ISS - Expedition 50 Mission patch.
Dec. 29,2016
Animation above: The International Space Station flying over the Northern Lights. Animation Credit: NASA.
The crew wrapped up part of a muscle research program today while continuing other experiments to study the effects of living in space. Also, a new CubeSat deployer was installed in Japan’s Kibo laboratory module.
Scientists want to understand how the lack of gravity impacts muscles that aren’t used due to working in the microgravity environment. The Sarcolab experiment is one study that measures how the calf muscle changes in space using an ultrasound and electrode stimulators. The first part of that experiment was completed today as its gear was stowed and data downlinked for analysis on Earth.
Image above: Expedition 50 crew members Peggy Whitson (left) and Shane Kimbrough of NASA (right) share fresh fruit that was recently delivered by the HTV-6 cargo vehicle to the International Space Station. Image Credit: NASA.
The station residents also explored how astronauts adapt to spaceflight conditions, the effects of a long-term mission on the human circulatory system and how charged particles behave in a magnetic field.
An enhanced small satellite deployer was installed in the Kibo module replacing an older model that deployed its last CubeSat on Monday. The new CubeSat deployer has twice the satellite deployment capacity than the previous version. CubeSats scheduled for release from the new deployer will study a variety of space phenomena and enable advanced satellite communications.
Related article:
NASA Preps for Space Station Power Upgrade Spacewalks; Live NASA TV Coverage
http://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.ch/2016/12/nasa-preps-for-space-station-power.html
Related links:
Sarcolab experiment: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/738.html
Spaceflight conditions: http://www.energia.ru/en/iss/researches/human/24.html
Circulatory system: http://www.energia.ru/en/iss/researches/human/11.html
Charged particles: http://www.energia.ru/en/iss/researches/popular/02.html
Space Station Research and Technology: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/index.html
International Space Station (ISS): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html
Animation (mentioned), Image (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Mark Garcia.
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