On December 11, 2018, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Sergey Prokopyev performed the extra vehicle activities (EVA – spacewalk). The cosmonauts cut into multi-layer insulation and debris shielding to inspect the “Soyuz MS-09” spacecraft’s metallic hull, where Prokopyev and German astronaut Alexander Gerst had plugged a 2-millimeter hole that caused a minor air leak in August. The spacewalkers first cut into the thermal blankets, then sliced into shielding designed to protect the ship from micrometeoroid and orbital debris impacts.

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On December 8, 2018 at 15:36 UTC, the private U.S. unmanned supply spacecraft, the "Dragon” SpX-16 (CRS-16 flight), was successfully docked to the International Space Station. The linkup operation was carried out with the help of the giant 17-meter Canadarm. The capture with Canadarm-2 was performed by German astronaut Alexander Gerst at 12:21 UTC. The Dragon spacecraft was maneuvered into position and attached to a berthing port on the space station's Harmony module. This docking marked the 16th time a Dragon spaceship has reached the space station, counting a demonstration flight in 2012.

On December 5, 2018 at 18:16 UTC the "Falcon 9” rocket-carrier was launched from SLC-40 of the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, USA. The launch was performed by the "SpaceX” private company supported by the 45th Space Wing of US Air Force. US private company SpaceX launched its "Dragon” (CRS-16 flight also known as SpX-16) unmanned spacecraft on a cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station. CRS means Commercial Resupply Services. It is the 17th successful flight of a “Dragon” spacecraft and the 16th successful flight of a “Dragon” to the ISS.

On December 3, 2018 at 17:33 UTC the Russian "Soyuz MS-11” spacecraft docked with the Russian “Poisk” module of the International Space Station.

The spacecraft delivered 3 members of Expedition 58 to the ISS, Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko, Canadian astronaut David Saint-Jacques and American astronaut Anne McClain. The new comers joined current ISS Expedition 57 members – Russian cosmonaut Sergey Prokopiev, German astronaut Alexander Gerst and American astronaut Serena Maria Auñón-Chancellor. The mission of Kononenko, Saint-Jacques and McClain is to last during 194 days.

On December 3, 2018 at 11:31 UTC the Russian “Soyuz MS-11” spacecraft was launched from Baykonur Cosmodrome. The space vehicle was orbited by the Russian “Soyuz-FG” rocket-carrier. The spacecraft is piloted by 3 cosmonauts: Commander, Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko (center), Canadian astronaut David Saint-Jacques (right) and American astronaut Anne McClain (left).

Photo by Russian Cosmonaut training center.

It is the first crew launch for Russian space program since a Soyuz booster failure led to the emergency landing of a tw ... Read more »

On November 19, 2018, the American "Cygnus” (CRS NG-10 “S.S. John Young”) private unmanned supply spacecraft was docked to the International Space Station (ISS). The Cygnus spacecraft was grappled by a robotic arm operated by astronauts inside the space station at 10:28 UTC. The cargo spacecraft was docked to the station’s "Unity” module at 12:33 UTC. The spacecraft delivered about 3400 kilograms of supplies to the Space Station. It was the 10th docking of a "Cygnus” spacecraft with the ISS.

On November 18, 2018 at 19:28 UTC the Russian “Progress MS-10” unmanned supply spacecraft docked to the International Space Station. The spacecraft was docked to the Russian “Zvezda” (“Star”) module. The spacecraft delivered about 2500 kilograms of cargo for the ISS crew.

On November 17, 2018 at 09:01 UTC the "Cygnus” privately owned U.S. unmanned supply spacecraft was launched from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS), a commercial space launch facility located at the southern tip of NASA's Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Virginia, USA. The spacecraft was orbited by the “Antares” rocket-carrier. The "Cygnus” (CRS NG-10 “S.S. John Young”) unmanned supply spacecraft, built by U.S. space firm Orbital Sciences Corp., was orbited on its cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station. CRS means Commercial Resupply Services. The "Cygnus” (CRS NG-10 “S.S. John Young”) is the 10th successful flight of the Orbital ATK uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus.

On November 16, 2018 at 18:14 UTC the “Progress MS-10” unmanned supply spacecraft was launched from Baykonur Cosmodrome to the International Space Station. The spacecraft was orbited by the “Soyuz-FG” rocket-carrier.

On November 11, 2018, the Japanese HTV "Kounotori-7” unmanned supply spacecraft was deorbited. After undocking from the ISS, HTV-7 remained in orbit for several days before conducting a series of de-orbit burns for a destructive re-entry over the Pacific Ocean. During preparations for its destructive reentry and after the deorbit burn but before entry interface (the point at which the discernable atmosphere begins to affect a spacecraft), ground controllers remotely commanded HTV-7 to release the HSRC (HTV Small Re-entry Capsule) capsule at an altitude of 300 km. Because HSRC needs to splashdown in an area where recovery will be easy to accomplish, HTV-7 had the distinction of being the first JAXA Station resupply spacecraft to perform a destructive reentry over the Northwestern Pacific Ocean instead of over the Southern Pacific Ocean spacecraft graveyard that has been used on all six previous ... Read more »