ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst's ISS training continues

ESA’s Columbus Control Centre (Col-CC) supports the European Columbus laboratory on the International Space Station. 

Col-CC is situated at the DLR German Aerospace Center facility in Oberpfaffenhofen, near Munich, Germany. 

The Control Centre is the direct link to Columbus in space. 

Its main functions are to command and control the Columbus laboratory systems, to coordinate operations of the European payloads on the Station and to operate the European ground communications network. 

Credit: DLR/T. Ernsting

An atmosphere of rising excitement can be sensed in the control centre: everything is ready for ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst's voyage to the International Space Station blasting off next Wednesday.

The Columbus Control Centre in Oberpfaffenhofen, near Munich, Germany has followed many launches since its inauguration 10 years ago – but no mission is routine.

The centres in Baikonur, Kazakhstan and Korolev, Russia are in the front line but ESA's site – callsign "Munich" – is responsible for the Columbus module and all European experiments.

Pedro Duque

"We cooperate with our international partners to make sure that the Space Station is ready to receive the Soyuz spacecraft and its crew," says ESA astronaut Pedro Duque, now head of the Flight Operations Office.

If the Station needs to rotate to allow the Soyuz to dock, for example, some European hardware might need to be switched off or risk interfering with the docking.

"Our teams run simulations a few times a year, including emergency scenarios," explains Pedro.

Operators also need to be ready to reconfigure Europe's Columbus laboratory if the planned six-hour flight is switched to a two-day approach, as happened to the previous Soyuz flight following a minor malfunction.

Pedro's experience as an astronaut comes in handy: "I can relate to the crew, and help flight controllers better understand the astronauts' perspective.

ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst during training on the plant gravity sensing experiment, at JAXA’s Tsukuba Space Center in Japan on 4 March 2014. 

As part of the International Space Station, the Japanese Experiment Module, called Kibo, was developed and tested at TKSC. 

At Tsukuba the astronaut training covers experiments that take place in Kibo. 

Alexander Gerst is flight engineer for Expedition 40/41, which will be launched to the International Space Station in May 2014 on a long-duration mission to run science experiments and maintain humankind’s space base. 

Credit: ESA–S. Corvaja, 2014

ESA Astronauts in underwater NASA Seatest adventure - video

ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen gives the ‘all-ok’ while spacewalk training during NASA’s Seatest underwater simulation for working in space.

ESA astronauts Andreas Mogensen and Thomas Pesquet returned from Florida last week after taking part in Seatest – NASA's underwater testbed for working in space.

Andreas stayed 20 m underwater for four nights in the Aquarius habitat with NASA astronauts Joa Acaba and Kate Rubins and Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi.

 Andreas Mogensen

The mission was divided into testing crew procedures that might be used on the International Space Station and practising spacewalks underwater.

Each day, half of the crew ventured outside for a three-hour 'waterwalk' as the other two monitored it from inside. In the afternoon the roles were reversed.

During sorties, the astronauts practised moving across different terrains and deploying sensor arrays. At different points along their way they ran through ways of sampling the seabed.

Techniques included a simple inverted bag, a modified 'pooper-scooper' and an advanced pneumatic drill that chips away at a rock while making sure that the pieces do not fly away.

Thomas Pesquet

On the third day the astronauts changed their weights to recreate lunar gravity. "The lunar spacewalks were the best," says Andreas. "It is a fantastic feeling to bounce around on the surface."

In the underwater 'space station' Andreas and colleagues tested hardware that can deliver just-in-time-training on heads-up displays. Andreas used the hardware to assemble and install a miniature exercise device.

Astronauts on space missions must exercise up to two hours a day to stay fit and counteract the negative effects of living in space on the body.

Exercise machines on the International Space Station work well but are too large to be practical for smaller spacecraft.

The new 'gymnasium-in-a-box' was put through its paces during Seatest. The miniature exercise device is computer-controlled to vary resistance, offering a complete workout.

Meanwhile, above ground, Thomas took on the role of flight director and crew communicator. With a 20-minute delay imposed on all communications between the astronauts and mission control, it was almost like not having direct communication at all.

A simulated spacewalk during NASA's Seatest to test and practice moving across different terrains and deploying sensor arrays. At different points along their way the astronauts ran through ways of sampling the seabed. 

Techniques included a simple inverted bag, a modified ‘pooper-scooper’ and an advanced pneumatic drill that chips away at a rock while making sure that the pieces do not fly away.

Thomas, who is a qualified Space Station crew communicator, recounts, "Our communication became more formal – there was less time for chatter.

We had to anticipate possible questions and provide the answers before they were asked."

ESA European Astronaut Luca Parmitano Training

In less than three years, ESA Astronaut Luca Parmitano has travelled between all five international partners' training sites, gaining the knowledge and skills required for his mission.

His tailored training has taken him to Houston, USA, Star City near Moscow, Russia, Tsukuba near Tokyo, Japan, Montreal, Canada, and the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, Germany.

Critical tasks are trained over and over. As Soyuz flight engineer, Luca requires a great amount of 'flying hours' in the Russian spacecraft simulator, so he trained until he felt at home in the cockpit and can operate Soyuz flawlessly in any situation.

During simulations, Luca had his hands at the controls of the spacecraft and wore the Russian Sokol flight suit.

Luca has been taught Space Station systems in full-size mockups, where he familiarised himself with the Station and learnt how everything works.

He is trained in all systems and experiment operations scheduled for his mission. He has spent hours getting to know every corner of Europe's Columbus laboratory, which forms a major part of the ISS.

Most of the experiments that Luca will carry out are based in the ESA ISS Columbus lab.

Dressed in a spacesuit, Luca also trained to perform spacewalks in one of the largest swimming pools in the world on realistic mockups of the Space Station.

Exchange tweets with Luca Parmitano on Twitter