“Two days after its launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, the unpiloted Russian ISS Progress 62 cargo ship docked to the Pirs Docking Compartment at the International Space Station Dec. 23. Loaded with 2.8 tons of food, fuel and supplies for the Expedition 46 crew, the Progress reached the complex for an automated linkup following a two-day rendezvous deliberately planned to test upgraded software and telemetry systems. The newest Progress will remain attached to Pirs until early July.”
“After launching earlier in the day on Dec. 15 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, Expedition 46-47 Soyuz Commander Yuri Malenchenko of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos), NASA Flight Engineer Tim Kopra and Flight Engineer Tim Peake of the European Space Agency arrived at the International Space Station Dec. 15 following a four-orbit, six-hour rendezvous.”
“The Soyuz spacecraft carrying Expedition 45 crew members Oleg Kononenko of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and Flight Engineers Kjell Lindgren of NASA and Kimiya Yui of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, departed the International Space Station on Dec. 11 for the return trip to Earth. The returning crew was scheduled to land hours later in Kazakhstan to wrap up 141 days in space.”
“On Dec.6, Orbital ATK’s enhanced Cygnus spacecraft launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to the International Space Station, on a mission to deliver more than 7,000 pounds of science and research, crew supplies and vehicle hardware to the orbital laboratory. This is Orbital ATK’s fourth contracted mission to the station under the agency’s Commercial Resupply Services contract.”
From Orbital ATK news release:
“Orbital ATK has named the OA-4 Cygnus the “S.S. Deke Slayton II,” upholding the tradition of naming each Cygnus in honor of astronauts and individuals who contributed to the United States’ commercial space program.
“With the naming of this spacecraft, we continue our commitment to honor the late Donald ‘Deke’ K. Slayton, one of the original Mercury Seven astronauts and a champion of America’s commercial space program and leadership in space,” said Frank Culbertson, President of Orbital ATK’s Space Systems Group. “We are pleased that the enhanced Cygnus that bears his name will be able to provide up to 53 percent more in cargo weight to the International Space Station than our previously flown standard version.”
Cygnus, like most Orbital ATK spacecraft, is compatible with multiple launch vehicles, enabling the use of ULA’s Atlas V launch vehicle on this mission. The enhanced Cygnus has several new features, including lightweight UltraFlexTM solar arrays, a mass optimized Service Module structure and a lighter weight propulsion system. In addition to food, clothing, crew supplies, spare parts and equipment, the Cygnus spacecraft is carrying science experiments to expand the research capability of the Expedition 45 and 46 crew members aboard the orbiting laboratory.
Orbital ATK has three CRS missions scheduled in 2016 to support NASA’s ISS cargo needs. A second Cygnus/Atlas V launch will take place next spring from Florida, followed by the return of operations to NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in mid-2016 where the company will continue CRS missions atop the upgraded Antares rocket.
Under the CRS contract with NASA, Orbital ATK will deliver approximately 62,000 pounds (28,000 kilograms) of cargo to the ISS over 10 missions through 2018. The partnership is changing the way NASA does business, helping build a strong American commercial space industry and freeing the agency to focus on developing the next-generation rocket and spacecraft that will enable humans to travel farther in space than ever before.”
“Still images taken by ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti on the International Space Station were joined together to create this timelapse. The astronauts on the Space Station spend as much time as possible on science. During her 40-hour working week Samantha runs many experiments from Italy’s ASI space agency and ESA, and takes part in even more from scientists all over the world.”
Wikipedia dixit:
“An aurora is a natural light display in the sky, predominantly seen in the high latitude (Arctic and Antarctic) regions. Auroras are produced when the magnetosphere is sufficiently disturbed by the solar wind that the trajectories of charged particles in both solar wind and magnetospheric plasma, mainly in the form of electrons and protons, precipitate them into the upper atmosphere (thermosphere/exosphere), where their energy is lost. The resulting ionization and excitation of atmospheric constituents emits light of varying colour and complexity. The form of the aurora, occurring within bands around both polar regions, is also dependent on the amount of acceleration imparted to the precipitating particles. Precipitating protons generally produce optical emissions as incident hydrogen atoms after gaining electrons from the atmosphere. Proton auroras are usually observed at lower latitudes.”
“Six hours after its launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, the unpiloted ISS Progress 61 cargo craft automatically docked to the International Space Station. After a series of pre-programmed rendezvous burns of its engines, the resupply vehicle linked up to the aft port of the Zvezda Service Module to deliver more than three tons of food, fuel and supplies for the six Expedition 45 crew members on the orbital laboratory. The new Progress will remain attached to Zvezda until early December.”
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