Resident Crews of the International Space Station (ISS)

ISS: Expedition 61

ISS Project Patch

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Patch ISS-61 Crew ISS-61

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Patch Cygnus NG-12 (Northrop) Patch Dragon SpX-19 (NASA)

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Crew, launch- and landing data

No. Nation Surname Given names Position Spacecraft
(launch)
Launch
date
Launch
time
Spacecraft
(landing)
Landing
date
Landing
time
Mission
duration
Orbits
1 Italy  Parmitano  Luca Salvo  ISS-CDR  Soyuz MS-13  20.07.2019  16:28:20.238 UTC  Soyuz MS-13  06.02.2020  09:12:21 UTC  200d 16h 44m 01s  3216
2  Skvortsov  Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Jr.  Flight Engineer-1  Soyuz MS-13  20.07.2019  16:28:20.238 UTC  Soyuz MS-13  06.02.2020  09:12:21 UTC  200d 16h 44m 01s  3216
3  Morgan  Andrew Richard  Flight Engineer-9  Soyuz MS-13  20.07.2019  16:28:20.238 UTC  Soyuz MS-15  17.04.2020  05:16:10.0 UTC  271d 12h 47m 50s  4352
4  Skripochka  Oleg Ivanovich  Flight Engineer-4  Soyuz MS-15  25.09.2019  13:57:42.701 UTC  Soyuz MS-15  17.04.2020  05:16:10.0 UTC  204d 15h 18m 27s  3280
5  Koch  Christina Hammock "Nana"  Flight Engineer-3  Soyuz MS-12  14.03.2019  19:14:08.175 UTC  Soyuz MS-13  06.02.2020  09:12:21 UTC  328d 13h 58m 13s  5248
6  Meir  Jessica Ulrika "Goose"  Flight Engineer-8  Soyuz MS-15  25.09.2019  13:57:42.701 UTC  Soyuz MS-15  17.04.2020  05:16:10.0 UTC  204d 15h 18m 27s  3280

unofficial Backup Crew

No. Nation Surname Given names Position
1  Ryzhikov  Sergei Nikolaevich  ISS-CDR
2  Marshburn  Thomas Henry "Tom"  Flight Engineer
3 Japan  Noguchi  Soichi  Flight Engineer
4  Ryzhikov  Sergei Nikolaevich  Flight Engineer
5  Marshburn  Thomas Henry "Tom"  Flight Engineer
Crew ISS-61 (backup)

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Where is the ISS now?

Expedition Report

ISS Expedition 61 began with the undocking of Russian spacecraft Soyuz MS-12 on October 03, 2019 at 07:37:32 UTC. The landing crew consisted of Aleksei Ovchinin, Nicklaus Hague and Spaceflight Participant Hazzaa Al Mansoori from the United Arab Emirates. Three-and-a-half-hours later the crew landed safely in Kazakhstan. So, the new Expedition 61 consisted of ISS-Commander Luca Parmitano, Andrew Morgan and Aleksandr Skvortsov (all three arrived with Soyuz MS-13), Christina Koch (since the docking of Soyuz MS-12 onboard) plus Oleg Skripochka and Jessica Meir (both had reached the station onboard Soyuz MS-15 together with Spaceflight Participant Hazzaa Al Mansoori).

On October 06, 2019 astronauts Christina Koch and Andrew Morgan performed the first spacewalk in this Expedition 61 (7h 01m). It was the first in a series of spacewalks dedicated to replacing batteries on the far end of the station's port truss. These spacewalks continue the overall upgrade of the station's power system that began with similar battery replacement during spacewalks in January 2017.
Each of the station's four main sets of arrays, two on each end of the truss, provide power to two electrical buses, or channels. To keep the lab operating during passes through Earth's shadow, each set of arrays is equipped with 12 massive nickel-hydrogen batteries, six per power channel.
Alltogether, 48 NiH2 batteries store power for the station's eight electrical channels. NASA is in the process of replacing all 48 with 24 smaller, more efficient lithium-ion power packs, a complex task that will take several years to complete.
The existing nickel-hydrogen batteries were upgraded with newer, more powerful lithium-ion batteries transported to the station aboard the Japanese H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV-8), which arrived on September 28, 2019. Working site for this spacewalk was P6 Channel 2B battery R&R A-F. Astronauts also were able to accomplish get-ahead tasks, including the removal of an additional nickel-hydrogen battery, originally scheduled for the second spacewalk.

The second EVA occurred on October 11, 2019 by astronauts Andrew Morgan and Christina Koch (6h 45m). The duo continued to replace nickel-hydrogen batteries with more powerful lithium-ion batteries (working site: P6 Channel 2B battery R&R A-F). It was the second spacewalk to replacing batteries on the far end of the station's port truss.
They also completed get-ahead tasks to prepare the EVA worksites on the P6 4B side for EVA 58 Battery replacements, released the H1 bolt from P4 Battery 5 and disconnected the Ethernet cable from the EXT-2 MDM.

Christina Koch and Jessica Meir left the Quest airlock on October 18, 2019 to perform an unplanned spacewalk (7h 17m). It became the first all-female spacewalk in the history of manned spaceflights. The EVA was needed to replace a faulty battery charge/discharge unit (BCDU). The BCDU failed to activate following the October 11, 2019 installation of new lithium-ion batteries on the space station's truss. The BCDU failure has not impacted station operations, safety of the crew, or the ongoing experiments aboard the orbiting laboratory.
The BCDU's regulate the amount of charge put into the batteries that collect energy from the station's solar arrays to power station systems during periods when the station orbits during nighttime passes around Earth. Two other charge/discharge units on the affected 2B power channel did activate as planned and are providing power to station systems.
The astronauts were also able to accomplish some get-ahead tasks including installation of a stanchion on the Columbus module for support of a new external ESA (European Space Agency) payload platform called Bartolomeo scheduled for launch to the station in 2020.
Space station managers had postponed on October 15, 2019 three spacewalks previously scheduled to install new batteries. The three spacewalks will be rescheduled.

After delivering more than four tons of supplies, water, spare parts and experiments to the International Space Station, a Japanese cargo spacecraft HTV-8 departed the orbiting laboratory at 17:21 UTC on November 01, 2019.
Ground controllers used the space station's Canadarm2 robotic arm to detach the unpiloted H-II Transfer Vehicle-7 (HTV-8) of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) from an Earth-facing port of the station's Harmony module several hours before its release, then moved the spacecraft into its release position. Expedition 61 Flight Engineers Christina Koch and Jessica Meir took over the controls of the robotic arm to release the spacecraft.
HTV-8 delivered more than four tons of scientific experiments, including an upgrade to the Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF-L), a small-sized satellite optical communication system (SOLISS), and a payload for testing the effects of gravity on powder and granular material (Hourglass). The spaceship also delivered supplies and new lithium-ion batteries for an upgrade from the nickel-hydrogen batteries that store power generated by the station's solar arrays.
It was loaded with trash and the nickel-hydrogen batteries removed from the station over a series of recent spacewalks.

Following its departure from the space station, HTV-8 was commanded to deorbit on November 03, 2019 and burned up harmlessly in the Earth's atmosphere.

On November 02, 2019 at 13:59:51.25 UTC Northrop Grumman launched its Cygnus NG-12 ("S.S. Alan Bean") spacecraft on an Antares rocket from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport's Pad-0A. The freighter is named after the late Apollo and Skylab astronaut who died on May 26, 2018, at the age of 86. This Cygnus launched 50 years to the month after Alan Bean, Charles Conrad and Richard Gordon flew to the Moon on NASA's Apollo 12 mission, during which Alan Bean became the fourth human to walk on the lunar surface. Alan Bean was the lunar module pilot aboard Intrepid with mission commander Charles Conrad when they landed on Moon at the Ocean of Storms on November 19, 1969.
Each resupply mission to the station delivers scientific investigations in the areas of biology and biotechnology, Earth and space science, physical sciences, and technology development and demonstrations.
Highlights of space station research that will be facilitated by research aboard this Cygnus mission include:
Cygnus carried special tools to repair the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-02. The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-02 (AMS-02), delivered by STS-134 and mounted on the exterior of the International Space Station (S3), looks for evidence of dark, strange and anti-matter to help us understand how our universe was formed. Using a large magnet to create a magnetic field that will bend the path of the charged cosmic particles already traveling through space, eight different instruments will provide information on those particles as they make their way through the magnet. Armed with that information, hundreds of scientists from 16 countries are hoping to determine what the universe is made of and how it began, as the AMS searches for clues on the origin of dark matter and the existence of antimatter and strangelets. And if that's not enough, there is also the information it could provide on pulsars, blazers and gamma ray bursters and any number of phenomena that have yet to be named. A series of spacewalks are planned for later this year to prolong the operational life of the AMS-02. Astronauts will cut and reconnect fluid lines, a feat not done before in space, which could prove valuable for future missions at NASA's upcoming lunar Gateway or missions to Mars.
The AstroRad Vest tests a special vest designed to protect astronauts from radiation caused by unpredictable solar particle events. Astronauts will provide input on the garment as they wear it while performing daily tasks, including how easy it is to put on, how it fits and feels, and the range of motion it allows. Garment developers can use this input to improve design. Use of the vest could protect crew members on missions to the Moon and Mars.
The Zero-G Oven examines heat transfer properties and the process of baking food in microgravity. It uses an oven designed specifically for use aboard the space station, and may have application on future long-duration missions by offering a way to increase variety in flavor and nutrition of food for crew members.
The Made in Space Recycler will test systems needed to reprocess plastic into 3D printing filament that can then be transferred for use to the Made in Space Manufacturing Device, a 3D printer that has operated on the orbiting laboratory since 2016. This has implications for space conservation and deep space missions.
Northrop Grumman used a new 24-hour late load capability on this mission. This innovative system includes a mobile clean room and a removable portion of the payload fairing that will permit time-sensitive science experiments to be loaded into Cygnus as late as 24 hours before liftoff.
The Cygnus spacecraft arrived at the space station on November 04, 2019 at about 09:10 UTC Expedition 61 astronaut Jessica Meir grappled the spacecraft using the station's robotic arm. She was backed up by astronaut Christina Koch. After Cygnus capture, ground controllers commanded the station's arm to rotate and installed Cygnus on the bottom of the station's Unity module.
The Cygnus spacecraft remained at the space station until January 31, 2020, when it departed the station, it deployed Nanoracks customer CubeSats.

On November 07, 2019, an ISS reboost was performed using Progress MS-12 thrusters. This reboost was to set up for the landing of manned spacecraft Soyuz MS-13 in February 2020. The engines started at 22:40:58.115 UTC and fired 406 seconds. The ISS got 0.46 m/sec. more speed. The actual parameters are 416.2 km x 430.3 km. The ISS needs 92.8 minutes for each orbit.

On November 15, 2019 Luca Parmitano and Andrew Morgan ventured outside the International Space Station (6h 39m) for the first in a series of complex spacewalks in November and December 2019 to repair the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02), a cosmic ray detector. They replaced a cooling system and fixed a coolant leak on AMS-02, which was delivered to the station in May 2011. The upgraded cooling system will support AMS-02 through the lifetime of the space station.
During the first spacewalk Luca Parmitano and Andrew Morgan set up tools and equipment before removing a protective debris shield from the AMS-02, giving them access to the guts of the instrument so a new coolant system pump module can be installed later.
These spacewalks are considered the most complex of their kind since the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) servicing missions, which took place between 1993 and 2009. The AMS-02 originally was designed for a three-year mission and, unlike Hubble, was not designed to be serviced once in space. More than 20 unique tools were designed for the intricate repair work, which will include the cutting and splicing of eight cooling tubes to be connected to the new system, and reconnection of a myriad of power and data cables. Astronauts have never cut and reconnected fluid lines during a spacewalk.
AMS - whose principal investigator is Nobel laureate physicist Samuel Ting - was constructed and tested, and is operated by an international team of 56 institutes from 16 countries organized under U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science sponsorship. AMS-02 has been capturing high-energy cosmic rays to help researchers answer fundamental questions about the nature of antimatter, the unseen "dark matter" that makes up most of the mass in the universe, and the even-more-mysterious dark energy that is speeding up the expansion of the cosmos. AMS-02 is managed by the AMS Integration Project Office at Johnson Space Center.

Luca Parmitano and Andrew Morgan left again the Quest airlock on November 22, 2019 for the second in a series of complex spacewalks in November and December 2019 to repair the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02), a cosmic ray detector (6h 33m). They continued their work to replace a cooling system and fixed a coolant leak on AMS-02. Luca Parmitano and Andrew Morgan cut and label stainless steel tubes, of which there are eight. NASA said they will connect them to the new cooling system on the third spacewalk, scheduled for December 02, 2019 before performing leak checks.

Filled with trash, the unpiloted Russian cargo ship Progress MS-12 undocked from the Pirs module of the International Space Station at 10:25 UTC on November 29, 2019. Later Russian flight controllers sent commands to fire the Progress' engines and deorbit the space freighter, sending it to a destructive entry over the unpopulated South Pacific Ocean.

On December 02, 2019 Luca Parmitano and Andrew Morgan performed the third in a series of complex spacewalks in November and December 2019 to repair the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02), a cosmic ray detector (6h 02m). They continued their work to replace a cooling system and fixed a coolant leak on AMS-02. Today's main task was to install a new pump module. The astronauts installed a bypass to the old thermal control system by attaching a new one off the side of AMS-02.

NASA commercial cargo provider SpaceX launched its 19th commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station at 17:29:24.521 UTC on December 05, 2019. Loaded with 5,796 pounds (2,617 kilograms; 356 kilograms crew supplies, 977 kilograms science investigations, 65 kilograms spacewalk equipment, 306 kilograms vehicle hardware, 15 kilograms computer resources, 924 kilograms unpressurized payloads) supplies and critical materials to directly support dozens of the more than 250 science and research investigations that will occur during Expeditions 61 and beyond, the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft (CRS-19 or SpX-19) launched on a Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) in Florida. In addition to bringing research to station, the Dragon's unpressurized trunk will transport the Japanese Space Agency's (JAXA) Hyperspectral Imager Suite (HISUI), a next-generation, hyperspectral Earth imaging system and a Lithium Ion Battery with Adapter Plate as replacement battery for battery damaged by a Battery Charge/Discharge Unit (BCDU) earlier 2019.
Dragon reached its preliminary orbit about 10 minutes after launch. It then deployed its solar arrays and began a carefully choreographed series of thruster firings to reach the orbiting laboratory three days later on December 08, 2019.

The launch of the unpiloted Russian Progress MS-13 occurred on December 06, 2019 at 09:34:11.430 UTC from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The freighter delivered almost three tons of food, fuel and supplies to the International Space Station components for the life support system, as well as containers with food, clothing, medical supplies and personal hygiene items for the crewmembers are stowed in the cargo compartment (Propellant: 650 kg, Oxygen: 50 kg, Water: 420 kg, Dry cargo: 1,367 kg).

When Dragon CRS-19 or SpX-19 arrived, Luca Parmitano and Andrew Morgan (acting as a backup) grappled Dragon (10:05 UTC). Jessica Meir assisted the duo by monitoring telemetry during Dragon's approach. After Dragon's capture, ground controllers sent commands from mission control in Houston for the station's arm to rotate and install the spacecraft on the bottom of the station's Harmony module (12:47 UTC).
The Dragon spacecraft spent about four weeks attached to the space station. Dragon remained at the orbital outpost until January 07, 2020, when the spacecraft returned to Earth with research and return cargo.

The Progress MS-13 spacecraft docked to the Pirs docking compartment at the Russian segment on December 09, 2019 at 10:35:11 UTC. Progress MS-13 will remain docked at the station for more than seven months before departing in July 2020 for its deorbit into Earth's atmosphere.

The launch of Boeing's unmanned CST-100 Starliner Boe-OFT spacecraft on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket occurred on December 20, 2019 at 11:36:43 UTC from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) in Florida.
The flight test should provide valuable data on the end-to-end performance of the Atlas V rocket, Starliner spacecraft, and ground systems, as well as in-orbit, docking, and landing operations. The data will be used as part of NASA's process of certifying Boeing's crew transportation system for carrying astronauts to and from the space station.
Starliner run into trouble soon after launch. The spacecraft was unable to perform its orbital insertion burn as planned. The burn needed for a rendezvous with the International Space Station. Flight controllers are trying to determine the next course of action.
Starliner will be not able to dock with the International Space Station. Engineers are working to get the spacecraft down to Earth on December 22, 2019.
The unmanned CST-100 Starliner Boe-OFT spacecraft made an early a parachute-assisted landing on December 22, 2019 at 12:57 UTC. The landing side was at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico.

On December 27, 2019, an ISS reboost was performed using Progress MS-13 thrusters. This reboost was to set up for the landing of Soyuz MS-13. The engines started at 01:28 UTC and fired 576.4 minutes. As result of this reboost the ISS got 0.56 m/sec. more speed.
A second ISS reboost was performed using Progress MS-13 thrusters. The engines started at 04:36 UTC and fired 494 seconds.
As result of this reboost the ISS got 0.48 m/sec. more speed. The actual parameters are 415.9 km x 439.1 km. The ISS needs 92.87 minutes for each orbit.

Filled with almost 3,600 pounds (1,630 kg) of valuable scientific experiments and other cargo, the SpaceX Dragon CRS-19 or SpX-19 resupply spacecraft left the International Space Station on January 07, 2020.
Robotic flight controllers at mission control in Houston issued remote commands at 10:05 UTC to release Dragon using the station's Canadarm2 robotic arm. Expedition 61 Station Commander Luca Parmitano backed up the ground controllers and monitored Dragon's systems as it departed the orbital laboratory.
Dragon fired its thrusters to move a safe distance from the station, then executed a deorbit burn as it headed for a parachute-assisted splashdown at 15:42 UTC on January 07, 2020, in the Pacific Ocean southwest of Long Beach, California.
A key component returning aboard Dragon is a faulty battery charge-discharge unit (BCDU), which failed to activate following the October 11, 2019 installation of new lithium-ion batteries on the space station's truss. Expedition 61 Flight Engineers Christina Koch and Jessica Meir removed and replaced the BCDU during a spacewalk on October 18, 2019. The unit will be returned to teams on Earth for evaluation and repair.
Dragon launched on the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on December 05, 2019 from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida and arrived at the space station two days later.
Some of the scientific investigations Dragon returned to Earth include:
Tiny Radiation Resistors: Rotifer-B1 examines the effects of spaceflight on tiny aquatic animals, called rotifers, which are found in freshwater ecosystems and soil and are highly resistant to radiation on Earth. The investigation specifically looks at the metabolism and genome of the rotifer Adineta vaga to determine whether they have similar adaptation mechanisms in microgravity.
Mice in Space: Rodent Research-19 examines myostatin and activin, molecular signaling pathways that influence muscle degradation, as possible targets for preventing muscle and bone loss during spaceflight and enhancing recovery following return to Earth. This study also could support the development of therapies for a wide range of conditions that cause muscle and bone loss on Earth.
Finding the Perfect Solution: On Earth, our bodies deal with low-level radiation through a naturally occurring protein that helps our body safely process it. The Growth of Large, Perfect Protein Crystals for Neutron Crystallography (Perfect Crystals) study, aims to help scientists find a way to deal with the problem of radiation during long-duration spaceflight missions using the same protein that is already at work in our bodies.
Convection and Crystallization in Microgravity: The Polymer Convection study examines the effects of gravity on formation and crystallization of Broadband Angular Selective Material (BASM), an optical material with the ability to control the reflection and absorption of light. BASM has applications in polymer packaging, optical films, solar power and electronic displays.
These are just a few of the hundreds of investigations providing opportunities for U.S. government agencies, private industry, and academic and research institutions to conduct microgravity research that leads to new technologies, medical treatments and products that improve life on Earth. Conducting science aboard the orbiting laboratory will help us learn how to keep astronauts healthy during long-duration space travel and demonstrate technologies for future human and robotic exploration beyond low-Earth orbit to the Moon and Mars.

Jessica Meir and Christina Koch left the Quest airlock on January 15, 2020 to perform the next spacewalk (7h 29m). It was the second all-female spacewalk in the history of manned spaceflights. The astronauts continued to replace nickel-hydrogen batteries with more powerful lithium-ion batteries (working site: P6 Channel 4B battery R&R A-F). It was the third planned spacewalk to replacing batteries on the far end of the station's port truss.

The fourth planned EVA in this series occurred on January 20, 2020 (6h 58m). Jessica Meir and Christina Koch performed the third all-female spacewalk in the history of manned spaceflights. Their task was again to replace nickel-hydrogen batteries with more powerful lithium-ion batteries on the far end of the station's port truss (working site: P6 Channel 4B battery R&R A-F). The two nickel-hydrogen batteries will be stored on an external platform until they can be disposed of in the next Japanese HTV cargo spacecraft after it delivers tons of supplies to the space station later in 2020. Ground controllers verified the new batteries powered up successfully to provide an improved and more efficient power capacity for station operations.
The spacewalkers concluded their work by paying tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Jessica Meir said he was a personal hero and looking down on planet Earth reminded her of his words: "We may have all come on different ships, but we're in the same boat now." Christina Koch noted how much is owed to those who worked for civil rights and inclusion and "paved the way for not only us, but so many who have a dream."

On January 23, 2020, an ISS reboost was performed using Progress MS-13 thrusters. This reboost was to set up for the landing of Soyuz MS-13, the launch of Soyuz MS-16 and the landing of Soyuz MS-15. The engines started at 14:15 UTC and fired 563 seconds.
A second ISS reboost was performed using Progress MS-13 thrusters. The engines started at 17:23 UTC and fired 282 seconds.
As result of the first reboost the ISS got 0.56 m/sec. more speed. As result of the second reboost the ISS got 0.28 m/sec. more speed. The actual parameters are 415.9 km x 437.0 km. The ISS needs 92.896 minutes for each orbit.

To perform the fourth EVA in a series of complex spacewalks, starting in November and December 2019, to repair the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02), a cosmic ray detector, Andrew Morgan and Luca Parmitano climbed again out of the Quest airlock on January 25, 2020 (6h 16m). The main task was to carry out leak checks, make adjustments and then to re-installed insulation. This protective debris shield was removed on November 15, 2019 to give the astronauts access to the guts of the instrument.

More than two months after delivering several tons of supplies and scientific experiments to the International Space Station, Northrop Grumman's Cygnus cargo spacecraft Cygnus NG-12, the SS Alan Bean, departed the orbiting laboratory on January 31, 2020 at 14:36 UTC.
Cygnus demonstrated a new release position for departure operations and incorporated the first ground-controlled release. The new orientation allows for easier drift away from the station's Canadarm2 robotic arm. With Expedition 61 Flight Engineers Andrew Morgan and Jessica Meir providing backup support, ground controllers sent commands to the Canadarm2 robotic arm to release the unpiloted cargo spacecraft after ground controllers remotely unbolt the craft from the Earth-facing port of the Unity module and maneuver it into release position.
Within 24 hours of its release, Cygnus began its secondary mission - deploying a series of eight CubeSats for communications and atmospheric research - before Northrop Grumman flight controllers in Dulles, Virginia, initiate its deorbit and it executes a safe, destructive reentry into Earth's atmosphere at the end of February 2020.

Finally, the station command changed from Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano to Russian cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka. ISS Expedition 61 concluded with the undocking of Russian spacecraft Soyuz MS-13 on February 06, 2020 at 05:50:28 UTC.
The landing crew consisted of Aleksandr Skvortsov, Luca Parmitano and Christina Koch. Three-and-a-half-hours later the crew landed safely in Kazakhstan. So, the new Expedition 62 consisted of ISS Commander Oleg Skripochka, Jessica Meir (both had reached the station onboard Soyuz MS-15) and Andrew Morgan (since the docking of Soyuz MS-13 onboard).


Among the US experiments are:

AMS-02: Stars, planets and the molecules that make them are only about five percent of the total mass in the universe - the rest is either dark matter or dark energy, but no one has ever seen this material or been able to study it. What's more, the big bang theory holds that the universe should be made of equal parts matter and antimatter, but scientists have never detected naturally occurring antimatter. The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-02 (AMS-02) looks for evidence of these mysterious substances, along with very high-energy radiation coming from distant stars that could harm crew members traveling to Mars.

AstroRad Vest: Comfort and Human Factors AstroRad Radiation Garment Evaluation (CHARGE) (AstroRad Vest) tests a special vest designed to protect astronauts from radiation caused by unpredictable solar particle events (SPEs). Astronauts will provide input on the garment as they wear it while performing daily tasks, including how easy it is to put on, how it fits and feels, and the range of motion it allows. Garment developers can use this input to improve design, and use of the vest may protect crew members on missions to the Moon and Mars.

ANALOG-1: Space is such a harsh place for humans and machines that future exploration of the solar system may likely involve sending robotic explorers to "test the waters" on uncharted planets before sending humans. The Investigation of the Use of an Advanced Human-Robotic Interface in Enhancing the Performance of Teleoperated Robotic Field Geology (ANALOG-1) technology project investigates how an astronaut on the space station can operate an exploration rover on a Moon-like terrain on Earth, collect rock/soil samples, and remotely investigate them - an analog scenario for future lunar or Martian exploration.

Targeting Improved Cotton through Orbital Cultivation: It is estimated that more than 25 million tons of cotton are produced around the world each year. While the economic and personal benefits of cotton are well understood, the environmental impacts of cotton production are significant. It is estimated that producing one kilogram of cotton requires thousands of liters of water. Additionally, the intensive use of agricultural chemicals in cotton farming and production can have health impacts on workers and surrounding ecosystems. This experiment will improve the understanding of cotton root systems and associated gene expression that may enable the development of cotton cultivars to be more robust in the face of drought and pests.

AzTechSat-1: Inter-satellite communication is critical to human space exploration. The AzTechSat-1 primary focus is to conduct inter-satellite communication demonstrations between AzTechSat-1 and the Globalstar Satellite Constellation. These demonstrations will further mature this capability with potential applications for deep space SmallSat missions. AzTechSat-1 will accomplish this primary focus area by using two onboard communication systems - Globalstar STINGR modem and an UHF/VHF amateur band radio. The Globalstar STINGR modem has an embedded L-Band radio and a GPS, through which the modem's crosslink communication is a patch antenna. This is the first international collaboration program between NASA and the Mexican Space Agency.

EVA data

  Name Start End Duration Mission Airlock Suit
EVA Koch, Christina 06.10.2019, 11:39 UTC 06.10.2019, 18:40 UTC 7h 01m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3004
EVA Morgan, Andrew 06.10.2019, 11:39 UTC 06.10.2019, 18:40 UTC 7h 01m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3008
 
EVA Morgan, Andrew 11.10.2019, 11:38 UTC 11.10.2019, 18:23 UTC 6h 45m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3008
EVA Koch, Christina 11.10.2019, 11:38 UTC 11.10.2019, 18:23 UTC 6h 45m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3004
 
EVA Koch, Christina 18.10.2019, 11:38 UTC 18.10.2019, 18:55 UTC 7h 17m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3008
EVA Meir, Jessica 18.10.2019, 11:38 UTC 18.10.2019, 18:55 UTC 7h 17m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3004
 
EVA Parmitano, Luca 15.11.2019, 11:39 UTC 15.11.2019, 18:18 UTC 6h 39m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3004
EVA Morgan, Andrew 15.11.2019, 11:39 UTC 15.11.2019, 18:18 UTC 6h 39m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3008
 
EVA Parmitano, Luca 22.11.2019, 12:02 UTC 22.11.2019, 18:35 UTC 6h 33m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3004
EVA Morgan, Andrew 22.11.2019, 12:02 UTC 22.11.2019, 18:35 UTC 6h 33m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3008
 
EVA Parmitano, Luca 02.12.2019, 11:31 UTC 02.12.2019, 17:33 UTC 6h 02m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3004
EVA Morgan, Andrew 02.12.2019, 11:31 UTC 02.12.2019, 17:33 UTC 6h 02m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3008
 
EVA Meir, Jessica 15.01.2020, 11:35 UTC 15.01.2020, 19:04 UTC 7h 29m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3004
EVA Koch, Christina 15.01.2020, 11:35 UTC 15.01.2020, 19:04 UTC 7h 29m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3008
 
EVA Meir, Jessica 20.01.2020, 11:35 UTC 20.01.2020, 18:33 UTC 6h 58m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3004
EVA Koch, Christina 20.01.2020, 11:35 UTC 20.01.2020, 18:33 UTC 6h 58m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3008
 
EVA Morgan, Andrew 25.01.2020, 12:04 UTC 25.01.2020, 18:20 UTC 6h 16m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3008
EVA Parmitano, Luca 25.01.2020, 12:04 UTC 25.01.2020, 18:20 UTC 6h 16m ISS-61 ISS - Quest EMU No. 3004
 

Photos / Graphics

Soyuz MS-12 undocking P6 Battery EVA Worksites
New Li-Ion Battery Configuration EVA Andrew Morgan on October 06, 2019
HTV-8 docked Andrew Morgan after the first EVA
EVA Andrew Morgan on October 11, 2019 ISS
fresh fruit arrived with HTV-8 ELC-1
EVA Jessica Meir on October 18, 2019 EVA Jessica Meir on October 18, 2019
Haircut in Space Peniche, Portugal
HTV-8 departure Cygnus NG-12 capture
Crew ISS-61 EVA Luca Parmitano on November 15, 2019
EVA Luca Parmitano on November 22, 2019 EVA Andrew Morgan on November 22, 2019
ISS taken by Luca Parmitano during his spacewalk ISS taken by Luca Parmitano during his spacewalk
ISS taken by Luca Parmitano during his spacewalk ISS taken by Luca Parmitano during his spacewalk
ISS taken by Luca Parmitano during his spacewalk ISS taken by Luca Parmitano during his spacewalk
ISS taken by Luca Parmitano during his spacewalk Columbus
Christina Koch and Oleg Skripochka assisted the spacewalkers on November 22, 2019 London at night
Thanksgiving UTTPS
Progress MS-12 departure AMS-02
EVA Andrew Morgan on December 02, 2019 EVA Luca Parmitano on December 02, 2019
Beirut at night Bucharest at night
Dragon SpX-19 arrival Canadarm with Dextre
Progress MS-13 arrival Jessica Meir celebrates Hanukkah in space
New Year's Eve SPHERES
Dragon SpX-19 departure Articulating Portable Foot Restraint (APFR)
EVA Jessica Meir on January 20, 2020 EVA Andrew Morgan and Luca Parmitano on January 25, 2020
EVA Andrew Morgan on January 25, 2020 AMS-02
Cygnus NG-12 departure ISS (stitch)

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Last update on November 11, 2023.

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