up Dextre from the Node 2 PDGF.
Now that the video feed is back up, some screenshots from the ongoing ROBO ops:1) Wide shot showing the Bishop airlock on the MBS POA.2) Dextre cam view, with the end CBM on Node 3 (where Bishop was removed from) visible.3) Camera pans up - good view of Endeavour.4) Camera looks into airlock, revealing two ArgUS multi-payload adapters.
More screenshots... - A close-up on the GOLD-2 interface on ArgUS - Preparing to install ArgUS (nadir is towards the top of this image) - Installing ArgUS in slot 5 of the Bartolomeo platformEdit - ArgUS 2-1 is now fully installed.
Continued:5) A view showing the SEN SpaceTV-1 payload (on the right, in the foreground).6) Preparing to install the ArgUS unit in slot 2 on Bartolomeo.7) Installation continues...8 ) Install complete.More detail on the three payloads is available here: https://www.nasa.gov/mission/station/research-explorer/investigation/?#id=9194
NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will launch no earlier than Tuesday, Sept. 24, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission to the International Space Station. NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Stephanie Wilson, previously announced as crewmates, are eligible for reassignment on a future mission.Hague and Gorbunov will fly to the space station as commander and mission specialist, respectively, as part of a two-crew member flight aboard a SpaceX Dragon.The updated crew complement follows NASA’s decision to return the agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test uncrewed and launch Crew-9 with two unoccupied seats. NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who launched aboard the Starliner spacecraft in June, will fly home with Hague and Gorbunov in February 2025.The decision to fly Hague was made by NASA chief astronaut Joe Acaba at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Acaba had to balance flying a NASA crew member with previous spaceflight experience to command the flight, while ensuring NASA maintains an integrated crew with a Roscosmos cosmonaut who can operate their critical systems for continued, safe station operations.“While we’ve changed crew before for a variety of reasons, downsizing crew for this flight was another tough decision to adjust to given that the crew has trained as a crew of four,” said Acaba. “I have the utmost confidence in all our crew, who have been excellent throughout training for the mission. Zena and Stephanie will continue to assist their crewmates ahead of launch, and they exemplify what it means to be a professional astronaut.”The agency will share reassignment details for Cardman and Wilson when available.“I am deeply proud of our entire crew,” said Cardman, “and I am confident Nick and Alex will step into their roles with excellence. All four of us remain dedicated to the success of this mission, and Stephanie and I look forward to flying when the time is right.”Wilson added, “I know Nick and Alex will do a great job with their work aboard the International Space Station as part of Expedition 72.”With 203 days logged in space, this will be Hague’s third launch and second mission to the orbiting laboratory. During his first launch in March 2018, Hague and his crewmate, Roscosmos’ Alexey Ovchinin, experienced a rocket booster failure, resulting in an in-flight, post-launch abort, ballistic re-entry, and safe landing in their Soyuz MS-10 spacecraft. Five months later, Hague launched aboard Soyuz MS-12 and served as a flight engineer aboard the space station during Expeditions 59 and 60. Hague conducted three spacewalks to upgrade space station power systems and install a docking adapter for commercial spacecraft. An active-duty colonel in the U.S. Space Force, Hague completed a developmental rotation at the Defense Department, and served as the Space Force’s director of test and evaluation from 2020 to 2022. In August 2022, Hague resumed duties at NASA, working on the Boeing Starliner Program until this flight assignment. Follow @astrohague on X and Instagram.
During his first mission to the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Jonny Kim will serve as a flight engineer and member of the upcoming Expedition 72/73 crew.Kim will launch on the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft in March 2025, accompanied by Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky. The trio will spend approximately eight months at the space station.While aboard the orbiting laboratory, Kim will conduct scientific investigations and technology demonstrations to help prepare the crew for future space missions and provide benefits to people on Earth.
Friday, September 65:45 p.m. – Coverage of the departure of the uncrewed Boeing Starliner Spacecraft from the International Space Station (undocking scheduled at 6:04 p.m. EDT). Stream on NASA+10:50 p.m. – Coverage of the deorbit of the uncrewed Boeing Starliner Spacecraft and its landing at the White Sands Space Harbor, N.M. (Deorbit burn is scheduled at 11:17 p.m. EDT; landing at White Sands is scheduled at 12:03 a.m. EDT on Sept. 7). Stream on NASA+
I'm sure 420.69 is just a coincidence Katya Pavlushchenko@katlinegrey#ISS orbit correction was performed on September 5 at 19:45 UTC in preparation for the #SoyuzMS25 departure and #SoyuzMS26 arrival. The engines of #ProgressMS28 fired for 781.98 seconds with an impuls of 1.42 m/s and increased the station’s altitude for 2.48 km up to 420.69 km.https://twitter.com/katlinegrey/status/1831806321378910488
William Harwood @cbs_spacenewsCFT Starliner: UNDOCKING! At 6:04pm EDT (2204 UTC) as the two spacecraft passed 260 miles above eastern China
Jonathan McDowell @planet4589Per NASA PAO, Starliner deorbit burn is a 59s burn starting at 0317:13 UTC Sep 7, with a delta-V of 129.9 m/s; it will occur at a range of 90 km from ISS
Jonathan McDowell @planet4589Starliner touchdown at White Sands Missile Range at 0401:35 UTC Sep 7
William Harwood @cbs_spacenewsCFT Starliner: A few more times of interest while we wait for the deorbit burn (all in EDT; UTC-4):11:20:47pm: Service module separation11:45:26pm: Atmospheric entry11:56:25pm: Drogue chute deploy11:57:32pm: Main chute deploy11:58:00pm: Heat shield jettison11:58:32pm: Airbag inflation12:00:53am: Touchdown
CRS SpX-31Launch TimeWed Oct 16, 2024 10:00 GMT...C208 Flight #5
The launch of the Soyuz-2.1a LV with the Soyuz MS-26 manned spacecraft from the 31st platform of the Baikonur Cosmodrome is planned for September 11 at 19:23:12 Moscow time, the ship is to dock with the Rassvet small research module of the Russian segment of the ISS at 22:33 Moscow time. During the 72nd long-term expedition to the ISS with an estimated duration of 202 days, a spacewalk under the Russian program, the arrival of the Progress MS-29 and Progress MS-30 cargo ships, and the conduct of scientific and applied research are planned.
