Tag Archives: nespoli

The story behind Paolo’s Space Station photos

ESA's astronaut Paolo Nespoli, Expedition 26 flight engineer, uses a still camera at a window in the Zvezda Service Module during rendezvous and docking shuttle Discovery, 26 February 2011. Credits: ESA/NASA

ESA's astronaut Paolo Nespoli, Expedition 26 flight engineer, uses a still camera at a window in the Zvezda Service Module during rendezvous and docking shuttle Discovery, 26 February 2011. Credits: ESA/NASA

When the Soyuz TMA-20 spacecraft undocked from the International Space Station, ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli had a special job to do: capture unique images of the orbital outpost with the Shuttle and Europe’s ATV ferry attached. Paolo tells us about those precious minutes.

Seen on a TV screen on 23 May, it all looked very easy and smooth: Soyuz stopped about 200 m away and the Station tilted to present a better view. Paolo took his photos through a small window in the Soyuz orbital module before returning to his seat in the descent module alongside crewmates Dmitri Kondratyev and Catherine Coleman for the landing.

“This was a complex and delicate manoeuvre that could have caused serious problems if not executed properly, but I felt it was worth the risk,” says Paolo, who had only few seconds to admire the view.

Full article via ESA

Stunning. Speechless. ESA’s Paolo Nespoli captures the ISS like never before

Updated 9 June - scroll down for video

These images of the International Space Station, the docked ATV-2 Johannes Kepler and the docked Space Shuttle Endeavour, flying at an altitude of approximately 220 miles, were taken by ESA astronaut and Expedition 27 crew member Paolo Nespoli from the Soyuz TMA-20 following its undocking on 23 May 2011 (USA time). They are the first-ever images of a space shuttle docked to the International Space Station. Onboard the Soyuz were Russian cosmonaut and Expedition 27 commander Dmitry Kondratyev; Nespoli; and NASA astronaut Cady Coleman. Coleman and Nespoli were both flight engineers. The three landed in Kazakhstan later that day, completing 159 days in space.

ISS with ATV & Shuttle docked captured by ESA's Paolo Nespoli credit: ESA/NASA/Roscosmos

ISS with ATV & Shuttle docked captured by ESA's Paolo Nespoli credit: ESA/NASA/Roscosmos

ISS with ATV & Shuttle docked credit: ESA/NASA/Roscosmos

ISS with ATV & Shuttle docked credit: ESA/NASA/Roscosmos

ISS with ATV & Shuttle docked captured by ESA's Paolo Nespoli credit: ESA/NASA/Roscosmos

ISS with ATV & Shuttle docked captured by ESA's Paolo Nespoli credit: ESA/NASA/Roscosmos

More images via NASA here and also here. Also, beautiful view of the shuttle here.

And all images in a slide show, courtesy of the ESA Flickr channel:

And finally, here's the video, courtesy NASA:

Two European astronauts inside the ATV

This photo was taken on 23 May, just hours before Nespoli departed the ISS at the end of his 159-day MagISStra mission. Vittori arrived on board Shuttle Endeavour, which docked just last week. This is the first time that two Italians were aboard the Station at the same time.

Furthermore: they are the only Europeans who have seen and visited ATV while in orbit! In 2008, during the ATV-1 mission, only Expeditions 16 (Peggy Whitson, Yuri Malenchenko and Garrett Reisman) and 17 (Sergey Volkov, Oleg Kononenko and South Korean spaceflight participant Yi So-Yeon) were aboard the ISS when it was docked.

On 23 May 2011, ESA astronauts Paolo Nespoli (left) and Roberto Vittori shake hands inside the ATV following an Earth-to-space phone tag-up with Italian President Giorgio Napolitano. Credit: NASA

On 23 May 2011, ESA astronauts Roberto Vittori (left) and Paolo Nespoli (right) shake hands inside the ATV following an Earth-to-space phone tag-up with Italian President Giorgio Napolitano. Credit: NASA

Our hearts are with @Astro_Paolo

A brief update this morning from @esa via Twitter on the sad loss of astronaut Paolo Nespoli's mother, Maria Motta, 78, who died on Monday evening:

Our hearts are with @Astro_Paolo. Thank you all for your messages of condolence on Twitter and Flickr, they are all being passed to him.

Sincere condolences to Astro Paolo from all of us here at the ATV blog!

(More info in the main ESA website).

Nespoli performs hot-swap of faulty valve on Columbus

Nice update today in the main ESA website on the 27 February in-orbit replacement of a faulty water valve in the Columbus lab's Thermal Control System, which cools all the equipment and scientific payloads in the orbiting research module:

ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli removes failed valve in Columbus 27 February 2011

ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli removes failed valve in Columbus 27 February 2011

A joint effort is combining sophisticated engineering analysis on the ground with old-fashioned hands-on work in space after ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli undertook the complex installation of a replacement water valve in ESA's Columbus science laboratory.

Full article via ESA

O2 transfer complete

Interior of the ATV simulator showing the vessel in "in-flight" configuration

Just in from Mike Steinkopf, ESA mission director at ATV-CC: O2 transfer to the ISS ended at 19:08 CET: 'transfer was successful'. The gas delivery ran for about 3 hours. Mike adds: "In the meantime, ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli finished today's planned cargo transfer to ISS." More details on this via NASA:

While the (O2) repress(urization) was going on, astronauts Coleman & Nespoli performed cargo transfer activities in ATV. These included:

  • TSR (Temporary Stowage Rack) deployment
  • Removal of large stowage bags (M-Bags) from the rack front and stowing them temporarily out of the way
  • Retrieving a delivered RFTA (Recycle Filter Tank Assembly) & transferring it to the PMM for stowage
  • Removing two adapter plates to access rack cargo

Special attention was given to the location of a CTB (Cargo Transfer Bag) with ESA's FSL (Fluid Science Laboratory) experiment 'Geoflow', which will be set up tomorrow.

TsUP-Moscow from ISS: Progress 41P in arrival. Everything nominal!

Progress 41P arrival - photos by ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli

These just arrived from @astro_paolo on board the ISS a few minutes ago and show this morning's automatic docking of the Russian cargo vessel 'Progress' flight 41P with the ISS. "TsUP" is, of course, the Moscow ISS mission control centre (MCC-M).

Progress 41P in arrival
“TsUP-Moscow from ISS, Progress 41P in arrival. Everything nominal!”

Progress 41P in arrival

Automatic Russian Cargo Vehicle “Progress” 41P arriving at the ISS.
Oleg and Alexander ready to take control in case of problems.

Automatic Russian Cargo Vehicle 'Progress' 41P arriving at the ISS

Photo Credit: ESA/NASA

via MagISStra photostream in Flickr