NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins and NASA Astronaut Kate Rubins at the International Space Station (ISS), held a “spacechat”, on Tuesday, October 18 at 11:15 AM - 11:35 AM EDT.
The video is posted at www.facebook.com/...
Dr. Kate Rubins is a biologist, NASA astronaut and flight engineer, currently stationed at the ISS, who recently sequenced DNA in space for the first time.
Dr. Francis Collins is the director of the National Institutes of Health, who led the effort to map the human genome.
Expedition 48/49 (July 7)
Kate Rubins and her two colleagues blasted off as part of ISS Expedition 48/49 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, on July 7.
See www.dailykos.com… and www.dailykos.com… for info on the flight and descriptions of the science experiments slated to be performed in the subsequent weeks.
Upon arrival at the ISS on July 9, aboard a Soyuz MS-01 spacecraft, Kate set up a microscope in space to study, for the first time, how heart muscle tissue adapts in space. She also set up a new DNA sequencer to do real-time analysis of DNA for the first time in space.
DNA Sequencing in Space
A few weeks later Kate and the Biomolecule Sequencer team had sequenced their one billionth base of DNA. For reference, the genome of the virus DNA that was sent up is 48,000 bases, the genome of the E. Coli DNA is 4.6 million bases, and the length of the human genome is 3.2 billion bases.
“I [have a] genomics background, [so] I get really excited about that kind of stuff,” Rubins said in a downlink shortly after reaching the one billion base pairs sequenced goal.
The DNA sequencing was done using the pocket sized MinION DNA sequencer by Oxford Nanopore Technologies.
The compact biomolecule sequencer has minimal moving parts and plugs directly into a laptop or tablet, which supplies power to the device and collects the sequencing data.
The data is collected as the device passes an ionic current through a perforated surface containing nanopores (natural cell membrane ion pores) and measures the changes in the current as biological molecules from samples pass through the pores. The change in current can be used to identify a DNA sequence or other molecules.
Unlike other terrestrial instruments whose sequencing run times can take days, this device’s data is available in near real time; analysis can begin within 10-15 minutes from the application of the sample. More info at www.nasa.gov/...
With this capability, astronauts will be able to diagnose illnesses, or identify microbes growing in the ISS and determine whether or not they represent a health threat. A space-based DNA sequencer will be an important tool to help protect astronaut health during long duration missions on the journey to Mars, and future explorers could also potentially use the technology to identify DNA-based life forms beyond Earth.
Spacewalks
Kate also performed spacewalks and equipment installation and repair. Here she is, installing the International Docking Adapter (IDA), with Jeff Williams, on August 19.
Orbital ATK's Resupply Mission (Oct 17)
Earlier this evening, Orbital ATK's Cygnus spacecraft lifted off at 7:45 p.m. EDT from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport’s Pad 0A on the company’s upgraded Antares 230 rocket carrying more than 5,100 pounds of cargo. Cygnus is scheduled to arrive at the space station Sunday, Oct. 23. Expedition 49 astronauts Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and Kate Rubins of NASA will use the space station’s robotic arm to grapple Cygnus, about 6 a.m.
The cargo aboard the Cygnus will support dozens of new and existing investigations as the space station crews of Expeditions 49/50 contribute to about 250 science and research studies. The new experiments include studies on fire in space, the effect of lighting on sleep and daily rhythms, collection of health-related data, and a new way to measure neutrons.
More info at blogs.nasa.gov/...
Expedition 49/50 (Oct 19)
Expedition 49/50 with three new members is scheduled to launch at 4:05 a.m. EDT Wednesday, Oct. 19 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Live launch coverage will begin at 3:15 a.m. on NASA Television and the agency’s website.
NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough, along with Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrey Borisenko, will travel for two days in the Soyuz MS-02 spacecraft to test upgraded spacecraft systems before docking with the space station’s Poisk module at 5:59 a.m. Friday, Oct. 21. NASA TV coverage of the docking will begin at 5:15 a.m.
www.nasa.gov/…
Here is the video of the actual launch Wednesday morning EDT.
Expedition 48/49 Return (Oct 29)
Kate and her 2 teammates are scheduled to return on Oct 29, aboard the Soyuz MS-01 spacecraft and land in Kazakhstan.
The Chinese Tiangong-2 Space Laboratory
Meanwhile, on Sunday Oct 16 at 23:30 UTC, China launched two astronauts into space, en route to the Tiangong-2 space laboratory. spaceflight101.com/...
The two astronauts were ensconced in the Shenzhou 11 spacecraft atop a Long March 2F rocket.
The crew’s two-day commute to the Tiangong-2 space laboratory will be followed by a month-long stay for extensive science operations in a flight that will more than double China’s previous endurance record of two weeks.
Tiangong-2 is a Chinese Space Laboratory representing the second stepping stone by the China National Space Agency on a path to establishing a modular space station toward the beginning of the next decade.
Tiangong translates literally to ‘Heavenly Palace’ and is China’s first space station program which, in its early stages, is not unlike the early Salyut space stations and the American Skylab – launched with equipment and supplies for a finite mission duration already on board and not serviced by cargo resupply vehicles.
State of the U.S. Crewed Spacecraft Program
Since the termination of the NASA Space Shuttle program in 2011, the U.S. does not have crewed spacecraft capability and relies on the Russian space program to transport astronauts to and from the ISS. The SpaceX Dragon and Orbital ATK Cygnus spacecraft are used to transport equipment and supplies only.
Crewed spacecraft in development in the U.S. include -