Expedition 63
Mission type | Long-duration mission to the ISS | |
---|---|---|
Mission duration | 187 days, 21 hours and 38 minutes | |
Expedition | ||
Space station | International Space Station | |
Began | 17 April 2020, 01:53:30 UTC[1] | |
Ended | 21 October 2020, 23:32:09 UTC[2][1] | |
Arrived aboard | Soyuz MS-16 Crew Dragon Demo-2 Soyuz MS-17 | |
Departed aboard | Soyuz MS-16 Crew Dragon Demo-2 | |
Crew | ||
Crew size | 3-6 (cumulative total: 8) | |
Members |
| |
Expedition 63 mission patch Up: Roscosmos cosmonaut Anatoli Ivanishin, NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy, Roscosmos cosmonaut Ivan Vagner (Soyuz MS-16), and down: NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken (Crew Dragon Demo-2) |
Expedition 63 was the 63rd long duration mission to the
Crew
Flight | Astronaut | First part (17 April – 31 May 2020) |
Second part (31 May – 1 August 2020) |
Third part (1 August – 14 October 2020) |
Fourth part (14–21 October 2020) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Soyuz MS-16 | Chris Cassidy, NASA Third and last spaceflight |
Commander | |||
Anatoli Ivanishin, Roscosmos Third and last spaceflight |
Flight Engineer | ||||
Ivan Vagner, Roscosmos First spaceflight |
Flight Engineer | ||||
SpaceX Demo-2
|
Doug Hurley, NASA Third and last spaceflight |
Off Station | Flight Engineer | Off Station | |
Bob Behnken, NASA Third and last spaceflight |
Off Station | Flight Engineer | Off Station | ||
Soyuz MS-17 | Sergey Ryzhikov, Roscosmos Second spaceflight |
Off Station | Flight Engineer | ||
Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, Roscosmos First spaceflight |
Off Station | Flight Engineer | |||
Kathleen Rubins, NASA Second spaceflight |
Off Station | Flight Engineer |
Crewed spaceflights to the ISS
Mission | Astronauts | Docking (UTC) | Undocking (UTC) | Duration |
---|---|---|---|---|
Crew Dragon Demo-2 | Douglas Hurley, NASA Robert Behnken, NASA |
31 May 2020 14:27 (hard docking)[11] |
1 August 2020 23:35 [12] |
64 days |
SpaceX spacecraft C206, later named Endeavour in honor of the Space Shuttle orbiter that replaced the Space Shuttle Challenger, which was destroyed in 1986,[13] launched to the station on 30 May 2020 and docked to the station approximately 19 hours later. The flight marks the first crewed test flight of SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft and the first crewed spaceflight to launch from the United States since STS-135 in July 2011. The flight was originally planned as a short two-week test flight, but was extended due to delays. Crew members Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken stayed aboard the station for approximately two months. Final mission duration depended on the readiness of Crew-1, which could launch approximately three months after the landing of Demo-2 and join either Expedition 63 or Expedition 64, and has launched in November 2020.[14][15][16][17] |
Extravehicular activity
Since delays to the NASA
Several spacewalks were planned to carry out work on the scientific and power systems on the ISS. This includes work activating the
On 26 June 2020, Expedition 63's first spacewalk, American spacewalk 65, began at 11:32 UTC with Cassidy and Behnken. The two NASA astronauts concluded their spacewalk at 17:39 UTC, after six hours and seven minutes. The two NASA astronauts completed all the work planned for this first of four spacewalks: to replace batteries that provide power for the station's solar arrays on the starboard truss of the complex, as well as initial tasks originally planned for the second scheduled spacewalk on 1 July 2020. The new batteries provide an improved and more efficient power capacity for operations. The spacewalkers removed five of six aging nickel-hydrogen batteries for one of two power channels for the starboard 6 (S6) truss, installed two of three new lithium-ion batteries, and installed two of three associated adapter plates that are used to complete the power circuit to the new batteries. Mission control reports that the two new batteries are working.[22]
On 1 July 2020, American spacewalk 66 began at 11:13 UTC with astronauts Cassidy and Behnken. The two NASA astronauts concluded their spacewalk at 17:14 UTC, after six hours and one minute. The two NASA astronauts completed half the work to upgrade the batteries that provide power for one channel on one pair of the station's solar arrays. They moved and connected one new lithium-ion battery to complete the circuit to the new battery and relocated one nickel-hydrogen battery to an external platform for future disposal. They also loosened the bolts on nickel-hydrogen batteries that will be replaced to complete the power capability upgrade on the far starboard truss and complete the station's battery replacement work that began in January 2017.[23]
On 16 July 2020, American spacewalk 67 began at 11:10 UTC with astronauts Cassidy and Behnken. The two NASA astronauts concluded their spacewalk at 17:10 UTC, after six hours. The two NASA astronauts completed all the work to replace batteries that provide power for the station’s solar arrays on the starboard truss of the complex. They removed six aging nickel-hydrogen batteries for the second of two power channels for the starboard 6 (S6) truss, installed three new lithium-ion batteries, and installed the three associated adapter plates that are used to complete the power circuit to the new batteries. The work nearly completes a 3.5-year effort to upgrade the International Space Station’s power system. At completion, 24 new lithium-ion batteries and adapter plates will replace 48 aging nickel-hydrogen batteries. In April 2019, one of the newly installed lithium-ion batteries on the near port truss blew a fuse, so two nickel-hydrogen batteries were re-installed to take its place. A new replacement lithium-ion battery arrived to the space station in January 2020 aboard the SpaceX Dragon on its 19th commercial resupply services mission and is stowed on the station’s truss until it can be installed during a future spacewalk later this year.[24]
On 21 July 2020, American spacewalk 68 began at 11:12 UTC with astronauts Cassidy and Behnken. The two NASA astronauts concluded their spacewalk at 16:41 UTC, after five hours and 29 minutes. The two NASA astronauts installed a protective storage unit that includes two Robotic External Leak Locator (RELL) units the Canadian Space Agency’s Dextre robot can use to detect leaks of ammonia, which is used to operate the station’s cooling system. Behnken and Cassidy then removed two lifting fixtures at the base of station solar arrays on the near port truss, or backbone, of the station. The “H-fixtures” were used for ground processing of the solar arrays prior to their launch. They then completed tasks to prepare the outside of the Tranquility module for the arrival later this year of the Nanoracks commercial airlock on a SpaceX cargo delivery mission. After its installation, the airlock will enable be used to deploy commercial and government-sponsored experiments into space. They also routed
Cubesat
On 13 July 2020, the Kibo
References
- ^ a b c "ISS Expedition 63". spacefacts.de. 1 May 2021. Retrieved 6 November 2021.
- ^ "Expedition 63 Mission Summary" (PDF). nasa.gov. Retrieved 18 August 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Increment 63" (in Japanese). JAXA. 10 April 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ Potter, Sean (30 October 2019). "NASA Assigns Chris Cassidy to Next Space Station Crew, Holds Briefing". NASA. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ Fisher, Christine (17 July 2020). "NASA SpaceX Crew Dragon Demo-2 astronauts will return to Earth on August 2". Engadget.
- ^ Groh, Jamie (19 March 2020). "SpaceX, NASA ready for first crewed launch from US soil in almost a decade".
- ^ Clark, Stephen (17 April 2020). "NASA, SpaceX set May 27 as target date for first crew launch". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
- ^ "Flight crew assignments". forum.nasaspaceflight.com.
- ^ "Роскосмос подтвердил подписание контракта на доставку астронавта NASA на корабле "Союз"".
- ^ Garcia, Mark (31 May 2020). "Station Welcomes First SpaceX Crew Dragon with Astronauts". nasa.gov. NASA. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 1 June 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ Potter, Sean (29 May 2020). "Updates to Coverage of Landmark NASA SpaceX Commercial Crew Test Flight". nasa.gov. NASA. Retrieved 31 May 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ Jim Bridenstine [@JimBridenstine] (17 July 2020). "We're targeting an August 1 departure of @SpaceX's Dragon Endeavour spacecraft from the @Space_Station to bring @AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug home after their historic #LaunchAmerica mission. Splashdown is targeted for August 2. Weather will drive the actual date" (Tweet) – via Twitter. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "NASA astronauts launch from U.S. soil for first time in nine years". Spaceflight Now. 30 May 2020.
- ^ Bartels, Meghan (26 May 2020). "SpaceX's 1st astronaut launch will be a "unique moment" for America, NASA chief says". Space.com. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
- ^ "New NASA spaceflight chief makes no guarantees about 2024 Moon landing goal". Spaceflight Now. 18 June 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Harwood, William (24 June 2020). "Astronauts gear up for Friday spacewalk amid planning for August Crew Dragon return". Spaceflight Now. Pole Star Publications Ltd. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
- ^ "NASA, SpaceX Targeting October for Next Astronaut Launch". blogs.nasa.gov. Retrieved 14 August 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Russian Cosmonauts May Conduct Spacewalk In US-Made Spacesuits In 2020 - Training Center". UrduPoint. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
- ^ Clark, Stephen (17 April 2020). "NASA, SpaceX set May 27 as target date for first crew launch". Spaceflight Now.
- ^ "Spacesuit Work and Heart Research Fill Crew Day – Space Station". blogs.nasa.gov. 29 April 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ Corbett, Tobias (19 May 2020). "NASA outlines the near and far future of the Space Station". NASASpaceflight.com. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
- ^ "Cassidy and Behnken Conclude Spacewalk to Replace Batteries". 26 June 2020. Retrieved 26 June 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Cassidy and Behnken Wrap Up Battery Spacewalk". NASA. 1 July 2020. Archived from the original on 2 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "NASA Astronauts Conclude Today's Spacewalk". NASA. 16 July 2020. Retrieved 16 July 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Behnken and Cassidy Conclude Ten Spacewalks Each". NASA. 21 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Jonathan's Space Report No. 781". 16 July 2020. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
External links
- Media related to ISS Expedition 63 at Wikimedia Commons