Category Archives: In Space Infrastructure

In Space Infrastructure, Living in Space, Space Policy

Videos: “Space to Ground” & other space habitat reports – Mar.26.2023

Here is the latest episode in NASA’s Space to Ground weekly report on activities related to the International Space Station:

** Expedition 68 Astronaut Steve Bowen Talks with NPR’s “All Things Considered” – March 20, 2023 – NASA Video

Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 68 Flight Engineer Stephen Bowen of NASA discussed life and work aboard the orbital outpost during an in-flight interview March 20 with WGBH Boston’s “All Things Considered” program. Bowen is in the midst of a long-duration mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions. Such research benefits people on Earth and lays the groundwork for future human exploration through the agency’s Artemis missions, which will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future expeditions to Mars.

** Expedition 68 Astronaut Sultan Alneyadi Answers Dubai Student, Public Questions – March 21, 2023 – NASA Video

Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 68 flight engineer Sultan Alneyadi of UAE (United Arab Emirates) discussed living and working in space during an in-flight interview March 21 with Emirati media. Alneyadi launched on March 2 on the SpaceX Crew Dragon “Endeavour” as part of Crew-6 which is a science mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions.

** LIFE Habitat | Sierra Space Successfully Completes Month Long Creep Test – Sierra Space

Sierra Space has successfully performed a month-long Accelerated Systematic Creep (ASC) test on LIFE – the first milestone in its 2023 testing campaign.

Engineers loaded a one-third-scale version of the inflatable habitat with a sustained amount of pressure over an extended period until it failed.

The campaign demonstrated that the LIFE habitat pressure shell design has a predicted life of far greater than 60 years – or 525,600 hours – based on Sierra Space’s 15-year on-orbit life requirement and the applied 4x safety factor.

The next series of one-third-scale LIFE certification tests will focus on inserting hard structures into the pressure shell and correlating the results to previous tests. Sierra Space anticipates moving toward full-scale LIFE habitat tests later this year.

Thanks to a recently signed Space Act Agreement with NASA, Sierra Space will expand its collaborative environment with Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), in Huntsville, Ala., to continue critical work on LIFE. Alabama is the seventh location across the nation where Sierra Space operates facilities, joining Colorado, Florida, North Carolina, Texas, Wisconsin and Washington, D.C.

Press Release: https://www.sierraspace.com/newsroom/…

** Live Video from the International Space Station (Official NASA Stream) – NASA

Watch live video from the International Space Station, including inside views when the crew aboard the space station is on duty. Views of Earth are also streamed from an external camera located outside of the space station. During periods of signal loss due to handover between communications satellites, a blue screen is displayed.

The space station orbits Earth about 250 miles (425 kilometers) above the surface. An international partnership of five space agencies from 15 countries operates the station, and it has been continuously occupied since November 2000. It’s a microgravity laboratory where science, research, and human innovation make way for new technologies and research breakthroughs not possible on Earth. More: https://go.nasa.gov/3CkVtC8

Did you know you can spot the station without a telescope? It looks like a fast-moving star, but you have to know when to look up. Sign up for text messages or email alerts to let you know when (and where) to spot the station and wave to the crew: https://spotthestation.nasa.gov

** See also:

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Outpost in Orbit:
A Pictorial & Verbal History of the Space Station

In Space Infrastructure, Living in Space, Space Systems

Videos: “Space to Ground” & other space habitat reports – Mar.17.2023

Here is the latest episode in NASA’s Space to Ground weekly report on activities related to the International Space Station:

** Expedition 68 SpaceX Dragon CRS-27 Cargo Ship Space Station Docking – March 16, 2023 – NASA Video

Loaded with scientific experiments and supplies, the unpiloted SpaceX CRS-27 cargo ship automatically docked to the International Space Station’s forward port of the Harmony module March 16. The SpaceX resupply craft launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida March 14 with several tons of experiments and hardware on board and will remain on orbit for a month-long visit.

** Homecoming | Down to Earth – S2:E8 – NASA Johnson

In the final episode featuring astronaut Victor Glover and his daughter, Corinne, they discuss the excitement of returning to Earth from an extended mission on the International Space Station.

** China Wants to Expand its Space Station – Dongfang Hour

A 4th Space Station module? In this episode, we uncover China’s plans to expand the Tiangong Space Station, combining the past and current statements from space industry officials, hints in space station animations, and known characteristics of the current space station models.

** ISS Live video stream – IBM/ISS HD Earth Viewing Experiment

Currently, live views from the ISS are streaming from an external camera mounted on the ISS module called Node 2. Node 2 is located on the forward part of the ISS. The camera is looking forward at an angle so that the International Docking Adapter 2 (IDA2) is visible. If the Node 2 camera is not available due to operational considerations for a longer period of time, a continuous loop of recorded HDEV imagery will be displayed. The loop will have “Previously Recorded” on the image to distinguish it from the live stream from the Node 2 camera. After HDEV stopped sending any data on July 18, 2019, it was declared, on August 22, 2019, to have reached its end of life. Thank You to all who shared in experiencing and using the HDEV views of Earth from the ISS to make HDEV so much more than a Technology Demonstration Payload!

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Outpost in Orbit:
A Pictorial & Verbal History of the Space Station

In Space Infrastructure, Living in Space, Space Systems

Videos: “Space to Ground” & other space habitat reports – Mar.13.2023

Here is the latest episode in NASA’s Space to Ground weekly report on activities related to the International Space Station:

** NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5: A Scientific Mission – NASA

From growing tomatoes to studying cosmic rays to observing quantum mechanics, the four crew members of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission contributed to more than 100 scientific investigations and technology demonstrations during their five months aboard the International Space Station. These experiments help prepare humans for future space exploration missions while bringing benefits for humanity back to Earth.

Learn more about the science of Crew-5 as our astronauts get ready to head home: https://go.nasa.gov/3T2gbgw

** Expedition 68 NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 Space Station Farewell Remarks – March 8, 2023 – NASA Video

NASA astronauts Frank Rubio, Nicole Mann, Josh Cassada, Stephen Bowen, and Woody Hoburg, as well as JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata, UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, and Roscosmos cosmonauts Andrey Fedyaev, Sergey Prokopyev, Dimitri Petelin, and Anna Kikina gave remarks on March 8 aboard the International Space Station in anticipation of the upcoming departure of the Crew-5 mission. Mann, Cassada, Wakata, and Kikina, crew members of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5, are headed home wrapping up their long-duration mission on the orbital outpost.

** NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 Flight Day 3 Highlights – NASA Video

Aboard the International Space Station, NASA astronauts Josh Cassada and Nicole Mann, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina began their journey back to Earth on Saturday, March 11. SpaceX Crew Dragon Endurance closed its hatches and autonomously undocked shortly after at 2:05 a.m. EST. NASA and SpaceX are targeting 9:19 p.m. EST Saturday for a splashdown that will wrap up a nearly six-month science mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration flights as part of NASA’s Moon and Mars exploration approach, including lunar missions through NASA’s Artemis program.

** Students from the Caribbean and Central America Speak to the International Space Station – NASA Johnson

During this event, students from the Caribbean and Central America had the opportunity to speak with Astronaut Josh Cassada to learn about natural disaster research and monitoring, as seen from the unique perspective of the International Space Station. More than 400 questions were submitted by schools in the region. The selected questions were related to climate change and monitoring hazard events such as hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, and coastal erosion.

Learn more about the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program at https://www.ariss.org/.

** UAE VP calls space station to talk to SpaceX Crew-6 astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi – VideoFromSpace

His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum from the United Arab Emirates called the International Space Station to talk to UAE astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi. AlNeyadi recently arrived at the orbital laboratory as part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-6 mission. Full Story: https://www.space.com/united-arab-emi…

** SpaceX CRS-27 mission to space station – Science payloads explained – VideoFromSpace

Learn what science payloads are being shipped aboard Cargo Dragon to the International Space Station on the SpaceX CRS-27 mission. See the CRS-26 launch: https://www.space.com/spacex-launch-c…

** SpaceX CRS-27 Research Overview; Cardinal Heart 2.0 – ISS National Lab – YouTube 

Researchers from Stanford University are launching a new series of tissue chip investigations to the space station to evaluate heart cells and test new therapeutics for improving the quality of life of patients on Earth and beyond. Learn more about this investigation!

** China’s Two-photon Microscope Captures Cell Images of Astronauts in Orbit – CCTV Video News Agency

The Chinese astronauts aboard the Shenzhou-15 have successfully obtained the three-dimensional structural images of their skin cells with the country’s self-developed two-photon microscope, a recent video released by the China Manned Space Agency showed.

** Live Video from the International Space Station (Official NASA Stream) – NASA

Watch live video from the International Space Station, including inside views when the crew aboard the space station is on duty. Views of Earth are also streamed from an external camera located outside of the space station. During periods of signal loss due to handover between communications satellites, a blue screen is displayed.

The space station orbits Earth about 250 miles (425 kilometers) above the surface. An international partnership of five space agencies from 15 countries operates the station, and it has been continuously occupied since November 2000. It’s a microgravity laboratory where science, research, and human innovation make way for new technologies and research breakthroughs not possible on Earth. More: https://go.nasa.gov/3CkVtC8

Did you know you can spot the station without a telescope? It looks like a fast-moving star, but you have to know when to look up. Sign up for text messages or email alerts to let you know when (and where) to spot the station and wave to the crew: https://spotthestation.nasa.gov

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Outpost in Orbit:
A Pictorial & Verbal History of the Space Station

In Space Infrastructure, Living in Space, Space Systems

Videos: “Space to Ground” & other space habitat reports – Mar.5.2023

Here is the latest episode in NASA’s Space to Ground weekly report on activities related to the International Space Station:

** NASA’s SpaceX Crew-6 Flight Day 2 Highlights – NASA Video

NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Warren Hoburg, UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev docked to the zenith port of the Harmony module of the International Space Station March 3 following a launch the day before on the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft aboard a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Following docking, the quartet opened the hatch and floated onboard the orbital outpost before providing welcoming remarks as their mission aboard the space station began. The four crew members will conduct a long-duration science mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions. Such research benefits people on Earth and lays the groundwork for future human exploration through the agency’s Artemis missions, which will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future expeditions to Mars.

** Expedition 68 NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 Talks with Media Before Station Departure – March 1, 2023 – NASA Video

Aboard the International Space Station NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, Josh Cassada, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina answered questions and gave remarks about their mission during a news conference March 1. The Crew-5 astronauts have been aboard the space station since October and will return to Earth via a parachute assisted splashdown this month. The four crew members have been living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions. Such research benefits people on Earth and lays the groundwork for future human exploration through the agency’s Artemis missions, which will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future expeditions to Mars.

** Expedition 68 Uncrewed Soyuz MS-23 International Space Station Docking – February 26, 2023 – NASA Video

An uncrewed Soyuz MS-23 spacecraft docked to the Poisk module of the International Space Station on Feb. 25 after launching atop a Soyuz 2.1a rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Feb. 23. Soyuz MS-23 launched to replace the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin and NASA astronaut Frank Rubio launched on last September that incurred a coolant loop leak in December.

** Aurora timelapse – European Space Agency, ESA on Youtube

Timelapse video made during ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti’s second mission to the International Space Station, “Minerva”. This timelapse was recorded looking aft (out from the rear) of the Space Station, showing the aurora shimmering away beyond the horizon.

https://youtube.com/shorts/N3yBEzRPLC4?feature=share

** China recruits six more astronauts for ‘space missions in 2023’ – VideoFromSpace

China has recruited 6 astronauts for missions to the Tiangong space station in 2023. See Chinese astronauts conduct underwater training for spacewalks and more here.

** China Succeeds in Lighting Fire for First Time in Space – CCTV Video News Agency

China has successfully lit a fire for the first time in a combustion test on board its orbiting space station, marking a new milestone that lights the way for studying how fire behaves in microgravity.

The very first ball of flame was ignited on Feb. 16 aboard Mengtian, one of the two lab modules that make up the basic T-shaped structure of the space station along with the core module, with camera footage capturing the stunning and rarely-seen image in an environment where gravity loses its grip on materials of all forms.

** Shenzhou-15 Astronauts Complete Their Second Spacewalk – CCTV Video News Agency

The Shenzhou-15 astronaut trio on board the orbiting Chinese Tiangong space station have concluded their second spacewalk after completing half of their six-month journey in orbit, according to the China Manned Space Agency.

** China Space Station: Expansion Plan Discussed | Leonard David – Feb.25.2023

According to Zhou, CMS has outlined the future mode of station expansion.

“We could develop it to a six-module configuration with a total weight of about 180 tons,” he said. Furthermore, the chief designer said that the designed life of the station is ten years, but could be expanded to 15, 20 or even 30 years. “This is a big challenge, not just expansion, but technology upgrades as well,” Zhou said.

In the foreseeable future, Zhou said, “we will send the Chinese to step on the Moon. We will explore how human beings can use the resources on the Moon and how to live on the moon for a long period and get ready for manned deep space exploration,” he said.

** ISS Live video stream – IBM/ISS HD Earth Viewing Experiment

Currently, live views from the ISS are streaming from an external camera mounted on the ISS module called Node 2. Node 2 is located on the forward part of the ISS. The camera is looking forward at an angle so that the International Docking Adapter 2 (IDA2) is visible. If the Node 2 camera is not available due to operational considerations for a longer period of time, a continuous loop of recorded HDEV imagery will be displayed. The loop will have “Previously Recorded” on the image to distinguish it from the live stream from the Node 2 camera. After HDEV stopped sending any data on July 18, 2019, it was declared, on August 22, 2019, to have reached its end of life. Thank You to all who shared in experiencing and using the HDEV views of Earth from the ISS to make HDEV so much more than a Technology Demonstration Payload!

====

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Outpost in Orbit:
A Pictorial & Verbal History of the Space Station

In Space Infrastructure, Living in Space, Space Systems

Videos: “Space to Ground” & other space habitat reports – Feb.24.2023

Here is the latest episode in NASA’s Space to Ground weekly report on activities related to the International Space Station:

** NASA’s SpaceX Crew-6 Mission to the Space Station (Official Trailer) –  NASA

NASA and SpaceX are targeting no earlier than 1:45 a.m. EST Monday, Feb. 27, 2023, for the launch of the agency’s Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station.

The four Crew-6 crewmates – Commander Stephen Bowen, Pilot Warren “Woody” Hoburg, Mission Specialist UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, and Mission Specialist Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev – will dock the Dragon spacecraft, named Endeavour, to the forward port on the space station’s Harmony module about 23 hours after liftoff.

Crew-6’s science mission includes cutting edge research aimed at keeping astronauts and spacecraft safe during deep space exploration, and studies that could lead to improved medical treatments for humans back on Earth. Experiments will include studies of how particular materials burn in microgravity, tissue chip research on heart, brain, and cartilage functions, and an investigation that will collect microbial samples from the outside of the space station. These are just some of the more than 200 science experiments and technology demonstrations that will take place during their mission.

You can watch the launch live on NASA TV, NASA.gov, the NASA app, and on social media (@NASA).

Learn more about the Crew-6 mission here: https://blogs.nasa.gov/crew-6/

** A Future in Orbit –  NASA

NASA’s investment in low-Earth orbit has launched a commercial economy in space. See how the private sector will expand the economic sphere with commercial cargo to space, commercial spaceflights, and commercial destinations in orbit, and how it will enable NASA to be one of many customers and advance human space exploration.

NASA Low-Earth Orbit Economy: https://www.nasa.gov/leo-economy/low-…

** Expedition 68 Astronaut Nicole Mann Talks with ESPN’s “Laughter Permitted” Podcast – Feb. 23, 2023 – VideoFromSpace

NASA Astronaut Nicole Mann talks with ESPN’s “Laughter Permitted” podcast live from the International Space Station’s Destiny Laboratory on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023.

Join NASA as we go forward to the Moon and on to Mars — discover the latest on Earth, the Solar System and beyond with a weekly update in your inbox.

**  NLRA 2023-6: In-space Production Applications: Advanced Materials and Manufacturing – ISS National Lab – YouTube

This webinar – held on February 23, 2023 – provided information of interest to offerors for NLRA 2023-6: In-space Production Applications: Advanced Materials and Manufacturing. The webinar offered details regarding the scope of the NLRA as well as the timeline, processes, and procedures for submitting proposals.

** Haircuts in space are team effort aboard Chinese space station – VideoFromSpace

See Chinese astronauts give hair cuts to one another aboard the Tiangong space station. A barber’s tools in space are a combination of trimmers and a vacuum cleaner. Watch more How-tos in space: https://videos.space.com/p/EoYEzhMC

** ISS Live video stream – IBM/ISS HD Earth Viewing Experiment

Currently, live views from the ISS are streaming from an external camera mounted on the ISS module called Node 2. Node 2 is located on the forward part of the ISS. The camera is looking forward at an angle so that the International Docking Adapter 2 (IDA2) is visible. If the Node 2 camera is not available due to operational considerations for a longer period of time, a continuous loop of recorded HDEV imagery will be displayed. The loop will have “Previously Recorded” on the image to distinguish it from the live stream from the Node 2 camera. After HDEV stopped sending any data on July 18, 2019, it was declared, on August 22, 2019, to have reached its end of life. Thank You to all who shared in experiencing and using the HDEV views of Earth from the ISS to make HDEV so much more than a Technology Demonstration Payload!

====

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====

Outpost in Orbit:
A Pictorial & Verbal History of the Space Station