Expedition 75 Crew Studies How Bacteria Adapt to Microgravity, Samples to Return on Dragon
NASA released an update on November 10 on the work of Expedition 75 aboard the International Space Station: orbiting in low Earth orbit, the crew advanced microbiology research, spacesuit maintenance and cargo return preparations on the same day. Flight engineers Anil Menon of NASA and Joshua Kutryk of the Canadian Space Agency studied how bacteria adapt to microgravity inside Japan's Kibo laboratory module, work that bears on crew health during long-duration spaceflight.
Menon processed microbial samples inside a life sciences glovebox while Kutryk extracted bacterial DNA in the Harmony module. Researchers want to understand how bacteria change in space, including the possibility of increased antibiotic resistance. The samples will be frozen and returned to Earth next week aboard a SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft for further analysis in ground laboratories. Astronaut Jessica Watkins helped prepare Dragon's cargo for its return trip, and in a few weeks a Northrop Grumman Cygnus XL freighter will deliver new hardware and supplies.
On the station's Russian segment, Commander Pyotr Dubrov and flight engineer Anna Kikina serviced three Orlan spacesuits in a mini research module ahead of future spacewalks. Flight engineer Luke Delaney practiced operating the Canadarm2 robotic arm and collected water samples for analysis on Earth. Expedition 75 is the station's long-duration resident crew, conducting hundreds of science experiments and technology demonstrations throughout its stay.
(Source: National Aeronautics and Space Administration)
Source: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：国际空间站在轨飞行（资料图）。NASA 约翰逊航天中心摄，Wikimedia Commons 图片（公共领域）。 / Photo: The International Space Station in orbit (file photo). Photo by NASA Johnson Space Center, via Wikimedia Commons (public domain).
