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Commander Williams’ Space Station Scramble Amidst Tropical Turbulence

Jessica McCarthy
Two Roscosmos Soyuz Crew Ships on ISS
Two Roscosmos crew ships, the Soyuz MS-26 docked to the Rassvet module (foreground) and the Soyuz MS-25 (background) docked to the Prichal docking module, are pictured parked at the International Space Station as it orbited 258 miles above Sudan near the Nile River on the African continent. Credit: NASA

Expedition 72 has begun with Suni Williams at the helm as NASA gears up for the Crew-9 mission amidst Tropical Storm Helene’s disruptions.

Expedition 72 is officially underway with NASA astronaut Suni Williams as its commander aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Meanwhile, the nine orbital residents are awaiting more visitors while also preparing for the next crew departure.

Crew Changeover at the ISS

Williams took command of the orbital outpost when NASA astronaut Tracy C. Dyson and Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub undocked from the Prichal docking module at 4:36 a.m. EDT on Monday. The trio inside the Soyuz MS-25 crew ship parachuted to a landing in Kazakhstan at 7:59 a.m. EDT (4:59 p.m. Kazakhstan time).

NASA Astronauts Make Pizza Aboard the International Space Station
NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, both Expedition 71 Flight Engineers, make pizza aboard the International Space Station’s galley located inside the Unity module. Items are attached to the galley using tape and velcro to keep them from flying away in the microgravity environment. Credit: NASA

Preparations for Crew-9 Arrival

Williams, who arrived at the station with NASA Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore on June 6, will lead orbital outpost operations until February when she and Wilmore are scheduled to return to Earth with the SpaceX Crew-9 members aboard the Dragon Endurance spacecraft. Williams was busy Tuesday readying standard emergency equipment ahead of Crew-9’s upcoming arrival. Wilmore explored how specialized substances gel and coarsen possibly leading to advancements in the pharmaceutical, food, and 3D printing industries.

Adapting to Weather Challenges

NASA and SpaceX teams have adjusted the next launch opportunity for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission to no earlier than 1:17 p.m. EDT, Saturday, September 28, from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida due to expected tropical storm conditions in the area. The change allows teams to complete a rehearsal of launch day activities Tuesday night with the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket, which rolled to Space Launch Complex-40 earlier in the day. Following rehearsal activities, the integrated system will move back to the hangar ahead of any potential storm activity.

Soyuz MS-25 Spacecraft Departs the International Space Station
The Soyuz MS-25 spacecraft, with NASA astronaut Tracy C. Dyson and Roscosmos cosmonauts Nikolai Chub and Oleg Kononenko aboard, is pictured shortly after undocking from the International Space Station’s Prichal module. Credit: NASA

Impact of Tropical Storm Helene

Although Tropical Storm Helene is moving through the Gulf of Mexico and is expected to impact the Florida panhandle, the storm system is large enough that high winds and heavy rain are expected in the Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island regions on Florida’s east coast.

Upcoming Crew-9 Mission

NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov are to launch aboard the Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station on what will be the ninth crew rotation mission with SpaceX under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. They will conduct research and perform maintenance activities during their five-month mission. The mission will launch from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

Lakes Argentino and Viedma From Space Station
Lakes Argentino (left) and Viedma (right) were photographed by NASA astronaut Don Pettit as the International Space Station orbited 271 miles above. Credit: NASA

Crew-8 Preparations for Departure

In the meantime, the SpaceX Crew-8 mission, which has been aboard the station since March 5, is getting ready to end its stay in early October. NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick and Mike Barratt, the Commander and Pilot respectively of Crew-8’s Dragon Endeavour, reviewed spacecraft systems and packed personal items and other cargo throughout Tuesday. Dominick also trained for the upcoming rendezvous and docking of the Crew-9 mission.

Advanced Experiments and Training

Also returning with Crew-8 are NASA astronaut Jeanette Epps and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov. However, Epps focused on an advanced life support experiment on Tuesday swapping out hardware on a device that may inform the future design of water and urine processors in different gravity environments. Grebenkin tried on the Roscosmos-designed lower body negative pressure suit with assistance from fellow cosmonaut Ivan Vagner. The suit may alleviate space-caused head and eye pressure symptoms and help crews adjust quicker to the return to Earth’s gravity.

Boeing’s Uncrewed Starliner Spacecraft Undocks From Space Station
Boeing’s uncrewed Starliner spacecraft is pictured from a window aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft shortly after undocking from the International Space Station’s forward port on the Harmony module. Credit: NASA

Continual Training and Health Maintenance

Vagner is continuing to get up to speed with space station systems since his arrival with cosmonaut Alexey Ovchinin and astronaut Don Pettit on September 11. He and Ovchinin spent some time on Tuesday getting familiar with operations aboard the orbital outpost. Pettit worked out on the advanced resistive exercise device as cameras and a motion capture system monitored his form. Observations may inform unique microgravity workouts to keep astronauts fit and healthy on long-term missions farther away from Earth.

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