Astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) spent the week of June 2–6 taking pictures of huge smoke clouds that could be seen from space. This was at a time when wildfires were raging in portions of Canada and the United States. On June 3, NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers noticed brownish clouds, which were smoke from wildfires that are impacting air quality in seven U.S. states, emanating from three Canadian provinces. Ayers collects daily smoke movement in order to understand it.
ISS Crew Conducts Health, Fire, and VR Research Ahead of Axiom Ax-4 Mission Arrival
As per NASA’s official report, Expedition 73 astronauts were occupied with a variety of scientific and operational tasks while keeping an eye on environmental events from space. Research activities included tests such as “Drain Brain 2.0”, where JAXA commander Takuya Onishi monitored blood flow changes in microgravity, and the use of Bio-Monitor by NASA’s Jonny Kim to gather wearable health data. Russian cosmonauts Zubritskiy and Ryzhikov took part in a vestibular study using VR goggles and also documented Eastern European landscapes, including the Volga River and Aral Sea.
Meanwhile, the astronauts maintained ISS systems and upgraded research tools. Anne McClain and Ayers moved stowage hardware inside the BEAM module, while Kim replaced the processor of Spaceborne Computer-2. The crew also prepared for fire safety research, with McClain conducting tests for SoFIE-MIST, a study to better understand how fires ignite and extinguish in space. “This helps us choose better materials for use in space,” she noted in her June 6 update.
Efforts continued to ready the station for incoming visitors from Axiom Space’s Ax-4 mission. Former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson will command the private crew, with arrival aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft expected on June 11. NASA astronauts Ayers and McClain rehearsed docking procedures while Onishi prepared the necessary tablets and communication tools for the visiting team’s science experiments.
There are now seven astronauts and cosmonauts on the station, and two crewed and two cargo vehicles are docked there. The station has been home to people for more than 24 years, which shows that it serves as both a research outpost and a place to watch happenings on Earth from low orbit.
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