Expedition 61 was the 61st Expedition to the

International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest modular space station currently in low Earth orbit. It is a multinational collaborative project involving five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA ...

, which began on 3 October 2019 with the undocking of the

Soyuz MS-12 Soyuz MS-12 was a Soyuz spaceflight which launched on 14 March 2019, carrying three members of the Expedition 59 crew to the International Space Station. The mission ended on 3 October 2019, when Soyuz-MS-12 (carrying Ovchinin, Hague, and space ...

spacecraft. The Expedition was commanded by

ESA , owners = , headquarters = Paris, Île-de-France, France , coordinates = , spaceport = Guiana Space Centre , seal = File:ESA emblem seal.png , seal_size = 130px , image = Views in the Main Control Room (1205 ...

astronaut

Luca Parmitano Colonel Luca Parmitano (born 27 September 1976 in Paternò, Sicily) is an Italian astronaut in the European Astronaut Corps for the European Space Agency (ESA). He was selected as an ESA astronaut in May 2009. Parmitano is also a Colonel and te ...

, who became the third European and first Italian astronaut to command the ISS. Parmitano, along with his

Soyuz MS-13 Soyuz MS-13, also designated ISS flight 59S, was a crewed Soyuz mission launched on 20 July 2019 – the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing – carrying three members of the Expedition 60 crew to the International Space Station: a Rus ...

colleagues Aleksandr Skvortsov and Andrew Morgan, and Christina Koch from

, transferred over from Expedition 60. They were joined by

Oleg Skripochka Oleg Ivanovich Skripochka (russian: Оле́г Ива́нович Скри́почка; born 24 December 1969 in Nevinnomyssk, Stavropol Krai, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union) is a Russian engineer and cosmonaut. In 2011 he was in space serving as a ...

and

Jessica Meir Jessica Ulrika Meir (IPA: ; ; born ) is an American-Swedish NASA astronaut, marine biologist, and physiologist. She was previously an assistant professor of anesthesia at Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, following ...

, who launched on 25 September 2019 on board

Soyuz MS-15 Soyuz MS-15 was a Soyuz spaceflight launched on 25 September 2019, transporting two members of the Expedition 61 crew and a short duration visiting crew member to the International Space Station. Soyuz MS-15 was the 143rd flight of a Soyuz spac ...

Crew

Other crewed spaceflights to the ISS

According to a Flight Planning Integration Panel (FPIP) document obtained b
NASAspaceflight.com
in June 2019, Expedition 61 was tentatively scheduled to see two visits from

Commercial Crew Development Development of the Commercial Crew Program began in the second round of the Commercial Crew Development (CCDev) program, which was rescoped from a technology development program for human spaceflight to a competitive development program that woul ...

spacecraft. However, schedule slippages meant these visits will not occur. *The

Crew Dragon Demo-2 Crew Dragon Demo-2 (officially Crew Demo-2, SpaceX Demo-2, or Demonstration Mission-2) was the first crewed test flight of the Crew Dragon spacecraft. The spacecraft, named '' Endeavour'', launched on 30 May 2020 on a Falcon 9 booster, and carr ...

mission with American astronauts

Bob Behnken Robert Louis Behnken (; born July 28, 1970, in St. Ann, Missouri) is a NASA astronaut, engineer, and former Chief of the Astronaut Office. Behnken holds a Ph.D in mechanical engineering and the rank of colonel in the U.S. Air Force, where he s ...

and

Douglas Hurley Douglas Gerald Hurley (born October 21, 1966) is an American engineer, former Marine Corps pilot and former NASA astronaut. He piloted Space Shuttle missions STS-127 (July 2009) and STS-135 (July 2011), the final flight of the Space Shuttle pro ...

had a planning date for a 15 November 2019 launch and 22 November landing, with a brief stay on the ISS in between. *The

Boeing Crewed Flight Test Boeing Crew Flight Test (Boe CFT) will be the first crewed mission of the Boeing Starliner and the third orbital flight test of the Starliner overall after the two uncrewed flight tests, OFT-1 and OFT-2. Though the launch date for the mission ...

of the Starliner capsule had a planning date for a 30 November 2019 launch. It was proposed American astronauts Mike Finke,

Nicole Mann Nicole "Duke" Victoria Aunapu Mann (born June 27, 1977) is an American test pilot and NASA astronaut. She is an F/A-18 Hornet pilot, and a graduate of the US Naval Academy, Stanford University and the US Naval Test Pilot School. She has over 2, ...

, and

Chris Ferguson Christopher Philip Ferguson (born April 11, 1963) is an American professional poker player. He has won six World Series of Poker events, including the 2000 WSOP Main Event, and the 2008 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship. Ferguson is a ...

would dock to the International Space Station on 1 December and remain on the station until May 2020; it was unclear if these astronauts would have been formally considered ISS visitors, part of the Expedition 61 crew, or prompt the start of Expedition 62.

Spacewalks

Expedition 61 crew conducted nine

spacewalks Extravehicular activity (EVA) is any activity done by an astronaut in outer space outside a spacecraft. In the absence of a breathable Earthlike atmosphere, the astronaut is completely reliant on a space suit for environmental support. EVA inc ...

, more than in any other increment in the history of the ISS. Four spacewalks were conducted to repair the

Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02) is a particle physics experiment module that is mounted on the International Space Station (ISS).Kristine Rainey (April 2, 2013)Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS): How It Works NASA. Retrieved June 2, 20 ...

. The repairs were conducted by

astronaut

and

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

astronaut Andrew Morgan. Both of them were assisted by NASA astronauts Christina Koch and

who operated the

Canadarm2 The Mobile Servicing System (MSS), is a robotic system on board the International Space Station (ISS). Launched to the ISS in 2001, it plays a key role in station assembly and maintenance; it moves equipment and supplies around the station, supp ...

robotic arm from inside the Station. The spacewalks were described as the "most challenging since Hubble repairs". There were multiple spacewalks in order to repair and improve ISS batteries. On 18 October 2019 Christina Koch and Jessica Meir took the first all female spacewalk in history.

References

{{ISS expeditions Expeditions to the International Space Station 2019 in spaceflight 2020 in spaceflight