ISS - Expedition 59 Mission patch.
April 5, 2019
Last week, the six astronauts of Expedition 59 aboard the International Space Station prepared for the second spacewalk in as many weeks, and conducted science experiments on the orbiting lab. NASA astronauts Nick Hague and Christina Koch conducted the second spacewalk Friday, March 29, continuing work to install lithium-ion batteries for a pair of the station’s solar arrays.
Read more about some of the science conducted during the week of March 25 on the space station:
Muscling in on better rehabilitation
The Myotones investigation observes the biochemical properties of muscles, such as tone, stiffness, and elasticity, during long-term exposure to spaceflight. Results from this investigation could provide insight into principles of human resting muscle tone and lead to the development of new treatments for rehabilitation on future space missions and on Earth. The crew performed the first sessions of measurements for the investigation during the week of March 25.
Animation above: Astronaut Nick Hague packs the Meteor Camera and associated hardware from the Window Observational Research Facility (WORF) for return to Earth. Meteor made the first space-based observations of the chemical composition of meteors entering Earth’s atmosphere. Animation Credit: NASA.
Understanding heat transfer in microgravity
The crew altered settings for the JAXA Two Phase Flow-2 experiment, changing the valve setting to the Low-mode (pump) of the Metal Heated Tube (MHT) for several runs of the experiment. Two-Phase Flow investigates the heat transfer characteristics of flow boiling in microgravity to better understand bubble formation behavior, liquid-vapor flow in a tube, and how cooling systems transfer heat. Two-Phase Flow employs a cooling loop using perfluorohexane, often used in coolant for electronics, to establish flow rate, heating power, and other effects on different conditions.
International Space Station (ISS). Image Credit: NASA
Keeping blood flowing to the brain
Crew members took measurements for the Cerebral Autoregulation experiment. The brain needs a strong and reliable blood supply so that it is capable of self-regulating blood flow even when the heart and blood vessels cannot maintain an ideal blood pressure. The Cerebral Autoregulation investigation tests whether this self-regulation improves in the microgravity environment of space. Non-invasive tests measure blood flow in the brain before, during, and after a long-duration spaceflight and provide new insights into how the brain safeguards its blood supply in a challenging environment.
Watching daily rhythms
Image above: One of the Actiwatch devices, a waterproof, nonintrusive, sleep-wake monitor worn on the wrist of a crew member. Image Credits: Philips Respironics Inc.
The Actiwatch is a waterproof, nonintrusive, sleep-wake activity monitor that crew members wear on their wrist. The device contains an accelerometer to measure motion and color sensitive photodetectors for monitoring ambient lighting. With these capabilities, Actiwatch Spectrum can analyze the crew’s circadian rhythms, sleep-wake patterns, and activity.
Other investigations on which the crew performed work:
- Future long-duration space missions will require crew members to grow their own food. Veg-03H uses the Veggie plant growth facility to cultivate Extra Dwarf Pak Choi and Wasabi mustard for harvest on-orbit: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=1159
- The Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR) includes an optics bench, combustion chamber, fuel and oxidizer control, and five different cameras for performing combustion investigations in microgravity: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Facility.html?#id=317
- Lighting Effects studies the effects that replacing fluorescent light bulbs on the space station with solid-state light-emitting diodes (LEDs) has on crew member circadian rhythms, sleep, and cognitive performance: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=2013
- RADI-N2, a Canadian Space Agency investigation, seeks to characterize the neutron environment aboard the space station, define the risk it poses to the crew, and provide data to develop better protective measures for future spaceflights: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=874
- The Material Science Research Rack (MSRR) is used for basic materials research in the microgravity environment of the ISS and can accommodate and support diverse Experiment Modules: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Facility.html?#id=318
- Food Acceptability examines changes in the appeal of food aboard the space station during long-duration missions: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7562
Space to Ground: Power Walking: 03/29/2019
Related links:
Expedition 59: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition59/index.html
Myotones: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7573
Two Phase Flow-2: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=1034
Cerebral Autoregulation: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=1938
Actiwatch: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Facility.html?#id=838
Spot the Station: https://spotthestation.nasa.gov/
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
Images (mentioned), Animation (mentioned), Video (NASA), Text, Credits: NASA/Michael Johnson/Jorge Sotomayor, Lead Increment Scientist Expeditions 59/60.
Best regards, Orbiter.ch
