On September 21, 2022 at 17:06 UTC, the Russian "Soyuz MS-22” spacecraft docked with the Russian “Rassvet” module of the International Space Station. The spacecraft delivered 3 members of Expedition 67/68 to the ISS, Russian cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitry Petelin as well as US astronaut Francisco Rubio. The new comers joined current ISS Expedition 67 members – Russian cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveev and Sergey Korsakov; US astronauts Kjell N. Lindgren, Robert Hines and Jessica Watkins; Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti. The 10 crew members will work together during 8 days. After a 8-day “handover,” Prokopyev, Petelin and Rubio will replace Artemyev, Matveev and Korsakov, who plan to return to Earth aboard the “Soyuz MS-21” on September 29.

On September 21, 2022 at 13:54 UTC the Russian “Soyuz MS-22” spacecraft was launched from Baykonur Cosmodrome. The space vehicle was orbited by the Russian “Soyuz-2.1a” rocket-carrier. The spacecraft is piloted by 3 cosmonauts: Commander, Russian cosmonaut Sergey Prokopyev (center); flight-engineer 1, Russian cosmonaut Dmitry Petelin (right); flight-engineer 2, US astronaut Francisco Rubio (left).

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The launch was per ... Read more »

On September 19, 2022, Valeriy Vladimirovich Polyakov, pilot-cosmonaut of USSR, passed away at the age of 80. He was a Hero of the Soviet Union as well as a Hero of the Russian Federation. He performed 2 journeys into space – one of which was a record, the longest single stay in space, staying aboard the Mir space station for more than 14 months (437 days 18 hours) during one trip.

On September 17, 2022 Chinese cosmonauts Chen Dong and Cai Xuzhe performed the first spacewalk to install the foot restraint B and an assisting hatch handle. In addition, they installed payload a circulating pump and demonstrated extravehicular emergency rescue. During the emergency drill, Cai Xuzhe mimed an unconscious astronaut. Chen Dong was supposed to take Cai Xuzhe, who weighed almost 200 kg with his spacesuit, to the airlock. He had to be careful not to damage the antennas and outboard cameras. Chen Dong connected his safety lines to his comrade's and heaved him along the outer wall. The exercise was successfully completed. The EVA lasted 4 hours and 12 minutes. It was the 2^nd spacewalk for Chen Dong and the 1^st spacewalk for Cai ... Read more »

On 2 September, 2022, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev and Denis Matveev performed the extra vehicle activities (EVA – spacewalk) to relocate an external control panel for the arm from one operating area to another and test a rigidizing mechanism on the arm that will be used to facilitate the grasping of payloads. Finally they extended the Strela-2 from Zarya to Poisk. The EVA lasted 7 hours and 47 minutes. It was the 8^th EVA for Oleg Artemyev and the 4^th EVA for Denis Matveev. It was the 64^th Russian EVA in the frames of the ISS program. It was the 160^th EVA performed by cosmonauts in Soviet/Russian spacesuits since March 1965.

On September 1, 2022 Chinese cosmonauts Chen Dong and Liu Yang performed the first spacewalk in this expedition. For the first time they used the airlock at the “Wentian” module. The two cosmonauts outfitted the space station with tools needed to support future activities. Cai Xuzhe controlled the robotic arm from inside the space station. The EVA lasted 6 hours and 7 minutes. It was the 1^st spacewalk for Chen Dong and the 1^st spacewalk for Liu Yang.

On August 30, 2022 American astronaut Don Leslie Lind passed away. He was 92.

On August 20, 2022 at 18:53 UTC the "Dragon” capsule splashed down in the in the Atlantic Ocean not far from Florida, USA. It was the "SpaceX CRS-25” mission. CRS means Commercial Resupply Services. It was the 5^th flight of the new generation of Dragon cargo capsules also known SpaceX Dragon 2 or Cargo Dragon 2. It was the 25^th flight of Cargo Dragon to the ISS with docking, including a demonstration flight in 2012.

On August 19, 2022 at 15:05 UTC, the Dragon CRS-25 spacecraft was undocked from the International Space Station. It’s the 5^th flight of the new generation of Dragon cargo capsules also known SpaceX Dragon 2 or Cargo Dragon 2. It was the 25^th flight of Cargo Dragon to the ISS with docking, including a demonstration flight in 2012.

On August 17, 2022, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev and Denis Matveev performed the extra vehicle activities (EVA – spacewalk) to continue work on integrating the European remote manipulator ERA into the Russian segment of the ISS. Spacesuit problems - voltage fluctuations - forced Oleg Artemyev to return early to the “Poisk” airlock compartment on an expedited bases to hook up to ISS power. The spacewalk was shorted and not all tasks were completed. The EVA lasted 4 hours and 01 minute. It was the 7^th EVA for Oleg Artemyev and the 3^rd EVA for Denis Matveev.