Dragon to Leave ISS June 16 Carrying Tons of Science Samples Back to Earth
Updated
Updated · NASA · Jun 12
Dragon to Leave ISS June 16 Carrying Tons of Science Samples Back to Earth
3 articles · Updated · NASA · Jun 12
Summary
June 16 is the scheduled undocking date for SpaceX’s Dragon, which will leave the ISS at 12:05 p.m. EDT carrying stem cell samples, completed experiments and lab hardware back to Earth.
Those returns include blood stem cells grown since Dragon’s May 17 arrival, with Jessica Meir harvesting and checking their viability as researchers study space-made therapies for blood cancers and immune diseases.
Chris Williams also configured a microscope to track plant cell division in microgravity, part of NASA’s push to grow food for long-duration Moon and Mars missions without constant Earth resupply.
Four crew members — Williams, Meir, Jack Hathaway and Sophie Adenot — spent Friday packing cargo and will intensify transfers next week, loading sensitive samples into portable science freezers for return and analysis.