NASA, University Of Maryland Invite Public To Astronauts' Discussion Of Recent International Space Station Missions

Joshua Buck
Headquarters, Washington

Lee Tune

Office of Public Affairs
University of Maryland

WASHINGTON -- NASA and the University of Maryland's A. James Clark School of Engineering invite the public to a discussion with three astronauts from recent International Space Station expedition missions at 5:30 p.m. EST on Tuesday, Feb. 14, in the Hoff Theater inside the Adele H. Stamp Student Union. The crew members will give a video presentation about their mission and answer questions from the audience.

Free tickets will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Tickets can be picked up from the Stamp Union ticket office daily between noon and 10 p.m., starting Monday, Feb. 6. Reporters interested in covering the event should contact Missy Corley at 301-405-6501 or mcorley@umd.edu.

Mike Fossum served as a flight engineer for Expedition 28 and as commander for Expedition 29. During his stay, the station celebrated 11 years of continuous residence and work. Fossum returned to Earth on Nov. 21, 2011. He has logged more than 194 days in space, including more than 48 hours of extravehicular activity (EVA) in seven spacewalks. He is seventh on the all-time list of cumulative EVA time.

Ron Garan served as a flight engineer for Expeditions 27 and 28. While aboard the station, Garan continued work on a variety of microgravity experiments and welcomed two shuttle visits, including the last to the station. Garan landed on Sept. 15, 2011. He has logged more than 178 days in space, including 27 hours and 3 minutes outside the station during four spacewalks.

Cady Coleman served as a flight engineer for Expeditions 26 and 27. She was the lead robotics and science officer. While aboard, the station hosted a record number of visiting spacecraft: five vehicles from four space agencies. She returned to Earth on May 24, 2011. Coleman has logged over 4,330 hours in space aboard the station and space shuttle Columbia.

The trio also will give a presentation earlier in the day to NASA employees at 10:30 a.m. in NASA Headquarters' James E. Webb Auditorium, located at 300 E St. SW in Washington. The presentation will air live on NASA Television and the agency's website. The astronauts will be available for media interviews from 9 to 10 a.m. Journalists must call 202-358-1100 to attend the presentation or to schedule an interview.

For more information about Fossum, visit http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/fossum.html, http://www.twitter.com/astro_aggie.

For more information about Garan, visit http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/garan-rj.html, http://www.twitter.com/Astro_Ron.

For more information about Coleman, visit http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/coleman.html, http://www.twitter.com/astro_cady.

For more information about the A. James Clark School of Engineering, visit http://www.eng.umd.edu/impact/space .

For a map of the University of Maryland campus and location of the Stamp Student Union (Building 163), visit http://bit.ly/zku8ht.

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

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NASA Hosts DC Tweetup With Space Station Astronaut Ron Garan

Stephanie L. Schierholz
Headquarters, Washington

WASHINGTON -- NASA invites its Twitter followers to a special Tweetup with NASA astronaut Ron Garan at 1:30 p.m. EST on Tuesday, Feb. 14. The event will take place in the James E. Webb Memorial Auditorium at NASA Headquarters, 300 E St. SW in Washington.

Garan spent 164 days in space during the Expedition 27/28 mission to the International Space Station. He and his crewmates launched April 4, 2011, and returned to Earth on Sept. 15, 2011. Aboard the station, the crew worked on a variety of microgravity experiments and hosted two space shuttle missions, including the last shuttle to visit the station. Garan also participated in the last space-shuttle-based spacewalk during the STS-135 mission.

During his time in space, Garan shared his experiences and images he took of Earth from the station via his Twitter account and Fragile Oasis blog.

A Tweetup is an informal meeting of people who use the social messaging medium Twitter. This NASA Tweetup is an opportunity to meet and speak with Garan, the people behind NASA's Twitter account and other space-exploration-minded participants.

Registration for the event is open to @NASA followers and their guests from 12 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 20, until 12 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 24. NASA will select 150 total participants by lottery from those who register online. For more NASA Tweetup information and to sign up, visit http://www.nasa.gov/tweetup.

Garan's Twitter account is http://www.twitter.com/Astro_Ron.

Garan's biography is available at http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/garan-rj.html.

To find all the ways to connect and collaborate with NASA, visit http://www.nasa.gov/connect.

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Expedition 28 Lands

The Soyuz TMA-21 spacecraft is seen as it lands with Expedition 28 Commander Andrey Borisenko, and Flight Engineers Ron Garan, and Alexander Samokutyaev in a remote area outside of the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, on Friday, Sept. 16, 2011. NASA Astronaut Garan, Russian Cosmonauts Borisenko and Samokutyaev are returning from more than five months onboard the International Space Station where they served as members of the Expedition 27 and 28 crews. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Sunrise

On Sat., Aug. 27, 2011, International Space Station Astronaut Ron Garan pointed an HD camera out a window of the Cupola to film one of the sixteen sunrises astronauts see each day. This sunrise image shows the rising sun as the International Space Station flew along a path between Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Seattle Students Chat With Space Station Astronauts On Monday

Ann Marie Trotta

Headquarters, Washington

 

Rachel Kraft

Johnson Space Center, Houston

WASHINGTON -- Students gathered at the Museum of Flight in Seattle will make a long distance call to astronauts aboard the International Space Station at approximately 1:35 p.m. EDT on Monday, Aug. 29.

Students from Aviation High School, Puyallup High School, Civil Air Patrol and Liberty High School will ask Expedition 28 Flight Engineers Ron Garan, Mike Fossum and Satoshi Furukawa questions about life, work and research in space. The event will include a video link with the three astronauts and will be broadcast live on NASA Television.

To attend the event, reporters must contact Mike Bush at the museum at mbush@museumofflight.org 253-307-3225.

The museum offers a variety of education activities that explore science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and the space program. It also hosts the Washington Aerospace Scholars program, a hands-on, STEM-focused initiative for high school juniors based on NASA's Texas Aerospace Scholars program.

This in-flight education downlink is one in a series with educational organizations in the United States and abroad to improve 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 the latest NASA TV schedule, 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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Hurricane Irene

High above the Earth from aboard the International Space Station, astronaut Ron Garan snapped this image of Hurricane Irene as it passed over the Caribbean on Aug. 22, 2011.

The National Hurricane Center noted on Aug. 22 that Irene is expected to produce total rainfall accumulations of 5 to 10 inches across Puerto Rico, The Virgin Islands, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, the Southeastern Bahamas and The Turks and Caicos Islands. Isolated maximum amounts of rainfall may reach up to 20 inches.

Image Credit: NASA

NASA Television To Air Space Station Cargo Ship Arrival

Michael Curie

Headquarters, Washington

 

Kelly Humphries

Johnson Space Center, Houston

HOUSTON -- NASA Television will provide live coverage as a Russian Progress cargo spacecraft arrives at the International Space Station at 9:38 a.m. CDT on Friday, Aug. 26.

NASA TV coverage will begin at 9 a.m., in lieu of the day's "ISS Update" program. The unpiloted Progress 44 spacecraft will automatically dock to the rear port of the station's Zvezda service module.

The cargo ship will carry three tons of food, fuel and other supplies for the six crew members, Expedition 28 Commander Andrey Borisenko and Flight Engineers Ron Garan, Mike Fossum, Satoshi Furukawa, Alexander Samokutyaev and Sergei Volkov.

It will be launched at 8 a.m. (7 p.m. Baikonur time) on Wednesday, Aug. 24, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. NASA TV will not air the launch live, but will show replays during the regularly scheduled 10 a.m. "ISS Update" program.

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

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

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Mississippi And Louisiana Students To Call Space Station Astronauts

Ann Marie Trotta

Headquarters, Washington

 

Rebecca Strecker

Stennis Space Center, Miss.

WASHINGTON -- Students gathered at NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi will place a long distance call to astronauts aboard the International Space Station at 1:35 p.m. EDT on Thursday, Aug. 18.

Mississippi and Louisiana students in kindergarten through twelfth grade will ask Expedition 28 Flight Engineers Ron Garan, Mike Fossum and Satoshi Furukawa questions related to mass and weight. The experience is designed to enhance the students' understanding of scientific principles, physics and space. Stennis' education office is hosting the call, which will include a video link with the three astronauts and will be broadcast live on NASA Television.

To attend, journalists must contact Rebecca Strecker at 228-688-3249 no later than 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 17, to arrange for clearance and escort to the event.

This in-flight education downlink is one in a series with educational organizations in the United States and abroad to improve teaching and learning in science, technology, engineering and mathematics studies. 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 the latest NASA TV schedule, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

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

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

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Mississippi And Louisiana Students To Call Space Station Astronauts

Ann Marie Trotta

Headquarters, Washington

 

Rebecca Strecker

Stennis Space Center, Miss.

WASHINGTON -- Students gathered at NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi will place a long distance call to astronauts aboard the International Space Station at 1:35 p.m. EDT on Thursday, Aug. 18.

Mississippi and Louisiana students in kindergarten through twelfth grade will ask Expedition 28 Flight Engineers Ron Garan, Mike Fossum and Satoshi Furukawa questions related to mass and weight. The experience is designed to enhance the students' understanding of scientific principles, physics and space. Stennis' education office is hosting the call, which will include a video link with the three astronauts and will be broadcast live on NASA Television.

To attend, journalists must contact Rebecca Strecker at 228-688-3249 no later than 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 17, to arrange for clearance and escort to the event.

This in-flight education downlink is one in a series with educational organizations in the United States and abroad to improve teaching and learning in science, technology, engineering and mathematics studies. 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 the latest NASA TV schedule, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

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

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

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Minnesota Scouts Call Space Station Astronauts

Katherine Trinidad

Headquarters, Washington

 

Rachel Kraft

Johnson Space Center, Houston

WASHINGTON -- Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and other students in St. Paul, Minn., will make a special call to the International Space Station on Tuesday, Aug. 9 at 12:55 p.m. EDT.

The event includes a video link with Expedition 28 Flight Engineers Mike Fossum and Ron Garan, which will be broadcast live on NASA Television. Fossum is scoutmaster of a Boy Scout troop in Texas.

Scouts and students ages 7 to 13 can ask questions about how living and working in space helps increase human understanding of the Earth, science, and the universe. The children also will participate in science and space-related activities before and after the question-and-answer session.

The event will take place at Base Camp, Northern Star Council, Boy Scouts of America's urban program center located at 201 Bloomington Road at Fort Snelling, Minn. To attend, journalists must contact Kent York at 612-760-8430.

The in-flight education downlink is part of a series with educational organizations in the U.S. and abroad to improve teaching and learning in science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects. It is an integral component of Teaching From Space, an agency education program that promotes learning opportunities and builds partnerships with the education community using the unique environment of space and NASA's human spaceflight program.

For NASA TV information and schedules, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

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

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

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This Is What the Moon Looks Like From Space

On Sunday, July 31, 2011, when Expedition 28 astronaut Ron Garan aboard the International Space Station looked out his window, this is what he saw: the moon. And, he saw it 16 times. Said Garan, "We had simultaneous sunsets and moonsets." For Garan and the rest of the station crew, this extraordinary event is a daily occurrence. Since the station orbits the Earth every 90 minutes, each day the crew experiences this about 16 times a day.

Image Credit: NASA

Through the Astronaut's Eyes

Astronaut Ron Garan took this image during the spacewalk conducted on Tues., July 12, 2011. It shows the International Space Station with Space Shuttle Atlantis docked on the right and a Russian Soyuz on the far left. In the foreground is the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) experiment installed during the STS-134 mission. AMS is a state-of-the-art particle physics detector designed to use the unique environment of space to advance knowledge of the universe and lead to the understanding of the universe's origin by searching for antimatter and dark matter, and measuring cosmic rays.

Image Credit: NASA

Astronauts Complete Spacewalk

At 3:53 p.m. EDT, Expedition 28 spacewalkers Mike Fossum and Ron Garan completed today's six-hour, 31-minute excursion.

This was Fossum's seventh spacewalk and Garan's fourth. Fossum and Garan collaborated on three spacewalks during the STS-124 space shuttle mission in June 2008.

This was the 160th spacewalk supporting assembly and maintenance of the space station and the 249th excursion conducted by U.S. astronauts.

Spacewalkers Install Robotic Refueling Mission Experiment

About three hours, 15 minutes into the spacewalk, Mike Fossum and Ron Garan completed installing the Robotic Refueling Mission (RRM) experiment onto a platform on Dextre, the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator.

In the future, the RRM will demonstrate robotic refueling technology and techniques using Dextre, four unique RRM tools and an RRM enclosure filled with refueling components and activity boards. The tests will demonstrate that remote-controlled robots can perform refueling tasks in orbit, using commands sent from controllers on Earth. RRM is expected to reduce costs and risks, and lay the foundation for future robotic servicing missions.

Spacewalkers Complete First Task

Spacewalkers Mike Fossum and Ron Garan completed their first task, moving a failed pump module from a temporary storage site on the outside of the space station to the cargo bay of space shuttle Atlantis. Returning the module, which failed last year and disabled half of the station's cooling system, is a key objective of the STS-135 mission. Engineers will diagnose what caused the failure so they can take steps to mitigate future pump module failures.

Spacewalk Begins

At 9:22 a.m. EDT, Expedition 28 spacewalkers Mike Fossum and Ron Garan switched their suits to battery power, signifying the start of today's six-hour, 30-minute excursion.

This is Fossum's seventh spacewalk and Garan's fourth. Fossum and Garan collaborated on three spacewalks during the STS-124 space shuttle mission in June 2008.

Fossum, EV-1, is the lead spacewalker and is wearing a suit with red stripes, while Garan, EV-2, wears an all-white spacesuit. Fossum's helmet camera displays the number 20 and Garan's the number 18.

Atlantis Mission Specialist Rex Walheim is at the rear flight deck of Atlantis, choreographing the activities and coordinating communications between the spacewalkers and Mission Control in Houston. Shuttle Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialist Sandy Magnus will operate the station's 58-foot-long robotic arm to maneuver the spacewalkers around during the spacewalk.

Once outside, the spacewalkers will retrieve a pump module (PM) from an external stowage platform and store it in Atlantis' cargo bay for return to Earth. Garan will climb aboard the station's robotic arm and grab the pump module while Fossum releases a bolt that holds the PM in place. Grasping the 1400-pound module, Garan then will ride the arm from the stowage platform near the Quest airlock to a carrier in Atlantis' cargo bay. He will place the PM into the carrier and Fossum will bolt it in place. The pump module failed in 2010, shutting down half of the space station's cooling system. Engineers will evaluate the PM to determine the cause of the failure and plan to refurbish it for use as a spare.

Next, Fossum will trade places with Garan and climb onto the station arm. He will grab the Robotic Refueling Mission (RRM) experiment from the shuttle bay and ride the arm to Dextre, the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator. The spacewalkers will dock the RRM to a platform on Dextre that is used to hold equipment for the robot to use. The RRM will demonstrate and test tools, technologies and techniques that could be used to robotically refuel and repair satellites in space. Data from the tests could help reduce the cost and risk of future robotic refueling missions.

Fossum and Garan will deploy the Optical Reflector Materials Experiment, a portion of the Materials International Space Station Experiment (MISSE) 8 that was installed on the External Logistics Carrier 2 during STS-134. They also will take photos of the material samples. MISSE 8 will be retrieved late next year.

Next, the pair will troubleshoot a protruding grounding wire on a Zarya module payload data grapple fixture that was installed on STS-134. The multi-layer insulation (MLI) grounding wire is stuck in a latch door, where power and data connectors mate with connectors behind the door. With the wire extending out, there is concern the door could interfere with the robotic arm. The spacewalkers will pull back the MLI, insert a hook into the latch door to free the wire, then pull it back to the outside of the grapple fixture where it belongs. They will tuck the wire under Velcro tabs and put the MLI back in place. Fossum and Garan will perform the same operation on a second latch door and check the remaining two latch doors.

The spacewalkers will install a cover on the end of pressurized mating adaptor 3, which receives a great deal of sun.

This is the 160th spacewalk supporting assembly and maintenance of the space station and the 249th excursion conducted by U.S. astronauts.

STS-135 Arrives, Crew Begins Work at Station

Space shuttle Atlantis docked with the International Space Station at 11:07 a.m. EDT Sunday with a cargo-carrying module in its payload bay filled with equipment and supplies for the orbiting laboratory. Hatches separating crews were opened at 12:47 p.m. Shuttle crew members, Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim, entered the station moments later to begin their week-plus stay.

Ferguson and Hurley used the shuttle arm to take its 50-foot extension boom from the station’s Canadarm2 operated by station Flight Engineers Ron Garan and Satoshi Furukawa. The station arm had plucked the boom from its stowage position on the shuttle cargo bay sill. The handoff was to prepare to use the boom for any needed shuttle heat shield inspection later this week. Magnus worked with TV setup and Walheim transferred spacewalk gear.

Docking had gone just as planned. Ferguson and the crew of space shuttle Atlantis began their final approach to the station from about eight miles distance with the terminal initiation burn at 8:29 a.m.

About 600 feet below the station, Atlantis did a backflip to enable station crew members to photograph the shuttle’s heat shield. The photos were sent to mission control to be evaluated by experts on the ground to look for any damage.

Flight controllers began monitoring reports from the Department of Defense’s U.S. Strategic Command that a piece of orbital debris may come near the station and shuttle complex about noon on Tuesday. The debris, part of satellite COSMOS 375, is one of more than 500,000 pieces of debris tracked in Earth’s orbit. The team expected updated tracking information following today’s docking to help determine if a maneuver using the shuttle’s thrusters is necessary to avoid the debris.

The crew sleep period is scheduled to begin at 6:59 p.m. Flight Day 4 begins with crew wake up at 2:59 a.m. Monday.

New York Students Will Call Space Station Astronaut

Sonja Alexander

Headquarters, Washington                                    

 

Rachel Kraft

Johnson Space Center, Houston

WASHINGTON -- Students in Otsego County, N.Y., will make a special call to the International Space Station and Expedition 28 Flight Engineer Ron Garan on Friday, June 17.

The event, which includes a video link with Garan, will be broadcast live on NASA Television at 11:05 a.m. EDT. Fifth through eighth grade students from the Oneonta City School district will ask Garan questions about how the space station plays a pivotal role in expanding human understanding of the Earth and space.

The State University of New York's (SUNY) Oneonta campus, located at 108 Ravine Parkway, will host the event. To attend, journalists must contact Hal Legg at legghs@oneonta.edu by 3 p.m., June 16.

Garan received his undergraduate degree from SUNY Oneonta in 1982. The university expects 1,000 participants from several school districts and the Oneonta Job Corps Academy.

Garan previously spoke with many of the students in February through NASA's Digital Learning Network about the benefits of studying science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and his first spaceflight.

The in-flight education downlink is part of a series with educational organizations in the U.S. and abroad to improve teaching and learning in STEM subjects. It is an integral component of Teaching From Space, an agency education program that promotes learning opportunities and builds partnerships with the education community using the unique environment of space and NASA's human spaceflight program.

For NASA TV information and schedules, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

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

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New Space Station Crew Members Launch from Kazakhstan

Michael Curie

Headquarters, Washington                                        

 

Kelly Humphries

Johnson Space Center, Houston

HOUSTON -- NASA astronaut Mike Fossum, Russian cosmonaut Sergei Volkov and Japanese astronaut Satoshi Furukawa launched to the International Space Station at 3:12 p.m. CDT Tuesday (2:12 a.m. local time, Wednesday) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

Fossum, Furukawa and Volkov - the Soyuz commander- are scheduled to dock their spacecraft with their new home at 4:22 p.m. Thursday, June 9. They will join Expedition 28 commander Andrey Borisenko and flight engineer Alexander Samokutyaev of the Russian space agency and Ron Garan of NASA. The trio has been aboard the station since April 6.

On Thursday, coverage of the Soyuz docking will begin on NASA Television at 3:30 p.m. NASA TV coverage of the hatches opening and the welcoming ceremony aboard the orbiting laboratory will begin at 8:30 p.m.

The six-person crew will continue the uninterrupted presence of humans on the station since Nov. 2, 2000, conducting expanded scientific research and station maintenance activities. The station residents also will welcome the crew of the last space shuttle flight, Atlantis' STS-135 mission, targeted to launch July 8. The shuttle will deliver critical supplies in the Italian-built Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module and support spacewalks by Fossum and Garan to retrieve a failed cooling system pump module, which Atlantis will return to Earth for analysis.

Garan, Borisenko and Samokutyaev, who launched to the station April 4, will return to Earth in September. Before departing, Borisenko will hand over command of the station to Fossum for Expedition 29, which begins when the Soyuz TMA-21 undocks.

NASA astronaut Dan Burbank and Russian cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov and Anatoly Ivanishin will join Fossum, Volkov and Furukawa to complete the Expedition 29 crew in September.

Fossum will blog about his experiences while aboard the space station. His first blog entry will be posted later today at http://blogs.nasa.gov.

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

For more information about Expedition 29 and the space station, visit http://www.nasa.gov/station.

To follow Twitter updates from Expedition 28-29 crew member Garan, visit http://twitter.com/Astro_Ron.

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Crews Complete Workday

Spacesuit reconfiguration, work on a carbon dioxide scrubber, and movement of equipment and supplies between Endeavour and the International Space Station kept crew members of the docked spacecraft busy during their just-completed workday.

Early in their day, at about 9:15 p.m. Friday, STS-134 Commander Mark Kelly and Pilot Greg Johnson along with Expedition 27 Flight Engineer Ron Garan talked with middle school students, teachers and others gathered at the University of Arizona in Tucson. At about 7:45 a.m. Saturday Johnson answered questions from representatives of Gannet, Houston's KPRC-TV and the Voice of America.