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

** Soyuz MS-21 manual docking – SciNews

The Soyuz MS-21 spacecraft was docked to the Prichal module of the International Space Station (ISS) on 18 March 2022, at 19:12 UTC (22:12 MSK, 15:12 EDT). The Soyuz MS-21 spacecraft, Soyuz MS-21, with Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveev and Sergey Korsakov, is scheduled for hatch opening at 21:30 UTC (17:30 EDT; 19 March, at 00:30 MSK). Credit: NASA/Roscosmos Soyuz MS-21 docking to the ISS.

** U.S. Spacewalk 79 Animation – March 14, 2022 – NASA Johnson

Expedition 66 NASA astronauts Kayla Barron and Raja Chari will step outside the International Space Station for a six-and-a-half hour spacewalk to conduct preparation work for upcoming solar array upgrades for the station’s 3A power channel. The current solar arrays which were designed for a 15-year service life are functioning well, but have begun to show signs of degradation, as expected. The first pair of solar arrays were deployed in December 2000 and have been powering the station for more than 20 years. The new ISS Roll-Out Solar Arrays (IROSAs) will be positioned in front of six of the current arrays, increasing the station’s total available power from 160 kilowatts to up to 215 kilowatts. Installation of the first two solar array upgrades were completed during spacewalks on June 20, 2021 and June 25, 2021.

** NASA astronauts begin spacewalk to prep ISS for solar array upgrades – VideoFromSpace – March 15th EVA

Spacewalking Expedition 66 astronauts Kayla Barron and Raja Chari have begun “work for solar array upgrades for the station’s 3A power channel,” according to NASA.

** Spacewalk at the Space Station with NASA Astronauts Kayla Barron and Raja Chari – NASA

NASA astronauts Kayla Barron and Raja Chari conduct a spacewalk at the International Space Station (ISS) to assemble and install brackets and struts kits for upcoming solar array upgrades. The new ISS Roll-Out Solar Arrays, or iROSAs, will increase the space station’s total available power. So far, two of six iROSAs have been deployed on the station with four additional arrays to be delivered. Barron will serve as extravehicular crewmember 1 (EV 1) and will wear a suit with red stripes. Chari will serve as extravehicular crewmember 2 (EV 2) and will wear a suit with no stripes. The spacewalk will be the second of Barron’s career and the first for Chari.

** U.S. Spacewalk 80 Animation – March 14, 2022 – NASA Johnson

On March 23, two Expedition 66 astronauts will step outside the International Space Station for a planned six-and-a-half hour spacewalk to replace hoses and other hardware for one of the radiator beam calve modules on the complex and to conduct other upgrades to station hardware.

** Expedition 66 Astronaut Kayla Barron Answers U.S. Navy, Student Questions – March 16, 2022  – NASA Video

Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 66 Flight Engineer Kayla Barron of NASA discussed life and work aboard the orbital outpost during an in-flight event March 16 with students in the U.S. Navy. Barron graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and was a member of the first class of women commissioned into the submarine community. She is now in the midst of a planned six-month mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions as part of NASA’s Moon and Mars exploration approach, including lunar missions through NASA’s Artemis program.

** ISS National Lab Sustainability Challenge: Viewer’s Choice Introduction – ISS National Lab – YouTube

We are excited to officially announce the ISS National Lab Sustainability Challenge: Viewer’s Choice presentation and are featuring a week of sustainability-related content leading up to the virtual event on March 25. Beginning on March 14, the finalists’ videos will be featured on the ISS National Lab’s YouTube channel. Viewers will have the opportunity to vote on submissions. Voting will conclude on March 21, and the winning team will be announced during the virtual event. Vote HERE to cast your vote for the winning Viewer’s Choice presentation! https://bit.ly/issnlscvote

Don’t miss the event! 2022 ISS National Lab Sustainability Challenge: Beyond Plastics Virtual Event 3/25 at 1pm EDT Register here: https://bit.ly/issnlscregister

The Sustainability Challenge is an open solicitation for U.S.-based entities to propose flight projects that leverage the space station to tackle plastics waste and enable scientific or technological advancements that improve Earth’s environment. The virtual event on March 25, 2022, will feature finalists’ recorded presentations and exciting guest speakers, culminating with an award ceremony recognizing the top ranked finalists. Following the event, finalists will be invited to submit a Full Proposal for a flight project leveraging the ISS National Lab, and the Final Determination for the selected team will be announced at the 2022 ISS Research and Development Conference July 25-28 in Washington, D.C.

Watch six brief proposal presentations at https://www.youtube.com/c/Iss-casisOrg/videos

** 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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A Pictorial & Verbal History of the Space Station

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

** Axiom Space Ax-1! 1st all-private crew to space station explained – VideoFromSpace

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch Crew Dragon Endeavour with the Axiom Space Ax-1 crew no earlier than March 30, 2022. Learn more about the Ax-1 mission: https://www.space.com/ax-1-axiom-spac… Axiom VP & former NASA astronaut Michael López-Alegría will command SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Endeavour and is joined by fellow crew members Larry Connor (pilot), Mark Pathy (mission specialist) & Eytan Stibbe (mission specialist).

See also:

• Meet Ax-1, The Beginning of a New Era — Axiom Space
• Ax-1 Mission Updates — Axiom Space

** Inside the Columbus science lab | Cosmic Kiss (In German, English subtitles available)  – European Space Agency, ESA on Youtube

Join ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer on a tour of Columbus, Europe’s science laboratory on the International Space Station. Cosmic Kiss is Matthias’s first mission to the Space Station and the Columbus module is one of his main workplaces. It is also where he sleeps in his crew quarters known as CASA. Columbus is Europe’s largest contribution to the orbital outpost and the first European laboratory for permanent, multidisciplinary research in space. It houses 16 standardised payload cabinets, known as racks, which host laboratory equipment and technical systems. This allows the facility to support research across a wide range of different scientific disciplines.

Work focuses on materials science, fluid physics, chemistry, remote sensing, biology, biotechnology, medicine and human physiology, as well as technology demonstrations to aid innovation on Earth. Once installed by an astronaut, many of the experiments that happen in Columbus can be remotely controlled and monitored by User Support Operations Centres on the ground.

Matthias will live and work in orbit for approximately six months for his Cosmic Kiss mission. During this time, he will conduct and support more than 35 European and numerous other international experiments in microgravity. Follow Matthias: https://bit.ly/ESACosmicKiss

** Chinese astronaut delivers International Women’s Day message from space – VideoFromSpace

Chinese astronaut Wang Yaping, currently serving aboard the Tiangong space station, recorded an International Women’s Day message. Full Story: https://www.space.com/chinese-astrona…

** Russia’s space agency severs ties with the U.S. and its European partners – CBS News

Russia’s space agency has severed ties with the U.S. and its European partners. CBS News senior space analyst Bill Harwood joins Lana Zak to discuss more.

** Life As An Astronaut On The International Space Station [4K] | Cosmic Encounters – Spark

“Cosmic Encounters” tells one of mankind’s oldest dreams: to explore what is beyond our planet. For the first time in TV history a documentary has been filmed in 3D in space by the astronauts of the International Space Station. It is a tribute to the many scientists who made the dream of conquering space come true. Our guides on this voyage are the astronauts André Kuipers, who filmed on board, and Alexander Gerst, whose demanding training for the 2014 mission is recorded at the Johnson Space Center. — Subscribe to Spark for more amazing science, tech & engineering videos: https://goo.gl/LIrlur

** Spacewalk at the Space Station with NASA Astronauts Kayla Barron and Raja Chari – NASA – Live streaming of ISS EVA scheduled for March 15th.

NASA astronauts Kayla Barron and Raja Chari conduct a spacewalk at the International Space Station (ISS) to assemble and install brackets and struts kits for upcoming solar array upgrades. The new ISS Roll-Out Solar Arrays, or iROSAs, will increase the space station’s total available power. So far, two of six iROSAs have been deployed on the station with four additional arrays to be delivered. Barron will serve as extravehicular crewmember 1 (EV 1) and will wear a suit with red stripes. Chari will serve as extravehicular crewmember 2 (EV 2) and will wear a suit with no stripes. The spacewalk will be the second of Barron’s career and the first for Chari. nasa.gov/iss

** 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!

====

=== Amazon Ads ===

LEGO Ideas International Space Station Building Kit,
Adult Set for Display,
Makes a Great Birthday Present
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====

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