International Space Station (I.S.S.) Expedition 68 began on 29 September 2022 with the departure of Soyuz MS-21, carrying cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveev, & Sergey Korsakov. It has now become routine for the I.S.S. to host complements of ten during the generally weeklong overlap of Soyuz capsule crews & complements of eleven during the generally weeklong overlap of Crew Dragon crews. More astronauts & cosmonauts on the I.S.S. means more science being done, even as both the Russian & United States Orbital Segments age & require increased maintenance & repair.
Expedition 68 (29 September 2022-present)
29 September-6 October
Commander: Samantha Cristoforetti (Italian, E.S.A.)
Flight Engineer: Kjell Lindgren (American, N.A.S.A.)
F.E.: Bob Hines (American, N.A.S.A.)
F.E.: Jessica Watkins (American, N.A.S.A.)
F.E.: Sergey Prokopyev (Russian, Roscosmos)
F.E.: Dmitry Petelin (Russian, Roscosmos)
F.E.: Francisco Rubio (American, N.A.S.A
6-14 October
F.E.: Nicole Mann (American, N.A.S.A.)
F.E.: Josh Cassada (American, N.A.S.A.)
F.E.: Koichi Wakata (Japanese, J.A.X.A.)
F.E.: Anna Kikina (Russian, Roscosmos)
14 October-present
CDR: Sergey Prokopyev (Russian, Roscosmos)
F.E.: Dmitry Petelin (Russian, Roscosmos)
F.E.: Francisco Rubio (American, N.A.S.A)
F.E.: Nicole Mann (American, N.A.S.A.)
F.E.: Josh Cassada (American, N.A.S.A.)
F.E.: Koichi Wakata (Japanese, J.A.X.A.)
F.E.: Anna Kikina (Russian, Roscosmos)
Soyuz MS-22 (Tsiolkovsky)
Launch: 21 September 2022
CDR: Sergey Prokopyev (Russian, Roscosmos)
F.E.: Dmitry Petelin (Russian, Roscosmos)
F.E.: Francisco Rubio (American, N.A.S.A)
Landing: 29 September 2022
CDR: Oleg Artemyev (Russian, Roscosmos)
F.E.: Denis Matveev (Russian, Roscosmos)
F.E.: Sergey Korsakov (Russian, Roscosmos)
On 15 December 2022, a "visible stream of flakes" was detected eminating from the MS-22 capsule. A 0.8 mm hole has been located on the Soyuz's external radiator cooling loop, raising questions about the spacecraft's ability to ferry its crew safely back to Earth. The current plan is for Soyuz MS-23 to be launched uncrewed in February, to return Prokopyev, Petelin, & Rubio to the steppes of Kazakhstan; MS-22 will return uncrewed. Meanwhile, in case of emergency, Rubio would evacuate to the Crew Dragon Endurance (giving her a crew of five, having been originally designed for a crew of seven), while Prokopyev & Petelin would evaculate aboard the MS-22, a crew of two placing less demand on the cooling system than a crew of three. Pray those eventualities will remain hypothetical.
SpaceX Crew-5 (Endurance)
Launch: 5 October 2022
CDR: Nicole Mann (American, N.A.S.A.)
Pilot: Josh Cassada (American, N.A.S.A.)
M.S.1: Koichi Wakata (Japanese, J.A.X.A.)
M.S.2: Anna Kikina (Russian, Roscosmos)
SpaceX Crew-4 (Freedom)
Splashdown: 14 October 2022
CDR: Kjell Lindgren (American, N.A.S.A.)
Pilot: Bob Hines (American, N.A.S.A.)
M.S. 1: Samantha Cristoforetti (Italian, E.S.A.)
M.S. 2: Jessica Watkins (American, N.A.S.A.)
"What a time to be alive!"
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