Crew Packing Dragon for Return with Experiments and a Spacesuit
NASA Science ·
Expedition 75 kicked off the week processing microbe samples and swapping spacesuits for return to Earth soon inside a U.S. cargo craft. The International Space Station crew members also studied breathing in microgravity and photographed Earth landmarks. The post Crew Packing Dragon for Return with Experiments and a Spacesuit appeared first on NASA Science .
Expedition 75 kicked off the week processing microbe samples and swapping spacesuits for return to Earth soon inside a U.S. cargo craft. The International Space Station crew members also studied breathing in microgravity and photographed Earth landmarks.
Microbes can hitch rides to space on astronauts and cargo and can settle on lab hardware and systems. However, regular cleaning and microbial monitoring helps keep the station’s crew and equipment safe.
Flight engineers Anil Menon of NASA and Joshua Kutryk of CSA (Canadian Space Agency) took turns on Monday processing microbe samples collected from station surfaces and drinking water. First, Menon visually analyzed bacterial, mold, and fungal growth colonies, measured and photographed their growth levels, then prepared a set of samples for return to Earth next week inside a SpaceX Dragon cargo craft. Afterward, Kutryk collected the station’s drinking water samples and prepared them for microbial analysis back on Earth.
NASA flight engineers Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney joined each other inside the Dragon cargo craft and unpacked a newly delivered spacesuit from its shipping container. Watkins and Delaney inspected the spacesuit, transferred it into the station, and readied it for service inside the Quest airlock . Next, the duo moved another spacesuit into Dragon, packed it inside the container, and secured it for the ride back to Earth and examination by engineers.
Roscosmos flight engineer Sergey Teteryatnikov began his shift recording his rapid breathing rate while wearing an acoustic monitor around his neck. Doctors will use the data to understand how living in weightlessness affects the respiratory system. Station commander Pyotr Dubrov activated Earth observation gear to photograph mountains, volcanos, and deserts in South America and Africa. Flight engineer Anna Kikina spent her shift on maintenance checking docking mechanisms, cleaning smoke detectors, and cleaning life support gear with water and air.
Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog , @space_station on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.
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The post Crew Packing Dragon for Return with Experiments and a Spacesuit appeared first on NASA Science .