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Tag: astronauts

  • NASA to Conduct Twin Astronaut Studies

    NASA to Conduct Twin Astronaut Studies

    The physics behind spaceflight are well understood, but what exactly being in orbit does to the human body is still being uncovered. To help out with this research NASA today announced that it now has plans to study the physiological effects of microgravity using twins.

    The agency’s Human Research Program and the National Space Biomedical Research has selected 10 “short-term” studies for the unique program. The studies will look at the molecular, genetic, and other effects of space travel. The studies come out of 10 different research institutions in seven states which will receive a portion of $1.5 million allotted for the twin astronaut research program.

    The study will observe the changes seen in Mark and Scott Kelly, identical twin brothers that also happen to be astronauts. Though Mark is retired as an astronaut, Scott is scheduled to board the International Space Station (ISS) in March 2015 and stay on board for one year.

    Before and during the mission and after Scott returns to Earth both he and Mark will provide blood samples to be used in the study. The brothers will also submit themselves to physicals and psychological tests during these times.

    As odd as it sounds, the opportunity to use these identical twins for research was a popular one for researchers. According to NASA, 40 different research proposals were submitted and reviewed before NASA narrowed them down to the best 10. Researchers are hoping for the study will provide insight into the human effects of spaceflight, possibly reducing the health risks that astronauts currently face. According to NASA such studies often end up providing data that helps Earthbound human healthcare as well.

    Image via NASA

  • NASA Spacewalk Finishes 1.5 Hours Early

    NASA Spacewalk Finishes 1.5 Hours Early

    Without a doubt, the most awe-inspiring and visually stunning movie of 2013 was Gravity, a movie concerning space starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock. In Alfonso Cuarón’s film, both Clooney’s and Bullock’s characters are sent hurtling through space after their spacewalk goes awry following collision from space debris. Luckily for NASA, Saturday’s spacewalk saw none of the complications Clooney and Bullock faced.

    Saturday’s spacewalk was the first of three planned missions to replace a faulty unit on the exterior of the International Space Station. Ten days ago, a flow control valve malfunctioned inside of a pump module which controls the external and internal temperatures of the ISS. After the initial malfunction, NASA attempted to fix the situation from the ground by rerouting the mechanism through a different valve.

    While the solution worked temporarily, the situation was urgent enough that NASA elected to schedule a series of spacewalks to resolve the issue. The urgency to make the repair stems from the fact that the ISS is about to reach the point in the year where it receives the most direct sunlight, which runs from December 30 to January 9 this year. During this time, the ISS must perform barrel rolls (hopefully by tapping Z twice) in order to avoid overheating. Due to these evasive maneuvers, spacewalks and cargo shipments are not permitted, and hence the urgency of the situation.

    Originally, the astronauts were simply supposed to prep the pump module for module. Astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Mike Hopkins were able to finish the prep work in 3 hours, though, and were given permission to actually remove the module with their remaining 3.5 scheduled hours.

    Spacewalk Astronauts

    Leaving the astronauts out much longer than necessary was a potentially difficult decision for NASA, seeing as Hopkins was wearing the same suit which sprung a water leak last June when worn by Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano. Luckily for NASA and Hopkins, the repairs made to Parmitano’s suit held up and were of no concern.

    The only concern which did occur during the spacewalk had to do with temperature control: “The only issue that I personally am having is it’s very, very cold,” stated Mastracchio. In particular, it was Mastracchio’s toes that were cold. While Houston was able to warm Mastracchio’s little piggies by blowing warm air into his boots, Mastracchio ultimately called it quits 1.5 hours early due to the chilly conditions.

    The situation faced by Mastracchio and Hopkins Saturday was not unique. In 2010, astronauts Doug Wheelock and Tracy Caldwell Dyson performed an almost identical procedure to repair the ISS’s cooling system. Due to their prior experience, Wheelock and Dyson were in Houston aiding Mastracchio and Hopkins during the repair efforts: “It’s a little bit [of] a different failure we’re facing this time around, but the spacewalks to remove the old pump module and replace it with a new spare is exactly the same as what we did in 2010. We’ve had a lot of lessons learned back then, and so we’ve implemented those changes into our procedure in the way that we prepare our suits and our tools, so we’ll be ready to go on Saturday,” stated Wheelock.

    Wheelock also spoke about the familiarity of the situation for Mastracchio and Hopkins, adding, “We practice all of these skills, just rehearse them over and over again in the pool. The crew has done these particular skills. The skills are the same, but space always has surprises for us, especially when we go outside.”

    Space may have had some unusual surprises for Hopkins as this was his first-ever spacewalk. Fortunately, he had an experienced partner to help out. This spacewalk marked Mastracchio’s seventh. His previous 6 spacewalks have totaled 38 hours and 30 minutes, placing him 14th on the lists of astronauts documenting the most hours of spacewalking.

    The next spacewalk is scheduled for Monday, December 23rd, while the third is currently scheduled for Christmas. However, due to currently being ahead of schedule, the third walk may not be necessary. If it does occur, the spacewalk on December 25 will be the first spacewalk to ever occur on Christmas.

    Images via YouTube

  • NASA Board to Investigate Spacewalk Malfunction

    NASA Board to Investigate Spacewalk Malfunction

    One week ago, ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano and NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy glided outside the International Space Station (ISS) to do routine maintenance and prepare rigging cables for the arrival of a new Russian laboratory module. Shortly into the spacewalk, Parmitano reported excessive water floating free inside his spacesuit helmet and the spacewalk, which was scheduled to last for over six hours, was cut short.

    Today, NASA announced that it has appointed a new board dedicated to investigate the incident. The board is chaired by Chris Hansen, the ISS chief engineer at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. The other members of the five-person board are astronaut Mike Foreman; Sudhakar Rajula, a human factors specialist at Johnson; Joe Pellicciotti, the chief engineer at NASA’s Engineering and Safety Center; and Richard Fullerton, NASA’s ISS safety and mission assurance lead.

    According to NASA’s announcement, the board will “gather relevant information, analyze facts, conduct any necessary tests, identify the cause or causes of the anomaly and any contributing factors, and make recommendations to the NASA administrator to prevent similar incidents from occurring during future spacewalks.” The board will also examine past spacewalks, as well as maintenance and quality assurance procedures.

    The board’s investigation will coincide with a NASA engineering analysis that will resolve any equipment malfunctions to enable spacewalks to resume. The engineering team is currently examining the spacesuit and life support equipment Parmitano used during the spacewalk.

  • Spacewalk Cut Short by Wardrobe Malfunction

    Spacewalk Cut Short by Wardrobe Malfunction

    Early this morning, European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Luca Parmitano and NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy exited the International Space Station to conduct assembly and maintenance on the spacecraft. The spacewalk was scheduled to last around 6.5 hours and was being streamed live by the space agencies. The mission was cut short, however, by a malfunction in one astronaut’s spacesuit.

    Shortly into the spacewalk Parmitano reported that there was water floating in his spacesuit helmet, and that the back of his head was wet. NASA’s flight director quickly called an end to the spacewalk, and Parmitano and Cassidy made their way back into the space station.

    The cancellation made today’s spacewalk the second shortest in the history of the International Space Station. Engineers are now searching for the cause of the suspected leak in Parmitano’s helmet. NASA has stated that Parmitano was never in any danger and that none of the tasks he and Cassidy were scheduled to complete were urgent or would put the crew of the station in danger. In addition to routine maintenance, the astronauts were rigging cables to prepare for the arrival of a new Russian laboratory module.

    The relevant NASA footage of the spacewalk can be seen below. Parmitano can be heard at around the 1:50 mark confirming that the liquid in his helmet is not sweat.

  • Astronaut Luca Parmitano’s Selfie Puts Your Selfies to Shame

    I know that your hair looked super awesome when you decided to snap that selfie in the girl’s bathroom of your local Target. Yes, your face looks super cute – I love the way you pursed your lips. Brilliant.

    But your selfies suck compared to space selfies.

    Luca Parmitano is an Italian astronaut, currently aboard the International Space Station – and he’s just completed a spacewalk. Luckily, we have pictures.

    This is nothing new for Parmitano, who’s been taking photos from his spacewalk for the past 18 hours or so.

    Honestly – space, science, photos, social media…it’s just so damn cool.

  • Space Life Weakens Immune Systems, Shows Study

    Space Life Weakens Immune Systems, Shows Study

    A new study performed aboard the International Space Station (ISS) has shown that being in space weakens astronauts’ immune systems. Researchers hope the findings can help prevent disease for those of us still on the planet.

    European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Thomas Reiter performed the experiments while on the ISS, as seen in the video below. Human immune cells were allowed to float freely in microgravity while others were placed in a centrifuge that simulated gravity. The cells in the centrifuge were found to be more healthy than those left to float.

    Analysis showed that a transmitter called the Rel/NF-kB pathway stopped working in microgravity, preventing immune cells from working correctly.

    “Normally, when our bodies sense an invasion, a cascade of reactions occur that are controlled by the information held in our genes, similar to an instruction book,” said Isabelle Walther, a researcher with the Space Biology Group in Zurich, Switzerland. “Finding which gene does what is like looking for the right key to fit a keyhole, without having found the keyhole yet.”

    Researchers stated that these findings could help disease research in two ways. First, being able to deactivate genes associated with the immune system could help patients who suffer from autoimmune diseases. Second, drugs could be developed to target genes that fight specific diseases.

    “We are working towards a finer control of disease,” said Millie Hughes-Fulford, a NASA astronaut and an investigator on the research. “If you imagine our immune system responding to diseases as a waterfall, up until now we have been fighting disease at the bottom of the waterfall. In the future we could target the raindrops before they have a chance to cascade into waterfalls. We live in exciting times.”

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  • NASA to Remember Fallen Astronauts on February 1

    NASA to Remember Fallen Astronauts on February 1

    NASA announced today that its yearly “Day of Remembrance” for fallen astronauts will be held on February 1. The date marks the 10th anniversary of the day the space shuttle Columbia disintegrated during re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere. Flags at NASA facilities will be flown at half-staff on that day.

    The tribute will be used to honor the astronauts who died while working with the space program. Astronauts from the space shuttles Challenger and Columbia, as well Apollo 1 will be a part of the remembrance. An observance will take place at Arlington National Cemetary on February 1, with NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and other senior NASA officials in attendance.

    A wreath-laying ceremony will also take place that day at 10 am EST at the Space Mirror Memorial in the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. The Space Mirror Memorial was dedicated in 1991, to honor astronauts who lost their lives in the space program. It has been declared a National Memorial by the U.S. congress and is maintained by the non-profit Astronauts memorial Foundation, which is also hosting the observance on Friday.

    The Kennedy ceremony will be streaming live on NASA Television. A tribute video for fallen astronauts prepared by NASA can be seen below, and an interactive slideshow is also available.

  • New Crew Lifts Off to the International Space Station [VIDEO]

    The next crew of the International Space Station (ISS) has left the Earth. The Expedition 34 crew today lifted off from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 7:12 am EST.

    The crew consists of NASA astronaut Tom Marshburn, Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) cosmonaut Roman Romanenko, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Chris Hadfield. The crew is currently riding the Soyuz TMA-07M spacecraft and is scheduled to dock with the ISS on Friday morning.

    The trio are expected to stay on the ISS until May of next year. They will join three people already onboard the space station – Expedition 34 Commander Kevin Ford and Roscosmos Flight Engineers Oleg Novitskiy and Evgeny Tarelkin, who have been on the station since October. Hadfield will become the first Canadian commander of the ISS in March, when the current crew of the space station returns to earth.

    The focus of this expedition, according to NASA, is scientific research including human physiology tests. The crew will serve as subjects for the examination of astronaut bone loss while also conducting experiments (such as on how fire behaves in space), observations of Earth, human research, and technology demonstrations.

    The launch of the Soyuz spacecraft was captured by NASA, and can be seen below. Temperatures were far below freezing at the time of the launch.

  • NASA Issues Contracts For Future Manned Spaceflights

    NASA Issues Contracts For Future Manned Spaceflights

    NASA today announced that it has awarded three different companies contracts to develop technology that will enable commercial manned spaceflight from U.S. soil.

    The Boeing Company, Sierra Nevada Corporation Space System, and Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) were all contracted for around $10 million. The companies will begin developing integrated crew transportation systems that will launch American astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS). These programs will end NASA’s recent reliance on Russia for transportation to and from the ISS.

    “These contracts represent important progress in restoring human spaceflight capabilities to the United States,” said Phil McAlister, director of the Commercial Spaceflight Development Division at NASA Headquarters. “NASA and its industry partners are committed to the goal of safely and cost-effectively launching astronauts from home within the next five years.”

    Starting next year, the companies will work with NASA’s Commercial Crew Program (CCP) to develop spacecrafts, launch vehicles, and ground & mission operations that meet the agency’s safety and performance requirements. In mid-2014, the companies will begin competing with one another to test and verify their systems for crewed demonstration flights to the ISS.

    SpaceX could have a leg up on its competition. The company in October of this year completed the first privatized resupply of the ISS using its Dragon capsule. The capsule carried 882 pounds of supplies to the ISS and brought back 1,673 pounds of used material in a successful mission.

    (Image courtesy SpaceX)

  • Space Station Astronauts Safely Return To Earth

    Three members of the International Space Station’s (ISS) Expedition 33 crew safely touched down on the surface of Earth this weekend. They landed just north of Arkalyk, Kazakhstan, in the first pre-dawn landing in darkness for an ISS crew since Expedition 12 returned in 2006.

    Expedition 33 Commander Sunita “Suni” Williams, Flight Engineer Akihiko Hoshide, and Soyuz Commander Yuri Malenchenko spent more than three hours in the Soyuz TMA-05M spacecraft while descending to Earth. They spent a total of 127 days in space, on a mission that lasted more than four months.

    NASA stated that Expedition 33 advanced research by testing radiation levels on the ISS, assessing how microgravity affects the spinal cord, and investigating melting glaciers, seasonal changes, and human impacts on the ecosystem of Earth. The crew members also participated in the Integrated Resistance and Aerobic Training Study-Sprint, a program designed to evaluate the use of high-intensity, low-volume exercise training to minimize the loss of muscle, bone, and cardiovascular functions while in microgravity. The first contracted commercial resupply mission by SpaceX was also overseen by the Expedition 33 crew.

    Hoshide and Williams performed three spacewalks during their mission to repair ISS equipment. Commander Williams now holds the record for cumulative spacewalk time for a female astronaut, with 50 hours, 40 minutes.

    Expedition 34 has now begun on the ISS, and NASA astronaut Kevin Ford has taken command of the space station. He and cosmonauts Oleg Novitskiy and Evgeny Tarelkin will operate the ISS themselves for one month until the arrival of three new crew members.

    (Image courtesy NASA/Bill Ingalls)

  • Chinese Astronauts Make Their Triumphant Return to Earth

    Chinese astronauts, two men and one woman, have made their way back to Earth inside an extremely cramped and very charred space capsule. The trio touched down on Friday in the northern part of China, their landing softened considerably by the use of a large parachute. Their triumphant return after a 13-day trip into space was broadcast across the country for all to see. The mission, in addition to including the first remale astronaut, is considered to be the longest and most complex mission in the country’s history.

    “This is another outstanding contribution by the Chinese nation to human exploration and the use of outer space,” Premier Wen Jiabao said in a prepared statement. “It has profound significance in enhancing China’s comprehensive power and inspiring the national spirit.”

    After spending nearly an hour inside the capsule as medical professionals evaluated their conditions, the three astronauts finally emerged with giant smiles, waving and giving the thumbs up to the audiences watching their return at home.

    “We have successfully accomplished the first manned docking mission for China and have now returned to home,” crew leader Jing Haipeng explained. “Thanks to our country, thanks to the care and love from people of all ethnic groups of the country. Thanks.”

    According to AFP, China has spent nearly 39 billion yuan ($6.1 billion) over the span of two decades in an effort to build a permanent space station. This mission found the crew manually docking with the aforementioned contraption, a maneuver that is considered extremely difficult and dangerous. According to officials, this particular endeavor has pretty much cemented China’s place in the world of space exploration.

    “By demonstrating that they master (these procedures), China fully enters the club of big powers in human occupation (of space),” Isabelle Sourbes-Verger, an expect with France’s National Centre for Scientific Research, explained.

    Image provided courtesy of The Christian Science Monitor

  • SpaceX Valuation Doubles After Successful Mission

    SpaceX Valuation Doubles After Successful Mission

    Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) made history on May 25 by flying a successful mission that docked with the International Space Station and successfully landed back on Earth. It is the first privately owned spaceship to reach the ISS.

    According to VentureBeat and the financial data company Privco, that successful mission has skyrocketed the value of the company, doubling it from $2.4 billion to $4.8 billion in just one month.

    Privco’s numbers are based on the launch of the successful mission, coupled with current and future contracts with NASA to resupply the ISS. These mission pay out $133 million per trip. SpaceX also has 55 launches planned in the next five years, most of them for commercial satellites. The total value of these contracts is over $4 billion, so we are not seeing an inflated valuation that we have seen with so many tech stocks.

    It is certainly a full schedule, but SpaceX still wants to do more. They are trying to get a contract with NASA to bring astronauts to and from the space station by 2015. This would be a big step if NASA put that kind of trust in a privately held firm.

    SpaceX still considers themselves to be in the developmental stages, so don’t expect an IPO anytime soon. According to spokeswoman Kirstin Brost Grantham, SpaceX is currently trying to get into an organized rhythm with their launch schedule. An IPO will certainly be on the horizon, but not before many successful missions demonstrate the company’s staying power.

    Silicon Valley powerhouse Elon Musk, who co-founded PayPal and Tesla Motors, has invested $100 million of his $2 billion net worth into SpaceX, giving him a controlling stake of 85% of the company. This guy really knows how to turn his money around, and does it in probably the coolest way possible.