Expedition 30 and 31 Astronaut Don Pettit Available for Interviews

Trent J. Perrotto

Headquarters, Washington

202-358-0321

trent.j.perrotto@nasa.gov

 

Jay Bolden

Johnson Space Center, Houston

281-483-5111

jay.e.bolden@nasa.gov

HOUSTON -- Just back from his mission aboard the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Don Pettit will be available for live satellite interviews from 6 to 7 a.m. CDT, Thursday, July 12.

Pettit and his crew mates, Expedition 31 Flight Engineer Andre Kuipers of the European Space Agency and Commander Oleg Kononenko of the Russian Federal Space Agency, returned to Earth in their Soyuz TMA-03M spacecraft July 1. Pettit completed 193 days in space as a member of the Expedition 30 and 31 crews during his third space flight. Together with his previous space station expedition and space shuttle flights, Pettit is fourth among U.S. space fliers with 370 days in space. He also has two spacewalks to his credit.

Pettit and his space station crew members spent the majority of their time aboard the orbiting laboratory performing science experiments. Their efforts supported more than 200 scientific investigations involving more than 400 researchers around the world. The studies ranged from integrated investigations of the human cardiovascular and immune systems to fluid, flame and robotic research. They also welcomed the first commercial cargo vehicle to the station, the SpaceX Dragon, which Pettit caught and berthed to the complex using the station's robotic arm.

During Expedition 30 and 31, Pettit also used household objects aboard the station to perform a variety of unusual physics experiments for the video series "Science Off the Sphere." Through these demonstrations, Pettit showed more than a million Internet viewers how space affects scientific principles.

Pettit is a native of Silverton, Ore., and a 1978 graduate of Oregon State University. He earned a doctorate in 1983 from Arizona State University and worked as a scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory before being selected by NASA as an astronaut in 1996.

To arrange an interview, news media representatives must contact Karen Svetaka at 281-483-8684 or karen.a.svetaka@nasa.gov by 1 p.m. Wednesday, July 11.

The interviews will be preceded by a feed of video b-roll material of Pettit and his mission at 5:30 a.m. The interviews will be seen live on NASA TV's public and media channels.

For NASA Television streaming video, downlink and scheduling information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

For Pettit's biography, visit http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/pettit.html.

To watch "Science Off the Sphere" videos, visit http://www.physicscentral.com/sots.

For more information about the International Space Station, visit http://www.nasa.gov/station.

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Trio From International Space Station Lands Safely in Kazakhstan

Joshua Buck

Headquarters, Washington

202-358-1100

jbuck@nasa.gov

 

Kelly Humphries

Johnson Space Center, Houston

281-483-5111

kelly.o.humphries@nasa.gov

HOUSTON -- Three members of the Expedition 31 crew undocked from the International Space Station and returned safely to Earth Sunday, July 1, wrapping up a mission that lasted six-and-a-half months.

Russian Commander Oleg Kononenko, NASA Flight Engineer Don Pettit and European Space Agency Flight Engineer Andre Kuipers landed their Soyuz TMA-03M spacecraft in Kazakhstan at 3:14 a.m. CDT (2:14 p.m. local time) after undocking from the space station's Rassvet module at 11:47 p.m. June 30. The trio, which arrived at the station Dec. 23, 2011, spent a total of 193 days in space, 191 of which were aboard the station.

During their expedition, the crew supported more than 200 scientific investigations involving more than 400 researchers around the world. The studies ranged from integrated investigations of the human cardiovascular and immune systems to fluid, flame and robotic research.

Before leaving the station, Kononenko handed over command of Expedition 32 to the Russian Federal Space Agency's Gennady Padalka, who remains aboard the station with NASA astronaut Joe Acaba and Russian cosmonaut Sergei Revin. NASA astronaut Sunita Williams, Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Akihiko Hoshide will join them July 17. Williams, Malenchenko and Hoshide are scheduled to launch July 14 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

On June 25, Pettit celebrated achieving one cumulative year in space, combining his time in orbit on Expedition 6, Expedition 30/31 and the STS-126 space shuttle Endeavour flight to the station in November 2008. Pettit now has 370 days in space, placing him fourth among U.S. space fliers for the longest time in space.

During Expedition 31, Pettit also used household objects aboard the station to perform a variety of unusual physics experiments for the video series "Science Off the Sphere." Through these demonstrations, Pettit showed more than a million Internet viewers how space affects scientific principles.

To watch "Science Off the Sphere" videos, visit http://www.physicscentral.com/sots.

To follow Twitter updates from NASA's Expedition 31 and 32 astronauts, visit http://twitter.com/Astro_Suni , https://twitter.com/AstroAcaba , https://twitter.com/Aki_Hoshide.

For more information about Expedition 32 and the space station, visit http://www.nasa.gov/station.

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Picture Perfect Landing

The Soyuz TMA-03M spacecraft is seen as it lands with Expedition 31 Commander Oleg Kononenko of Russia and Flight Engineers Don Pettit of NASA and Andre Kuipers of the European Space Agency in a remote area near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, on Sunday, July 1, 2012.

Pettit, Kononenko and Kuipers returned from more than six months onboard the International Space Station where they served as members of the Expedition 30 and 31 crews.

Image Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls

Students Gather In Philadelphia To Speak With Astronauts In Space

Sonja Alexander

Headquarters, Washington                               

202-358-1761

sonja.r.alexander@nasa.gov

 

Rachel Kraft

Johnson Space Center, Houston

281-483-5111

rachel.h.kraft@nasa.gov

 

WASHINGTON – Elementary, middle and high school students will have the opportunity to speak with Expedition 31 flight engineers Don Pettit, Joseph Acaba and André Kuipers aboard the International Space Station at 10:35 a.m. EDT, Tuesday, June 26.

The event will take place at Philadelphia University in Philadelphia. Media representatives are invited to attend. It will be broadcast live on NASA Television and include video of the space station residents.

The event will be hosted by Destination Imagination, a non-profit organization that provides education programs for students to learn and experience creativity, teamwork and problem solving.

To attend the event, reporters must contact Michelle Griffith at 813-597-8187 or michelle@clearviewcom.com. Philadelphia University is located at 4201 Henry Avenue.

Pettit, Kuipers, and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Konenenko arrived at the space station on Dec. 23, 2011. Acaba and Russian cosmonauts Gennady Padalka and Sergei Revin completed the six-person crew on May 17.

This in-flight education downlink is one in a series with educational organizations in the United States and abroad to improve science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teaching and learning. It is an integral component of NASA's Teaching From Space education program, which promotes learning opportunities and builds partnerships with the education community using the unique environment of space and NASA's human spaceflight program.

The exact time of the downlink could change. For NASA TV downlink, schedule and streaming video information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

For information about NASA's education programs, visit http://www.nasa.gov/education.

For information about the International Space Station, visit http://www.nasa.gov/station.

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Coverage Set For Next Soyuz Space Station Crew Rotation

Joshua Buck

Headquarters, Washington     

202-358-1100

jbuck@nasa.gov

 

Kelly Humphries

Johnson Space Center, Houston

281-483-5111

kelly.o.humphries@nasa.gov

HOUSTON -- Over the next several weeks, NASA Television will provide coverage of the departure of three crew members from the International Space Station and prelaunch, launch and arrival activities of three new residents.

Coverage will begin Wednesday, June 20, with the first of a series of Video Files of Expedition 32/33 Flight Engineers Suni Williams of NASA, Aki Hoshide of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and Yuri Malenchenko of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) participating in training and ceremonial activities at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia.

On June 29, NASA TV will broadcast a change of command ceremony aboard the orbiting laboratory in which Expedition 31 Commander Oleg Kononenko of Roscosmos will hand over the reins of command to Gennady Padalka. Padalka, a cosmonaut for Roscosmos, will become the International Space Station's first three-time commander. When the Soyuz TMA-03M undocks on June 30, Expedition 31 will transition to Expedition 32 under Padalka's command.

Kononenko and Flight Engineers Don Pettit of NASA and Andre Kuipers of the European Space Agency will depart the station in their Soyuz TMA-03M spacecraft June 30 for a July 1 landing in Kazakhstan to complete their six-and-a-half-month mission. Two weeks later, July 14 (July 15 in Kazakhstan), Williams, Hoshide and Malenchenko will launch to the station in the Soyuz TMA-05M spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The three will arrive at the station July 16 to join Padalka and Flight Engineers Joe Acaba of NASA and Sergei Revin of Roscosmos, who have been aboard the station since mid-May.

NASA TV's scheduled coverage includes (all times Central):

Wednesday, June 20

11 a.m. -- Video File of the Expedition 32/33 (Suni Williams, Yuri Malenchenko, Aki Hoshide) qualification training simulation runs at Star City, Russia.

Saturday, June 30

8:15 p.m. -- Expedition 31 farewells and hatch closure coverage (hatch closure at 8:40 p.m.)

11:30 p.m. -- Expedition 31/Soyuz TMA-03M undocking coverage (undocking at 11:53 p.m.)

Sunday, July 1

2 a.m. -- Expedition 31/Soyuz TMA-03M deorbit burn and landing coverage (deorbit burn at 2:19 a.m., landing at 3:15 a.m.)

Saturday, July 14

8:30 p.m. -- Expedition 32/33 Soyuz TMA-05M launch coverage (includes video b-roll of the crew's prelaunch activities at 8:45 p.m.; launch scheduled at 9:40 p.m.)

Monday, July 16

11:15 p.m. -- Expedition 32/33 Soyuz TMA-05M docking coverage (docking at 11:50 p.m. followed by post-docking news conference from Mission Control in Korolev, Russia)

Tuesday, July 17

2:15 a.m. -- Expedition 32/33 Soyuz TMA-05M hatch opening and welcoming ceremony coverage (hatch opening and welcoming ceremony at 2:45 a.m.)

Additional Video File footage of the Expedition 32/33 crew's pre-launch activities in Star City, Russia; Moscow; and Baikonur, Kazakhstan will be broadcast on NASA TV on June 22 and July 2, 10, 11, 12 and 13. Post-launch and post-docking Video Files will air on NASA TV on July 14 and 17. Video Files involving the Expedition 31 crew activities following their Soyuz landing in Kazakhstan will air on July 1.

For NASA's complete list of Soyuz landing and launch coverage, visit http://go.nasa.gov/NTVsched.

For NASA TV downlink and streaming video information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

For more information about the International Space Station and its crews, visit http://www.nasa.gov/station. 

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