This is the second space flight for Rubins and Ryzhikov and the first for Kud-Sverchkov.
They will launch on October 14 at 12:45 pm ET and will spend six months on the space station.
Rubins previously spent six months on the station between July and October 2016. Before becoming an astronaut, she was a scientist who studied viral diseases, cancer biology, microbiology, and immunology.
Ryzhikov awaits his second space flight and has fond memories of his first flight between October 2016 and April 2017, which slightly overlapped with Rubins’ stay in 2016.
“For me, the most vivid impressions are experiencing weightlessness at zero G. You can compare it to dreaming when you are a child. And observing the Earth from afar,” Ryzhikov said.
Kud-Sverchkov is preparing for his first trip to the space station.
“Of course I am very excited about this upcoming trip,” he said. “But right now, I am intensely focused on the last training period before launch. We still have some training to do and it will last until the launch date.”
Rubins was the first person to sequence DNA in space. She hopes to continue her sequencing research in new ways by studying the microbiome in the space station environment.
“The space station has been separated from Earth for 20 years,” said Rubins. “How is it different? The space station is its own biome with its own resources, with humans coming and going. We want to see what these closed environments do when they have been apart for a long time.”
Your next mission will include conducting research using the Cold Atom Laboratory. at the station to study atoms, as well as a cardiovascular experiment that tracks a research he worked on during his first space flight, according to NASA.
Full house
During their stay, these astronauts will also be joined by the Crew-1 flight, bringing the total number of astronauts at the station to seven.
Crew-1 will bring four more astronauts to the space station through the agency’s Commercial Crew program: NASA astronauts Victor Glover Jr., Michael Hopkins, Shannon Walker and Japan’s Soichi Noguchi.
Crew-1 is undergoing system checks on Earth. It has more capabilities than Endeavor and will be able to dock on top of the space station.
The NASA team estimated it will take six weeks between Hurley and Behnken’s return to Endeavor and the launch of Crew-1 to review the data. NASA is currently targeting a year-end launch.
“It is going to be amazing to have seven people on the space station,” Rubins said. “It is designed to handle that. We have been preparing for this in recent years by improving carbon dioxide flushing and testing new technologies for exploration. Seven crew members on board allow us to test the new revitalization of the atmosphere and the new components of the spacesuit. We can really increase our scientific output. “
Astronauts are training and preparing for the mission. wear masks, maintain social distance and constantly disinfect the equipment used for training.
“In October, I still think that we will have problems with this virus and that it will exist for a time,” Rubins said. “But what we are seeing from the science side is an incredible effort.”
“I have never seen so many scientists working to achieve a goal. Scientists are finding new ways to collaborate, they are accelerating research, and the pace of discovery is incredible. I am encouraged by what we can accomplish together to manage this disease.” and really make sure we get out of it. “
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