Solar Panels Moved Before Cargo Spacecraft Docking | International Space Station

Solar Panels Moved Before Cargo Spacecraft Docking | International Space Station

The International Space Station crew prepared for the arrival of the Russian Progress cargo spacecraft by securing the station's solar panels to prevent thruster activity from accidentally damaging them. Spacecraft thrusters can impact station surfaces with high-speed droplets of unburned and partially burned propellant, potentially causing erosion damage to solar cells and other sensitive hardware.

The unpiloted Progress 92 spacecraft successfully arrived at the space-facing port of the orbiting laboratory’s Poisk module at 5:25 p.m. EDT, Saturday, July 5, 2025. The spacecraft was launched at 3:32 p.m. EDT on July 3 (12:32 a.m. Baikonur time, July 4) via a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

The Roscosmos spacecraft delivered about three tons of food, fuel, and supplies for the Expedition 73 crew aboard the International Space Station. It will remain docked for approximately six months before departing for a re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere to dispose of trash loaded by the crew. 

Follow Expedition 73:
https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/

Expedition 73 Crew

Station Commander: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Flight Engineer Takuya Onishi
Roscosmos (Russia) Flight Engineers: Kirill Peskov, Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritskiy

NASA Flight Engineers: Anne McClain, Nichole Ayers, Jonny Kim

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada. The ISS has been the most politically complex space exploration program ever undertaken.

Credit: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)/TOnishi

Duration: 5 seconds

Capture Date: July 5, 2025

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