Expedition 75 Crew Packs Dragon With Science For Return: Bacterial DNA And 3D-Printed Blood Vessels Head Home
NASA said on November 12 that the International Space Station's Expedition 75 crew spent the day mainly packing a U.S. cargo spacecraft for its upcoming departure and cleaning a pair of spacesuits. The day's research topics aboard the station included space agriculture and super intelligence (SI).
The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft is nearing the end of its stay after delivering more than 6,300 pounds of science, supplies and hardware on October 15. A series of experiments Dragon delivered is concluding, and samples such as bacterial DNA and 3D-printed blood vessels are being readied for return and analysis back on Earth. Specialized lighting hardware designed to recreate natural daylight patterns and help regulate crew sleep, tested aboard the station for more than three years, is also being returned.
NASA flight engineers Anil Menon and Jessica Watkins began loading a variety of payloads inside Dragon. The packing will be finalized the day before Dragon leaves, when the crew completes the transfer of critical research samples kept in portable freezers and incubators. Menon also worked with Canadian Space Agency flight engineer Joshua Kutryk to rearrange and secure the return cargo so its mass is evenly distributed and its center of gravity balanced for a safe reentry and splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.
NASA flight engineer Luke Delaney set up the Life Sciences Glovebox in the Japanese Kibo laboratory module for an upcoming space botany investigation. The MVP-Plant-02 study will explore how plants respond to disease in microgravity, to learn how to sustain crews on future exploration missions. Delaney then moved to the Quest airlock and cleaned the cooling and ventilation systems inside a pair of spacesuits Menon and Kutryk wore during spacewalks on October 29 and November 5. (Source: NASA)
Source: NASA
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：SpaceX Dragon 飞船对接在国际空间站上（NASA 官方照片，公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons）。 / Photo: A SpaceX Dragon spacecraft docked to the International Space Station (NASA, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons).
