International Space Station (ISS) crews have completed packaging the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft for return to Earth

The Expedia 70 crew completed packing on a U.S. cargo ship Wednesday before it left the United States. international space station. The seven orbiting residents also collaborate on various human studies to understand how to maintain human health in space.

Four astronauts worked together Wednesday to coordinate the final cargo transfer inside the capsule Space Exploration Technologies Corporation Dragon cargo spaceship.Dragon has been docked with the space station since November 11 and is expected to undocking at 9:05 p.m. Eastern Time Wednesday’s launch from the front port of Harmony’s orbital outpost. Due to weather conditions, the flight is now scheduled to depart on Thursday, December 21 at 5:05 pm ET.

The agency will provide live coverage of the Dragon spacecraft’s undocking and departure starting at 8:45 p.m. NASA+ Streaming via the web or the NASA app. The coverage will also be broadcast live on NASA TV, YouTube and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA TV shows on a variety of platforms, including social media.

In April 2023, a SpaceX Dragon supply ship arrived at the International Space Station, carrying more than 6,200 pounds of science experiments, crew supplies and other cargo to resupply the Expedition 68 crew. The two spacecraft were flying 269 miles above the Indian Ocean near Madagascar when this photo was taken.Image source: NASA

Astronauts Jasmin Moghbeli and Andreas Mogensen began science return efforts in the morning, transferring frozen research samples from the space station science refrigerator to insulated Dragon science transport bags middle. Astronauts Loral O’Hara and Satoshi Furukawa continue to conduct sample handovers in the laboratory modules of Destiny, Kibo and Columbus and load them onto Dragon. NASA flight engineers O’Hara and Mogbeli completed the study by storing fresh astronaut blood samples inside Dragon for retrieval and analysis on Earth. Mogbeli will be the last member of the Dragon crew before exiting and closing the hatch just hours before the Dragon’s departure.

Seven astronauts from Expedition 70 pose for a photo inside the Kibo Laboratory module of the International Space Station. Front row (from left) European Space Agency (ESA) Commander Andreas Mogensen and NASA Flight Engineer Jasmin Moghbeli and Lo Loral O’Hara. Behind are Roscosmos flight engineers Nikolai Chub, Konstantin Borisov and Oleg Kononenko; and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) flight engineer Satoshi Furukawa.Image source: NASA

All four crew members began their shift collecting blood and saliva samples for use in the CIPHER suite’s 14 experiments, which study how life in weightlessness affects the human body. O’Hara also conducted cognitive tests to understand how the brain functions in space. Mogbeli downloaded medical data stored on health-monitoring vests and headbands.Ultimately, Furukawa and Morgensen Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) and European Space Agency (ESA)European Space Agency) Use ultrasound 2 equipment to scan the other person’s neck, shoulder and leg veins respectively.

The three astronauts who live and work on the space station have been focused on their team Russian space agencyBased on scientific experiments and laboratory maintenance. Flight engineers Konstantin Borisov and Nikolai Chub participated in two different health assessments. Borisov first began pedaling on an exercise bike, then Chubb jogged on a treadmill, both hooked up to sensors that measure aerobic output. Flight Engineer Oleg Kononenko conducted another 3D printing session, demonstrating manufacturing tools and supplies in microgravity.