[Spacetalk] https://spaceflightnow.com; https://www.nasa.gov/index.html

Wed Feb 28 00:14:58 CST 2018

Good morning all,

 It has been an amazing last three days of supporting events around Florida...Astronomy night at Wedgefield K8 on Thursday;  a Boy Scouts Blue & Gold Award Ceremony on Friday; and with the Police Athletic League of Jacksonville for the Exceptional Student Center School on Monday…each was so special in it’s own way…I do the same thing all the time yet it is so different…always fun….the audiences at the Astronomy night, Blue & Gold, & ESC School were great..it was a successful opening of their first Astronomy night; the Blue & Gold also celebrating space had everything decorated in space themes and this kids are in such a positive environment; my special friends at ESC gave me a wonderful gift, a magical drawing and picture from my visit last year. 

 There are so many special things that happen, too many to list but at the Blue & Gold event, a very kind and so nice woman came up to me to say she has been receiving this newsletter for 10 years and has finally met me... How awesome :-) :-) I was thrilled, i wanted to find out more but had no time to talk…please email me :-) :-) 

 Plenty of activity in the space program, we have a lunch on Thursday, an Atlas V at 5:02 PM, you can see it on https://spaceflightnow.com <https://spaceflightnow.com/> and shortly after a Space X, check the site for an update…three astronauts returned safely from the iSS, landing in Russia…always happy when they return safely, there are dangers along the way…remember to go the the subject links for all the latest info...wishing you all a wonderful day…. we have to always remember to do our best, enjoy everything we do, live in the present, be appreciative of the good in our lives, make each day special, smile & have fun! Gabe

NASA's Next Planet Hunter Arrives in Florida Ahead of April Launch <http://www.space.com/39734-nasa-tess-exoplanet-spacecraft-arrives-ksc.html#?utm_source=sdc-newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=test-02-21-sdc>
 <http://www.space.com/39734-nasa-tess-exoplanet-spacecraft-arrives-ksc.html#?utm_source=sdc-newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=test-02-21-sdc>

NASA Astronauts Return to Earth, Land Safely in Kazakhstan
 <https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/thumbnails/image/exp54_crew.png>
NASA astronaut Joe Acaba, Russian cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin and NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei relax after their return trip from the International Space Station to their landing site southeast of the remote town of Dzhezkazgan in Kazakhstan, where they touched down at 9:31 p.m. EST Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2018.
Credits: NASA Television
 <https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/thumbnails/image/acaba.png>
NASA astronaut Joe Acaba gives a thumbs-up to the cameras after landing with his fellow International Space Station Expedition 54 crew members near Dzhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, at 9:31 p.m. EST Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2018, after 168 days in space.
Credits: NASA Television
 <https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/thumbnails/image/vande_hei.jpg>
NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei enjoys his first moments of fresh air on Earth after landing with his fellow International Space Station Expedition 54 crew members near Dzhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, at 9:31 p.m. EST Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2018, after 168 days in space.
Credits: NASA Television
Three members of the Expedition 54 crew aboard the International Space Station (ISS), including NASA astronauts Mark Vande Hei <https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/biographies/mark-t-vande-hei> and Joe Acaba <https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/biographies/joseph-m-acaba>, returned to Earth on Tuesday after months of performing research and spacewalks in low-Earth orbit.

Vande Hei, Acaba and cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin of the Russian space agency Roscosmos landed at 9:31 p.m. EST (8:31 a.m. Feb. 28 in Kazakhstan) southeast of the remote town of Dzhezkazgan in Kazakhstan.

Their time on station marked the beginning of the first long-term increase in crew size on the U.S. segment, enabling NASA to double the time dedicated to research and achieve a record-setting week of research that surpassed 100 hours <https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/news/wklysumm_week_of_05feb18>. Highlights from this research include investigations into the manufacturing of fiber optic filaments <https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7388> in microgravity, improving the accuracy of an implantable glucoses biosensor <https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7703>, and measuring the Sun’s energy input to Earth <https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=1907>.

The crew also welcomed four cargo spacecraft <https://www.nasa.gov/feature/visiting-vehicle-launches-arrivals-and-departures> delivering several tons of supplies and research experiments. Orbital ATK’s Cygnus spacecraft arrived at the station in November on the company's eighth commercial resupply mission, followed in December by SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft on the company’s thirteenth resupply mission. Two Russian ISS Progress cargo craft arrived at the station in October and February.

Vande Hei logged 168 days in space on this, his first, mission. He ventured outside the space station on four spacewalks <https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/spacewalks> to perform work that included replacing and lubricating the Latching End Effectors on both ends of the Canadarm2. Acaba completed one spacewalk to lubricate an end effector and install new cameras on the station’s arm and truss. He now has accrued 306 days in space on three flights. Acaba and Vande Hei also participated in dozens of educational events while in space as part of NASA’s Year of Education on Station <https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/stem-on-station/year-of-education.html>.

Misurkin conducted one record-setting spacewalk with fellow cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov to replace an electronics box for a high-gain communications antenna on the Zvezda service module in February. The spacewalk timed out at 8 hours and 13 minutes, the longest in Russian space program history. Misurkin now has spent 334 days in space on two flights.

Now operating the station are Expedition 55 crew members Commander Anton Shkaplerov of Roscosmos and Flight Engineers Scott Tingle <https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/biographies/scott-d-tingle> of NASA and Norishige Kanai of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. Astronauts Ricky Arnold <https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/biographies/richard-r-arnold> and Drew Feustel <https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/biographies/andrew-j-feustel> of NASA, and Oleg Artemyev of Roscosmos are scheduled to launch March 21 and arrive at the space station two days later, returning the crew size to six.

Learn more about the International Space Station at: https://www.nasa.gov/station <https://www.nasa.gov/station> Get breaking news, images and features from the station on social media at: https://instagram.com/iss <https://instagram.com/iss>  and https://www.twitter.com/Space_Station <https://www.twitter.com/Space_Station>   

 For those of you who have signed up for the Insight Mission….it is scheduled in May…. visit the site below to get the latest info:
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/insight/main/index.html

> 

Three of the 'Thirty-Five New Guys'

On January 16, 1978, NASA announces the first astronaut class in nine years. Dr. Ronald McNair, Guy Bluford and Fred Gregory were among those selected, the first African Americans in NASA's astronaut program. The Astronaut Class of 1978, otherwise known as the “Thirty-Five New Guys,” was NASA’s first new group of astronauts since 1969. This, the eighth astronaut group, was the first to include not only African Americans, but also women and Asian Americans.

Learn more about the Astronaut Class of 1978: https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/1978-astronaut-class <https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/1978-astronaut-class>

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