Eleven residents are living and working aboard the International Space Station following the docking of Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) at 6:31 a.m. EDT on Thursday. The seven Expedition 73 crew members welcomed the four Ax-4 astronauts and are now helping them familiarize themselves with orbital lab systems and prepare for approximately two weeks of microgravity research.
Veteran astronaut and Ax-4 Commander Peggy Whitson was the first to enter the space station after the hatch opened at 8:14 a.m. on Thursday between the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and the Harmony module’s space-facing port. She was followed shortly afterward by Pilot Shubhanshu Shukla, and Mission Specialists Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski and Tibor Kapu. After welcoming remarks, the Ax-4 crew was briefed on standard orbital safety procedures and the location of station emergency equipment.
On Friday, Ax-4 quickly got to work unloading sample-packed hardware and portable science freezers from inside Dragon for installation in station incubators and research refrigerators ahead of upcoming experiments. Station safety hardware was also temporarily transferred inside Dragon as is customary for visiting spacecraft. The private astronaut quartet later joined the Expedition 73 crew for more safety reviews to learn their roles and responsibilities and communication protocols with mission controllers in the unlikely event of an emergency on the orbital outpost.
Meanwhile, Expedition 73 kept up its daily research schedule with a space exercise study, eye exams, and lunar photography. Cargo transfers and life support maintenance rounded out crew’s day.
NASA Flight Engineer Nichole Ayers set up the Destiny laboratory module’s exercise cycle for NASA Flight Engineer Jonny Kim and the sensors he wore measuring his aerobic output as he pedaled during a workout session. Researchers will use the data to help keep astronauts fit in space preparing them for strenuous activities such as spacewalks and the return to Earth’s gravity environment. Kim earlier pointed a camera toward the Moon and photographed the reflection of Earth’s light shining on the lunar surface.
Ayers also joined Roscosmos Flight Engineer Sergey Ryzhikov and operated medical imaging gear while scanning the eyes of Kim and cosmonaut Kirill Peskov. Doctors on the ground monitored in real time the examination for potential space-caused eye structure and vision issues.
Station Commander Takuya Onishi from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) set up a microscope in the Destiny lab then moved to the Kibo laboratory module and tested spacecraft communications hardware in coordination with mission controllers in Japan. NASA Flight Engineer Anne McClain spent her day assisting the Ax-4 crewmates with their station familiarization duties and cargo transfers. Peskov partnered with Roscosmos Flight Engineer Alexey Zubritskiy and packed trash and discarded gear inside the Progress 90 resupply ship before its departure on July 1.
Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.
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