Second Resupply Mission Approaches ISS as Crew Advances Biomedical Studies

Roscosmos' Progress 93 cargo craft successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS) on Sept. 13, delivering more than 2.8 tons of supplies to Expedition 73. Commander Sergey Ryzhikov and Flight Engineer Alexey Ovchinin entered the vehicle the following day to begin unpacking. The spacecraft launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome two days earlier.

Meanwhile, Northrop Grumman's Cygnus XL is en route to the station carrying over 11,000 pounds of experiments and hardware. After lifting off from Cape Canaveral on Sept. 14, the spacecraft is set for a Sept. 17 rendezvous. NASA astronauts Jonny Kim and Zena Cardman will oversee its approach, with Kim using Canadarm2 to capture the vehicle before ground controllers berth it to the Unity module for a six-month stay.

While awaiting the second resupply, astronauts dedicated Monday to biotechnology and biomedical research. Kim, a physician, led cardiovascular health studies with Cardman, who also contributed to the CIPHER investigation monitoring heart, brain, and eye function in microgravity.

Kim and JAXA astronaut Kimiya Yui also examined bioprinted liver tissue to study how vascularized samples respond to weightlessness. Their work could advance regenerative medicine both in space and on Earth. Cardman focused on bone stem cell research in the Kibo module to better understand skeletal health and diseases associated with aging.

NASA astronaut Mike Fincke worked on the BioNutrients-3 experiment inside Harmony, testing yeast, yogurt, and fermented milk samples as part of efforts to develop onboard nutrient production for deep space missions.

Cosmonauts Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky prepared Progress 93 for long-term docked operations, tested Zvezda's docking mechanisms, and began transferring water and supplies. Fellow cosmonaut Oleg Platonov concentrated on photographing South American terrain and maintaining plasma physics hardware that could inform future spacecraft technologies.