Soyuz MS-07 crew back on Earth after 168 days in orbit

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Soyuz MS-07 crew back on Earth after 168 days in orbit

Three members of the International Space Station’s Expedition 54/55 crew returned to Earth inside the Soyuz MS-07 spacecraft after having spent 168 days in orbit performing hundreds of science experiments and upgrading equipment outside the outpost.

Russian cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov, NASA astronaut Scott Tingle and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Norishige Kanai undocked from the ISS inside their Soyuz before landing several hours later at 8:39 a.m. EDT (12:39 GMT) June 3, 2018.

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OA-9 Cygnus cargo ship arrives at ISS

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OA-9 Cygnus cargo ship arrives at ISS

Orbital ATK’s OA-9 Cygnus cargo spacecraft rendezvoused with the International Space Station May 24, 2018, after a three-day chase of the orbiting outpost following a successful launch atop an Antares rocket.

When the OA-9 Cygnus spacecraft, named S.S. J.R. Thompson, was within about 10 meters of the football field-sized complex, Expedition 55 Flight Engineer Scott Tingle of NASA used the robotic Canadarm2 to reach out and grab the vehicle.

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Spacewalking astronauts swap ISS coolant pumps

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Spacewalking astronauts swap ISS coolant pumps

Two Expedition 55 NASA astronauts ventured outside the International Space Station May 16, 2018, for a 6.5-hour-long spacewalk. They were tasked with rearranging coolant pumps and replacing external cameras and antennas.

The primary task of the spacewalk was to move two pump flow control subassembly, or PFCS, units. These devices are designed to drive and control the flow of ammonia coolant on the exterior of the ISS to regulate the temperature of the station’s power-generating equipment, according to NASA.

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CRS-14 Dragon returns experiments, hardware to Earth

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CRS-14 Dragon returns experiments, hardware to Earth

Wrapping up a one-month stay at the International Space Station, SpaceX’s CRS-14 Dragon cargo ship returned to Earth with several thousand pounds of equipment for repair and experiments for further analysis.

Splashing down just after 3 p.m. EDT (19:00 GMT) May 5, 2018, just off the coast of Baja California in the Pacific Ocean, the capsule completed its second flight into space.

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NASA upgrading ground stations used for emergency ISS communications

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NASA upgrading ground stations used for emergency ISS communications

NASA is currently upgrading ground stations utilized in the backup system for communicating with the International Space Station, the U.S. space agency said in an April 24, 2018, news release.

The primary means of communicating with the ISS is NASA’s Space Network, which mainly relies on a constellation of Tracking and Data Relay Satellites in geostationary orbit. As a backup, the agency also maintains a system of ground stations that transmit and receive very high frequency radio waves.

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NASA, Boeing add option for extended Starliner crew flight test

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NASA, Boeing add option for extended Starliner crew flight test

With the timeline for the first operational human flights for the Commercial Crew Program gradually slipping to the right and into 2019, Boeing last year proposed adding a third crew member to the first Crew Flight Test of the company’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft to the International Space Station, NASA recently announced.

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CRS-14 Dragon berths with ISS

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CRS-14 Dragon berths with ISS

The CRS-14 Dragon capsule rendezvous and berthed with the International Space Station after a two-day trek to the orbiting outpost. Capture by the robotic Canadarm2 took place at 6:40 a.m. EDT (10:40 GMT) April 4, 2018, while the orbiting complex was fly some 250 miles (400 kilometers) above southern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

 At the Robotics Work Station controls inside the station’s cupola window was Expedition 55 astronaut Norishige Kanai of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

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SpaceX CRS-14 Dragon heading toward ISS after successful Falcon 9 launch

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SpaceX CRS-14 Dragon heading toward ISS after successful Falcon 9 launch

SpaceX launched its sixth Falcon 9 of 2018, this time to send the unpiloted CRS-14 Dragon cargo ship on its way toward the International Space Station with several thousand pounds of food, experiments and hardware for the six-person Expedition 55 crew.

Liftoff took place at 4:30 p.m. EDT (20:30 GMT) April 2, 2018, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40.

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Astronauts complete all US EVA-49 tasks despite limited duration

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Astronauts complete all US EVA-49 tasks despite limited duration

Less than a week after arriving at the International Space Station in Soyuz MS-08 for a five-month stay, two astronauts donned spacesuits to venture outside the complex for a six-hour extravehicular activity.

Expedition 55 Flight Engineers Drew Feustel and Ricky Arnold of NASA performed the fourth spacewalk of 2018 for the ISS program.

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ISS crew size doubles with Soyuz MS-08 docking

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ISS crew size doubles with Soyuz MS-08 docking

The International Space Station returned to its full crew compliment of six people after the three-person Soyuz MS-08 docked with the orbiting outpost to join the ongoing Expedition 55.

Russian cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev and NASA astronauts Drew Feustel and Ricky Arnold docked their Soyuz MS-08 spacecraft at 3:40 p.m. EDT (19:40 GMT) March 23, 2018 while ISS was flying 408 kilometers over Serbia.

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