Videos: “Space to Ground” & other space habitat reports – Oct.25.2023

This week’s selection of videos about space stations and living in space including NASA’s latest Space to Ground report for the International Space Station:

** Expedition 70 Space Station Crew Talks with 2023 ASCEND Conference Oct. 23, 2023 – NASA Video

Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 70 Flight Engineers Loral O’Hara and Jasmin Moghbeli of NASA discussed life and work aboard the orbital outpost during an in-flight interview Oct. 23 with ASCEND conference attendees in Las Vegas. O’Hara and Moghbeli are 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 70 Space Station Crew Talks with Fox News Digital Originals, Yahoo News – Oct. 17, 2023 – NASA Video

Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 70 Flight Engineers Jasmin Moghbeli of NASA and Andy Mogensen of ESA (European Space Agency) discussed life and work aboard the orbital outpost during an in-flight interview Oct. 17 with Fox News Digital and Yahoo News. Mogensen and Moghbeli are 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.

** Science Launching on SpaceX’s 29th Cargo Resupply Mission to the Space Station – NASA

The 29th SpaceX commercial resupply services (CRS) mission for NASA carries scientific experiments and technology demonstrations, including studies of enhanced optical communications and measurement of atmospheric waves. The uncrewed SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is scheduled to launch to the International Space Station from the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida no earlier than Nov. 5.

Details: https://go.nasa.gov/402KJSA

** Meet Ax-3 – Axiom Space

Meet the Ax-3 Crew!
Four Astronauts
Five Nations
The first all European commercial astronaut mission
Redefining the pathway to LEO

The structure forms the basis of the first of two inhabitable modules that are to be connected to the International Space Station (ISS). The structure is being built in Turin, Italy, by Thales Alenia Space.

“The first module shell is effectively completed,” Jason Aspiotis, Axiom’s director of in-space infrastructure and logistics, said at AIAA’s Ascend conference here on Oct. 23. “A lot of the subsystems that will populate the underlying structure–think about life support systems, avionics, propulsion, [guidance, navigation and control systems], power, communications, all that good stuff–we’re developing in a lab in Houston.”

Hab One hatches have also been fabricated, tested and prepared for delivery to Thales Alenia Space to support Hab One pressure testing, the company says.

The first module is to be shipped to Houston by 2024 for final assembly and integration at Axiom Space’s factory at Ellington Airport. The company plans to launch the Hab One module in 2026.

** Shenzhou-17 crew announced – SciNews

On 25 October 2023, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) has announced the crew for the Shenzhou-17 mission: Hongbo Tang (汤洪波, commander), Shengjie Tang (唐胜杰) and Xinlin Jiang (江新林). The Long March-2F Y17 (长征二号F遥十七) launch vehicle will launch the Shenzhou-17 (神舟十七) crew spacecraft from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, Gansu Province, China, on 26 October 2023, at 03:14 UTC (11:14 China Standard Time). Shenzhou-17 is the sixth crew of three astronauts on a mission to the China Space Station (中国空间站).

** SR Academy Space Habitats Committee Webinar, with Werner Grandl and Jerry Stone – Space Renaissance

Living in space in a zero- or low-gravity environment like the Moon or Mars causes danger to human health, such as bone demineralization or muscle atrophy. In the long run space habitats need gravity simulation by rotating around their main axis. The AGOS (Artificial Gravity Orbital Station) project was designed as a rotating space station and a possible successor of the present ISS. The station is built of cylindrical modules and a structural framework. SpaceX Falcon launchers are proposed to transport the modules to Low Earth Orbit. The initial stage 1 of AGOS has a mass of 270 metric tons and a diameter of 102 meters. 24 crew members can live and work in a 0.9 g environment. In the far future, Near Earth Asteroids (NEAs) can be mined to utilize their mineral resources. When the mining process is finished, we can build a rotating habitat inside a hollow asteroid. As an example, we have taken the asteroid 2008EV5 with a diameter of approx. 450 meters. A toroidal structure of 240 m diameter is rotating inside the asteroid´s hull. The stony hull provides shelter against radiation and meteorites. 2,000 inhabitants can live on the inner surface of the torus. Nutrition is provided by vertical farming and aquaculture. In the coming centuries, we can utilize about 10,000 NEAs for mining and use some hundreds of them to carry human habitats.

** 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