Today Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3) Commander Michael López-Alegría, Pilot Walter Villadei, Mission Specialist Alper Gezeravcı, and Mission Specialist Marcus Wandt completed their second full day (flight day five) on the International Space Station (ISS).
The Ax-3 crewmembers participated in their first outreach engagements and continued to prepare and set up research projects and experiments. Upon their departure from the ISS, the crew will have completed more than 30 experiments and more than 50 outreach engagements.
Today Villadei performed microscope imaging of the cancer cell cultures stored in bioreactor bags for the Cancer in LEO project. In partnership with Axiom Space and the Sanford Stem Cell Institute, this experiment will study tumor organoids in microgravity with the goal to identify early warning signs of cancer for prediction and prevention of disease.
Villadei also activated sample tubes and completed initial sample transfers into the MELFI cold stowage facility for the βeta-Amyloid Aggregation Update experiment. Led by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), this project will investigate the aggregation of amyloid beta (Aβ) proteins, which are implicated in neurodegenerative diseases (e.g., Alzheimer's disease). Researching proteins in microgravity provides an opportunity to better understand the mechanisms of Aβ protein aggregation and the formation of amyloid plaques, which could lead to insights into how to prevent or reverse formation in Alzheimer's patients.
To begin preparations for the Orbital Architecture study, Wandt charged the non-invasive functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) payload device, which will record brain activity through a cap embedded with sensors on a participant’s forehead during cognitive assessments. He also connected the hardware to a Columbus payload laptop for initial science capture. The Orbital Architecture study will investigate how isolated and confined environments on Earth and in space affect an astronaut’s cognitive performance, stress levels, and stress recovery rate.
The Ax-3 crew also participated in a NASA PAO event with the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC), which is a professional network with more than 27,000 members from more than 165 countries bringing together the views of students and young space professionals to the United Nations, space industry, and other organizations. During the live event, the Ax-3 astronauts answered questions from members of SGAC about their life, experiences, and important work being conducted in space, as the first all-European commercial astronaut mission.
Tomorrow, Wandt will do a recorded interview with Aftonbladet, which is the largest newspaper in Scandinavia. He will discuss the importance of human spaceflight, living and working in space, and microgravity research.
The Ax-3 astronauts completed the ICE Cubes Media Set setup with Bluetooth headphones and Bose Soundlink Revolve+II Bluetooth speaker pairing. They conducted practice Q&A sessions as a group and individually. This test event will ensure the crew is comfortable with using the equipment and understands the protocols for ICE Cubes Media Set events. ICE Cubes is a platform that offers ability to connect astronauts to the ground in support of experiments, research, technology demonstrations, and outreach engagements. The ICE Cubes service provides fast and direct access to the ISS for any country, institute, or user.
Gezeravcı had his first interaction, since going to space, with Türkiye President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. During this live event, the Ax-3 Mission Specialist and Türkiye President participated in a public celebration of Gezeravcı being the first Turkish astronaut and commemorated the 100th anniversary of the Republic of Türkiye.
Tomorrow at 10:40 a.m. CT, MLA will participate in a live event with ASTM International, the American Society for Testing and Materials, which is an international standards organization that develops and publishes voluntary consensus technical standards for a wide range of materials, products, systems, and services. During this event, MLA will speak with ASTM chair members about the difference between commercial and government astronaut missions, as well as safety frameworks and standards.
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