NASA astronaut Anil Menon is scheduled to
launch to the International Space Station
¨
NASA astronaut Anil Menon
is scheduled to launch to the International Space Station (ISS) on 14 July
2026.
¨
He will travel aboard the
Roscosmos Soyuz MS-29 spacecraft.
¨
The mission will launch
from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, at 10:47 a.m. EDT.
¨
The International Space
Station (ISS) is a modular orbital laboratory that has been continuously
inhabited since November 2000.
¨
The ISS operates in Low
Earth Orbit (LEO) at an altitude of about 400 km.
¨
It serves as a platform
for microgravity research, technology demonstrations, and international
scientific cooperation.
¨
Soyuz MS-29 is part of
the Roscosmos Soyuz crewed spacecraft series used for human spaceflight
missions.
¨
The Soyuz spacecraft has
been transporting astronauts and cosmonauts to orbital stations for several decades.
¨
Anil Menon will join
Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina as part of Expedition 74.
¨
The mission is expected
to last about eight months, with the crew scheduled to return to Earth in April
2027.
¨
During the mission, Menon
will conduct research on vein structure, blood flow, and blood composition in a
microgravity environment.
¨
He will also test methods
to produce intravenous (IV) fluids using the ISS potable water system.
¨
Another key objective is
to improve the in-space production of semiconductor crystals.
¨
Anil Menon was selected
as a NASA astronaut in 2021.
¨
He successfully completed
NASA astronaut training in March 2024.
