Cosmonaut Dmitri Petelin is pictured behind a solar array during a spacewalk to remove and replace science and communications hardware on the Roscosmos’ segment of the International Space Station. Credit: NASA TV
Roscosmos, also known as the Roscosmos State Corporation for Space Activities, is the Russian government agency responsible for space activities, including the development and operation of spacecraft, launch vehicles, and space stations. It was formed in 2015 through the merger of the Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and the United Rocket and Space Corporation. Roscosmos is responsible for Russia’s space program and works closely with other international space agencies on joint projects, such as the International Space Station. The agency is also involved in a wide range of space-related activities, including scientific research, earth observation, telecommunications, and manned spaceflight.
” data-gt-translate-attributes=”[“attribute”:”data-cmtooltip”, “format”:”html”]”>Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin began a spacewalk at 10:24 a.m. <span class=”glossaryLink” aria-describedby=”tt” data-cmtooltip=”
EDT
EDT is an abbreviation for Eastern Daylight Time, the time zone for the eastern coast of the United States and Canada when observing daylight saving time (spring/summer). It is four hours behind Coordinated Universal Time. New York City, Washington, D.C., Boston, and the Kennedy Space Center are in the Eastern Time Zone (ET).
” data-gt-translate-attributes=”[“attribute”:”data-cmtooltip”, “format”:”html”]”>EDT on June 22 to retrieve several experiment packages from the Zvezda and Poisk modules and install communications equipment outside the <span class=”glossaryLink” aria-describedby=”tt” data-cmtooltip=”
International Space Station
The International Space Station (ISS) is a large spacecraft in orbit around the Earth that serves as a research laboratory and spaceport for international collaboration in space exploration. It was launched in 1998 and has been continuously occupied by rotating crews of astronauts and cosmonauts from around the world since 2000. The ISS is a joint project of five space agencies: NASA (USA), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe), and CSA (Canada). It orbits the Earth at an altitude of approximately 400 kilometers (250 miles), and provides a unique platform for scientific research, technological development, and human space exploration.
” data-gt-translate-attributes=”[“attribute”:”data-cmtooltip”, “format”:”html”]”>International Space Station.
Prokopyev was wearing an Orlan spacesuit with red stripes, while Petelin was wearing a suit with blue stripes. They concluded their spacewalk at 4:48 p.m. EDT after 6 hours and 24 minutes. This was the seventh spacewalk in Prokopyev’s career, and the fifth for Petelin. It is the ninth spacewalk at the station in 2023 and the 266th spacewalk for space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades.
Roscomos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin are seen at work during a spacewalk on November 17, 2022. Credit: NASA TV
On June 23, the Expedition 69 crew wrapped up its work week by loading a cargo vehicle for its upcoming return to Earth and cleaning up following Thursday’s spacewalk. Other activities for the International Space Station residents on Friday included a robotics competition and life support maintenance.
The <span class=”glossaryLink” aria-describedby=”tt” data-cmtooltip=”
SpaceX
Commonly known as SpaceX, Space Exploration Technologies Corp. is a private American aerospace manufacturer and space transport services company that was founded by Elon Musk in 2002. Headquartered in Hawthorne, California, the company designs, manufactures, and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft. SpaceX’s ultimate goal is to reduce space transportation costs and enable the colonization of Mars.
” data-gt-translate-attributes=”[“attribute”:”data-cmtooltip”, “format”:”html”]”>SpaceX Dragon cargo vehicle will end its stay at the orbital outpost on June 29 after delivering two roll-out solar arrays and several tons of science gear, crew supplies, and station hardware on June 6. <span class=”glossaryLink” aria-describedby=”tt” data-cmtooltip=”
NASA
Established in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is an independent agency of the United States Federal Government that succeeded the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). It is responsible for the civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and aerospace research. Its vision is "To discover and expand knowledge for the benefit of humanity." Its core values are "safety, integrity, teamwork, excellence, and inclusion." NASA conducts research, develops technology and launches missions to explore and study Earth, the solar system, and the universe beyond. It also works to advance the state of knowledge in a wide range of scientific fields, including Earth and space science, planetary science, astrophysics, and heliophysics, and it collaborates with private companies and international partners to achieve its goals.
” data-gt-translate-attributes=”[“attribute”:”data-cmtooltip”, “format”:”html”]”>NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Woody Hoburg began finalizing the cargo work inside the Dragon cargo spacecraft on Friday. At the end of the day, NASA Flight Engineer Frank Rubio joined Hoburg transferring research samples from the station’s science freezers into Dragon’s science transport freezers.
Expedition 69 Flight Engineers (from left) Sultan Alneyadi of UAE (United Arab Emirates), Dmitri Petelin of Roscosmos, and Frank Rubio of NASA pose for a portrait inside the International Space Station’s Harmony module holding a variety of orbital hardware shortly after the arrival of the SpaceX Dragon cargo vehicle. Credit: NASA
Earlier in the day, Bowen and Rubio worked together servicing power systems and life support gear. The duo started their work in the Destiny laboratory module replacing a remote power controller module that controls the flow of power throughout the orbital outpost. After lunchtime, the duo rejoined each other in the Harmony module swapping out hardware that circulates, cools, and dehumidifies air in the space station’s U.S. segment.
UAE (United Arab Emirates) Flight Engineer Sultan Alneyadi assisted the NASA astronauts with the cargo packing job and then worked on orbital plumbing tasks throughout the morning on Friday. In the afternoon, Alneyadi powered up and activated the Astrobee robotic free-flyers located inside the Kibo laboratory module. Afterward, the UAE astronaut monitored the Astrobees as they performed maneuvers controlled by competition-winning algorithms written by students on Earth.
Animation of Astrobees on the space station. Credit: NASA
The orbital lab’s three cosmonauts slept in on Friday following their six-hour and 24-minute spacewalk the day before to replace science and communications hardware on the station’s Roscosmos segment. The spacewalk was Commander Sergey Prokopyev’s and Flight Engineer Dmitri Petelin’s fifth together. After they woke up mid-morning, the trio, including Flight Engineer Andrey Fedyaev, spent the rest of the day stowing spacewalk tools, cleaning spacesuits, and reorganizing the Poisk airlock.
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The body of Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei — who died after being set on fire by her partner in Kenya — was received Friday by family and anti-femicide crusaders, ahead of her burial a day later.
Cheptegei’s family met with dozens of activists Friday who had marched to the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital’s morgue in the western city of Eldoret while chanting anti-femicide slogans.
She is the fourth female athlete to have been killed by her partner in Kenya in yet another case of gender-based violence in recent years.
Viola Cheptoo, the founder of Tirop Angels – an organization that was formed in honor of athlete Agnes Tirop, who was stabbed to death in 2021, said stakeholders need to ensure this is the last death of an athlete due to gender-based violence.
“We are here to say that enough is enough, we are tired of burying our sisters due to GBV,” she said.
It was a somber mood at the morgue as athletes and family members viewed Cheptegei’s body which sustained 80% of burns after she was doused with gasoline by her partner Dickson Ndiema. Ndiema sustained 30% burns on his body and later succumbed.
Ndiema and Cheptegei were said to have quarreled over a piece of land that the athlete bought in Kenya, according to a report filed by the local chief.
Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics less than a month before the attack. She finished in 44th place.
Cheptegei’s father, Joseph, said that the body will make a brief stop at their home in the Endebess area before proceeding to Bukwo in eastern Uganda for a night vigil and burial on Saturday.
“We are in the final part of giving my daughter the last respect,” a visibly distraught Joseph said.
He told reporters last week that Ndiema was stalking and threatening Cheptegei and the family had informed police.
Four in 10 women or an estimated 41% of dating or married Kenyan women have experienced physical or sexual violence perpetrated by their current or most recent partner, according to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022.
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A rare Bronze-Era jar accidentally smashed by a 4-year-old visiting a museum was back on display Wednesday after restoration experts were able to carefully piece the artifact back together.
Last month, a family from northern Israel was visiting the museum when their youngest son tipped over the jar, which smashed into pieces.
Alex Geller, the boy’s father, said his son — the youngest of three — is exceptionally curious, and that the moment he heard the crash, “please let that not be my child” was the first thought that raced through his head.
The jar has been on display at the Hecht Museum in Haifa for 35 years. It was one of the only containers of its size and from that period still complete when it was discovered.
The Bronze Age jar is one of many artifacts exhibited out in the open, part of the Hecht Museum’s vision of letting visitors explore history without glass barriers, said Inbal Rivlin, the director of the museum, which is associated with Haifa University in northern Israel.
It was likely used to hold wine or oil, and dates back to between 2200 and 1500 B.C.
Rivlin and the museum decided to turn the moment, which captured international attention, into a teaching moment, inviting the Geller family back for a special visit and hands-on activity to illustrate the restoration process.
Rivlin added that the incident provided a welcome distraction from the ongoing war in Gaza. “Well, he’s just a kid. So I think that somehow it touches the heart of the people in Israel and around the world,“ said Rivlin.
Roee Shafir, a restoration expert at the museum, said the repairs would be fairly simple, as the pieces were from a single, complete jar. Archaeologists often face the more daunting task of sifting through piles of shards from multiple objects and trying to piece them together.
Experts used 3D technology, hi-resolution videos, and special glue to painstakingly reconstruct the large jar.
Less than two weeks after it broke, the jar went back on display at the museum. The gluing process left small hairline cracks, and a few pieces are missing, but the jar’s impressive size remains.
The only noticeable difference in the exhibit was a new sign reading “please don’t touch.”
VICTORIA – The British Columbia government is partnering with a bear welfare group to reduce the number of bears being euthanized in the province.
Nicholas Scapillati, executive director of Grizzly Bear Foundation, said Monday that it comes after months-long discussions with the province on how to protect bears, with the goal to give the animals a “better and second chance at life in the wild.”
Scapillati said what’s exciting about the project is that the government is open to working with outside experts and the public.
“So, they’ll be working through Indigenous knowledge and scientific understanding, bringing in the latest techniques and training expertise from leading experts,” he said in an interview.
B.C. government data show conservation officers destroyed 603 black bears and 23 grizzly bears in 2023, while 154 black bears were killed by officers in the first six months of this year.
Scapillati said the group will publish a report with recommendations by next spring, while an independent oversight committee will be set up to review all bear encounters with conservation officers to provide advice to the government.
Environment Minister George Heyman said in a statement that they are looking for new ways to ensure conservation officers “have the trust of the communities they serve,” and the panel will make recommendations to enhance officer training and improve policies.
Lesley Fox, with the wildlife protection group The Fur-Bearers, said they’ve been calling for such a committee for decades.
“This move demonstrates the government is listening,” said Fox. “I suspect, because of the impending election, their listening skills are potentially a little sharper than they normally are.”
Fox said the partnership came from “a place of long frustration” as provincial conservation officers kill more than 500 black bears every year on average, and the public is “no longer tolerating this kind of approach.”
“I think that the conservation officer service and the B.C. government are aware they need to change, and certainly the public has been asking for it,” said Fox.
Fox said there’s a lot of optimism about the new partnership, but, as with any government, there will likely be a lot of red tape to get through.
“I think speed is going to be important, whether or not the committee has the ability to make change and make change relatively quickly without having to study an issue to death, ” said Fox.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.
