NASA Astronauts on the ISS Catch Sight of the ‘Twilight Zone’

NASA astronauts Sunita “Suni” Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore have reached the six-month mark of their stay on the International Space Station, despite their planned stay of only eight days. And now, one of his fellow astronauts has posted a photo from the “Twilight Zone.”

No, not Rod Serling’s famous TV show. Saturday, astronaut Don Pettit shared a photo of the coldest clouds, and explain why they call it the Evening Zone.

“Living in the Twilight Zone,” Pettit said. “Our methods are working @Space_Station now it matches the earth’s shadow day and night so we don’t see full day or full night. This is a good time to photograph the light clouds.”

But Willians and Wilmore, who are due to return home to Earth in 2025, don’t feel like their long-term stay has fallen under dark clouds.

“I love everything about being here,” Williams said Wednesday. “Being in space is a lot of fun.”

Astronauts are getting busy, and Williams and Wilmore are helping other ISS crews with botany and other research, according to NASA’s ISS blog. He has supported over 60 scientific studies in the six months he has been on board, The Washington Post reports.

Here’s what you need to know about what these two astronauts are doing.

Who are astronauts?

Wilmore, 61, and Williams, 58, are veterans and are both naval officers and former test pilots. Williams has been a NASA astronaut since 1998, and Wilmore since 2000. Both have extensive experience in space.

Williams holds the record for the most spacewalks by a woman (seven) and the longest spaceflight by a woman (50 hours, 40 minutes), and in 2007, she ran the first race with any person in space.

In 2009, Wilmore piloted the Space Shuttle Atlantis on its mission to the ISS, and in 2014, he was part of the ISS crew that used a 3D printer to create a tool — a ratchet wrench — in space, the first time humans had flown it. he made something unusual.

What was their first mission in space?

Wilmore, as the leader, and Williams, as the pilot, went to the ISS in a 15-meter, Boeing-made Starliner. They launched on June 5 and stopped with the ISS on June 6. NASA hopes that the Starliner will give the agency a new way to get the crew to and from the ISS, and that Boeing made it is another sign that NASA is starting to lean. in the private press on its choices for space shuttles, The New York Times report.

Wilmore and Williams’ ISS mission was to last only eight days, during which they would test the Starliner’s components and see how it would work with a crew in space. But due to problems with the Starliner, the two astronauts are still there and won’t be back until 2025.

What do astronauts eat?

Food on the ISS is very important, because fresh produce must be replenished every three months and brought back from Earth. On Nov. 23, the unmanned Progress 90 space shuttle successfully docked at the ISS. But the latest food came with an unwanted smell.

“After opening the hatch of the Progress spacecraft, the Roscosmos cosmonauts noticed an unexpected smell and saw small droplets, which prompted the crew to close the Poisk sector to the rest of Russia,” a. A NASA representative said in a statement posted on social networks.

“Air station controllers and negative sensors monitored the station’s observations, and on Sunday, flight controllers confirmed that the air inside the station was normal,” NASA said. “There are no crew concerns, and as of Sunday afternoon, crews are working to open the door between Poisk and Progress while all other space operations are proceeding as planned.”

NASA revealed that their menu includes corn with powdered milk, pizza, shrimp cocktails, grilled chicken and tuna.

The smell that came with the spaceship is not the only food-related problem in recent times, with some media questioning the thin appearance of the astronauts based on recent photos.

Dr. JD Polk, NASA’s health and medical director, said Williams and Wilmore are doing well. “NASA and our partners have been successfully traveling in an orbital laboratory for many years, studying the effects of space on the human body as we plan to explore the far reaches of the sun,” said Polk. “The health of the crew is constantly monitored by dedicated surgeons on Earth, and they have their own diet and exercise regime to ensure they stay healthy throughout their journey.”

Williams said he weighs the same as he did when he arrived at the space station, in a video interview on Nov. 12 on the ISS.

How they will return to Earth in early 2025

In June, two NASA astronauts landed on the ISS. In September, their crippled Boeing Starliner capsule returned to Earth without them for safety reasons.

The Starliner returned alone to White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico on Sept. 6 is the ship that will bring them home — SpaceX Dragon — arrived at the ISS on September 29. NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov joined the space station and arrived at the end of September aboard the Dragon spacecraft. Four recruits were supposed to be at the start, but two remained to make room for Wilmore and Williams.

Wilmore and Williams are brought home on SpaceX Crew-9 Dragon spacecraft early next year and will “continue their work as part of the Expedition 71/72 crew until February 2025,” the space agency said. he said in a sentence. “He will fly home aboard a Dragon with two other crew members assigned to SpaceX Crew-9.”

“Spaceflight is dangerous, even under its most safe and routine conditions,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a statement on Aug. 24. “Aircraft, by nature, is not safe, or routine. The International Space Station is bringing home Boeing’s Starliner out of service because of our commitment to safety: our first priority and our North Star.”

What do astronauts say?

Astronauts have been positive about their experiences. At a live news conference in September, Williams said that while they know their work was only supposed to take eight days, they’ve both been “training for a couple of years” for it. They are fully qualified to stay in space for a long time, and help pilot the SpaceX Dragon that will bring them home next year.

“It’s so peaceful here,” Williams said on Sept. 13, though she added that she misses their families in the world.

Astronomers are engaged in research, processing and analyzing data over long periods of time.

“We have a great time here on the ISS,” Williams said in a press conference it took place from orbit in July. “I don’t mind. Butch doesn’t mind that we’ve been here a few extra weeks.”

How did they get stuck in space in the first place?

The The Starliner was delayed in May due to a valve problem in the rocket. Engineers then had to fix the helium leak. All of that is bad news for Boeing. I am competing with SpaceXwhat has been sending astronauts to the ISS starting in 2020, and making more than 20 successful missions to the space station.

Starliner finally launched, atop an Atlas V rocket, on June 5, but some problems came with it. NASA announced this triple helium leak were identified, one that was identified before the escape, and two new ones. In addition to the leak, the crew had to deal with those who lost control, even though the technology ended with the port and the ISS.

SpaceX has also had its share of failures. A The Falcon 9 rocket exploded on the launchpad in 2016. In July of this year, the Falcon 9 rocket released liquid oxygen and sent its satellites in error, The New York Times. report. And the Falcon 9 rocket at the end of August lost its initial booster when it crashed into the Atlantic Ocean and he was on fire.

But that said, SpaceX has won 300 Falcon 9 flights to his credit.

Stuck in space: Writing time

• May: The Starliner launch is delayed due to a valve problem in the rocket, and then a helium leak.
• June 5: Starliner launches with Williams and Wilmore.
• June 6: Starliner docks with the ISS despite battling triple helium leaks and losing control.
• Sept. 6: The Starliner leaves the ISS and lands in New Mexico, leaving Williams and Wilmore behind.
• Sept. 28: SpaceX Crew-9 mission is launched with Hague and Gorbunov aboard Dragon.
• Sept. 29: SpaceX Dragon arrives with ISS.
• February 2025 onwards: SpaceX Dragon spacecraft will return to Earth with Williams, Wilmore, Hague and Gorbunov.