Nov 30 2017
From The Space Library
MEDIA ADVISORY M17-140 First Space Station Crew of 2018 Available for News Conference, Interviews
NASA astronauts A.J. (Drew) Feustel and Ricky Arnold, and crewmate Oleg Artemyev of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, will discuss their upcoming mission to the International Space Station in a news conference at 2 p.m. EST Thursday, Dec. 7, at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
The news conference will be broadcast live on NASA Television and streamed on the agency’s website. The crew will be available for in person or remote media interviews afterward.
Feustel and Arnold will launch to the space station aboard the Russian Soyuz MS-08 spacecraft, commanded by Artemyev, in March 2018, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. This will be the second time in five months that two NASA astronauts will launch together on a Soyuz spacecraft to the station.
The trio will join the Expedition 55 crew, and return to Earth in August 2018 as members of Expedition 56. Arnold, a former classroom teacher, and Feustel will continue NASA’s Year of Education on Station initiatives to inspire educators and students. This will be Feustel’s third spaceflight, and he will serve as a flight engineer for Expedition 55 and commander for Expedition 56. This will be Arnold and Artemyev’s second spaceflights, and they will serve as flight engineers on Expeditions 55 and 56.
To request credentials to participate in person or to reserve an interview opportunity, U.S. reporters must contact Johnson's newsroom at 281-483-5111 by 4 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 6. The deadline has passed for international media to attend in person.
Reporters who wish to participate by telephone must call Johnson's newsroom no later than 1:45 p.m. on Dec. 7. Those following the briefing on social media may ask questions using #askNASA.
During a planned six-month mission, the crew members will take part in about 250 research investigations and technology demonstrations not possible on Earth in order to advance scientific knowledge of Earth, space, physical and biological sciences. Science conducted in the orbiting laboratory continues to yield benefits for humanity and will enable future long-duration human and robotic exploration into deep space.
Feustel is from Lake Orion, Michigan, and earned a doctorate in Geological Sciences specializing in seismology from Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada, in addition to degrees from Oakland Community College, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana. NASA selected Feustel as an astronaut in 2000 and he has flown on two spaceflights. In 2009, Feustel served on space shuttle mission STS-125, the final servicing mission for NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. Feustel also served on STS-134 to deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer to the International Space Station on the final flight of space shuttle Endeavour. Feustel has logged more than 29 days in space and spent more than 42 hours on six spacewalks.
NASA selected Arnold as an astronaut in 2004. The Maryland native worked in the marine sciences and as a teacher in his home state, as well as in countries such as Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia. He accumulated 12 days, 19 hours and 29 minutes in space during STS-119, during which space shuttle Discovery delivered the final pair of power-generating solar array wings and a truss element for the space station. While aboard station, he conducted two spacewalks totaling 12 hours and 34 minutes.
RELEASE 17-091 NASA Statement on Nomination for Agency Chief Financial Officer
The following is a statement from acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot on Wednesday’s announcement of the intended nomination by President Donald Trump of Jeffrey DeWit to serve as the agency’s Chief Financial Officer:
“It is encouraging to see more members of the agency’s leadership team being named. Jeff's solid financial background will be a tremendous addition as we continue to advance our nation’s aeronautic and exploration initiatives.”
MEDIA ADVISORY M17-141 NASA TV to Broadcast Departure of Cygnus Cargo Spacecraft from International Space Station
After delivering almost 7,400 pounds of cargo to support dozens of science experiments from around the world, the Orbital ATK Cygnus cargo spacecraft is set to leave the International Space Station on Wednesday, Dec. 6. NASA Television and the agency’s website will provide live coverage of Cygnus' departure beginning at 7:45 a.m. EST.
On Tuesday, Dec. 5, ground controllers will use the Canadarm2 robotic arm to detach the Cygnus spacecraft from the Earth-facing side of the station's Unity module. The spacecraft, which arrived at the station Nov. 14, will be maneuvered above the Harmony module to gather data that will aid in rendezvous and docking operations for future U.S. commercial crew vehicles arriving for a linkup to Harmony’s international docking adapters. The maneuver will not be televised.
On Wednesday, Dec. 6, at approximately 8:10 a.m., Expedition 53 Flight Engineers Mark Vande Hei and Joe Acaba of NASA will give the command to release Cygnus. Cygnus is packed with more than 5,500 pounds of trash and other items marked for disposal.
Experiments delivered on Cygnus supported NASA and other research investigations during Expedition 53, including studies in biology, biotechnology, physical science and Earth science -- research that improves life on Earth. Investigations included studies on communication and navigation, microbiology, animal biology and plant biology.
Cygnus also will release 14 CubeSats from an external NanoRacks deployer on Dec. 7. The craft will remain in orbit until Monday, Dec. 18, when its engines will fire twice, pushing it into Earth's atmosphere, where it will burn up over the Pacific Ocean. NASA TV will not provide live coverage of these events.
The Cygnus launched Nov. 12 on Orbital ATK’s upgraded Antares 230 rocket from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia for the company’s eighth NASA-contracted commercial resupply mission.
