The Washington Post reports, “Jared Isaacman performed the first spacewalk by a private citizen early Thursday, with a live broadcast that showed him popping his head and torso out of the hatch of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule and performing a series of maneuvers near the capsule. He was followed by Sarah Gillis, a SpaceX engineer who is part of the four-person, all-civilian crew and also floated outside the spacecraft while tethered and holding on to handrails. The spacewalk was originally scheduled for 2:23 a.m. Eastern time Thursday but was pushed back to just before 7, when Isaacman exited the hatch. Isaacman and Gillis spent several minutes each outside the capsule.”
Full Story (Washington Post)
Tag: astronauts
Starliner Crew May Return Home with SpaceX in 2025
The New York Times reports that for weeks, NASA has downplayed problems experienced by Starliner, but on Wednesday, NASA officials admitted that the issues might be more serious than first thought and that the astronauts might not return on the Boeing vehicle. “The agency is exploring a backup option for the astronauts, Suni Wiliams and Butch Wilmore, to instead hitch a ride back to Earth on a spacecraft built by Boeing’s competitor SpaceX. The astronauts’ stay in orbit, which was to be as short as eight days, could be extended into next year.”
Full Story (New York Times)
Ax-3 Mission Splashes Down
Space News reports that SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft “splashed down off the Florida coast Feb. 9, wrapping up a three-week private astronaut mission to the International Space Station. The Crew Dragon spacecraft Freedom splashed down at 8:30 a.m. Eastern off the coast from Daytona Beach, Florida, concluding the Ax-3 mission for Axiom Space.”
Full Story (Space News)
Video
Ax-3 Crew Dragon splashdown
(SciNews; YouTube)
Ax-3 Astronauts Will Depart ISS Today
SPACE reports that after weather delays over the past few days, the Ax-3 Crew Dragon is scheduled to undock from the ISS today at 9:20 a.m. ET.
Full Story (SPACE)
Astronauts Arrive at ISS
Reuters reported a four-man crew “arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) early on Saturday for a two-week stay in the latest such mission arranged entirely at commercial expense by Texas-based startup company Axiom Space.” Their arrival “came about 37 hours after the Axiom quartet’s Thursday evening liftoff in a rocketship from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.”
Full Story (Reuters)
NASA’s Artemis II Astronauts Head to Launch Pad for First Time
Florida Today reports that on Wednesday, the four person crew of NASA’s Artemis II mission “had a first chance to practice what their launch day will feel like.” In what is “called a dry dress rehearsal, the astronauts got suited up and took their new electric crew transportation vehicles for a spin to the launch pad.” Since the mission’s SLS rocket “is still in production at other NASA facilities nationwide, Wednesday’s practice run focused on preparing ground team support of the crew.” Slated to “launch from KSC as early as November of next year, Artemis II – the first lunar human spaceflight mission since 1972 – will send the four crew members on a trip around the moon and back deeper into space than any mission ever before.” This week’s launch day rehearsal “marked only the second time the prime crew of the Artemis II lunar mission has traveled to KSC since being announced in April.”
Full Story (Florida Today – Subscription Publication)
How Space Travel Affects Astronauts’ Physiology
UPI reports that when astronauts “travel to space, the experience depletes their red blood cells and bone, according to a new study.” Fortunately, it appears their bodies “can eventually replenish them after they’ve returned to Earth, thanks to fat stored in the bone marrow.” University of Ottawa Rehabilitation Physician and Researcher Guy Trudel, one of the authors of the study, said, “We found that astronauts had significantly less fat in their bone marrow about a month after returning to Earth. We think the body is using this fat to help replace red blood cells and rebuild bone that has been lost during space travel.” The new research “builds on Trudel’s earlier work, which found that astronauts’ bodies destroyed 54% more red blood cells during space travel than they normally would on Earth.” It’s known as “space anemia.” The research “is part of MARROW, which is an experiment looking at bone marrow health and blood production in space, with funding from the Canadian Space Agency.”
Full Story (UPI)
Crew-5 Team Splashes Down Off the Florida Coast
CNN reported that the four astronauts “who make up the Crew-5 team aboard the International Space Station returned home from a five-month stay in space Saturday, splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico.” The SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule “disembarked from the space station at 2:20 am ET, beginning the final leg of the astronauts’ journey.” The spacecraft “then maneuvered back toward Earth before plunging back into the atmosphere for a landing off the coast of Tampa, Florida[,] just after 9 p.m. ET Saturday.” The capsule was hauled out of the ocean by rescue ships and the astronauts then got to breath fresh air for the first time in five months. The four crew members – NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, astronaut Koichi Wakata of JAXA, and cosmonaut Anna Kikina of the Russian space agency Roscosmos – “launched to the space station aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule this past October.”
Full Story (CNN)
Video
Dragon and Crew-5 NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, along with JAXA astronaut Koichi Wakata, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina splash down off the Florida coast at 9:02 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 11, after 157 days in space.
(SpaceX; YouTube)
Learn the Lessons from 60 Years in Space
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AIAA Offering Unique Course to Everyone in the Aerospace Industry
March 28, 2022 – Reston, Va. – During the first 60 years of spaceflight, the aerospace industry has been amassing an incredible engineering knowledge base. Now it’s time to pass on this collective experience to the next generation of space explorers. In May and June, everyone in the space industry can benefit from the only course of its kind, “Human Spaceflight Operations: Lessons Learned from 60 Years in Space,” offered online by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).
Human Spaceflight Operations: Lessons Learned from 60 Years in Space
May 10–June 30 (Tuesdays/Thursdays)
1300–1530 hrs Eastern Time
34 classroom hours total (3.4 CEU/PDH)
Online/Zoom
The course will be taught by Lead Instructor Gregory E. Chamitoff, someone who has lived and worked in space for almost 200 days. The William Keeler ‘49 Professor of Practice/Zachry Chair Professor of Practice in Aerospace Engineering, and Director of the AeroSpace Technology Research & Operations (ASTRO) Laboratory at Texas A&M University will be joined by a cadre of 15 space operations experts with vast experience as flight directors, flight controllers, astronauts, and mission engineers. They have collectively published the AIAA textbook for this course. The lessons learned are derived through experiences from space missions.
The experience and expertise of the instructors is unmatched in this field. “Our goal is to pass on our insight to the next generation of space engineers, designers, operators, and crew. Anyone who is part of a current or future national or international space program, private space enterprise, human, or robotic mission will gain valuable insights. The lessons we have learned are applicable to anyone working in the space industry,” said Chamitoff, who also is an AIAA Associate Fellow.
The course topics span the full range of operational disciplines involved in the planning and execution of human spaceflight. This includes all the typical mission control center specialties as well as others such as training, ground operations, safety, and onboard crew operations. For each topic, the fundamentals and the evolution of the systems and operational methods are explained. Case studies from spaceflight missions provide the basis for lessons learned that are integrated into operational practice.
“This is not a course on space system design, of which there are many. The aim is to shine light on the subject of space operations, as distinct from engineering design. However, the most important lesson is perhaps that operational requirements must be considered very carefully in the design process. We hope that through the process of explaining how things really work in space and in mission control centers, future missions can benefit from the experience (and mistakes) of so many pioneers that have come before,” Chamitoff concluded.
Registration is open now. Students will receive all lecture notes, as well as an eBook copy of the instructors’ new textbook, Human Spaceflight Operations: Lessons Learned from 60 Years in Space (AIAA, 2021). Students will receive an AIAA Certificate of Completion at the end of the course. All sessions will be recorded and available for replay.
Course Pricing: Human Spaceflight Operations: Lessons Learned from 60 Years in Space
AIAA Member: $1,595 USD
Non-Member: $1,795 USD
AIAA Student Member: $995 USD
For more information on the course, contact Lisa Le at [email protected] or AIAA Customer Service at [email protected].
Media contact: Rebecca B. Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270
About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org or follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, andInstagram.
Citizen Astronauts from Blue Origin, SpaceX, and Virgin Galactic Commercial Space Missions to Appear Together at 2021 ASCEND in Las Vegas
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 22, 2021 – Reston, Va. – Astronauts from the three different commercial space experiences that occurred in 2021 will appear on stage together in Las Vegas on Monday, 15 November, during 2021 ASCEND. ASCEND is the interdisciplinary community focused on building humanity’s off-world future faster, powered by AIAA. Confirmed speakers include:
- Blue Origin New Shepard Mission NS-18 (October 2021)
- Glen de Vries, Vice-Chair, Life Sciences & Healthcare, Dassault Systèmes; and Co-Founder, Medidata
- SpaceX Inspiration4 Mission (September 2021)
- Jared Isaacman, Inspiration4 Commander
- Sian Proctor, Inspiration4 Mission Pilot
- Virgin Galactic Unity22 Mission (July 2021)
- Sirisha Bandla, Vice President of Government Affairs, Virgin Galactic; and member of the ASCEND Guiding Coalition
The exclusive gathering of these citizen astronauts to share firsthand accounts of their missions epitomizes the ASCEND spirit of community and global partnership. They will discuss the impact of their missions, as well as their experiences during training, flight, and post-launch. The speakers will appear in person in the following 2021 ASCEND sessions:
Opening Keynote
Speakers: Jared Isaacman, Sian Proctor
Monday, 15 November, 0730–0900 hrs PT
Lunch Plenary Session: Citizen Astronauts
Moderator: Kari Byron, Producer and Television Personality, Mythbusters, White Rabbit Project; Host, Crash Test World
Speakers: Sirisha Bandla, Glen de Vries, Jared Isaacman, Sian Proctor
Monday, 15 November, 1145–1245 hrs PT
2021 ASCEND is set for 8–10 and 15–17 November, showcasing a hybrid blend of in-person programming in Las Vegas (Caesars Forum) and Washington, D.C., and online programming on all six days.
The Public is Invited to Attend 2021 ASCEND
ASCEND is an event open to everyone who loves space. The public is invited to register now at the best rates. The full agenda and confirmed speakers are available at ascend.events.
Registration for in-person attendance is limited and only open until 10 November, to ensure all AIAA Health and Safety protocols are met.
Press Passes Available to Media
Journalists interested in covering the citizen astronauts and the full ASCEND program at Caesars Forum in Las Vegas in person should contact [email protected] for credentialing, or request an Online Press Pass here.
Media Contact: Rebecca B. Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell
About ASCEND
Powered by AIAA, ASCEND promotes the collaborative, interdisciplinary, outcomes-driven community of professionals, students, and enthusiasts around the world who are accelerating humanity’s progress toward our off-world future! For more information, visit ascend.events, or follow ASCEND on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, or follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
NASA, SpaceX Successfully Launch Crew-5 Mission to the ISS
Space.com reports that NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission successfully launched to the International Space Station Wednesday from Kennedy Space Center’s historic Launch Pad 39A. Liftoff occurred at 12:00 p.m. EDT, “kicking off a roughly 29-hour journey to the orbiting lab.” The spacecraft is scheduled to dock at the ISS on Thursday at 4:57 p.m. ET. The mission’s “four spaceflyers are NASA’s Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata and cosmonaut Anna Kikina.” The launch “made Mann the first Native American woman to reach the final frontier and Kikina the first Russian to fly on a private American spacecraft.”
Full Story (Space.com)
Video
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 Mission to the International Space Station (Official NASA Broadcast)
(NASA; YouTube)
More Space Companies Betting their Future on Reusability
Space News reports, “On the fifth integrated test flight of Starship, launched Oct. 13 from the company’s Boca Chica, Texas, site, the Super Heavy booster aimed to fly back to the launch tower, where massive mechanical arms — dubbed ‘chopsticks’ — would grapple it. So many things could go wrong that most expected failure, much like SpaceX’s early attempts to land Falcon 9 boosters a decade ago. Inside the company, though, there was confidence.”
Full Story (Space News)
NASA to Consider Every Agency Astronaut for Artemis Missions
SPACE reports that NASA announced Friday that it is considering every agency astronaut for Artemis missions. The announcement “rolls back a 2020 announcement that selected 18 astronauts for these missions.” NASA Johnson Space Center Astronaut Office head Reid Wiseman said, “The way I look at it, any one of our 42 active astronauts is eligible for an Artemis mission. We want to assemble the right team for this mission.
Full Story (SPACE)
AIAA Statement on the Apollo 1 Monument
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 17, 2022 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Executive Director Dan Dumbacher made the following statement:
“AIAA welcomes the long overdue new monument honoring Apollo 1 Astronauts Virgil “Gus” Grissom, Edward White, and Roger B. Chaffee recently placed at Arlington National Cemetery. It appropriately reads, “Ad astra per aspera,” or “Through hardships to the stars.”
We remember the tragedy on January 27, 1967, when a flash fire occurred in the command module during a launch pad test of the Apollo/Saturn space vehicle and the three astronauts died. We commend the efforts of NASA and the space community to remind us of the sacrifices astronauts and their families have made in our pursuit of the space frontier.
As the largest professional technical society for the aerospace profession, AIAA recognizes the Apollo 1 crew as integral to the success of the Apollo program as the foundation of the ongoing human exploration of space. Today, the 30,000 professional and student members of AIAA carry on their pursuit, shaping the future of aerospace.”
AIAA Media Contact: Rebecca B. Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell
About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, and follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
Three Chinese Astronauts Arrive at Tiangong
SPACE reports that China’s “three-person Shenzhou 14 mission arrived at Tianhe, the core module of the under-construction Tiangong, early Sunday morning (June 5), about six hours after lifting off from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert.” The three Shenzhou 14 crewmembers “are expected to spend about six months aboard the 54-foot-long (16.6 meters) Tianhe (‘Harmony of the Heavens’), which launched to low Earth orbit in April 2021.” The three taikonauts – Chen Dong, Liu Yang, and Cai Xuzhe – “will conduct a variety of scientific experiments and educational outreach activities, perform several spacewalks and install some new equipment inside and outside Tianhe.”
Full Story (SPACE)
AIAA Statement on NASA’s Historic First All-female Spacewalk
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Michele McDonald
703.264.7542
[email protected]
Astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir completed repairs on the ISS
October 18, 2019 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) congratulates NASA Astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir on their successful completion of NASA’s first all-female spacewalk. The pair replaced the power regulator on the International Space Station, which had been in operation since 2000.
“This historic all-female spacewalk highlights the art of the possible that diverse talent brings to the aerospace community and our nation’s top challenges,” said Booz Allen Hamilton’s Jandria Alexander, Chair of the AIAA Diversity and Inclusion Working Group. “It’s a testament to not only the courage and professionalism of Christina Koch and Jessica Meir, but to the impact diverse perspectives, talents, and backgrounds can have on critical missions in the future.”
Emily Kusulas, chair of the AIAA Women of Aeronautics and Astronautics (WoAA) committee, said: “Such a momentous achievement in spaceflight will help propel our mission to inspire the next generation of aerospace students and show that diverse teams can tackle complex problems. We want to encourage young students to pursue careers in the aerospace industry and show that the field is bright and accessible to all.”
AIAA Executive Director Daniel L. Dumbacher added, “This is an important milestone for space exploration, demonstrating the value of diversity in addressing complex problems such as maintaining the performance of the International Space Station. NASA is leading the way in using the skills and capabilities of everyone on the team. The Artemis program, which will include putting the first female astronaut on the moon, will test the best of all of us. AIAA members are proud to be a part of this future in space, working with the Diversity and Inclusion Working Group and the Women of Aeronautics and Astronautics Committee.”
About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 85 countries, and 95 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, or follow us on Twitter @AIAA.
###
American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
12700 Sunrise Valley Drive, Suite 200, Reston, VA 20191-5807
Phone: 703.264.7558 Fax: 703.264.7551 aiaa.org