SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft is expected to depart the International Space Station in a week, after mission managers delayed its initial departure due to unfavorable weather conditions at the splashdown site off the coast of Florida. The next return opportunity for the resupply spacecraft has been set for December 12.
During this time, the Expedition 72 crew completed several tasks, including servicing science hardware and exercise equipment. NASA astronauts installed new research freezers and powered lockers inside Dragon, while also loading station hardware into the spacecraft.
Research on the space station continued with NASA astronauts Don Pettit and Butch Wilmore working on a pair of space physics experiments. The duo performed studies that explored ways to separate viruses from biological fluids and improve disease detection methods.
Station commander Suni Williams spent time in the Quest airlock, performing spacesuit work ahead of upcoming spacewalks. Meanwhile, Nick Hague inspected the COLBERT treadmill’s hardware and components, while cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner studied for their scheduled December 19 spacewalk.
Other activities on the station included an Earth observation session by cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, who imaged natural and human-caused impacts on the landscape below. The crew also reviewed procedures for upcoming spacewalks, including a planned relocation of European robotic arm hardware.
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Source: https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/2024/12/05/dragon-departure-adjusted-to-next-week-crew-works-science-and-spacewalk-preps