November was an eventful month for the International Space Station (ISS) and its crew members. From spacecraft departures and arrivals, new modules, science experiments, and close calls with orbital spacecraft debris, the Expedition 65 and 66 crews stayed busy aboard the orbiting laboratory.<\/p>\n
The ISS and its crew kicked off November with the docking of the Roscosmos Progress MS-18 cargo vehicle on October 30. Cargo vehicles \u2014 such as the Progress, Cygnus, and Cargo Dragon \u2014 regularly visit the ISS and deliver food, water, oxygen, science experiments, and personal items for the crew.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Progress vehicles are also routinely used to adjust the station\u2019s orbit for phasing requirements, scheduled reboosts due to atmospheric drag, and Debris Avoidance Maneuvers.<\/p>\n
On November 2, the crew began a series of inspections on the ISS. More specifically, they performed hatch seal inspections on the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM), Pressurized Module (JPM), Starboard Node 2 (N2), Aft N2, Port N2, Forward N2, Columbus Port, Lab Aft, and Lab Forward module hatches.<\/p>\n
The following day saw the SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour<\/em> vehicle perform thruster checkouts on its collection of Draco thrusters ahead of its pending return to Earth with the Crew-2 astronauts.<\/p>\n