Tag: Astronauts

NASA Astronaut Don Pettit, Crewmates Arrive at Space Station

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The Soyuz rocket launches to the International Space Station with Expedition 72 crew members: NASA astronaut Don Pettit, Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin, and Ivan Vagner, onboard, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls NASA astronaut Don Pettit, accompanied by Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner, arrived at the International Space Station Wednesday, bringing its number of residents to 12 for the 13-day handover period. After a two-orbit, three-hour journey to the station, the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-26 spacecraft automatically docked to the orbiting laboratory’s…

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NASA Sets Coverage for Crew Launch; Trio to Join Expedition 71

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The Roscosmos Soyuz MS-26 spacecraft will launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to the International Space Station with (pictured left to right) NASA astronaut Don Pettit and Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner. Credit: Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center NASA astronaut Don Pettit will launch aboard the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-26 spacecraft, accompanied by cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner, to the International Space Station where they will join the Expedition 71 crew in advancing scientific research. Pettit, Ovchinin, and Vagner will lift off at 12:23 p.m. EDT Wednesday, Sept.…

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NASA Assigns Astronaut Jonny Kim to First Space Station Mission

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Official portrait of NASA astronaut Jonny Kim in an EMU suit. Credit: NASA During his first mission to the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Jonny Kim will serve as a flight engineer and member of the upcoming Expedition 72/73 crew. Kim will launch on the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft in March 2025, accompanied by Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky. The trio will spend approximately eight months at the space station. While aboard the orbiting laboratory, Kim will conduct scientific investigations and technology demonstrations to help prepare the crew…

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NASA Seeks Input for Astrobee Free-flying Space Robots

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4 Min Read NASA Seeks Input for Astrobee Free-flying Space Robots iss069e010815 (May 16, 2023) — UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut and Expedition 69 Flight Engineer Sultan Alneyadi observes a free-flying Astrobee robotic assistant during the testing of its operations for an upcoming student competition to control the robotic devices. Credits: NASA NASA is seeking input from American companies for the operation and use of a system of free-flying robots aboard the International Space Station as the agency continues to foster scientific, educational, and technological developments in low Earth orbit…

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NASA Hosts Astronaut Don Pettit Prelaunch Interviews

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NASA astronaut Don Pettit during crew qualification exams at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center. Credits: GCTC/Roscosmos NASA astronaut Don Pettit is available for limited interview opportunities beginning at 10 a.m. EDT, Friday, Aug. 16, to discuss his upcoming mission to the International Space Station in September. The virtual interviews will stream live on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA+ through a variety of platforms including social media. Interested media must submit a request no later than 12 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 15,…

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NASA Shares its SpaceX Crew-10 Assignments for Space Station Mission

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NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 members (pictured from left to right) NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers, Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov, NASA astronaut Anne McClain, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi Credit: NASA As part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 mission, four crew members are preparing to launch for a long-duration stay aboard the International Space Station. NASA astronauts Commander Anne McClain and Pilot Nichole Ayers, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Mission Specialist Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Mission Specialist Kirill Peskov will join astronauts at the orbiting laboratory no earlier…

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From Intern to Astronaut

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NASA/Steven Seipel On Sept. 2, 2022, NASA astronauts Anil Menon (left), Deniz Burnham (center), and Marcos Berrios (right) posed for a photograph in front of NASA’s Artemis I SLS (Space Launch System) and Orion spacecraft at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Burnham began her career as an intern at NASA’s Ames Research Center. She earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of California, San Diego, and a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. Burnham reported for duty in…

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NASA Remembers Retired Astronaut, US Air Force Pilot Joe Engle

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Portrait of retired NASA astronaut Joe Engle wearing flight suit in front of an X-15 fighter circa 1963. Retired NASA astronaut and U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Joe Engle died July 10, surrounded by his family at home in Houston. Among his many honors, he is the only astronaut to pilot both the X-15 and space shuttle. He was 91. Engle became an astronaut at age 32 while flying the X-15 for the U.S. Air Force, becoming the youngest pilot ever to qualify as an astronaut. When selected as a…

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NASA Announces its Artemis II Backup Crew Member for Moon Mission

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NASA astronaut Andre Douglas poses for a portrait at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Credits: NASA/Josh Valcarcel NASA has selected astronaut Andre Douglas as its backup crew member for the agency’s Artemis II test flight, the first crewed mission under NASA’s Artemis campaign. Douglas will train alongside NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency (CSA) astronaut Jeremy Hansen. In the event a NASA astronaut is unable to take part in the flight, Douglas would join the Artemis II crew. “Andre’s educational background and…

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Behind the Scenes of a NASA ‘Moonwalk’ in the Arizona Desert

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9 Min Read Behind the Scenes of a NASA ‘Moonwalk’ in the Arizona Desert NASA astronauts Kate Rubins (left) and Andre Douglas. Credits: NASA/Josh Valcarcel  NASA astronauts Kate Rubins and Andre Douglas recently performed four moonwalk simulations to help NASA prepare for its Artemis III mission. Due to launch in September 2026, Artemis III will land two, yet-to-be-selected, astronauts at the Moon’s South Pole for the first time. Traveling to space requires immense preparation, not just for the astronauts, but for the hundreds of people who work in the background. That’s…

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