POLAND: ISS mission goals achieved by over 70 percent

Polish astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski reunited with young people in Rzeszów on Saturday, continued work on Polish experiments and recorded educational and promotional materials, the Polish Space Agency (POLSA) reported. The mission's goals have been completed at 72.9%.

That day, another successful shortwave connection was made with the International Space Station (ISS) as part of an event hosted by the Rzeszów University of Technology. "We learned, among other things, that Sławosz's favorite pastime on the ISS is admiring our planet from the window of Cupola, a special observation module," POLSA emphasized.

On Saturday, work continued on the Polish experiments Wireless Acoustics, which tests a noise measurement system, and MXene in LEO, which involves testing the operation of heart rate monitors with sensors made of nanomaterials.

The Polish astronaut also recorded a video demonstration with two educational experiments on the operation of Newton's cradle and the chain fountain phenomenon. He also recorded a video about the current status of the Ax-4 mission together with mission commander Peggy Whitson.

"Current status of implementation of basic mission objectives: 72.9 percent," POLSA reported.

The Axiom mission executive reported that the Axiom crew also connected that day with Dr. Lucie Low of Axiom Space to discuss their experiments and progress.

As a curiosity, POLSA has outlined in its latest report what the process of drinking coffee looks like on the ISS. "Where does the famous saying of astronauts that 'today's coffee is yesterday's coffee' come from? Well, astronauts use water dispensers that take in recycled liquids (you can guess how astronauts give off the most water) and moisture collected from the air to provide astronauts with warm drinking water," we read.

"People who want their morning coffee place an aluminum package in a hot water machine, then press a button to inject water into the aluminum package. The water dissolves the coffee (sometimes even the cream and sugar substitute), and the astronaut drinks the drink through a special plastic straw that has a built-in one-way valve to prevent the liquid from escaping," POLSA reported.

In 2015-2017, ISS residents could enjoy freshly brewed espresso prepared by a specially designed capsule coffee machine called ISSpresso, manufactured by Italians.

In turn, the Zero-G cup, also called the space cup, allows you to drink coffee without an aluminum package and a straw, but from a specially designed cup - we read. As POLSA explained, the vessel has a unique shape, thanks to which the coffee droplets do not "escape" (which normally happens due to the influence of microgravity), and the liquid is somehow moved to a specially narrowed edge, which allows you to "take a sip" of the drink. (PAP)

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