The Soyuz MS-22 rocket launches to the International Space Station with Expedition 68 astronaut Frank Rubio of NASA, and cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin of Roscosmos aboard, Wednesday, September 21, 2022, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Rubio, Prokopyev, and Petelin will spend around 6 months on the orbital complex, returning to Earth in March 2023. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls
While dealing with space physics and home upkeep jobs, four Expedition 68 team members are likewise preparing for their return to Earth next month. 2 team ships, one from Roscosmos and one from SpaceX, are nearing their launch to the International Space Station (ISS).
NASA Flight Engineers Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada examined their upcoming departure treatments today ahead of next months prepared return to Earth inside the SpaceX Crew Dragon Endurance. The duo were joined by Flight Engineers Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and Anna Kikina of Roscosmos as they examined the actions they will take throughout their homebound flight.
The quartet trained on a computer to undock Endurance from the Harmony module, reenter Earths atmosphere, and parachute to a safe splashdown in the waters off the coast of Florida. Mann will command Crew Dragon Endurance with Cassada piloting the vehicle as Wakata and Kikina stay seated to either side of the astronauts. The quartet released to the station on the SpaceX Crew-5 objective on October 5, 2022.
The Soyuz MS-22 rocket launches to the International Space Station with Expedition 68 astronaut Frank Rubio of NASA, and cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin of Roscosmos aboard, Wednesday, September 21, 2022, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket bring the businesss Crew Dragon spacecraft is introduced on NASAs SpaceX Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station with NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Koichi Wakata, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina onboard, Wednesday, October 5, 2022, at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Crew-5 objective is the 5th team rotation objective of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Mann, Cassada, Wakata, and Kikini introduced at 12:00 p.m. EDT from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center to begin a 6 month mission onboard the orbital station. Their replacements will get here as the Crew-6 objective after it releases on Monday at 1:45 a.m. EST from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket bring the businesss Crew Dragon spacecraft is introduced on NASAs SpaceX Crew-5 objective to the International Space Station with NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Koichi Wakata, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina onboard, Wednesday, October 5, 2022, at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Crew-5 objective is the fifth crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the companys Commercial Crew Program. Mann, Cassada, Wakata, and Kikini went for 12:00 p.m. EDT from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center to start a six month objective onboard the orbital outpost. Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky
Their replacements will show up as the Crew-6 objective after it launches on Monday at 1:45 a.m. EST from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Warren “Woody” Hoburg will be the respective commander and pilot of Crew Dragon Endeavour. They will be flanked inside the car by astronaut Sultan Alneyadi of the UAE (United Arab Emirates) and cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev of Roscosmos. The foursome will dock to the space-facing port of Harmony module at 2:29 a.m. on Tuesday and live and work aboard the orbital station for 6 months performing important area research.
NASA TV, on the firms app and site, will start its live Crew-6 launch broadcast on Sunday at 9 p.m. When the launch broadcast is over, live objective audio will stream up until NASA television resumes with its docking coverage set to start at 12:45 a.m. on Tuesday.
A passengerless Soyuz MS-23 crew ship is likewise being readied for lift off at 7:24 p.m. on Thursday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on a two-day trek to the space station. Delivering provisions for the crew, the Soyuz MS-23 spacecraft will return NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin back to Earth later this year.
Rubio, with assistance from Wakata, installed an ultra-high temperature level furnace inside the Kibo lab module. Mann and Cassada took turns cleaning crew quarters in the overhead and deck portions of the Harmony module.
Prokopyev worked in the Roscosmos section of the station inspecting the efficiency of a 3-D printer. Petelin dealt with a pair of various experiments consisting of a fluid physics study and area biology investigation. Kikina finished up operations for an Earth observation study and a carbon dioxide tracking session.
